Reference 4 Systemwide app troubleshooting guide

Reference 4 is unsupported and discontinued since 2021. The Reference product line continues with SoundID Reference, learn more here:

  → Reference 4 system requirements and support status
  → What's new in SoundID Reference?
  → Upgrade paths for Reference 3 and 4

Full troubleshooting guide for Reference 4 Systemwide: how to deal with "no sound" and other common issues, update-related problems, warnings, and error messages.

In this article:

• Systemwide app fails to launch
• No sound/low output volume
  • [MAC] No sound or low output level
  • [MAC] Microphone access requirement
• Audio driver issues
  • "Audio playback engine failed to start" error
  • [WIN] "Couldn't discover supported formats" error
  • [WIN] Blacklisting problematic ASIO drivers
• Other warnings and error messages
  • “Couldn't migrate settings” warning

Systemwide app fails to launch

Systemwide not launching after an update is an issue that can happen on both macOS and Windows, most commonly present after software and operating system updates. Usually, it is caused by settings that can't be migrated between the old and the new Systemwide version.

To solve the problem, delete the Systemwide config file in the following location:

macOS

Macintosh HD/Users/Library/Sonarworks/Reference 4/Systemwide/Systemwidecfg.db

Note: The User/Library directory on macOS is hidden by default. Use the Command + Shift + "." (dot) key command in Finder to show hidden files, or follow the directions here: How to show hidden files Mac and Windows?

Windows

C:\Users\your username\AppData\Local\Sonarworks\Reference 4\Systemwide\Systemwidecfg.db

Note: The Library\AppData directory on Windows is hidden by default. To show hidden files, follow the directions here: How to show hidden files Mac and Windows?

No sound/low output volume 

[MAC] No sound or low output level

If you encounter a situation where Systemwide is receiving seemingly low or no input signal at all, it's worth checking the following settings:

• Check if Systemwide isn't muted in your macOS Settings > Sound > Output.
• Open Audio MIDI Setup (use Spotlight search), click on the Sonarworks Systemwide audio device (driver), and make sure that all three volume faders are maxed out:

[MAC] Microphone access requirement

Since macOS 10.14 Mojave, security and privacy protections require the user to enable microphone access for Reference 4 software, including the Systemwide app. 

After installing the Sonarworks software on macOS Mojave (or running it for the first time after updating to Mojave) you will be prompted by macOS to allow Systemwide app audio driver access to the Microphone (see the image below). Click OK to allow. 

If this prompt was missed for any reason, you can adjust it manually:

1. Go to System Preferences > Security & Privacy > Privacy > Microphone > Reference 4 Systemwide.
2. Click on "🔒" (Lock icon) to make changes; enter your login details to confirm.
3. Click on the check box next to the Reference 4 Systemwide. 
    

Audio driver issues

"Audio playback engine failed to start" error

Reference 4 Systemwide attempts to present detailed error dialogs if the audio playback engine fails. However, this is not always possible - there are scenarios where Systemwide cannot determine the cause of the failure.

There can be different reasons for this. For example, a sudden format change on the audio output device can be unsupported and cause a playback engine failure if the engine is in the middle of initialization. Other cases could involve uncommon channel layouts, unsupported sample formats, or exclusive access settings from other processes. In such cases, the "Audio playback engine failed to start" error dialog will be presented.

This will help the troubleshooting process and narrow down the cause of failure. Common anomalies to look for might include sample rate/format mismatches, blank setting fields, and other obscure things in Mac's Audio MIDI Setup and Windows Sound Control Panel. If the cause can be pinned down and fixed, proceed to Systemwide audio settings and hit the "Restart audio playback engine" button.

[WIN] "Couldn't discover supported formats" error

If you see the "Couldn't discover supported formats" when launching the Systemwide app (present only in Reference 4.2 or older), this means your physical output device (the one assigned as output in the Systemwide app) is not configured as a stereo device. 

If this happens, configure your audio interface as a stereo device:

1. Navigate to Windows Settings > Sound Control Panel.
2. Select the audio device you intend to use (we are using an RME device in the example screesnhot below).
3. Click on Configure > Audio channels, and set it to Stereo.

[WIN] Blacklisting problematic ASIO drivers

Some ASIO drivers showing in Systemwide might be subject to compatibility problems resulting in serious usability issues (crashes, audio artifacts during playback, etc.). Problematic ASIO drivers can be manually disabled by the user for any reason they deem necessary: blacklisted ASIO drivers will not show up in Systemwide as output options, while retaining their functionality in other apps.

Note: The blacklist information will be cleared with a software update/reinstall. The blackisting process will have to be repeated after updating, if you wish to keep a driver blacklisted.

1. Download the audiodeviceblacklist.config blacklist file ↓ attached at the bottom ↓ of this article.
2. Place it in the blacklist file into directory shown below, and open it with any text editor app (e.g. Notepad). 
   Note: The User\AppData directory on Windows is hidden by default. Allow showing hidden files as shown here):

   C:\Users\your username\AppData\Local\Sonarworks\Reference 4\Systemwide\audiodeviceblacklist.config

3. Type "regedit" in the Windows search bar to launch Registry Editor.
4. Navigate to the ASIO directory shown below:

   Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ASIO

5. Click on the driver you wish to blacklist (we have blacklisted ASIO4ALL v2 in the example below).
6. Double-click on CLSID > Value data (driver ID), and copy-paste it in the blacklist file ID field.
7. Double-click on Description > Vaule data (driver name) and copy-paste it in the blacklist file Title field.
8. Save and Close the blacklist file.

Note: You can blacklist multiple ASIO drivers if needed. Simply copy-paste the entire "<BlacklistedDevice" section in the blacklist file to add more entries:

Other warnings and error messages

“Couldn't migrate settings” warning

When updating Reference Systemwide to a newer version (or downgrading to a previous version), there can be cases when the software is unable to migrate the DSP settings, presets and configuration data from the previous version to the new one. 

If you see “Couldn't migrate settings”, the software has moved the file that stores the information to a different folder and created a new file. This means that all settings have been changed to their default values, and you have to create a new Output Presets to apply calibration.