Missing right channel of stereo recording

Audacity Help Forum Windows
1

Using Audacity 2.0.5 with UFO202 U-PHONE converter. Same problem on two different computers. One Win7HP. The other Win8.1Pro. Both have Realtek HD audio. Both current with software updates and hardware drivers.

Problem is that Audacity records only the left channel of a stereo recording. I see similar problems all over this forum and elsewhere on the internet. I have checked all the usual software settings …
Windows > Control Panel > Sound > Recording devices > UFO202 device > Properties > 2 channel (not 1 channel)
Audacity > Preferences > Devices > Recording > Channels > 2(Stereo)
Audacity recording window, Input device = USB audio codec, Input channels = 2

The equipment connection path is turntable => preamp phono in => preamp tape line out => UFO202 line in (with the switch set to line, not phono) => computer USB port.

Both channels are getting to the UFO202. I know this because the device has its own headphone out and I hear both channels through it.

I get one channel (left) all the way to Audacity if I change the Audacity input setting to 1 channel. I get two channels (of mono sound) all the way to Audacity if I change the Windows sound setting to 1 channel.

I get two channels of music all the way through to Audacity if I connect the UFO202 headphone out to the computer microphone in, although the Audacity input level is not high enough for a usable recording.

I get two channels of noise all the way through to Audacity if I connect the UFO202 line out to the computer microphone in (although at a usable input level if I wanted a recording of noise).

No problem recording, saving, labeling, or exporting whatever signal gets to Audacity (although, as noted above, the Audacity input level with UFO202 headphone out to computer microphone in is not high enough for a usable recording).

All done with high end audio interconnection cables, except for the USB interconnect, which comes hardwired to the UFO202 device.

This is the first use of the UFO202 device. So the device could be defective. I’m contacting Behringer support about that.

In the meantime, am I overlooking something in the setup and use of Audacity?

2

I don’t think so. It seems the Behringer USB output is faulty.

Gale

3

Behringer tech support say the UFO202 is working properly because I hear stereo when I plug headphones into the headphone jack on the UFO202. They say it’s a software problem. But I tried a third computer and got exactly the same result as the first two. I don’t think it’s the computer hardware. I double checked the Windows sound recording device settings. Besides, what are the odds of three different computers, two laptops and one desktop, two Win7HP and one Win8.1Pro, all having the same hardware problem? It has to be either the Audacity software or the Behringer hardware. I double checked all of the Audacity software settings, too. I’m pretty good with high fidelity audio equipment. I’m also pretty good with computers. I know I’ll never buy a Behringer product again. Beyond that, I don’t know what to try next. Any suggestion, including a different brand of USB audio interface?

4

Make the UFO 202 default recording device in Windows Sound then record using Windows Sound Recorder (just search for “Sound Recorder” without quotes).

If Sound Recorder records only the left channel and silent right channel then the issue seems to be the UFO 202. Can you try another USB cable with it, assuming the USB cable is detachable?


Gale

5

I made two test recordings using Sound Recorder to record a couple of minutes of music from an audio CD. On playback, using Windows Media Player, I hear sound only on left side, but what I hear is a mono version of the original stereo source. And yes, I did check the Advanced tab of the recording device Properties to confirm that they are set to 2 Channel, 16 Bit, 44100 Hz (CD Quality).

6

Then that proves it’s a Behringer problem. Please tell them that Windows Sound Recorder does the same or try another USB cable if possible.

There are some other interfaces at Missing features - Audacity Support which we have found to work (but we have also found the UFO 202 to work). If you only just bought the UFO, Behringer may be prepared to replace it.


Gale

7

The USB cable is hard-wired to the device. I bought it almost three years ago, and only recently got around to using it. Behringer increased the warranty period from one year to three years, and I would be within the three-year period, but they did that shortly after I bought it. So they say the three-year warranty period does not apply to mine and they’re not going to replace it. I’m not going to buy another Behringer product. So I will have to find an alternative. In the meantime, you’ve been most helpful, and I appreciate it. Thank you.