• Registered: 2008-12-10
  • Posts: 22

Topic: FF400 as a Multimedia Device Windows 7 problem

Hi there,
This is probably a rather obscure question but I will post it anyway as I haven't found any solutions by searching these forums or by Googling . I use a program called Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10 which some of you may know as a voice recognition software application. As I make lots of tutorials I find it very useful for dictating the narration scripts. When I was using Windows XP DNS10 would recognize the Fireface recording inputs and I used the SP L/SP R of the Fireface Mixer so I could use my microphone as the narration source. This worked very nicely in Windows XP . Since moving to Windows 7 pro x64 for some reason DNS10 no longer recognizes any of the fireface recording sources as a multimedia device . Meaning it doesn't see any of the fireface inputs. So I end up using a lower quality USB headset which it does recognise. Ideally I would like to continue using the fireface for narration. Does anyone have any idea how I could trick DNS10 into recognising the fireface? As I said it always worked in Windows Xp.

Regards
Kraznet

HDSP Raydat,  Fireface 400, Babyface Pro, Sequoia 16, Samplitude Pro X6, Windows 10

2 Reply by MC

  • MC
  • MC
  • Administrator
  • Offline
  • From: Germany/Thailand
  • Registered: 2007-04-06
  • Posts: 25,600

Re: FF400 as a Multimedia Device Windows 7 problem

Which driver are you using under W7? Usually you would have to select the desired input in the Sound control panel of Windows, then select the system input in NDS, not the FF input itself. It should work then.

Regards
Matthias Carstens
RME

MC's Website

3 Reply by Kraznet (edited by Kraznet 2010-09-21 10:49:31)

  • Registered: 2008-12-10
  • Posts: 22

Re: FF400 as a Multimedia Device Windows 7 problem

MC wrote:

Which driver are you using under W7? Usually you would have to select the desired input in the Sound control panel of Windows, then select the system input in NDS, not the FF input itself. It should work then.

Hi there,
Thanks for your quick reply . I'm using the latest FF driver 3.020 and the Texas Intrument 194 OHCI Compliant Host Controller driver active .I'm using a Gigabyte P55M-UD2  which has a TI chipset . I'm making the FF400 SPDIF as the default communication device under the sound control panel Recording tab . The problem being that when I open DNS it will only recognise my Plantronic Wireless Microphone and the Realtek Digital input . It will recognise any Realtek enabled devices but not any fireface inputs. When you say select the system input which input do you mean?

Regards
Kraznet

HDSP Raydat,  Fireface 400, Babyface Pro, Sequoia 16, Samplitude Pro X6, Windows 10
  • From: Houston, TX
  • Registered: 2007-05-11
  • Posts: 1,191

Re: FF400 as a Multimedia Device Windows 7 problem

Not familiar with DNS (but I've heard of it) - but does DNS have any specific audio driver selections in its setup menu?  DAW Apps like Cubase, etc, allow you to select the driver you wish to use - if the RME ASIO driver isn't selected then the RME I/O won't be visible in the app.  Just a guess...

cool

MADIface-XT+ARC / 3x HDSP MADI / ADI648
2x SSL Alphalink MADI AX
2x Multiface / 2x Digiface /2x ADI8

5 Reply by MC

  • MC
  • MC
  • Administrator
  • Offline
  • From: Germany/Thailand
  • Registered: 2007-04-06
  • Posts: 25,600

Re: FF400 as a Multimedia Device Windows 7 problem

Kraznet wrote:

When you say select the system input which input do you mean?

The Microsoft Sound mapper.

Regards
Matthias Carstens
RME

MC's Website

6 Reply by Kraznet (edited by Kraznet 2010-09-21 22:43:34)

  • Registered: 2008-12-10
  • Posts: 22

Re: FF400 as a Multimedia Device Windows 7 problem

Randyman... wrote:

Not familiar with DNS (but I've heard of it) - but does DNS have any specific audio driver selections in its setup menu?  DAW Apps like Cubase, etc, allow you to select the driver you wish to use - if the RME ASIO driver isn't selected then the RME I/O won't be visible in the app.  Just a guess...

cool

Hi Randyman,
DNS10  prefers to use multimedia devices like USB headsets or a headset device plugged into a multi-media sound card. I have found the quality of these to be not very good . So I started using my Rhode Mic into the Fireface 400 routed via the Fireface Mixer to the S/DIF outs. When I was using XP you could open DNS10 and the Fireface 400 digital input was in the list of available devices. So that meant I could use the Rhode for voice recognition. It worked really well. It also meant I could keep the mic hooked up to Sequoia and record voiceovers whenever I needed ,while simultaneously having Dragon NaturallySpeaking available for voice recognition if I needed to dictate a script. But for some reason I can't get this working in Windows 7 although there were a few days when it did work in Windows 7 and the digital input did show up . Then I did a reinstall of Windows 7 and haven't managed to get it working since. I have the same problem on my other setup which uses Vista 64.

Strangely enough the FF400 works with the built-in Windows 7 Microsoft speech recognition but I prefer using DNS10.

Posting here was my last resort but I have more or less given up . I found a multimedia sound card (Speedlink 7.1 PCI Audio Card ) which has optical I/O  which means I can route the optical output of the FF400 to the optical input of the Speedlink and that should show up as a multi-media device in DNS10. It won't be as good as having a direct feed from the FF400 but hopefully it will work reasonably well. It should definitely be better than taking an analog out from the FF400 into the line in of the Realtek on-board sound.

Regards
Kraznet

HDSP Raydat,  Fireface 400, Babyface Pro, Sequoia 16, Samplitude Pro X6, Windows 10
  • Registered: 2008-12-10
  • Posts: 22

Re: FF400 as a Multimedia Device Windows 7 problem

MC wrote:
Kraznet wrote:

When you say select the system input which input do you mean?

The Microsoft Sound mapper.

Windows 7 doesn't seem to have a Microsoft Sound mapper like in XP. There's the sound control panel which has tabs for playback, recording, sounds and communications. I tried a few settings there but it doesn't seem to help.

Regards
Kraznet

HDSP Raydat,  Fireface 400, Babyface Pro, Sequoia 16, Samplitude Pro X6, Windows 10
  • From: Houston, TX
  • Registered: 2007-05-11
  • Posts: 1,191

Re: FF400 as a Multimedia Device Windows 7 problem

That's a strange one - especially since you mentioned you had it working momentarily in W7!  Since it did work at one point - there must be a way to get it working again.  Don't give up just yet :-)

If your onboard soundcard has a Digital Input - you can make a physical SPDIF patch from the RME to the onboard sound (and vice-versa) and still bypass the soundcard's mediocre preamp and AD/DA conversion...

cool

MADIface-XT+ARC / 3x HDSP MADI / ADI648
2x SSL Alphalink MADI AX
2x Multiface / 2x Digiface /2x ADI8

9 Reply by MC

  • MC
  • MC
  • Administrator
  • Offline
  • From: Germany/Thailand
  • Registered: 2007-04-06
  • Posts: 25,600

Re: FF400 as a Multimedia Device Windows 7 problem

Windows 7 does have the MS Sound mapper, I use it myself. It must be shown in DNS, not in the Sound Control Panel. The reason that DNS doesn't display any input directly is most probably because none of our inputs has the property 'microphone'. Logical, and can not to be changed without running in other serious problems.

Regards
Matthias Carstens
RME

MC's Website

  • Registered: 2008-12-10
  • Posts: 22

Re: FF400 as a Multimedia Device Windows 7 problem

Hi MC and Randyman,

Well I finally managed to solve the problem :-) I remembered there was a separate audio setup application at in the DNS program folder and I set it so it would work in XP compatibility mode.  Lo and behold the Fireface digital input is now available so I am up and running again. Thank you both for your help.

Regards
Kraznet

HDSP Raydat,  Fireface 400, Babyface Pro, Sequoia 16, Samplitude Pro X6, Windows 10