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Warmest Greetings,
This just to THANK YOU for your magnificent initiative, as well as your unwavering dedication...
Been slowly swimming through the info and recommendations, thanking the digital gods for nudging me toward this fountain of hope (!!!!!!!), as I'm considering forking out the few precious coins to get a Xonar DSX!
Browsing through loads of users' feedback and reviews one wonders why even consider getting an Asus audio card, given the plethora of discontent and problems ... UNTIL one meet you!
You've restored hope and faith in my taking the plunge wholeheartedly. Deepest gratitude!
Unfortunately there are some things I could not fix about these cards/drivers. You may or may not run into those issues. If you still decide to go with the Xonar card, buy it from a store that would allow you to return the card if you are not satisfied.
You saved me! I was so excited when my Xonar DS Arrived, only to run into digital signature problems no matter what I tried. Your suggestion to install the drivers in safe mode was the only thing that worked. I was about to take the thing out of my computer and snap it in half. Now everything sounds great and I can't thank you enough.
I'm happy to hear that the guide there helped.
Hi CarvedInside,
I'm having an issue recently with the fact that my left speaker sometimes sounds louder than the right hand side. Forcing me to restart my machine the audio balance is restored again. It's highly annoying. I downloaded the 1.72a drivers, are they the latest? I chose the low DPC option without any control panels to be installed, but somehow this problem persists. I never had this issue with the original Asus Xonar drivers, but obviously, I'd rather use yours as they are obviously better optimized. Any suggestions form your side as to what could be the cause of the issue? I really don't want to restart my machine every time this happens. I have a Xonar DX card, with a Logitech X-530 set, although I'm running them in stereo as I only use two speakers, so they're not setup for 5.1.
Thanks
LE: Apologies, I downloaded the 1.75a drivers, not 1.72a.
Even for me. Since I bought it. I don't think so that a workaround exists
Seriously?
Mine only started doing it the last month or so. Had the card for about 2 years +, weird that it only started doing this now. I guess if CarvedInside doesn't have any other suggestions, then I'm going to reinstall the old Asus drivers and see if the problem goes away. If it doesn't, then, I suppose it's time for a new soundcard 🙁
Which original drivers were you using before?
Using the original 1822 on W8.1 driver x64 I've had the same issue a few times in the last months, but it I've never noticed back in the +4 years I've been using this DX. This is on a 790FX/SB750 based MB, Asus DX firmware updates applied.
I've never had it again since disabling both HsMgr processes on startup, but it might be just some coincidence, as your Uni installation in low DPC mode should avoid them.
I guess I'll try the previous vanilla 1821 installation to check if it's driver related, as I've never had that problem under W7 while using those and previous versions.
1.75a and 1.72 use the same audio drivers.
I find it strange that you didn't had issues with the original drivers. The majority of the users who have this kind of issues had them from the start and regardless of which drivers they have used. The only drivers that I am aware that may have a similar issue are those in 1.75b.
Try the original drivers again see if you have the issue there, if so then it's probably the card and if not, you can try older UNi Xonar drivers.
Yea, I've had a Xonar DX, and now a DGX, and for some reason the left speaker (headphone) seems louder. I've never found a real solution so I've just been setting the left channel about 2dB lower than the right and it seems about right. I guess its a driver thing since this happened on 2 different cards, as well as different drivers? I've tested with onboard audio and it seems fine so I don't think its my headset (sennheiser pc-360).
I think the issue you are describing is something else that the issue that's being discussed in this message thread (the issue StoneCold described). He says that sometimes he has a lower left channel speaker volume, and this is usually solved with a system restart. From what I can gather you say you always have a lower left channel volume. Please clarify.
Yea, restarting doesn't help. I have my left channel 2dB lower than the right at all times. I'm not on my PC with the card atm, but I think the right channel is 100%, and left is 92% or so, which is 2dB from what i can remember and they sound about even. It's real obvious when I'm in a voip or someone is talking. I'm pretty sure its not the headset because I've tried it when it was plugged into onboard and it sounded fine.
I don't remember seeing someone else bringing up the issue you are having, that being said I'm don't think it's the drivers. Anyway don't think I could do anything about it.
Maybe you should check the card with a loop cable, connecting speakers output with line-in input jack and check the R and L volume output with RMAA in run Adjusting Levels phase of Playback/Recording test. This would objectively show you if there is a significant difference. After that you should check the card in another PC with this test and see if the volume imbalance is there too.
Can you not make the windows timer resolution 1.250ms? Is it possible without crackling or other problems? My laptop (with Realtek) doesn't and the it's at its default 15.6ms.
I haven't changed this, it is how the original drivers are. I don't think I can change it.
Hi,
Is it possible with your driver or addons to change which output be active when using ASIO?
So now my DAC is connected through the SPDIF out and a separate headphone connected to the Front out.
When I using Xonar ASIO e.g. in foobar, both device get the sound, the one connected to my DAC and the other connected to the sound card.
In the Audio Center I can disable the SPDIF out, but not the analog.
Usually I want to use the SPDIF and occasionally the analog, but I don't want to plug in and out every time.
Don't think there is a way to change card output for ASIO playback. You may want to try WASAPI as playback output instead. Should offer the same quality.
For disabling Analog, you could try to disable it Windows Volume-Playback devices-> Asus Xonar Speakers. Or just connecting the HP to front panel and switch from Xonar Audio Center the analog output from front panel to the card.
I am looking for a soundcard for hifi-music-listening, some soundstudio-working (Propellerhead Reason) and games including (optional) surround - all in Windows over speakers and headphone (+antlion modmic) and including decent Linux compatibilty through ALSA. I consider buying a Asus Essence STX II 7.1, but despite - or maybe because of the need - of your efforts to provide better drivers, I wonder if this is a good choice (driver-wise). Would you still recommend to buy it? Can you maybe give alternative recommendations if not?
A Happy New Year in advance,
Lomaxx
I don't know how well the Xonar STX II or any other Xonar cards work in Linux.
On Windows the Xonar drivers are bad, I managed to fix some issues but some still remain, you may run into them or not depending mainly on your use of the card.
Some examples: high microphone and line-in input delay, low line-in volume, GX (EAX emulation) not functional, occasionally left or right speaker volume quieter (this is a rare issue) or the dynamic volume issue. It is very unlikely Asus/C-media will ever fix them.
Personally, I would not buy or could recommend a STX II card, as the driver support is almost non-existent. If I really wanted to buy I Xonar card then I would not touch anything above a Xonar DX. The only other real alternative when it comes to audio cards is Creative. I don't have any experience with Creative cards, but from what I've seen I think they at least 1 grade above when it comes to driver support and existing issues. Another possibility is going for a external DAC instead of a audio card, but I don't have any recommendations.
Regardless of what you decide, I recommend you buy the audio card from a shop that allows you to return the card no questions asked.
Hope this helps. Good luck with your purchase and Happy New Year!
I am using Xonar D2X card. Well it works well with UniXonar drivers (recommended) as well as Asus bundled driver in windows platform. I am also planning to compare D2X's output with Dolby AV receiver to check sourround effect and stereo to 5.1 chennel conversion efficacy. However, I dint check it for linux compatibility but you can try for linux from following ALSA project link: http://www.alsa-project.org/main/index.php/Matrix:Vendor-Asus
Look for Linux drivers that support the C-Media CMI8788 audio processor, which is used in the Xonar DS, DSX, ST, STX and STX II cards.
Not sure how well the drivers work, but I've seen references for Linux drivers for the CMI8788 as far back as 2008.
My Xonar Audio Center crashes almost every time on boot using Windows 8.1 and a Xonar DGX. Tried every version of the driver down to 1.70.
There is some kind of software conflict on your system. If you can't find what it is causing this, the only way to fix this would be to reinstall Windows.
I suggest you use C-Media Panel or Xonar Switch instead of Xonar Audio Center.
This is a fresh install, so it's unlikely that there are any conflicts. I just recently upgraded from Windows 7 to 8.1 and the problem started after that.
Here are the two error logs, maybe they help to identify the problem:
http://pastebin.com/UFLnT4SE
http://pastebin.com/mTs6Hh5U
Please note that the driver itself is working, just the Xonar Audio Center crashes if I try to launch it. I wouldn't mind but jack sensing also doesn't work without it.
I don't know why it is crashing.
Damarus, did you disable the motherboard's on-board audio? in the BIOS
Yes it's disabled.
I am using a Xonar ST on Win 7 64bit......All of a sudden I noticed I was only getting sound on the right side. I reseated the card, reseated all of the connections, and changed the power connection from the PSU, and made sure on board audio was disabled......I went into the control panel and balanced the audio....Left was set all the way down for some unknown reason.
Now the main system volume only affects the left side. If I open winamp, the volume slider will control both left and right, but if the volume slider in winamp is up, the system volume will still only control the left side.
I tried the latest driver. I also deleted the hsmgr file in windows/syswow64. I reinstalled the driver and hsmgr32 and hsmgr64 came back and are running at the same time. I unchecked them from msconfig so they do not start, but nothing has changed. Is this a driver problem or is there some other windows conflict. Since the programs seem to be able to individually control the volume I am thinking this is windows related. If I open youtube, the youtube volume slider controls both left and right. Does this have something to do with the soundcard exclusivity settings? Thanks
Never had or heard of someone having this problem. Seems very strange.
I think it's Windows related. Which Windows do you have?
Don't think it's the drivers but you should also try older releases like 1.64.
If you set ASIO as playback output device in a audio player that supports this (like foobar2000) and try controlling the volume in that application, how does the volume behave in regards to left and right speakers?
Hsmgr processes are mainly used for GX (EAX emulation). These are stopped from running automatically when you install the drivers with Low DPC Latency configuration.
Does not have anything to do with playback Exclusive mode. That option allows specific application to use the playback output exclusively in WASAPI output mode, meaning no other sounds from other applications are being played.
The 1.64 driver works...had to install in safe mode though. I see that both hsmgr32 and 64 are running again, so I don't think that has anything to do with it. I didn't make any changes to my system and I don't know how long it has been this way. It could have been a windows update that messed it up, but the older driver seems to work and I can now use the system volume to control both left and right, thanks.
I have the Xonar STX and I have the same issue: Audio only on the right side. Windows volume control only seems to control the left side only. It seems like the right side is stuck at max volume.
I originally had this problem with stock OEM drivers from Asus a long time ago. That's what motivated me to find and use the drivers here.
But the problem still persists regardless of what driver provider I choose. The problem seems to happen randomly but more so when the card gets very hot (or when my room gets rather warm). There doesn't seem to be any remedy except 1) uninstalling the drivers. 2) re-seating the card many times, 3) touching/grounding the PCI contacts and the back of the PCB and 4) re-installing the Xonar drivers. Usually you have to wait for a relay "click" multiple times. For me, the process needs to get repeated a LOT of times before the card volume will work again. Sometimes I'd have to leave the card sitting on my desk for a few days before it works again. I'm pretty much ready to give up this Xonar STX and go with the SoundBlaster ZXR.
I am also having this same issue. Windows volume only controls the left channel. I tried disabling Hsmgr on startup, no luck. (That solution came from: http://www.sevenforums.com/sound-audio/47301-changing-volume-only-affects-left-speaker.html) I am going to try removing the card, removing the drivers, re-seating the card, and re-installing the drivers. If that doesn't work, I will try the 1.64 drivers Carved mentioned
I have noticed several people all of a sudden who had the same problem as I did.....I think there must have been a recent driver update or windows update that screwed up the ASUS cards. Try using the 1.64 uni driver.....it worked for me.
An update and some details I missed. I have a DGX, win8.1, and I was using the unified drivers. I solved the problem by reinstalling the card and drivers along with a thorough driver cleaning.
Here are the steps I did:
1. Remove card
2. Uninstall drivers in safe mode
3. Clean ASUS sound drivers using DriverFusion. (I couldn't get DriverFusion to launch in safe mode).
4. Searched my drives for Hsmgr. It found the 32bit and 64bit. I renamed each of them xHsmgr. (I was too chicken to delete them).
5. Installed the card making sure it was seated properly.
6. Installed the unified driers 1.74a (if they didn't work I was going to repeat the process using 1.64).
7. I checked Hsmgr and saw that they were reinstalled with the drivers (makes sense).
I just checked my task manager and both HsMgr applications are disabled on startup. I tried this as a solution before I did the steps listed above. I don't use eax so I am tempted to leave it alone. But for science I will try and enable them and see if the problem comes back.
Thanks everyone for your help. This site I awesome. I will try an check this occasionally and help where I can.
For you and anyone that has this problem, I suggest you look into updating the motherboard bios (if it's not already the latest version). Stranger things have happened because of faulty bioses.
So, I just had my Xonar Essence STX RMA'ed under warranty and got a brand new Xonar STX. Unfortunately, the audio went out on the left side again! Only MAXIMUM audio on the right side. Totally lost volume control. Also, upgraded to the latest BIOS firmware for the motherboard before I RMA'ed the Xonar card. Still no luck.
Ultimately I had to move the Xonar card to a new PCI slot to get it to work again, but before I installed the Xonar 1.64.r2 drivers, I tried to "enable" the driver in Device Manager and got a BSOD here:
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/zGBota7fTaXES23CR1Y5WhZlOlGxwDWj8vhu0VejGL0?feat=directlink
What's interesting is, when this issue occurs, every time I reboot Windows the windows volume control is set at MAXIMUM after every reboot regardless of the setting when I shutdown. After re-seating the Xonar card in a new PCI slot, and successful driver installation (with relay clicks heard), the master volume is set at 50% and the volume level is saved.
Which OS do you have? Have you tried another OS or a clean OS installation (can be on a separate partition)? Maybe you should check that too.
A better idea would be to check the card in another PC, maybe give it to a friend for a week or so.
Which motherboard do you have?
I have Windows 7, I haven't yet tried a clean OS install since I have a lot of dev tools and really difficult to re-install/re-configure everything. On my next upgrade I will install over a clean OS and will try then.
The motherboard I have now is an Asus X79 Sabertooth (http://www.asus.com/us/Motherboards/SABERTOOTH_X79) with 64GB Corsair RAM, Intel 3960X Extreme Edition CPU, Nvidia GTX 680. I also ran memtest86 and RAM is checks out OK.
GTX on PCI_1.
Xonar on PCI_2 and PCI_3 which I alternate when re-seating the Xonar card.
Original BIOS config had all PCI slots running at Gen3 speed but I recently reduced PCI_2 and PCI_3 to Gen1 speeds and hasn't had any effect. I've also disabled the on-board HD-Audio controller.
I'm starting to realize this is a software issue somewhere in the driver and Window's audio path. I just now disabled "Cmaudio8788GX / hsmgr.exe" and "Cmaudio8788GX64 / hsmgr64.exe" using SI Autoruns and will slowly start disabling unnecessary audio components until hopefully I find the issue.
Disabling Cmaudio HsMgr didn't work. Audio on left side, and loss of volume control on the right side (maximum vol) happened again today. Was on a good streak, but again, it was hot yesterday.
Do you know if there’s some kind of driver cache somewhere? Perhaps in the registry or some file on disk? Or perhaps, the location of the raw driver’s settings file/reg key?
Don't think the information you ask will help you in any way but here it is:
Driver cache can be found in Windows\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository. Search for folders named xonar.
For registry settings search see FAQ:Q&A5.
I know this sounds a bit strange but I've kept the windows OS master volume under 50% this entire time and haven't had any issues.
I increased my Logitech Z-680 speaker volume to compensate for the reduced OS volume range.
So, it seems keeping the windows OS master volume under 50% seems to resolve the issue of losing control over the master OS volume on the left speaker. No problems so far and it's been over 1 month and counting.
Hi, my english is very poor... I have problem with settings my asus xonar hdav 1.3 deluxe.I want that on my receiver Yamaha RX-A1030 played DTS HDMA and Dolby True HD without Total Media Theatrer. I dont now what I must do it. I instaled Yours UNi Xonar 1816/1822 v1.75a r2 but I dont now what else....Can I ask for a detailed step by step instructions ? Which plug-ins, drivers, and software to support the movie and the sound DTS HDMA I need to install. Once again, please, detailed step by step instructions. Thank you very much
Hi. I believe it is required that you use a player that supports DTS-HD MA playback. I am not familiar with other players other than Total Media Theater 3.
Just wanted to give another THANK YOU for this excellent work! I went through all the provided UNi driver release notes and I noticed that most changes dealt with correcting technical issues in driver installers, including many more sound cards/chips, having options to clean drivers, providing low latency drivers, inclusion of newer driver files from several sound card/chip makers, and inclusion newer OpenAL, ASIO, Dolby Headphone (1.1.3) 7.1 Shifter profile, and other improvements, for which we are all very grateful! What about actual sound playback & loopback quality improvements? Do UNi drivers improve sound quality in terms of frequency response, noise level, dynamic range, total harmonic distortion + noise, intermodulation distortion, stereo crosstalk, and similar aspects??? I know some of those are limited by the sound chip itself, but I was wondering if UNi drivers improved any of those sound quality aspects. It would be nice to see a RightMark Audio Analyzer result differences between the latest official ASUS Xonar drivers and the latest UNi Xonar drivers.
The RMAA results are the same, especially comparisons between same audio drivers (1794 for example). There is a reason I did not advertised improvements to playback quality, that's because UNi Xonar drivers do not improve sound quality, at least not in the area you are asking. Slight improvement in sound quality can be obtained by using UNi Xonar drivers because of using the correct audio settings. Many people claim a better sound quality while using the Low DPC latency or C-media Panel configurations. There is no noticeable difference in RMAA tests that would prove that, but there might be some interferences from ASUS Audio Center, just like in the case of DPC latency, that affect sound playback quality at least in some circumstances.
What you are asking, I am almost certain it is impossible to do, those aspects depend on the audio components (DAC, opamp). If you are interested in improving the Xonar playback capabilities you should look at hardware modding your card.
I don't know if you've read FAQ Q&A9, if you haven't I strongly suggest you do. Having the right settings can improve playback quality. Most important, setting the output bit-depth to 24bit will improve sound quality, these improvements are measurable in RMAA tests, those results can be downloaded from here. Another setting that is very important is sample rate, for that you can find RMAA tests here.
Where do you get the raw drivers from? The latest drivers on the cmedia website are from July where you have stuff that's signed in December
It depends. 1822 audio drivers for Windows Vista/7/8/8.1 are from Asus Xonar drivers released for Windows 8.1 for some cards. 1816 audio drivers for Windows XP are from Asus Xonar DG SI drivers from what I can remember. You see, ASUS mostly releases new drivers only for a new released card or when a new OS is launched, they are force to do because that card would not work with the old drivers. There are also other sources for like HTOmega and Auzentech drivers from their CMI8788 powered cards.
Hi CarvedInside
Testing 1816/1822 v1.75a r2 for DX2 on Win7 64...
Xear Surround Max doesn't appear in main settings as it did in 1822 v1.72.
Could I ask is that a problem from my end or a solution from yours ?
Thanks again for your indefatigable commitment to this successful project.
Hi. It's missing from the C-Media Panel right? This probably removed in the updated version of the panel that's included in 1.75a. The most easy way to fix this, is to install 1.72 drivers, currently you are not missing anything by going back and audio drivers included are the same.
I will see what's to be done for future UNi Xonar versions, because if this option was removed intentionally and not by mistake by C-Media, there might be problem bringing it back.
Thanks for bringing this up.
Hi,
Recently i have installed windows 8.1 (fresh install) but for some reason i can't get my Xonar Essence STX card up and running. I have tried installing the latest drivers here v.1.75. but no success.
My card is detected by windows and the driver but once i try to play a music file my media player just won't play it. in fact when i press the play button it just does nothing. Not even playing the music file on the screen. It's like my pc thinks their isn't any output so it doesn't play the file.
Also i can't get any other sounds of course. Never had this issue on windows 7.
And when i switch back to my on-board soundcard everything works just fine. very strange any ideas?
It's strange. Have you tried uninstalling the drivers and installing them again?
In Windows Volume -> Playback devices check that Speakers Asus Xonar STX entry is set as default if you are using analog connection. Try here speaker test (right click on Speakers and select Test).
In the audio player you use, check in its settings that output either Windows Default or Speakers Asus Xonar STX.
If none work, you could try and uncheck Exclusive mode checkboxes from Windows Volume -> Playback devices -> Speakers Asus Xonar STX-> Proprieties->Advanced tab.
Hope these tips help.
I have tried all that but nothing works.
Anyway i have made a video about it and posted on youtube.
This is the link.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G86iSUWzEC4&fmt=22
if you guy's got any tips please help me!
Thx
PROBLEM SOLVED: It's a hardware glitch inside the Asus Rampage V board. If you update to the latest BIOS driver the problem is sloved!
Nice! Glad you have resolved your problem.
Didn't crossed my mind that somehow the motherboard was causing this. I'm glad you managed to find a solution.
Try to put your card into the different PCI slot (if you have some) or maybe the problem is even more simple than that like CarvedInside suggested. On-board is still active as default audio device. Simply disable on-board audio in bios for good and get rid of it. It is useless in comparison with your STX and may cause conflicts.
I am basking by my PC on a cold winter afternoon, listening to Loreena McKennitt . She sounds almost as good as she does on the HiFi, and that's saying something. My sound set-up has been transformed by the card. Your driver and software worked first time without a hiccup.
A couple of hours ago I was tearing my dreadlocks out trying to get the Xonar Essence ST to work!
What can I say except for two things:
1. Why don't Asus send out discs with drivers for anything more modern than Vista?
2. More importantly...you have my heartfelt thanks. You deserve a medal!
I'm happy to hear.
Asus does not really care about supporting these cards, so it's no wonder that they're CDs are the same from 5 years ago.
Thank you for the kind words and thank you for the donation.
PS: I don't know if you had time to look through this site, I recommend you read FAQ Q&A9, there are some tips that could help ensure you get the most from your card.
Hello,
I just bought a sound card ASUS XONAR DG SI and installed your drivers, during installation everything went ok but please tell me if is normal to hear that "click" sound from the sound card when changing the analog output ?(I hear that sound directly from sound card from inside my pc and not my speakers, I don't hear that strange click when choosing 2 speakers analog output but at other mods I hear it).
Thank you and have a nice day and I hope that you will be more then kind to tell me if this is normal or not to know if I should return the sound card).
Hello.
Yes it is normal.
Thanks for answering, can you explain to me please what that "click" meaning?
Is a protection or what?
It's a relay switch. This topic has already been covered on so many forums over the internet (search "xonar click" or "xonar click relay").