Yes, I can see that. Since the ES-8 and 9 are DC coupled audio interfaces, everything can be synced modular<->computer through audio.
Yes, It also have an expander ES-5 that converts Audio into MIDI, for apparently greater accuracy when controlling midi hardware
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Yeah. Sadly this all requires having a Eurorack 
But I might be heading that way anyway… 
Does anyone know, if any of the DC-coupled audio interfaces, that also has MIDI (MOTU, …) has any smarts in them, that can convert audio-pulse<->MIDI clock?
Yes it can be used to sync hardware like the Keystep. It is a technique that originally came from hardware. I tend to use ableton as my master and send one 24ppqn clock pulse to VCV and another to my Eurorack (Pam’s New Workout). I use 2 clocks so I can delay them slightly differently as the VCV latency is different from the Eurorack latency.
To sync the Keystep this way from VCV, just send a clock out of Clocked at X24 (which is 24ppqn) to an Audio Module output, take that output from your interface (can even be a headphone out) and plug it into the clock input on the Keystep. In Midi Control Centre make sure your sync clock in/out settings are set to 24ppqn.
Edit - started posting this then the phone rang and there has been a bit more chat since!
I’d just add that you do not need a DC coupled interface to send clock signals. A clock pulse is audio and you only need an audio interface to send it.
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Ah, that’s good to hear Steve! I didn’t realize that the Keystep had a clock-in apart from MIDI, and that a 24PPQN signal is fast enough to pass through any normal audio interface. Good knowledge, thanks!
No Problem. One thing you might expect to get is a little round-trip latency from whatever is connected to your key step by the time it comes back into VCV or whatever you are using to mix your VCV and hardware voices.
I haven’t tried this yet, but one possible way to compensate might be to use a sample delay module (I think Bacon music has one) to delay all your clock signals that are being sent internally in VCV, and then not delay the one being sent out to the Keystep. This would mean things on the keystep chain are slightly ahead of VCV, which would compensate for the latency when the external audio gets fed back in.
This would (if it works) effectively mimic the negative track delay we use to compensate for latency in Ableton.
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Yes, I see that delay compensation is unavoidable. There’s some nice simple signal delay modules both in Bogaudio and ML, so it should be a matter of aligning the final audio from the different paths by listening (and scope), using a short bursty sound, and then delaying the fastest clock source untill they line up.
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If it’s any help here is an older video that I did about Reason & VCV. But this method can be done with any other DAW & VCV Rack, while using virtual audio routing.
Bitwig
Instead of using a pulse wav, I’m using the SW Sync plugin from Expert Sleepers. Which essentially creates a very stable (sample accurate) pulse clock.
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I used to do something like that when patching external FX into VCV… It works, as a kind of a DIY latency compensation, though it can be hard to setup when there is more than one or two pieces of hardware involved. Actually a few days ago I was thinking about a module that could help in that regard by acting like a “latency calibration helper” by sending out a pulse and listening for an audio signal and measuring the roundtrip.
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Hi Lars, this solution is already on the market for a while. I am at work outside right now so I can’t look for you. But just search on more recent and more expensive sync boxes.
A couple of those do the whole combination of sample accurate sync generation from a host DAW, while generating different types of sync from the internal box to act as a sync/clock hub.
Edit: A quick rough search comes up with E-RM multi clock. Im sure I seen more being reviewed in the past years by Sonic State
Maybe this thread here is also useful for you/anyone:
Some of you might find my write-up from today relevant, with good results using Rack as master sync:
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What a software “Midi Sync Transport” used ?, i need to try, because it’s really hard to sync my elektron analog rytm with vcv.
i have this problem as well first signals are out of beat until i send a reset and it syncs up…Has anyone found a way to fix this?
on Renoise + Rack key , I solve all my clocks Issues simply sending a continue trigger from Renoise and receiving in Rack, actually I m sending all that things (clock , LFOs, sequences, automation, etc ) from Renoise, first to fix all the syncs issues and second because it have huge less CPU consumption
I still use the Racks clock but only when I play the rack alone, something interesting to say is , mostly of the time is much more cheap in terms of CPU usage, open the Renoise and connect it as master, than use the in house sequencers LFOs and clocks of the Rack
it make my track synchronized and my computer happy
edited: all this on Linux, using loop midi in windows sucks
Version 2.3.0 “previews” - the timing issues around Rack are not fixed, even during 2023 !
Screen capture - the detected BPM always fluctuates / not stable:
From DAW (here Bitwig Studio 5 Beta 3 Windows 10, also from REAPER 6.79), but also valid from Arturia BeatStep Pro - as master clock (24 PPQN) vs. standalone Rack 2: not stable.
@vortico Hope of these irritatings bugs around timers - since the beginning of VCV Rack - will are definitively fixed one of these days. This topic was opened during mid-2019. Be sure most users (including me) we’ll appreciate reliable timings, even from external MIDI and AUDIO (erratic engine sample rate, in particular when no AUDIO-x module in the rack). Please consider this doesn’t desserve both users and developers. Thanks in advance.
Blackhole works like a charm and is dead stable. Never going back to soundflouwer, as it has been discontinued for several years.
I opened this topic and my issue get solved in the first answer (I actually have not read all the answers )
I don’t know if it could help , you are connecting the wrong clock output
the clocked is not a VCV Rack module , I suggest ask about your catastophique ppqn issue to the impromptu people, its seems like the clocked is not able to count all the ppqn per cycle, also I recommend use the vst version is very comfortable to works beside your other DAW and you will avoid “these catastophique irritatings bugs around timers” issue, is much more cheaper that all the others DAW mentioned by you and you will get a very personalized support , it’s worth it.
here in renoise (Linux) is rock Solid
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Linux?
I’ve mentioned Windows 10 - totally different platform. Please let’s compare what is comparable, aren’t? Maybe Linux & MacOS platforms aren’t affected by these timing issues. I can’t compare because I’m not owner of either Linux / MacOS machines.
The unstabilities also are existing from CLK input (from MIDI > CV module) you’ve shown in screen capture. Unstabilities either from any DAW (Bitwig & REAPER confirmed, I don’t have tested Renoise at the moment but I’m nearly sure in advance about the result), but I repeat… all from Windows platform. Same fact from standalone VCV Rack, and Arturia BeatStep Pro sequencer as MIDI clocking source (24 PPQN), for any BPM setting from BSP controller.
My new module sync perfectly and stays stable behind another clocking source module such CLOCKED and 2017 KlokSpid.
Also, always on Windows machine (I don’t know about Linux and Mac), timings are erratic (bad value) until a AUDIO-xx module is present and correcly configured, otherwise all modules are running too quickly.
Marc’s module isn’t the culprit. Also I don’t use source part of Clocked, I’ve mine source since I’ve developed KlokSpid, who use discrete DSP frame counters (since 2017). But similar results. If the CLK/N doesn’t work as expected, it becomes useless. Hope you’ll agree.
Sorry about French Détection PPQN = catastophique because this screen capture was sent to French friend (social network). It means “PPQN Detection = catastrophic” (but a bit explicit IMO 
) in fact isn’t the detection itself, but the constant unstability (BPMs on both slaves CLOCKED and KlokSpid MkII constantly change around 210 - as defined from DAW).
I can understand you’re irritated but you seem to think this is a problem Rack has, and that Andrew can solve for you? Try and read this topic again from the top. It seems plenty of people are telling us that this is a problem with operating systems and MIDI over USB and so there’s probably nothing Rack can do about it.
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This problem is old, yes I tell the problem is Rack (perhaps a bad library), because other C.M. softwares (including CA Voltage) don’t have these behaviors. Strange, aren’t?
Okay, I admit Rack is cross-platform, and Microsoft doesn’t care - litterally - about musicians (it prefers gamers). But most DAWs are existing at least for Mac and for Windows, such Pro Tools, Cubase, Ableton, Reaper, and so on… and don’t have these kind of issues.
If users don’t care about these timing issues, okay, don’t change anything. 
This will don’t stop me to continue mine developments (and beta-testing phases). Doesn’t work correctly? = too bad.