Sonifex Pty Ltd T/A Innes Corporation
12/6 Leighton Pl
Hornsby, NSW 2077, Australia
Phone: +61 2 9987 0499
Fax: +61 2 9987 0599
E-mail:
Website: http://www.innescorp.com.au
7
Auricon 2.2+ Manual
Operation on Windows 8, 7, Vista and Server 2012, 2008-R2, 2008
The audio subsystem of Windows 8, 7, Vista and corresponding server versions has changed
substantially from earlier versions of Windows, although most applications should continue to
work without modification. The major differences likely to affect users of the Auricon 2.2+ are
described below.
Audio Endpoints
Key to the new system is the concept of
audio endpoints
. These are the physical audio sources
and destinations, such as microphones, speakers and line connectors.
Previously, an audio capture device would typically have multiple inputs which were combined
in a mixer or selector. Under Windows Vista and later, each input is represented by its own
device, and Windows itself operates the card’s selector to route the chosen source to the A/D
converter.
In the case of the Auricon 2.2+, each of the physical line inputs is represented by an endpoint
device, and as the hardware has separate A/D converters for each one, they can be used
simultaneously. There are also virtual endpoint devices for the digital loopback sources,
although by default these are disabled. To enable these sources, right-click on the loudspeaker
symbol at the bottom right-hand corner of the screen, select Recording Devices, right-click
anywhere in the window and select Show Disabled Devices. Now right-click on the desired
Wave Out Mix device and select Enable. This source will now appear as one of the available
audio recording devices. Note that when an application is recording from a loopback endpoint,
the corresponding line input is unavailable, and vice versa.
Windows has a default playback endpoint and a default recording endpoint, which are typically
used by applications where the input or output device cannot be explicitly chosen. After the
Auricon 2.2+ driver is installed, the first channel is set as the default for playback and record but
this can be changed by right-clicking on the loudspeaker symbol, selecting Playback Devices or
Recording Devices, and then right-clicking on the desired endpoint and selecting
Set as Default
Device
. The default device is remembered across reboots and should not need to be set again.
Mixer API
By default, the mixer API is virtualised for each application, providing just a mute and volume
control for each endpoint and affecting only the audio going to and from that application. The
hardware controls on the card itself are not accessible from the mixer API in this default mode.
For applications that need direct access to the hardware mixer controls, or that need access to
the line input monitor controls or peak meter nodes, there are two options. Firstly, if it is a new
application being written specifically for Windows Vista or later system, it can be designed to
