Problem solved. Have been running a new gaming laptop for a week or so. I had to re instal all the DAW plug ins and VST. It has been a painstaking process. Luckily, Focusrite sent me new activation codes 👍 and Ableton support team has been helpful. It appears to be running smoothly. I still have lots and lots of projects to transfer with 'collect and save' info. I find the process complicated and still lot to learn and do.
The best thing about the new laptop is that there is no more hum/ground noise. Quiet like a 🐁 when running even the highest gain amp through Amplitube 4.
I'm finally able to play with laptop plugged in.