kX 3551 Alpha Surrounder+ bug (Windows 7)

nakamichi · Sep 10, 2011, 09:23 AM

There are some issues with the Surrounder+/Speaker settings under Windows 7 (32-bit and 64-bit) with games/programs that output mono and in some cases stereo sound:

When playing old games with mono sound output (for example, Heroes of Might and Magic III : Heroes of Might and Magic® 3: Complete Edition - GOG.com - 22kHz Mono) and the speaker mode in the kX Mixer set to 2.0 (stereo only), there's no sound at all. Only the surround modes ('2.0 simple mix' and '2.0 surround mix') work in this case.

When sound output is set to 2.0 (stereo only) in the kX Mixer and a program which outputs mono sound is detected, the surrounder should duplicate the mono channel to create a DUAL MONO stream and send it to the front speakers (or rear, if swapped).

Some programs (for example, the Gambatte emulator: Gambatte | Download Gambatte software for free at SourceForge.net) have no sound even with stereo output when the speaker setting in the kX Mixer is set to 2.0 (Stereo Only). This is a completely different issue.

Another problematic game is Halo 1. It either has no sound or half of the sound channels are missing.

SB0240 with Master Mixer as default output.

Russ · Sep 12, 2011, 03:43 AM

I assume you are using Master Mixer as the default? This sounds like the bug with the routing of stereo audio with Master Mixer. Surrounder+ expects the audio to come from FxBus 0/1, but with Vista/7 it uses a different Fxbus. This is not just a not-ideal default DSP config issue... For Surrounder+ to work correctly, stereo audio from Master Mixer has to use an FxBus that is not used for multi-channel audio from Master Mixer (as otherwise there is no way for Surrounder+ to differentiate between the two (stereo audio from Master Mixer -vs- 2 channels of some multi-channel source from Master Mixer) thus does not know when to upmix, etc).

nakamichi · Sep 12, 2011, 07:52 AM

@Russ: First post edited / updated.

Russ · Sep 12, 2011, 07:23 PM

I think the thing with mono sound is the same issue as with stereo... Usually (IIRC) mono audio (if not part of some multi-channel audio source) is played by the app/OS as a stereo stream (e.g. dual mono), so Surrounder+ would not need to do anything with it (if it uses the correct FxBus's).

Use peak meters to see which FxBus numbers are being used...

As for the games that are missing some channels... I am not sure with Windows 7... (on XP I would suggest reducing hardware acceleration to the basic level when playing the game, but with Windows 7, I do not know...).

Sep 10, 2011, 09:23 AM	#1
nakamichi HardwareHeaven Lover Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 122 Rep Power: 0	kX 3551 Surrounder+ / speaker settings issues (Windows 7) There are some issues with the Surrounder+/Speaker settings under Windows 7 (32-bit and 64-bit) with games/programs that output mono and in some cases stereo sound: When playing old games with mono sound output (for example, Heroes of Might and Magic III : Heroes of Might and Magic® 3: Complete Edition - GOG.com - 22kHz Mono) and the speaker mode in the kX Mixer set to 2.0 (stereo only), there's no sound at all. Only the surround modes ('2.0 simple mix' and '2.0 surround mix') work in this case. When sound output is set to 2.0 (stereo only) in the kX Mixer and a program which outputs mono sound is detected, the surrounder should duplicate the mono channel to create a DUAL MONO stream and send it to the front speakers (or rear, if swapped). Some programs (for example, the Gambatte emulator: Gambatte \| Download Gambatte software for free at SourceForge.net) have no sound even with stereo output when the speaker setting in the kX Mixer is set to 2.0 (Stereo Only). This is a completely different issue. Another problematic game is Halo 1. It either has no sound or half of the sound channels are missing. SB0240 with Master Mixer as default output. Last edited by nakamichi; Sep 12, 2011 at 07:58 AM.

Sep 12, 2011, 03:43 AM	#2
Russ HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 5,563 Rep Power: 62	Re: kX 3551 Alpha Surrounder+ bug (Windows 7) I assume you are using Master Mixer as the default? This sounds like the bug with the routing of stereo audio with Master Mixer. Surrounder+ expects the audio to come from FxBus 0/1, but with Vista/7 it uses a different Fxbus. This is not just a not-ideal default DSP config issue... For Surrounder+ to work correctly, stereo audio from Master Mixer has to use an FxBus that is not used for multi-channel audio from Master Mixer (as otherwise there is no way for Surrounder+ to differentiate between the two (stereo audio from Master Mixer -vs- 2 channels of some multi-channel source from Master Mixer) thus does not know when to upmix, etc).

Sep 12, 2011, 07:52 AM	Thread Starter #3
nakamichi HardwareHeaven Lover Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 122 Rep Power: 0	Re: kX 3551 Alpha Surrounder+ bug (Windows 7) @Russ: First post edited / updated.

Sep 12, 2011, 07:23 PM	#4
Russ HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 5,563 Rep Power: 62	Re: kX 3551 Alpha Surrounder+ bug (Windows 7) I think the thing with mono sound is the same issue as with stereo... Usually (IIRC) mono audio (if not part of some multi-channel audio source) is played by the app/OS as a stereo stream (e.g. dual mono), so Surrounder+ would not need to do anything with it (if it uses the correct FxBus's). Use peak meters to see which FxBus numbers are being used... As for the games that are missing some channels... I am not sure with Windows 7... (on XP I would suggest reducing hardware acceleration to the basic level when playing the game, but with Windows 7, I do not know...).