Sunday, April 6th 2008

Modder Unlocks Vista Driver Features on Creative Sound Cards

by
Jimmy 2004
 Discuss (103 Comments)
Creative has received much criticism for charging owners of Audigy sound cards for its ALchemy software, which offers improved audio support for certain games under Windows Vista. However, a modder by the name of Daniel Kawakami has managed to build hybrid drivers using a combination of XP and Vista files as well bypassing certain driver checks to enable several features including:
  • Dolby/DTS decoding
  • CMSS, CMSS2 and Stereo Surround (originally only CMSS was available, but this setting also affects ALchemy/OpenAL and Kawakami notes that it's thus particularly useful)
  • Advanced EQ and Special FX presets
  • DVD Audio
  • Hardware MIDI synthesizer (Kawakami says he wrote a small utility that automatically detects and changes the default Vista MIDI Synth during driver install or can change it later using its GUI. Some media players let you choose the MIDI synthesizer)
  • Equalizer
  • WaveRT
You can read some more complete details of his work at Custom PC and download the files from here. The modded driver was originally uploaded to Creative's forums, although the company responded in a somewhat heavy handed manner, as you can see in this thread.
Source: Custom PC

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103 Comments on Modder Unlocks Vista Driver Features on Creative Sound Cards

#51
Kursah
Solaris17id ask kursah here seems he's on to something

www.techpowerup.com/forums/showpost.php?p=736751&postcount=41
All I did was some googling..then one link led to another, that nomoregoatsoup link has a lot of good stuff too...check the RH side under Recent Goat Droppings and Top Posts...I just lucked out, and I hope that users out there can enjoy what Creative doesn't want them to, and if it doesn't work for ya...then at least you tried em out right? :D

:toast:
Posted on Reply
#52
Mussels
Freshwater Moderator
the echo you speak of (barrel underwater) sounds like what SB live users get with default drivers under vista. the only cure was to run anything that wasnt 2.0 or headphones.
Posted on Reply
#53
Solaris17
Super Dainty Moderator
ya i got it fixed though i installed his modded drivers and i turned off matrix on my %:1 it makes headphones sound better but i rarely use those so all good :) shame its a live prob though :shadedshu i think ill move to a new sound card soon anyway.
Posted on Reply
#54
eidairaman1
The Exiled Airman
Solaris17ya i got it fixed though i installed his modded drivers and i turned off matrix on my %:1 it makes headphones sound better but i rarely use those so all good :) shame its a live prob though :shadedshu i think ill move to a new sound card soon anyway.
Its not a Live Problem, but Creative Labs Problem cause they are greedy Bastards
Posted on Reply
#55
pagalms
Yep, sound is now much cleaner and better. Thanks to Daniel_K and to Creative. :)
Posted on Reply
#56
SpookyWillow
just installed these and im so happy i now have surround sound :D it worked ok for a little while but just decided to stop yesterday so these came at just the right time lol

everything seems to work ok so far but the advanced eq doesn't seem to work too well, you can select different EQ settings but the sound doesn't change.

other than that they are ok :D

down with creative i say, boo!!!!!!!!
Posted on Reply
#57
btarunr
Editor & Senior Moderator
I wouldn't say down with Creative, but their drivers and corporate policies.

They make great hardware which earns bad name only due to poorly written drivers and atrocious end-user support from the manufacturer. The drivers written by DK prove that it's more or less just bad software that has been pulling back Creative, not to forget their flunk-fanatic corporate bosses that make corporate decisions on par with dumb blondes playing chess vs. Kasprov (the public, us).
Posted on Reply
#58
selway89
Well I found an old CT4760 SBLive! card with the yellow digital connector on the back, part of platinum or something like that. With this article appearing I decided to give it ago.
Eitherway I disabled the onboard HDaudio on my ABIT IP35-E, and Im pleasently surprised that the Live! card is working and sounds great :)

Bass boost where u can set the level and the cut-off level is good :P
Posted on Reply
#59
Mussels
Freshwater Moderator
selway89Well I found an old CT4760 SBLive! card with the yellow digital connector on the back, part of platinum or something like that. With this article appearing I decided to give it ago.
Eitherway I disabled the onboard HDaudio on my ABIT IP35-E, and Im pleasently surprised that the Live! card is working and sounds great :)

Bass boost where u can set the level and the cut-off level is good :P
please help. i have a friend with that very live model that he got off me yesterday and the drivers say no card supported. His may be a CT4780, cant remember off the top of my head - did it 'just work' for you?
Posted on Reply
#60
NamesDontMatter
check to see if its an oem version dell etc, those have slightly different drivers.
Posted on Reply
#61
Solaris17
Super Dainty Moderator
Musselsplease help. i have a friend with that very live model that he got off me yesterday and the drivers say no card supported. His may be a CT4780, cant remember off the top of my head - did it 'just work' for you?
dont uninstall the drivers.....let windows pick it up then install them it replaces the files windows uses...i had that problem i had a diff card but when i uninstalled the drivers and tried running the exe it said no compatable hardware was found so i let wndows pick it up then i installed again and it worked fine :)
Posted on Reply
#62
Mussels
Freshwater Moderator
Solaris17dont uninstall the drivers.....let windows pick it up then install them it replaces the files windows uses...i had that problem i had a diff card but when i uninstalled the drivers and tried running the exe it said no compatable hardware was found so i let wndows pick it up then i installed again and it worked fine :)
its not a dell or OEM one as i used to own it, i think its the Live! 5.1 DE (digital entertainment, something like that)

The system has no drivers at all, calls it an unknown PCI device. should he install the ones that dont work (the legit audigy ones with the echo effect) and then these over the top?
Posted on Reply
#64
Solaris17
Super Dainty Moderator
ok heres waht you do...get winrar kk? than downlaod the correct driver as i have mapped out in one of the above posts after you do that...right click and tell winrar to extract the driver to a folder...once the folder is made open up device manger and right click on the "unknown pci device" then click on update driver...when the box comes up dont click let me pick my driver click let me pick my driver from a list..at that point uncheck "show compatable hardware" and click the have disk button then go to the folder you extracted and click on p17.ini and tell it to install...all should be well after this :)
Posted on Reply
#65
Mussels
Freshwater Moderator
Solaris17ok heres waht you do...get winrar kk? than downlaod the correct driver as i have mapped out in one of the above posts after you do that...right click and tell winrar to extract the driver to a folder...once the folder is made open up device manger and right click on the "unknown pci device" then click on update driver...when the box comes up dont click let me pick my driver click let me pick my driver from a list..at that point uncheck "show compatable hardware" and click the have disk button then go to the folder you extracted and click on p17.ini and tell it to install...all should be well after this :)
i told him to try that, but i didnt know what .ini file to select. will pass this post onto him.
Posted on Reply
#66
selway89
Yeah just worked for me! If its a 24bit card i think he needs to use another driver set...
Posted on Reply
#67
mysticjon
yeah it didnt detect my x-fi fatality, i have vista 32bit, hmm. anybody else have the same problem or fixes?
Posted on Reply
#68
DanishDevil
It didn't? Damn. OK probably no luck for me, then.
Posted on Reply
#69
mysticjon
DanishDevilIt didn't? Damn. OK probably no luck for me, then.
yeah i just went and downloaded the drivers off the creative website, apparently they have an update from march so it works fine
Posted on Reply
#70
BumbRush
creative shot themselves in the foot by telling him to stop, then he shot them in the other foot by telling everybody what they did to artificialy cripple their older cards in order to force sales of newer cards.......

oh well, i will stick with my onboard, it dosnt have any distortions like some boards, and at least realtek updates their drivers regularly and dosnt remove fetures for no good reasion :P
Posted on Reply
#71
Avarice
Musselsi told him to try that, but i didnt know what .ini file to select. will pass this post onto him.
sooooo i got the drivers installed on the SB Live (EMU10K1) i got off mussels the other day and its detected etc and well im not getting any sound at all.... I've configured all the playback options to use the card, still nothing.:(
Posted on Reply
#72
selway89
Avaricesooooo i got the drivers installed on the SB Live (EMU10K1) i got off mussels the other day and its detected etc and well im not getting any sound at all.... I've configured all the playback options to use the card, still nothing.:(
Hmm well I disabled my onboard and installed the CT4760 card, then uninstalled the Realtek software which oddly stopped any sound at all working, after reinstall its working fine.

Id try reinstalling if you already havent done so already.
Posted on Reply
#73
Avarice
selway89Hmm well I disabled my onboard and installed the CT4760 card, then uninstalled the Realtek software which oddly stopped any sound at all working, after reinstall its working fine.

Id try reinstalling if you already havent done so already.
ok so i tried reinstalling them and i got an error saying that REGPLIB.EXE (also got this error last time just forgot to mention it) has stopped working. i don't know if this has something to do with why it isnt working, did anyone else get this error when installing the drivers?

Problem solved..... not quite sure how i done it but it involved lots of trial and error :'(
Posted on Reply
#74
Solaris17
Super Dainty Moderator
sweet glad you got it to work
Posted on Reply
#75
Mussels
Freshwater Moderator
his current problem is that after a reboot, the volume is now about 1/3 what it was when he first got it working..

(for reference, i know him in the rw - my work and his studies just happen to be at different hours, so i cant go around and help him directly)
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