stereo-link USB DACs are designed to work with the basic USB audio drivers that are part of all modern operating systems. The newly released Windows 7 is no exception. We have tested operation using an HP Pavilion Entertainment PC running Windows 7 Premium Home Edition 64 bit. Initial identification, loading of drivers, and activation as the default audio output device all occurred smoothly, just as in previous versions of Windows. There is no need for special drivers.
For reference the driver version we used was 6.1.7600.16385 dated 7/13/2009 (see above screen capture).
The stereo-link also works normally in the XP mode of Windows 7 Professional. It must first be attached to the Virtual machine using the USB menu item on the XP Mode window.
Nevertheless, a few users who purchased new Windows 7 PCs have had difficulty getting their stereo-link to work properly, even though they worked perfectly with their old XP or Vista computers. We are trying to determine the cause, but it appears there is some instability within this initial release of Windows 7. So far the problem seems to be occurring more often with custom built systems.
Here is what one customer has reported. His "solution" has also worked for other users, though it is far from ideal.
Windows 7 recognized the stereo-link the very first boot and every time thereafter but gives me a usb audio driver error and would not work. Roughly 2 days later it just started working while I was using the computer. Since then I have figured out that by enabling / disabling the device I can sometimes get Windows to "use" the driver. It will just sometimes boot and work and other time it boots and has to be messed with to get it to load properly. It defintely appears to be a Windows 7 "bug".
If you are experienceing similar problems, we encourage you to let us know by leavng a comment. Be sure to include details about your computer.
I am using a Dell M65 laptop, and had just installed 32-bit Windows 7. The first time I plugged in my stereo-link (original model) Windows 7 went through automatically installing drivers. Once complete, the device wouldn't work. It showed a red x in device manager, and I think gave an error code 10. I had it plugged into a USB port on the back of my port replicator (like a docking station). I think I powered it off and on, but couldn't get it going. It has been a few days since I connected it, and I shut down my laptop at night, but had left the stereo link power switch on.
ReplyDeleteToday after reading this post, I tried disabling and re-enabling the device in device manager, but this didn't work. Then, I just unplugged the USB cable and plugged it back in. No complaints from Windows, and it started working just like that. It automatically became my default audio device.
To troubleshoot further, I connected it to another Windows 7 computer, also 32-bit OS, a home built desktop computer. Here it discovered, and installed with no issue. I moved it back to the laptop, same port replicator port, and it failed. I reconnected the usb many times, and tried turning the unit on and off, but couldn't get it to work again on that port. Occasionally when reconnecting, it would show up as an unknown usb device in "Universal Serial Bus Controllers", instead of stereo link in "Sound, video, and game controllers"
I then tried a USB port on the laptop itself. It detected and installed drivers and started working instantly. Replugging it many times, I couldn't get it to fail, so in the end, it seems I was having a problem only when using the port replicator, which is like going through a USB hub. Also, I am not sure if this was specifically a Windows 7 isssue, since I had it connected to my desktop PC when it was Vista, and not the laptop when the laptop had Vista.
My suggestion then is to try reconnecting the stereo-link if it fails, or try moving it to another USB port. Hope this helps anyone else having issues.
-Lance