Watch Out - iLok Catastrophic Bug in Sonivox Plugins
Watch out if you have iLok Licence Manager installed and then install Sonivox software that installs iLok inside its own installer.
I downloaded Sonivox VocalizerPro 1.3 on the Plugin Boutique site.
I already had iLok License Manager installed but the installer for VocalizerPro installed what appeared to be iLok again. There was no option to accept/decline this extra install. I suspect this somehow catastrophically conflicts with the latest version of iLok License Manager and caused an unrecoverable boot failure with the stopcode error: 'page fault in a nonpaged area' with tpkd.sys failing.
The problem can only be recovered by wiping the drive and reinstalling Windows completely or restoring from a recovery image. Windows Repair does not work.
I already have the latest version of iLok License Manager installed and it works fine with everything else.
I reproduced the bug exactly by repeating the same steps.
This is likely to be affecting/will affect other uses and requires immediate action by Sonivox (who I contacted) and by iLok (who I can't yet find contact details for).
Be careful, guys.
UPDATE:
I received a replay from ILok. It appears that the problem is Sonivox. The version of ILok it installs is over 5 years old (!!!)and has severe issues with a recent build Windows 10. I'm still awaiting a reply from them.
Quote:
Our installers (even ones included in other installers such as Sonivox) are smart enough to handle versioning, and will not overwrite newer files with older ones. That should prevent a lot of the catastrophic conflicts that you are worried about.
The option to accept/decline our installer, though, is up to Sonivox, not us. The decision to include that particular install is also not ours -- we moved on from TPkd.sys more than 5 years ago, and our recent License Support/iLok License Manager installs do not include it. There is a recent build of Windows 10 that does seem to have a lot of problems with the old TPkd.sys file, so we'll advise Sonivox that they will likely want to move to a more recent version of our software that no longer has this issue.
Best Regards,
Robert Duncan
iLok.com Technical Support
Last edited by Retro Audio Enthusiast; 06-30-2020 at 06:57 AM.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^ THX for this !!! ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Lotsa variables for each user, but good to be aware of. Trusting you will post details as situation progresses!
What did Sonivox / Plugin Boutique have to say about this?
Not heard back yet.
I just installed Xpand!2_2.2.7 and it did the same thing - it installed iLok inside the same installer.
I'm dreading rebooting.
Quote:
Originally Posted by sostenuto
^^^^^^^^^^^^^ THX for this !!! ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Lotsa variables for each user, but good to be aware of. Trusting you will post details as situation progresses!
Usually, iLok installers will start, see a newer version of the License Manager installed then skip over the actual installation of License Manager and jump to the finish screen. I've never seen a plug-in ever actually manage to successfully install an older version of License Manager than what was installed on my machine. Not saying that's not what happened in your case, just saying it's not the norm. I've got hundreds of iLok plugins and never ran into that.
Usually, iLok installers will start, see a newer version of the License Manager installed then skip over the actual installation of License Manager and jump to the finish screen.
Exactly. - but it didn't and installed something.
Quote:
I've never seen a plug-in ever actually manage to successfully install an older version of License Manager than what was installed on my machine. Not saying that's not what happened in your case, just saying it's not the norm. I've got hundreds of iLok plugins and never ran into that.
It's the first time for me too.
I did just install something else with iLok and it's ok.
All the other plugins - Kush, Eventide etc. are fine, no problems. It appears to be that one plugin so far.
Last edited by Retro Audio Enthusiast; 06-28-2020 at 01:10 PM.
Location: Near Cambridge UK and Near Questembert, France
Posts: 22,754
Quote:
Originally Posted by DarkStar
What did Sonivox / Plugin Boutique have to say about this?
Since Sonivox sold out to PIB and PIB know nothing about the Sonivox products, especially the earlier ones, this could get very frustrating for you...
When I had my Win10 mega crash one of the very few bought & paid for plugins I could NOT get back online was the Sonivox DVY Divine Upright bass, which I had used on many of my projects, none of which worked, even though I still had the original download app and the security key etc. PIB basically said that they had no way of supporting "old products" & I still havent found an upright bass I like as much.
Sorry about the rant, but...
Interesting ... did not know PIB/Sonivox linkage and can now be careful.
OTH, many years with iLok dongle (moving back and forth from DAW 1 & DAW 2 (Windows Desktops now Win10 Pro) and never one notable issue. Fortunate for sure !
So starting up Windows in SafeMode doesn't help with that either? Or booting via a Linux-Live-CD?
Because I would probably try to "fix this" by running safemode and delete the tpkd.sys, then try to restart(and hope I'll get only some weird error-messages) and reinstall the most recent ilok-driver again.
Though I had many issues in the past with iLok as well, so I might underestimate the faultiness of the drivers.
I also think, that Sonivox has also made a big mistake with it to include that into their installer without an opt-out. They can't expect the user to not have the most recent version of the driver installed. This is a big bug then...
So starting up Windows in SafeMode doesn't help with that either? Or booting via a Linux-Live-CD?
Because I would probably try to "fix this" by running safemode and delete the tpkd.sys, then try to restart(and hope I'll get only some weird error-messages) and reinstall the most recent ilok-driver again.
Here's the thing, I was locked out of any kind of restore procedure.
It booted past BIOS then froze with a bluescreen and stopcode error.
It went into Windows repair, failed repair, then froze at the 'choose your keyboard layout' window when I tried to get into safe mode. My keyboard was totally inacessible.
Then I went into command prompt to fix this apparent windows keyboard bug which was supposedly fixed in a March update - and my Win 10 was up to date. I got so far before I was notified that access was denied. I worked out I didn't have certain Windows features enabled and it then denied me access to install them via command prompt. I had no choice but to reformat and reinstall.
I went through three days of downloading and installing all my software and in some cases writing mails to iLok-enabled plugin vendors asking for licence resets. I had to explain what the problem was and in some cases including a screenshot of proof of purchase.
Today I made an image of my C Drive and then installed the Sonivox plugin. Same exact crash, BSOD and locked-out issues.
Restored my drive and now I'm fine again. I won't be reinstalling that plugin, so I'm looking for a vocoder, any reccomendations? I don't mind free ones either.
Location: Near Cambridge UK and Near Questembert, France
Posts: 22,754
Wise move, R.A.E. I regretted losing the Sonivox bass, but not much else, and at least I have now removed one potential source of issues from my computers.
This happens with all of AIR's plugins too, seems its all over inMusic's products heh.
FWIW, I got the AIR plugin bundle free with my MPC Live (the MPC has the bundle ported to it in the hardware) and installed it and it went through the same process. Nothing on my Mac was changed as far as my iLok goes and everything is still working great on my old Mac (just got a new one last week and didn't bother installing the AIR stuff this time). I got a bunch of that Sonivox stuff for free with the MPC too (InMusic owns them as well as Akai, Air, etc.. ). I don't think any of those plugins have been updated in ages to be honest.
I am going to consult a lawyer. Today I have issues wit iLok-Manager. Plugins are not in Reaper any more. Not for the first. Time. I have written so may e-mails, especially to plugin developers asking them to stop using iLok and so on
It took me about 120 hours to mess around and solve iLok issues. I am going to charge iLok 25 USD / hour, but want to consult a lawyer first.
Sorry for your troubles, but I admit that every time I read about an iLok/Pace dysfunction, part of me says: "Yay!" since I believe very strongly that all corporofascist CP should be boycotted and I tend to see (irritatingly self-righteous, I know, except that I am right) those who continue to support those platforms as part of the problem.
If enough people refused to consent to that garbage, it would go away.
I, for another, have several ilok softwares and never had a problem with installation or ilok itself - just once it refused to cooperate till i updated it. I believe ilok is like any other software developer, they sometimes get it wrong but that doesn't make them the worst since sliced bread and they put things right.
Personally, I think "the ilok problem" is like "the Reaper problem" at times, easy to blame and assume everybody using it will have that problem despite not saying so. Easy to see where that goes.
At the end of the day, if anybody is to blame for the existence of ilok and any other software protection it is the existence of illegal download sites and their users, regardless of what people think about bloated prices.
Having said that, it is not a good thing that the OP experienced this but surely, Sonivox is at fault here not ilok? I have a vague memory of installing something that required ilok and was able to say no to its installation as I already had it. The software was installed and had no problem linking to ilok.
I'll certainly be running my 1-click partition backup every time I install something iLok-y again.
Btw, it might be worth exploring an uninstall of the iLok license manager and its Pace driver before installing the problematic driver. Then you uninstall those drivers and reinstall the most recent iLok stuff.
Phew. I hope Izotope moves the Exponential Audio stuff away from iLoks soon. I always use USB authorization. Decent metal sticks can just sit there for a decade without breaking(so far). Just simple cryptography there, no dumb drivers to mess things up. Or maybe they should use a standard like FIDO2 authorizations. Sticks, facial recognition("You got fat Jerry! No more plugins for you!"), voice or thumb print.
I'd VERY STRONGLY RECOMMEND anyone running iLok to get an external drive and make a backup image of your system drive ASAP. Nothing is worth the effort, stress, lost hours and frustration I've gone through every day for a week over this. This is not the same as an app bugging out. This shuts your entire system down and prevents access at the most basic level.
I would gladly uninstall iLok and have nothing to do with it ever again except for the fact that it's used by certain plugins that I cannot work without.
It's worth noting that iLok has been cracked, so for developers, it is not a fool-proof panacea of copy protection.
Is it also worth letting iLok know about the damage some of their customers (i.e the iLok licencees, not the end-users) are causing?
I've just contacted them.
The support ticket link is buried in a hierarchy of FAQ links on the support area. This is the link for anyone to bookmark for future use: https://www.ilok.com/#!support-ticket/ac
... so I'm looking for a vocoder, any reccomendations? I don't mind free ones either.
1) The only free one I know of is TAL Vocoder. I own some TAL plugins, and I tried the Vocoder but didn't get the results I hoped for. Twas "ok". Vocoders in general are tricky to work with for a number of reasons, as you probly know. https://tal-software.com/products/tal-vocoder
2) Xils Lab have just released Xils 201 - their emulation of the 1970s Sennheiser VSM 201. It's "on sale" at the moment for €89 ... or €119 for a bundle including their Xils Vocoder 5000 ... https://www.xils-lab.com/products/xi...der-p-165.html
3)Xils Vocoder 5000 - I demo'd this and again I found it frustrating. As with all vocoders, there's a narrow window of choice for intelligible sounds that'll gel. The voice input needs suitable frequencies in the higher part of the spectrum, and the overlaid synth patch also needs to have those frequencies to make it intelligible. There's tons of options in Xils 5000, and I got some useable results, but it took a lot of effort and futzing around. They don't do sales often and it cost €149 ... if it was like €50 or thereabouts I'd have taken the risk and bought it. YMMV.
4) Izotope Vocalsynth 2 - haven't tried this, but there's a demo available so I might do that today. It seems more promising , and there's a range of modules in there besides the vocoder. But it looks like you have to use the included synth rather than a synth of your choice - not sure about that. Even if that's the case, it might turn out to be a good thing because, like I was saying above, the choice of actual synth sounds that'll work intelligibly for vocoding is not all that broad. Maybe the included "modern" sound could then be put through a suitable plugin?
I'd say the advantage of Vocalsynth is that the controls make it a lot clearer what you're actually doing!
6) Hardware - Korg has a discontinued synth called R3 which is supposed to have a decent vocoder (better than the microKorg apparently). I've seen some around for £150.
_
So it looks to me that, having tried or listened to most of the others, Izotope Vocalsynth might be worth a demo. Xils too, if you prefer retro controls and/or need to use your preferred synth.
As if I didn't have enough reasons already to avoid stuff that requires iLok.
I switched to the Linux version of REAPER about 16 months ago and never even tried to get my Lexicon MPX Native Reverb with iLok to work.
It won't even function when I boot the Win7 side of my dual boot DAW because PACE wants an internet connection, which I no longer allow on Win7. Screw copy protection that is more than a simple key code (except for Kontakt which I use in Linux, but there is no native alternative for it). Plugins do not define my music, I do.
__________________
Glennbo
Hear My Music - Click Me!!!
--
Visco was talking about vocoders with Retro Audio Enthusiast.
NI Reaktor Razor also has a vocoder, so if you already happen to have that synth it's an option.
Visco was talking about vocoders with Retro Audio Enthusiast.
NI Reaktor Razor also has a vocoder, so if you already happen to have that synth it's an option.
There is also the freebee vocoder in the JS FX that come with REAPER. I messed with it many moons ago, but I do remember it being somewhat primitive.
__________________
Glennbo
Hear My Music - Click Me!!!
--
Visco was talking about vocoders with Retro Audio Enthusiast.
NI Reaktor Razor also has a vocoder, so if you already happen to have that synth it's an option.
There was something I didn't like about it, I'll remember eventually - there was something you couldn't do with it but don't remember.
Melda is the one I think is most useable across synths. IIRC the TAL version requires it's "synth" which made it no go for me. Somewhere I have a tutorial and/or project template for a working vocoder, assuming you have one that works by allowing you to use any synth you want. I'm fairly sure that is via the Melda Vocoder and say Oatmeal.
There was something I didn't like about it, I'll remember eventually - there was something you couldn't do with it but don't remember.
Melda is the one I think is most useable across synths. IIRC the TAL version requires it's "synth" which made it no go for me. Somewhere I have a tutorial and/or project template for a working vocoder, assuming you have one that works by allowing you to use any synth you want. I'm fairly sure that is via the Melda Vocoder and say Oatmeal.
The voice stealing on the 6 voices (if I recall correctly) feels a little too limiting on what was supposed to be an ultra modern synth. It sounds different to IL Harmor (also additive ) but is ultimately inferior to Harmor in absolute terms, especially due to that stingy voice stealing, I guess a dedicated additive VST is more efficient than making one within Reaktor.
The vocoder was a bit of a pain to set up if I remember correctly but was better than the free vocoders I found a few years back.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Glennbo
There is also the freebee vocoder in the JS FX that come with REAPER. I messed with it many moons ago, but I do remember it being somewhat primitive.
I think I tried that and the Tal and ultimately preferred the Reaktor Razor vocoder, but I wouldn't buy it for the vocoder.
The voice stealing on the 6 voices (if I recall correctly) feels a little too limiting on what was supposed to be an ultra modern synth. It sounds different to IL Harmor (also additive ) but is ultimately inferior to Harmor in absolute terms, especially due to that stingy voice stealing, I guess a dedicated additive VST is more efficient than making one within Reaktor.
The vocoder was a bit of a pain to set up if I remember correctly but was better than the free vocoders I found a few years back.
I don't know what any of ^that means but I do know that back then, the only way I found that would allow me to use any synth was Melda. Not that there weren't others somewhere but I was able to get the most use out of Melda with any one of the 100s of synths I have.
A lot of "vocoders" include a crappy synth or a synth includes a vododer - my example video is just proof that Melda allows that and to use any synth I own which is sort of what it's all about. With that, I can make as much vocoder music as I could possibly need.
__________________ Music is what feelings sound like.
Watch out if you have iLok Licence Manager installed and then install software that installs iLok inside its own installer.
I downloaded Sonivox VocalizerPro 1.3 on the Plugin Boutique site.
I already had iLok License Manager installed but the installer for VocalizerPro installed what appeared to be iLok again. There was no option to accept/decline this extra install. I suspect this somehow catastrophically conflicts with the latest version of iLok License Manager and caused an unrecoverable boot failure with the stopcode error: 'page fault in a nonpaged area' with tpkd.sys failing.
The problem can only be recovered by wiping the drive and reinstalling Windows completely or restoring from a recovery image. Windows Repair does not work.
I already have the latest version of iLok License Manager installed and it works fine with everything else.
I reproduced the bug exactly by repeating the same steps.
This is likely to be affecting/will affect other uses and requires immediate action by Sonivox (who I contacted) and by iLok (who I can't yet find contact details for).
I don't know what any of ^that means but I do know that back then, the only way I found that would allow me to use any synth was Melda. Not that there weren't others somewhere but I was able to get the most use out of Melda with any one of the 100s of synths I have.
A lot of "vocoders" include a crappy synth or a synth includes a vododer - my example video is just proof that Melda allows that and to use any synth I own which is sort of what it's all about. With that, I can make as much vocoder music as I could possibly need.
I went on a rant about the voice limitations of razor - it was off the off topic conversation I suppose!
Could buy one of those Behringer or Roland VP330 recreations I suppose!
I received a replay from ILok. It appears that the problem is Sonivox. The version of ILok it installs is over 5 years old (!!!)and has severe issues with a recent build Windows 10. I'm still awaiting a reply from them.
Quote:
Our installers (even ones included in other installers such as Sonivox) are smart enough to handle versioning, and will not overwrite newer files with older ones. That should prevent a lot of the catastrophic conflicts that you are worried about.
The option to accept/decline our installer, though, is up to Sonivox, not us. The decision to include that particular install is also not ours -- we moved on from TPkd.sys more than 5 years ago, and our recent License Support/iLok License Manager installs do not include it. There is a recent build of Windows 10 that does seem to have a lot of problems with the old TPkd.sys file, so we'll advise Sonivox that they will likely want to move to a more recent version of our software that no longer has this issue.
Best Regards,
Robert Duncan
iLok.com Technical Support
I received a replay from ILok. It appears that the problem is Sonivox. The version of ILok it installs is over 5 years old (!!!)and has severe issues with a recent build Windows 10. I'm still awaiting a reply from them.
Thanks for the update ... I'll be careful before I buy anything else from Sonivox. I have their big boom percussion and it's great, but stuff like this is a NO NO.
Here's the thing, I was locked out of any kind of restore procedure.
It booted past BIOS then froze with a bluescreen and stopcode error.
It went into Windows repair, failed repair, then froze at the 'choose your keyboard layout' window when I tried to get into safe mode. My keyboard was totally inacessible.
...
I see. This is a real shitty situation and is one of my biggest nightmares, having to reinstall everything from scratch, because someone's not doing their job right...
I'm not sure, but this might help.
I've successfully installed several Sonivox products over the last few years (Windows 7 then Windows 10).
I already had iLok License Manager on my computer (and it's always been updated).
After installing a Sonivox plugin I'd open iLok Manager and enter serial number to authorize.
I'd then casually notice later a shortcut to an authorizer on my desktop.
The authorizer exe sits in Program Files (x86) > SONiVOX and is created when the plugin is installed.
Knowing that Sonivox stuff is pretty old I supposed that the authorizer exe was obsolete (afterall, my plugin was already authorized and working).
So I just deleted the shortcut and ignored the old 'authorizer'.
Location: Near Cambridge UK and Near Questembert, France
Posts: 22,754
Quote:
Originally Posted by Retro Audio Enthusiast
I received a replay from ILok. It appears that the problem is Sonivox. The version of ILok it installs is over 5 years old (!!!)and has severe issues with a recent build Windows 10. I'm still awaiting a reply from them.
See what I mean about Sonivox?
On second thoughts, I suppose it is really about the people who bought Sonivox not bothering to see about things like this and the issues I have had. InMusics support is, by their own admission, non-existent on these plugins, plus their representative claimed that they now have no way to contact the original developer. And yet they are still selling this stuff. EDIT: according to the rep this only applies to the DVI or is it DVY variants of the Sonivox range. Sorry.
Location: Adelaide, South Australia (originally from Geelong)
Posts: 5,598
Glad you are back up and running Retro Audio Enthusiast. What a nightmare though!!
Things like this are the primary reason I've avoided iLok to date. There are some excellent plugins I'd love to use but they also use iLok so no go for me.
The only way this sort of shit will ever stop is if the geek F's are held to account. They just get away with way too much, just washing their hands of problems. The worst kind of human being is a geek.
Watch Out - iLok Catastrophic Bug in Sonivox Plugins
, and there's a range of modules in there besides the vocoder. But it looks like you have to use the included synth rather than a synth of your choice - not sure about that. Even if that's the case, it might turn out to be a good thing because, like I was saying above, the choice of actual synth sounds that'll work intelligibly for vocoding is not all that broad. Maybe the included "modern" sound could then be put through a suitable plugin?
Linear Mode
