right channel overlays left channel

[danwaldo]

I am using an AV202-B audiograbber. I have 3 machines: an IBM Thinkpad running Win10, a Dell Precision running Win7, and a Dell Inspiron running Win10. The 2 Win10 machines have Audacity version 2.4.2, and the Win7 is running 2.3.3

The Thinkpad and the Precision receive both left and right channels. The Dell Inspiron shows both channels, but what is coming into the left channel is the actually the right channel -- so I have the same sound in both ears.

The Dell remote technicians feel that this is a software issue, despite my reply that if 2 machines are working and one is not, software may not be the problem. However, I promised that I would post the question: is there something other than obvious input settings that might be causing this result in the Win10 Inspiron but not in the Win10 Thinkpad or the Win7 Precision?

[DVDdoug]

It's probably a Windows setting. There is some information here.

[danwaldo]

I thought so, too. But the advanced settings on the USB PnP Audio Device shows 2 channel, 16 bit, 48000hz. So something else, maybe?

[steve]

I am using an AV202-B audiograbber. I have 3 machines: an IBM Thinkpad running Win10, a Dell Precision running Win7, and a Dell Inspiron running Win10. The 2 Win10 machines have Audacity version 2.4.2, and the Win7 is running 2.3.3

The Thinkpad and the Precision receive both left and right channels. The Dell Inspiron shows both channels, but what is coming into the left channel is the actually the right channel -- so I have the same sound in both ears.

The Dell remote technicians feel that this is a software issue, despite my reply that if 2 machines are working and one is not, software may not be the problem. However, I promised that I would post the question: is there something other than obvious input settings that might be causing this result in the Win10 Inspiron but not in the Win10 Thinkpad or the Win7 Precision?

I assume that you are moving one audiograbber between the three PCs (?)

Is everything else the same in your tests? (recording from the same "thing", using the same leads ...)

[danwaldo]

Hey, Steve. Thanks for your interest.
Yep: everything else appears identical. I am using the same grabber in all three cases, the same mp3 snippet provided by H-Top, the same settings in Audacity, and the same superficial settings in Windows (advanced recording set to 2-channel, 48KHz). So I am wondering whether there is an obscure registry setting that's somehow messing things up -- in which case I don't know where to look -- or whether there is some funky thing about the motherboard or USB controller, or whether unseen forces are conspiring against me ... .

If I pass the snippet from the Thinkpad to the older Dell machine, or from the newer Dell machine to the Thinkpad or the older Dell machine, I achieve the desired results. But passing the snippet to the newer Dell machine (or from the turntable amplifier to the newer Dell machine) results in the left channel replicating the right channel.

[steve]

the same mp3 snippet provided by H-Top

What does that mean?

[danwaldo]

Sorry. VTop, the company that makes the audio grabber, sent me a test MP3 file to confirm that the left and right channels should be different. It's just a one-minute music file. And I spelled the company's name wrong. Fitting end to a Friday %P

[steve]

VTop, the company that makes the audio grabber, sent me a test MP3 file to confirm that the left and right channels should be different.

That was a good idea.
How exactly did you test, and what happened?

(Now that you've already given details of the PCs, please just refer to them as the "good" computers and the "bad" computer.)

[danwaldo]

Thanks for your perseverance, Steve! I sent the test MP3 from the good computer to the bad computer, and both channels were identical (bad results). I sent the test MP3 from the bad computer to each of the good computers, and in each case the two channels were different (good results). I ripped a vinyl (Sgt Peppers Hearts Club Band, which has really distinct left and right channels) to a good computer, with good results, and to the bad computer, with bad results. Again, same grabber hardware, and same vanilla Audacity settings. [sigh]

[steve]

I ripped a vinyl (Sgt Peppers Hearts Club Band, which has really distinct left and right channels) to a good computer, with good results, and to the bad computer, with bad results. Again, same grabber hardware, and same vanilla Audacity settings.

So that we're covering all bases, please describe in precise detail the exact set-up. What was plugged in where with which plugs into which sockets?