Tech Tip: Troubleshooting Audio

Description: Troubleshooting Your Audio.



Ever since Diamond Multimedia introduced the consumer to one of the first MP3 players about 15 years ago, the digital music scene has become a necessity to the common consumer. Starting at that point, you could take tracks from your favorite CDs and transfer them to a portable media player to enjoy the music on the go. Granted, you could only fit about 8-10 songs on the first mp3 players, but the concept was amazing! So what can you do to get the most out of your digital music - whether it be coming from your smartphone, Mac, PC, or digital audio player? What other formats are out there? How do you make sure the quality is as good as it can get?

A Few Things You Should Know
When we say that a format is lossy, it tells us that it will destroy information to achieve a small file size. When we say lossless, a smaller file size is achieved WITHOUT destroying any information from the original file (similar to how a zip file operates). 

Example: A three minute song takes roughly 30MB on your hard drive when it is ripped from the CD. When your conversion software (i.e. iTunes) makes a MP3, the file size goes down to around 5MB. Considering that the new file is about 1/6^th the size of the original, this is amazing!

Chart of Common Audio Formats

Audio Format	Lossy or Lossless?	Where Have I Seen This?
MP3 (MPEG 1/2 , Layer 3)	Lossy	DRM-Free Music Stores, Internet Radio, Converted CD’s from iTunes/Windows Media Player
AAC (Advanced Audio Coding)	Lossy	Pandora, iTunes
WMA (Windows Media Audio)	Lossy	Xbox Music, Rhapsody
Vorbis	Lossy	Spotify, Many PC and Console Games
FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec)	Lossless	(archival purposes)
APE (Monkey's Audio)	Lossless	(archival purposes)
SHN (Shorten)	Lossless	(archival purposes)
WAV/AIFF	No Compression	Retail Audio CDs

Put On Your Thinking Ears

So you've hooked up your Smartphone/Tablet/Portable Device/Computer to some speakers, and the sound that is coming out is awful. What do you do? First off, let's analyze the sound and make some mental notes to help you out later.

1. Is it too soft?
2. Does the sound come in and out at random points?
3. Does the audio sound scratchy during louder sections?
4. Does the band sound like they're playing underwater?
5. Is there any aspect of the music or characteristic that is missing? (assuming you are familiar with the music already)
6. Do cymbal crashes (or other high frequencies) sound artificial, muddy, or loose?

Did your observations match up with points 1, 2, or 3? If they did, then you should start troubleshooting the speakers themselves. If it's too soft (or not heard at all), your volume is probably set too low. Make sure the volume is set to a reasonable level in Windows. To avoid this issue, always keep your computer at maximum volume and only use your speakers to adjust the volume to your liking. This also avoids hiss in the speakers, because they're not trying to amplify a weak signal. If you experience sound fading in and out or you still do not hear anything, double check your speaker connections to make sure there's nothing loose. The connections are usually color-coded (see right). For a set of stereo speakers, you would use the green connection only. If you have surround sound, you would be using the black and orange connections as well. If the connections are good, then you may have a problem with the amplifier in the speakers. If the audio sounds scratchy during loud sections, you probably have the volume set too high on your speakers. This is called distortion. One thing to watch out for is sometimes individual applications may have a separate volume control that is independent of the system (i.e. VLC). This can get complicated, because now you have three separate volumes to keep track of, and three possible chances for distortion. If turning the volume down all around doesn't fix it, then the original recording may be distorted, and there's nothing that can be done to help that.

Did your observations match up with points 4, 5, or 6? If they did, then your troubleshooting should start with the source and not the speakers.

4. Where did your music come from? Was it downloaded from the internet? Did you make the file yourself from a CD? Did it come from an online music store? Not all music is of the same quality that comes from the Internet. The real question is what is the quality of the file you are listening to? Sometimes, the media player will report the quality of the file (in kbps) as shown below.
   
   
   (Windows Media Player example)

If you don't have this feature, an easy way to guess the quality is to find the length of the song (in minutes). Now find the actual file (on the hard drive) and determine how big the file is. In windows, you can right-click the file and click properties to see the file size. On a Mac, you would right-click the file and click Get Info.



In this example, the song, Kalimba, has a length of 5:48, and its file size is 8.02MB. In this case, size (8) is greater than length (5). You can assume that the quality of the audio is good or excellent if the file size is larger than the length. If you find that your file is about 5 minutes long but is only 4-5MB, you can conclude that the quality of the file is probably not very good, which is why you might think it sounds bad.

Why Does Bitrate Matter So Much?

Bitrate is extremely important. The higher the bitrate is the more information can be retained from the original file. Since seeing is believing, what follows on the next page are a few spectrograms. Don't be afraid! These psychedelic pictures represent all of the sound frequencies used in a particular audio file over a specified amount of time. Each graph has two separate pictures to show you the left and right channels (since it is a stereo audio file).


Left: Original CD and Right: Compressed MP3 (128kbps)

The biggest difference between the original and compressed files is the rather abrupt cut-off of frequencies we see in the MP3 version. Everything past 16,000 Hz is gone. The simple logic behind this is that the encoder needs to get rid of things in order to reduce file size. Another way that the encoder can reduce file size is by eliminating sounds that we may not have noticed in the first place. A classic example is when a loud and soft sound are heard at the same time, the encoder will eliminate the softer sound (if possible). Sometimes the encoder may choose to eliminate certain frequencies that we may not be able to hear that well. These decisions are modeled around human hearing and the encoder is aware of what most people can and cannot detect. The lower the bitrate, the sloppier these decisions are, which is why we think it sounds bad. The higher the bitrate, the more sophisticated these decisions are, making them harder to detect, which is why we may think it sounds good. Some of these decisions are hard to see on the graph and are better left for the ear to decide.

As a closing thought, please remember that your speakers are there to play back what you give them. If you feed them a bad source, they'll play the bad source-simple as that. Also please remember that a truly decent set of speakers will cost you some money. You can't expect a $20 pair of speakers to knock your socks off. The speakers are not always at fault! Please consider the source!

For more assistance contact Technical Support here.

Troubleshooting Sound Issues in Windows 7: Part Three

This is part Three of the series on the subject of troubleshooting sound issues in Windows 7. In this part we will look at the drivers and installation of the sound hardware within the computer.

1. To begin, click on the Start button in the bottom left.
   
   


2. On the right side of the new Start Menu window, right-click on Computer and choose Properties.
   
   


3. On the new window, click on Device Manager in the top left.
   • After clicking on Device Manager, you may be prompted to allow or grant permission. Choose the option in the affirmative (Yes/Allow) to continue.
     
     
   
   
4. Within this new Device Manager window, locate the section labeled Sound, video and game controllers.
   
   


5. If this section is not listed, check any resource or drivers discs included with your computer for sound/audio drivers. Otherwise, check the manufacturer’s website for a driver download.
6. IIf it is listed, double-click on Sound, video and game controllers to expand that item.
   • In most cases the sound card will be listed as High Definition Audio Device. If that is not listed it may be under another name.
     
     
   


7. Right-click on the sound card and choose Uninstall.
   
   


8. When prompted, click OK to uninstall. If prompted to delete the drivers, do not delete the drivers.
   
   


9. Once uninstalled, close any open windows and save all open work, then restart the computer.
10. After the reboot, ensure that the volume is turned up and then test the sound on the computer. If it still does not function there is typically some form of hardware malfunction, and the computer will need to be serviced.

You can also contact Technical Support here.

Troubleshooting Sound Issues in Windows 7: Part Two

This is part Two of the series on the subject of troubleshooting sound issues in Windows 7. In part two we will look at the configuration of the speakers in Windows.

1. Right-click on the audio icon in the bottom right corner of the screen.
   
   


2. On the menu that opens, choose "Playback Devices".
   
   


3. On the new window, look for which item has the green check mark next to it, meaning it has been set to default. If using standard speakers through the green port on the back, it should be set to Speakers.
   
   


4. If Speakers is not set as the default device, right-click on Speakers and choose Set as Default Device.
   
   


5. Once Speakers has been set as default, go ahead and right-click on Speakers and then choose Test.
   
   


6. If a sound is heard through the speakers, then the speakers are set up and configured properly. If not, try raising the volume again using the volume icon in the bottom right, this time left-clicking on it.
7. Once the volume slider is opened, drag it to the top to ensure that the volume is at the maximum.
   
   


8. Once this is done, test the speakers again. If it still does not work, proceed to Troubleshooting Sound Issues in Windows 7: Part Three.

You can also contact Technical Support here.

Troubleshooting Sound Issues in Windows 7: Part One

This is a technical troubleshooting article for troubleshooting issues with sound on a Windows 7 computer. In this article we will go over the hardware aspect, ensuring that the speakers in use are compatible and connected properly. If you have a laptop and are using built-in speakers, you can skip this document and proceed to Part Two.

1. Ensure that the speakers are powered speakers. To say that you have Powered Speakers effectively means that the speakers have a separate power source, such as a USB port on the computer or a wall outlet.
   • In previous times, powered speakers were unnecessary due to the high-powered sound cards included in computer. More recently the speakers require their own power, thus speakers that are not powered will typically have very little, if any, volume.
2. Plug the speakers in to their power source, turn them on and up. On the front of one of the speakers, or their remote if applicable, there is a power button or switch and a volume knob. Make sure they are turned on and turned up to about half way.
3. Take the audio cable coming from the speakers:
   
   
   (Source: Own Photo)
4. Plug the audio cable in to the green port on the back of the computer:
   
   
   (Source: Own Photo)
   
   
5. Test the audio using Windows Media Player or your favorite method. If the sound still does not work, move on to Troubleshooting Sound Issues in Windows 7: Part Two.

Media Streaming: You can take it with you...

For several years, I have been playing around with different ways to access and stream media from a TV tuner or home PC. Usually, it's just an experiment to see how much I can do with a Windows Media Center system, or to show off the capabilities of various devices, like my Windows-based PDA phone...

There are several ways to do this by using a PC or with stand-alone hardware such as a Slingbox or similar device to transmit the audio or video, and using a network-enabled PDA, phone, notebook or PC to control and receive the streaming media. You can also stream media directly from a PC to another web-enabled device with nothing much more than some software designed for the purpose, such as "orb" which can stream to any device that support Windows Media Player or RealPlayer. Another popular streaming format on many sites is Apple's QuickTime, which like Media Player can playback streaming media as it is received, or load and play audio or video files already on your system.

What is Streaming Media?
Streaming media differs from downloading and playback in that you can be viewing (or listening) to the media as the packets of data are being sent over the network. Streaming media files are generally not saved to the local computer's drive, but are "buffered" in a temporary file that contains only the immediate data required to playback the media for the next short period of time. The size of the buffer may be something you can set in the player's preferences, or be limited by the speed of the data transfer itself.

Streaming allows one to view "Live TV" remotely and on devices that have no TV tuner, just a network connection. Streaming data is transmitted by a remote "server" and played back in near real time by the receiving device. Audio or video playback can begin as soon as enough data has been received and stored in the client's buffer.

Some well known examples of streaming media that you may already be using includes video steaming such as youtube.com and hulu.com and steaming audio such as pandora.com. Streaming media may be in the form of audio or video podcasts, movie trailers,
commercials, as well as real-time applications such as educational lectures (e-learning), web meeting, Voice over IP telephone and video conferencing, and the list goes on.

Check out your local radio station websites, many offer live streaming-audio of the over-the-air broadcast. TV stations, including many broadcast or cable network site now offer clips, previews, or even the current episodes for viewing.

Streaming has been available for years, but typically required having a dedicated media server that would compress and transmit the packets of media data over the network to the remote clients. The capability became more widespread as manufacturers added streaming media functions to software used to control the TV tuner adapter along with recording and direct playback features.

Companies such as ATI offered applications bundled with their TV Tuners that could stream live TV or recorded shows to remote systems running a special streaming media client.

When Microsoft introduced their Media Center version of Windows, it included the capability for Media Extenders to remotely access, control, and view TV and other media available on the Media Center PC. These Media Extenders could be a stand-alone network device, or something like an Xbox 360. Generally, Media Center systems and Media Extenders are designed to be used on "private" networks, and don't give you much, if any, capability to access your media across the Internet.

The quality of the playback is directly tied to the data transfer speed. With dial-up-networking (remember those telephone modems?), streaming is possible, but will only support very small player resolutions, and even then, it may be "choppy" or encounter delays if you have any noise or loss of signal. Although slightly better, 802.11b wireless networking has similar limitations.

To use a Windows Media Center Extender to view live TV or video playback, Microsoft originally recommended having at least an 802.11bg or 802.11abg connection. With wired networking, the higher data transfer speeds make even remote viewing of High Definition TV possible. Again, the quality of the playback and the player resolution will be limited by the actual transfer speeds between your devices. This means that the uplink speed of your media "server" may be the limiting factor, and if you are connecting across the Internet, you may also have occasional issues with slowdowns between the various service providers.

Sling Media's Slingbox products were one of the first stand-alone devices that allow you to stream audio or video over the Internet or just across your home network. A Slingbox is designed to connect directly to your cable or satellite source, although you can attach any compatible device. The Slingbox Pro-HD not only supports High Definition signals (both incoming and streaming them to you), but also incorporates analog and HD digital (ATSC) tuners allowing you to stream your video without changing the channel on your big screen TV.

The Slingbox Solo does not have integrated tuners, meaning you need a way to control your cable or satellite TV tuner box to view a particular show. Like the original Slingbox, both the Solo and Pro-HD have what is called a "data blaster", which is nothing more then a pair of Infrared LEDs that can transmit the necessary remote-control signals to your tuner device, turning it on and off, changing channels, etc. remotely, using the SlingPlayer application. (To compare the features, check out http://www.slingbox.com/go/slingbox-prohd-help-me-choose)

[caption id="attachment_329" align="aligncenter" width="205" caption="The Slingbox Solo supports pass-through of composite, S-video, and component video signals."][/caption]

I had opportunity to play around with a Slingbox Solo, and experimented with some different sources and remote players. The Slingbox Solo has three different audio/video inputs; Component Video such as from a High Definition Player or HD converter box, Composite Video and S-video. The Slingbox solo does not steam HD, it just has a compatible signal input, if you want to stream 720 or 1080 HD signals, you need the Pro-HD version of the Slingbox.

Coming up with some input signals for the Solo was becoming a challenge, since I only have cable-ready devices, and don't use anything with a component video output. I do have an S-VHS camera, but to test the signal, I simply connected an S-video cable from one of my computer video cards to the Slingbox and toggled the display to include the S-video out. When I brought up the SlingPlayer software, and selected the source as S-video, I had a blurry, but recognizable view of a Windows desktop. Although S-video is crisper than a composite video signal, it's still in the 640x480 resolution range. Squishing a 1024x768 display image down to the much lower analog TV resolution signal doesn't do much for the viewing experience if you were trying to use the system normally.

Viewing a full-screen video or other media on the computer would be no worse then a normal analog TV broadcast. For a composite video test, I connected a DVD player and started a movie; selecting the composite video source in the SlingPlayer application showed the player output, although it had no support for IR remote control of the portable player.

[caption id="attachment_331" align="aligncenter" width="201" caption="Playback of a DVD through the Slingbox Solo using composite video."][/caption]

Of course, since analog TV is essentially no longer available (maybe some low-power local stations), people with old analog devices need to use a digital-to-analog converter box to view over-the-air broadcasts. I dug out one of my converter boxes and connected the composite and audio from the converter to the Slingbox Solo inputs and attached the IR data blasters near the pick-up sensor and an old rabbit ear antenna was connected to the converter.

Using the SlingPlayer to view the output, I manually configured the converter box to scan for HD channels. Once configured to display the local stations, I was able to capture some sample video using both the SlingPlayer and through the web browser access via the sling.com web site. When I tried to view this remotely, I found a problem - the converter box has a time-out feature that turns it off if you don't change channels or otherwise provide some periodic activity.

The converter box is not one of the devices immediately supported by the Sling software; information on customizing a remote control is described in the Sling User Forums, and many custom device files have been created by users with hardware necessary to "capture" the IR remote control code sequences in a usable data format. Locating a custom driver file from the manufacturer of the converter box took some searching, and was not for my specific model. Once I got it properly installed however, it works fine and allows me to turn the box on and off, change channels, etc. through the Sling applications.

[caption id="attachment_333" align="aligncenter" width="252" caption="The browser add-in application allows you to control and view your media over the Internet, by logging into the sling.com web site."][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_332" align="aligncenter" width="205" caption="The SlingPlayer is designed for configuring and local area network access to your Slingbox."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_334" align="aligncenter" width="240" caption="On the Macintosh side, the SlingPlayer allows the user to setup and view streaming media over your local network."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_335" align="aligncenter" width="240" caption="The browser add-in does have one OS limitation, requiring OS X 10.5 or higher to run."][/caption]

 



[caption id="attachment_338" align="aligncenter" width="220" caption="Sling Media also has mobile phone applications for iPhone, iPod touch, Windows Mobile, Blackberry, Symbian, and classic Palm OS devices. You can try the application free for the first 30 days, after that, you must purchase a registration code for $29.99 to continue using the player."][/caption]

A software-only solution can be found at www.orb.com. Orb installs a client on your home XP or Vista Media Center system (that's necessary for the live TV feature) and then, like sling.com, uses a browser login to their site to link you with your home system over the Internet. In addition to live TV, you can access media already stored on the home system, including, pictures, documents, audio files, video, etc. There is even a file browser feature that lets you explore drives and folders and download files to your remote.

If you have a data-blaster device integrated in your Media Center system or as an option to your tuner card, then you would have the same remote control capability as a Slingbox. In many cases (not all) Orb can control your Media Center tuner directly, allowing you to view live TV or remotely schedule or start the system recording a show.

If Media Center is running, Orb can give you the ability to terminate the application to take control of the tuner. Control and playback is managed through an Internet browser connection and then launches and streams media directly to Windows Media Player or Real Player. Orb recently added iPhone to the supported device list with the OrbLive today application ($9.99 in the App Store).

[caption id="attachment_341" align="aligncenter" width="157" caption="Orb allows you to navigate your media through a browser window, and then view live TV or play media remotely through a supported player on the device."][/caption]

How to Use the Graphic Equalizer in Windows Media Player 12

This guide shows you how to use the graphic equalizer to adjust audio output frequencies in Windows Media Player 12.

1. Right-click anywhere in Windows Media Player, then click on Enhancements. Select Graphic Equalizer.
   
   
   
   If the graphic equalizer is turned off, click Turn on.
   
   
   
   
2. You will have a number of options available to you at this point. On the left are three settings that control how the sliders move.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   They can move independently, as a loose group or a tight group.These settings become important if you are doing a custom setting on the graphic equalizer.
   
   
3. At the top is a selection of preset settings for the equalizer.
   
   
   
   
4. Click the currently selected preset to display the full list.
   
   
   
   
5. Select the preset you want or click Custom at the bottom if you wish to adjust the settings manually. If you choose Custom move the sliders to the position you desire.
   
6. Which ever setting you choose a preset or a custom setting, the changes take effect immediately.