FAQ: SoundTrack Digital Audio 4ch/16ch

Note: we recommend to check the General FAQ section as well.

hardware and driver related topics

1. Does the card work under Windows ME?

Please download our special driver for Windows ME (v3.2) from this website. You might also need to download & install the latest set of applications for the card.

2. Does the card work under Windows 2000/XP?

No, we did not release an official driver for Windows 2000/XP for the SoundTrack Digital Audio 4ch/16ch cards. We do not have the needed resources available to complete WDM driver development for this card. The existing user base for SoundTrack Digital Audio 4ch/16ch cards is very small compared to the number of users of our other products. We apologize for this situation and will of course continue to support our users on the supported operating systems! This hardware was developed a long time before Windows 2000/XP and audio applications for that operating system have been released. On request we can provide all the needed informations (incl. source code of driver pre-releases) and support for third party developers.

3. Does the card work under Linux?

Yes, you can use the OSS-compatible driver by Gerd Rausch which you can download on this website.

4. Is the SoundTrack Digital Audio 4ch/16ch Sound Blaster compatible?

No.

5. Do I need amplified speakers or a separate amplifier to use this soundcard?

Yes. Like most modern soundcards, there is no amplifier on the card itself (because of the audio quality). This means that you need active powered speakers to use the card properly. Passive speakers without an amplifier will not give you enough output volume.

6. Can I output AC-3 signals with this card?

No, with current drivers and the common DVD player applications this is not possible.

7. Is it possible to install this card in a system with onboard-sound or another soundcard?

No problem! You should make sure that both devices do not share their IRQ. It is not possible to install several SoundTrack Digital Audio 4ch/16ch cards in one system. An internal combination with the DSP24 by ST Audio is even possible with a special digital connection.

8. Does this card support S/PDIF?

Yes. The optical and coaxial digital output connectors on the optional SoundTrack Digital Bracket II / III provide optical and coaxial S/PDIF connectors.

9. Is it possible to record bit-identical signals on the digital input (I have the optional bracket)?

No. The hardware resamples all incoming signals with a high-quality SRC chip from Analog Devices to 44.1kHz or 48kHz (depending on the used software) which is in that case currently the internal processing samplerate of the card. This does not change the signal quality in a way that would be serious for most -even real professional- applications. The used SRC chip performs a better conversion (e.g. from 48kHz to 44.1kHz) compared to many software algorithms in audio applications.

10. Are there any known incompatibilities with other hardware?

We do not recommend to use the card with mainboards using the i810 chipset from Intel. The SoundTrack Digital Audio 4ch/16ch always needs an unshared IRQ to work properly and in that case should work on all PCI 2.1 compatible mainboards.

11. What is the difference between the SoundTrack Digital Audio 4ch and the SoundTrack Digital Audio 16ch?

The ST D_A 4ch card is using two SAM9407 DSPs from Dream, while the ST D_A 16ch is using two SAM9707 DSPs. The difference is that the SAM9407 provides one stereo input channel (2 channels on 2 DSPs = 4 channels), while the SAM9707 provides four of them (8 channels on 2 DSPs = 16 channels).

12. I heard about a SoundTrack Digital Audio 10ch ... what's that?

The ST D_A 10ch card was developed but never produced in favour of the cheaper ST D_A 4ch. It was using one SAM9707 and one SAM9407.

13. I heard about a 'M' version of the SoundTrack Digital Audio cards.

The 'M' version was a revised hardware revision that could be used (and was usualy bundled) with the DAC Bracket to support a second stereo analog output (Rear) and MIDI I/O. The 'M' version can be identified by the missing flat ribbon cable connector left to the SIMM-socket (not mounted on the PCB).

software and usage related topics

1. Is it possible that my MD is creating new tracks automatically when I am recording several WAV- or MP3-files via the digital output of the digital bracket?

Yes and no. Sadly there is no standard for applications and drivers to control a function like this. In most applications you can use a special method to create new tracks: just add (around) 3 sec. of silcence in the playlist between each track in the playlist. You could use this mp3-file for example. Some applications (e.g. WinAMP) have special functions or plugins to support this. Of course the breaks won't be on your final MD recordings!

2. When I start Windows, I get the message 'File Not Found - DSP32.DLL' - where is this file?

This message does not mean that a file with this name is missing. It refers to the driver that has not been installed or loaded correctly. Either install the driver (if not done so) or check for possible error messages that are displayed on startup in text mode.

3. I get the error message 'C120' or 'C124' when I boot by system in text mode. What can I do to load the driver?

Make sure the option 'PNP OS INSTALLED' in your BIOS is set to 'NO'. This message can also appear if you have an IRQ sharing problem (please install the card into a different PCI slot then) or when the memory module on the PCI-card is not installed correctly. Keep in mind that the ST D_A 4ch/16ch does not work without a memory module installed. In some cases, this can also appear when the PCI-card is not installed correctly in the PCI-slot (mechanically).

4. I installed a new driver and the two colored lines on startup are not displayed any longer. Still the card seems to work!?

Our Windows ME drivers do not show the init messages on screen, don't worry - this is no problem.

5. I get the error message 'UNKNOWN CHIPSET' when I boot by system in text mode. What's that?

No problem at all, this is no error message. This message just indicates that the DAUDIO utility of the card did not detect the exact model & type chipset of your mainboard (e.g. it appears when you use a VIA chipset based mainboard).