Man ..... after reading all the torture you guys are going through with enabling stereo mix recording on the X61/T61 series, I'm sure glad that I kept my old T42 and ordered WinXP with my new T61 (which fortunately had an express54 slot for an external X-fi card which also offers the nice bonus of much better sound playback quality and special sound effects).

Keep up the good work, however ..... your efforts will hopefully help many others in the future

Well....... if recording streaming audio with no speakers attached to the device proves that it is recording speaker output, then that is what it is doing.

The ICUSBUDIO device will mute the onboard speakers as soon as it is plugged in and recognised by the operating system. The operating system (in my case it's XP Pro) will default the audio playback and recording to this device (as seen in the sound and audio devices control panel - audio tab). I didn't have speakers or headphones plugged into the device, essentially "muting" the computer.

I fired up Audacity and selected "Stereo Mix" (which doesn't show up as an option if the ICUSBAUDIO device is not present) and then played some streaming audio. The input meter in audacity indicated that the streaming audio was present and then I recorded a short portion. Keep in mind that all the while, there was no possible amplification of and audible audio signal (the onboard speakers were muted and there were no external speakers attached to the device). The clip recorded perfectly, and when I unplugged the device (enabling the on board speakers) and played the clip, it was there, loud and clear.

The ICUSBAUDIO device essentially replaces the soundMAX "sound card" and it's chipset becomes the audio processing "sound card". The recording programs I use (Audacity and MyMP3) are capturing the digital audio processing being rendered on the ICUSBAUDIO device.

Hope that makes sense.......

Thanks Match Point, sounds good to me, tho I don't know much about the inner workings here. My own device and drivers wait patiently in their package, as I finally try to extricate myself from playing obsessively with my new x61 and other diversions, and catch up on a few thousand things. For now I'm just contenting myself to believe I have the problem licked, and stereo sound recording awaits for when (if ever, lol) called.

i'm glad those of you who are using the usb soundcard have acheieved success. I am going to bring up the registry hack over at Lenovo forums, so i need someone to definitively tell me if Stereo Mix is working, and i would like you to do a test under the following conditions.

With headphones plugged in, select stereo mix and try recording an audio file playing on the computer.

Then post back here that the computer was able to do the recording.

If the registry hack works it means that what the Lenovo engineers told us about it not being able to be fixed with drivers is erroneous, if even just for the t61p users.

Eagerly awaiting your results.

nobody???

Please refresh our memories of the test platform, operating system, and hack procedure you need tested:

A. Model

B. Vista or XP

C. Description of Hack

D. Test Procedure

etc .... Thanks

A. Model: T61p

B. Vista or XP: either will do

C. Description of Hack:
Steps:
1. Modify Registry: (Please be careful in doing this as it can destroy your computer.)
a. run regedit, then click on HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
b. then do a Find for all AD1984
c. Go into Disable folder in the left, then change both MicBP and OutR to 00 (not disable)
d. You should find at least 2 to 3 places to modify this key. On my computer, I have to modified them in CurrentControlSet, CurrentControlSet1, and CurrentControlSet3.
e. Restart your computer

2. After restart, right click on your speaker icon on the taskbar and choose Recording Devices. If you don't see the Stereo Mix listed, then right click on the Microphone and selected "Show Disabled Devices" and Show Disconnected Devices". You should see the Stereo Mix in the list now.


D. Test Procedure : With headphones plugged in, select stereo mix and try recording an audio file playing on the computer.


Thanks everyone.

The hack is useless on a R61. I tried the hack when it was first posted and, yes, it does modify the system so it displays a "stereo mix" control panel in the recording control mixer but, just because a "stereo mix" slider appears, doesn't mean that stereo mix is enabled. If fact, stereo mix processing is not enabled with this hack. The only thing that is enabled is that the system displays a "stereo mix" slider in the recording control window - in a sense you only succeeded in resurrecting a pop-up graphic. Again, it does nothing for actually enabling any sound processing in the sound max chipset.

ps. this is on a R61 running XP Pro.

Same holds true for my T61 running WinXP .... a useless hack.

However a couple of people have reported that this has worked on T61p units so the "p" units may work.

drT, i'd sweat I posted a reply here but...lately I've been swearing at many things. I *think* I literally just confirmed that StreetAtlas2004 is what was making my Vista system unstable. (Can't shut down, blank desktop on startups, real nice things like that.) At least, after two rebricks and now some real real careful incremental installs with many many backups...there's a big finger pointing at SA2004. After it installed "successfully" the system broke down.

Anyway...last week I tried a stereo mix exercise. Installed and ran Audacity, which thought it was recording in stereo while I was playing a CD, or streaming music, etc. all in stereo.

Funny thing--both tracks in Audacity WERE IDENTICAL, so even though the system was playing stereo music, and Audacity was recording in stereo, it was getting two identical channels--not the stereo playing over the speakers.

And that was with just the SoundMax native drivers on the T61P under Vista Ultimate, fully patched to date. Haven't even begun to think about reinstalling the XFi, need to continue rebuilding with many backups and delousing as I go before I get that far.

FWIW.

Thanks for the update ..... As for my T61 with WinXP SP2, the Express54 Slot external X-fi card is still recording What-U-Hear in stereo perfectly from all sources. However, I just discovered that the Lenovo supplied WinDVD would not "play" DVDs unless I also have the SoundMAX enabled under Device Manager (again, we are talking WinXP).

Fortunately, both the X-fi and SoundMAX devices seem to co-exist without problems so far ..... I had disabled the SoundMAX under Device Manager up until recently.

eecon, try this small experiment?

With the XFi and Soundmax drivers both installed and nothing disabled in the control panel or device manager, tap on the microphone (in the keyboard) with your fingernail, while listening to the XFi with earphones. Can you hear the tapping?

That was one of the problems here, the mic went live all the time, and fed back everything (ambient noise, hard drive spin, etc.) into the audio. Even turning the mic off in the control panel, didn't disable it.

Vista: The wonderful view as you go over the edge of the cliff.<G>

I have already tried that .... my T61 mic is not on. I hope this info helps.

eecon-
So, what works in XP doesn't in Vista.

After three days of incremental diagnostic installs, I'm really starting to think of downgrading to XP. Vista post-SP1 seems to be INCREDIBLY MORE FRAIL than pre-SP1, I've got a number of apps and drivers that can trash it (kill shutdowns and/or restarts) that were no problem at all pre-SP1. Gonna be a long weekend.

I tried once again to get my onboard T61 mic to record and it will not record regardless of the settings as long as the external X-fi is plugged in. The X-fi apparently kills the T61's built-in mic under WinXP .... However, the X-fi's own mic input works fine with an external mic (both in stereo and mono).

When I remove the X-fi and use the SoundMAX, the onboard T61's mic will work again (mono only) when I un-mute the mic recording selector. But it stays silent when I mute it.

All this of course with WinXP SP2 .... I am even reluctant to update to WinXP SP3 because everthing works just fine now for me with WinXP SP2.

"the onboard T61's mic will work again (mono only) " No surprise.<G> I haven't looked inside but supposedly it is just a mono jack with one circuit connection so stereo would be impossible--unless you were a Zen Master.<G>

I understand your reluctance to install SP3! Found out that in Vista/SP1 even Google Earth was toxic. A new version (4.3) apparently released last night and while this SEEMS to run...it also makes Vista shut down Aero and revert to Basic in order to do that. Eighteen months...and even Google can't handle the Vista GUI after SP1 improves life. (sigh)

At this rate it may be another week before I can touch the XFi again, too many other things MUST be verified first, I need this computer up and running "the NT way". That is, rock solid and stable. (Don't laugh TOO HARD, you'll bust something.<G>)

No laughing here about NT ...... I remember the good old days of reliable NT and Win2000 business networks at the office and at home.

eecon-
You know the saying "You can't make this stuff up!" it is just unbelieveable sometimes.

So, with a clean clean system running Vista SP1 plus all patches, I threw the dice and decided to try installing as little as possible for the Creative XFi card. [Thurs: Confirmed file installations with a clean new install. 70MB master file, 58MB Console Launcher file, 20+ MB May'08 patch file, restarting between each as prompted]

Now, the XFi card works fine. The system default mic has no echo--it shows up as disabled normally, even before the XFi, so perhaps there's been a driver change there too. But now for the [fade in: twilight zone sound track] wierd part.

If I send my tape output into the XFi input, and select "mic", I get MONO on BOTH TRACKS in Audacity. Stereo, sure, but both tracks exactly the same. Shades of "no mix", huh? Except, if I use the Console Launcher (which I didn't have before, at least not this version of it) and change the selection to "LINE IN"....I get a much lower input volume BUT I GET BOTH TRACKS, FULL NORMAL STEREO.

This is a setup for Candid Camera, right? I need the extra input volume that the "MIC" setting gives me, but I need the STEREO that only the "LINE IN" setting gives me. Hmmmm....

At any rate, with just these two files installed--the card works, some of the basic support for it works, AND NOTHING LOCKS UP. Well, except Audacity sometimes but that's a work in progress.

It seems that Creative has made some progress with their drivers--even if they still don't know how to explain which files to use for installation. It's three of the Vista files on their download list--not all six of them, for sure!

And even with an outboard card...stereo mix is disabled at the system level when the mic input is involved. Even when there's real stereo mic hardware plugged into the slot!

I've been following this thread (and many others come to that) regarding the "stereo mix thing" or What U Hear in Creative language.
It's my understanding talking to someone else who has the X-Fi Xtreme Audio Notebook in XP, that he has no mic control on the playback side, and when he enables What U hear (aka stereo mix) on the recording side it mutes his mic (well it doesn't work) and he has no option to unmute it so he can't do voice over music.

Could you confirm that eecon?

Dell have done the same thing with their onboard sound. Kudos to them for writting a driver that at least allows people to record from the web, but it's not the answer for those wishing to do voice over music.
I can see in years to come those wishing to broadcast or whatever they use stereo mix for being in a position to do it with an external mixer only.

That is correct .... with the X-fi inserted, there is no control slider on the WinXP playback control panel (it is only found on the recording panel). The onboard T61 mic is always muted when the X-fi is inserted, however an external mic plugged into the X-fi will work, but only for voice recording .... i.e. no voice-over recording capability.

Re Startech's ICUSBAUDIO My friend bought it to use on his Dell XPS that he has dual booted w/ OS X, and whereas he has the sigmatel 9220 card which has stereo mix, This card doesn't have Stereo Mix in Vista

No "stereo mix" in the Control Panel here in Vista, either.

Maybe we need to put its picture on milk cartons, and send out an Amber Alert?

This is def ridiculous - seeing as this feature is used by many TPAD users.

Lenovo asked for figures about how many people use or want this feature, and i started a poll to do this, and despite the fact that this thread has so many reads, i don't know if 15 people in total responded to the poll.

Certainly doesn't give any impetus for anything to be done for future models.

How about posting the link to your poll please ... thanks!

I did before, but here is the link again

Please note my recent comments at that thread.

Thanks for the link .... I started new poll with the question re-phrased, but from the results, it looks like confirmation that very few people use their T61's for stereo audio recording anymore (or have purchased add-on devices, like I did).

Out of interest, does the same problem with audio present itself on the X300 series? I did a search in the X300 forum, but nothing obvious there to answer this.