KVR Audio

FrankT · Post by **FrankT** » Mon Aug 19, 2019 10:04 pm

I am building a new Win10 DAW but will keep my proven i4770K as a workhorse for a range of AV related tasks.
Question: is it possible to share AudioInterface (RME), Masterkeyboard (Komplete), TR8S as well as iLok/elicenser through a USB Switch so to use it on both PCs. Not in parallel of course.

Which USB Switch can be recommended for such a scenario?

chai_all_day_long · Post by **chai_all_day_long** » Tue Aug 20, 2019 3:04 am

If you use a physical USB switch it is just routing the signal so no reason this shouldn't work. The thing to keep in mind is that you would ideally want to make sure to use one that is actively pwoered and maintains the necessary voltage across all connections for all the devices. Also you'll want to use whichever unit that matches your minimum connectivity types and bandwidth (e.g. USB 3.0 Gen 1/2 or USB 2.0). The cheap and easy option in this case might just be a high quality USB 3.0 hub that you could swap the main hub cable from on each machine. Are you planning on share a keyboard and monitor as well, or just the peripherals? If you do the later might look more in the realm of a KVM switch.

Vaultnaemsae · Post by **Vaultnaemsae** » Tue Aug 20, 2019 4:27 am

I bought an A/B USB switcher (labeled 'Printer switcher') for about $10 not knowing if it would work. It has one in and two outs. There were also models with more outs.

It was intended to be used to switch USB destinations of a single audio interface/device (A = Laptop 1, B = USB Midi Host).

It works perfectly and I'm 99% certain it would work if B was another computer. I'm guessing even if you stack devices on a hub connected to the switcher's IN it would still be fine but I really should test it to verify that.

FrankT · Post by **FrankT** » Tue Aug 20, 2019 4:46 am

Thanks. I agree that a powered USB 3.0 Switch will be better. And yes, I am using a Startech KVM switch to share two 27 inch monitors, keyboard and mouse. The integrated USB Hub of the KVM switch is 2.0 and only has 4 USB connections - not enough for all the peripherals I need to connect/share. One thing that concerns me is whether connecting the RME Audio Interface through a USB hub could have a negative effect on audio signals ?

djmino02 · Post by **djmino02** » Fri Dec 04, 2020 2:38 pm

There's a program called Synergy where this can be done through your WiFi network and you can share the peripheral between systems.

I'm looking to combine my PC w/ a Mac M1 mini eventually.

I'm wondering if anyone has done this with any degree of success.

I'm also wondering if/how to share USB dongles amongst 2 computers? And; if using Synergy, would I also be able to use network midi like RTP simultaneously?

Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks!

USB Switch: share Audio gear on 2 PCs