Topic: C-Media USB Driver CM106 CM6206 annoyances-Fixes (a closer look)

[meandean]

 I had no luck using the CMedia driver in 7 (hard lockup). If you can't get any further, try uninsalling the CMedia driver, reboot, plug the card in (preferably in a different USB port), and let Win install its own simplified driver and reboot again. With the Win driver, you might have to swap the rear and side surround pair wiring in your DAC to get the proper order (the driver doesn't offer any channel swap options for the last two pairs).

  BTW, I like your wallpaper!

[James]

Dude! I love that wall paper!

You can swap your signals around pretty easy with the DAC I just sent you. You will notice that the wires are plugged into pin headers, for this very reason.

James. 

[daderaide]

I'm adding this info to this thread to help update anyone that finds this while searching etc.

I have some more info and updated findings to add to this specifically relating to Windows 7 and finding the right driver and configuring it properly so that you don't end up with Windows mixing all of the channels together. Specifically I am using this method on Windows 7 Pro 64bit.

It seems that all devices with the cm6206 are compatible with the same drivers. It doesn't matter if it's a 5.1 card, 7.1 card or even if it's not even a sound card at all!! They put this chip in a LOT of different products and they all seem to be compatible with eachothers drivers.

None of the windows drivers properly separate the audio tracks. I have tried them all. At least all that I can find. The drivers that come with these USB sound cards also don't work. I have tried 2 different OEM disks and downloaded a few others that also don't work. If the driver installs 2 different devices in your windows audio control panel, it's the wrong one.

This is the only driver I have found to work:

http://www.rosewill.com/media/Download_Files/Drivers/driver%20for%20rhts-8206%20windows%20xp%20vista%207%20v1.0.zip

This is a zip file, so you have to download an unzipping program. Winzip or winRAR will both work. It might say it's the evaluation version, but I've had it for months now and it still works.

It's for a set of gaming headphones, but don't let that bother you. It comes with an applet for the audio driver that gives you access to more controls that just the standard windows control panel. When you install it, it should replace any other c-media, or windows universal USB sound device drivers (it did for me anyway). I just went into the folder where I unzipped the driver and navigated to /fscommand/W7 and double click on "setup". This automatically replaced the other driver.

 If it doesn't work for you, go into your control panel and select the audio device that was first installed (I have done it for both devices when it has installed 2 and it doesn't seem to matter which one you choose).

Go to the properties window and again click properties.
Then click "change settings" and go to the "driver" tab and click "update driver".
Click "browse my computer for software" and click browse.
Navigate to the folder where you unzipped the driver that you downloaded and make sure that the "include subfolders" box is checked. and then click next. It should find the driver and update it.

Once you have the driver installed you have to go back into the control panel and select the new device that it added. It should be called "Speakers - USB Multi-Channel Audio Device".

Click configure and select either 5.1 or 7.1 depending on the actual sound card that you have.
Click next and make sure all of the boxes in that screen are checked.
Click next and again check all of the boxes for full range speakers.
Click finish

Now with the same device selected in the control panel view, click properties.
Go to the advanced tab and make sure that the default format is set to 16 bit, 48000 Hz (DVD Quality). Mine was set to 44000 Hz by default and this will make the laser images distorted.
Do not set this device as default!!! Leave your internal sound card as default. I also turned off system sounds to be on the safe side.

I have also seen a lot of people say that you need to go into your internal sound card device and go to the "Enhancements" tab and click the box for "disable all enhancements". I'm not actually sure if this is necessary since it should only affect system sounds but I did it anyway.

If the driver installed properly, you should also have a new item in your control panel main view in addition to "Sound".
You should see "USB Multi-Channel Audio Device" double click it.
This is where you will see at the top left under "System Input" a drop down box where you can select the number of channels. Select 8 even if you only have a 6 channel card.
Next, look down at "Output Mode" and the drop down should list the max number of speakers that are specific to your particular sound card.
I left all other settings as default.

OK! That's it. With this setup I am able to get Laserboy to output correctly to all channels without mixing things together.

[James]

I just got a copy of this a put it here:

http://laserboy.org/driver_for_rhts-8206_windows_xp_vista_7_v1.0.zip

James.

[daderaide]

The link seems to be broken James. Did that file get moved?

[James]

I think I fixed it. Try it again.

[Ol Codger]

I just spent the good part of the last 10 days trying to get my ol' & reliable XP system to use one of these nifty USB sound cards. What with them going for as low as $10 now and flooding the markets, I bet I'm not the only one trying to get these to work with older OS's. Well, in my hunts, after I sorted things out, I found your page describing most of what everyone needs to know. But if you want the latest control panel with all 8 audio channels to fiddle with on an XP or Vista system, read on. Here's what I put in my "__READ_ME__.txt" file on my backup CD of all the driver incarnations I've tried.

--------------------

For Windows XP (and will probably also work with Vista & Win7).

To get the new full updated control-panel with the full systray utility:

First run the setup for the RHTS-2806 Headset with the latest drivers.

I obtained mine from the OEM's website.

(Unzip to your drivers work-folder of your choice.)

http://www.rosewill.com/wp-content/uploads/downloadable/drivers/driver_for_rhts-8206_windows_xp_vista_7_v1.0.zip

Reboot.

At this point you will only have control-panel options to select up to 6-channels.

The OLD version has full 7.1 channel support and playback/surround-sound options
for the CM6206-LX chip. (Even though you only have virtual control over the 2
extra channels.)


Now go to "add/remove" programs in the control panel, remove the
"USB Multi-Channel Audio Device".

Do NOT reboot.

Then install the very old "USB106-Full-04(0724)" program.

Mine was downloaded from here:
http://www.helpjet.net/dl/28706059-27657708-50712333/44107369/USB106-Full-04(0724).rar

(It also installs an ancient hellicopter-flying demo & a blasteroids kind of game.)

Do NOT reboot.

Go to your control-panel > system > hardware > device manager.

Expand the "Sound, video and game controllers" tree.

Right click on "USB Multi-Channel Audio Device", click on "Update Drivers"

NOW point it to the folder (if you unzipped it to a folder of the same name)

driver_for_rhts-8206_windows_xp_vista_7_v1.0\fscommand\XP\Driver\USB\

And let it update the driver.

You should now have the latest control panel with all the 8-channel
(7.1 surround-sound) features plus you have the latest driver.

While you won't get a full 8-channel output, there are options to swap
side and back channels on them (in case you want to play around with
choosing other audio channels from 7.1 recordings).

I still wasn't able to get more than 2-channel stereo on S/PDIF OUT, but
all the Analog OUT ports work just fine.

You also get to keep the twonky little surround-sound hellicopter demo
and "Rockwar" game (a little blasteroids type of thing) from the old version
to test your 3D sound effects.


The reason this works is that the OLD version installs the control-panel
and support files in XP's "\Windows\system\" folder, and the newer
versions install everything into where it rightfully belongs,
in "\Windows\system32\". When XP looks for files it checks the "system32"
folder first.


------------------


I had read that they found a way to enable all 8 channels for S/PDIF-OUT on MAC computers, has anyone
ran across something similar for Windows machines?

[James]

Just out of curiosity, are you using the 8 channel DAC for laser control signals?

[Ol Codger]

Just out of curiosity, are you using the 8 channel DAC for laser control signals?

Umm ... that would be a no. :-) Someone gave me an old Yamaha 6-ch rcvr/amp and I'm trying to experience surround-sound for the first time (no lie). LOL

But I did build a spirograph-style "laser show" when living in the Everglades swamps for a few years. From a Dollar-Store laser pointer, 2 battery powered "personal fan" motors (also Dollar Store), 2 mirror chips from a discarded women's make-up compact (mounted at a slight incline on the ends of the motor-shafts, one shining into the other for 2 different projected circumferences and rotational frequencies), and a rheostat that balanced (or unbalanced) the voltage between the two motors (the rheostat was scavenged out of an old rusted junker-car's dashboard, its dimmer control). All mounted on another scavenged hunk of 1"x6" wood plank. Think "wilderness survivalist's minimalistic laser-light show". :-) The fun part is that it was so crude, just natural randomness in the dirty contacts and simple analog system made it continually and slowly evolve from simple to complex spirograph designs for hours and hours. It eventually got swiped by someone at an impromptu campground concert when I left it running all night on just 2 AA batteries for everyone's entertainment. :-)

That's as close as I've ever come to making my own "computer controlled" laser system. LOL

[James]

That's cool! I messed around a bit with spinning mirror fan motors with PWM speed controls, but I never got it to work quite right.


Anyway.... Thanks for the detailed write-up on the C-Media driver installation.


James.