Configuring Multiple Soundcards

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Windows supports multiple soundcards, identifying them by product name in order from soundcard 0 to soundcard N. One of these soundcards -- the preferred device -- is used to play Windows sounds, such as those that can be played when open a folder with Windows Explorer, or when an error occurs. If your PC has two soundcards, or has integral soundcard functions on its motherboard and an add-on soundcard, you can

• designate one soundcard as the Windows preferred device for Windows sounds and SpotCollector's audible DX announcements

• designate the other soundcard for PSK31, PSK63, AFSK RTTY via WinWarbler, or Phone

Configuring your soundcards in this way will avoid inadvertent transmission of DX announcements and Windows sounds when you are operating PSK31, PSK63,  AFSK RTTY, or Phone. To do so,

1. Decide which soundcard you want to use for SpotCollector's audible DX announcements and which card you will use with WinWarbler. If your PC's motherboard has integral soundcard functions on its the motherboard, this will likely already be configured as soundcard 0, and is a good candidate for playing Windows sounds and SpotCollector announcements.

2. Open the Windows Control Panel, run the Sounds and Multimedia  Properties applet, and select its Audio tab

3. Note the order in which your soundcards are listed in the Sound Playback panel's preferred device selector; the first soundcard listed is soundcard 0, and the second is soundcard 1. If your two soundcards are identical, determine which is soundcard 0 and which is soundcard 1:

   • switch to the Sounds and Multimedia  Properties applet's Sounds tab

   • select a Sound Event that shows a loudspeaker icon (e.g. "Critical Stop")

   • set the Sound Volume slider to 75%

   • with speakers connected to one of your soundcards, play the selected sound by clicking the button bearing a left-facing black triangle; if you hear nothing, connect the speakers to the other soundcard

   • the soundcard from which sound is heard when you play a Windows sound is the one designated as the preferred device on the Audio tab; if its the first soundcard in the preferred device selector's list, then its soundcard 0; if its the second soundcard in the selector's list, then its soundcard 1.

4. On the Audio tab, set both the Sound Playback and Sound Recording  panels' preferred device selectors to the soundcard you have chosen to play Windows sounds and SpotCollector's audible DX announcements.

5. On the Soundcard tab of WinWarbler's Configuration window, set the manual select panel to designate the soundcard not specified in step 4 above as the preferred device.

6. On the RTTY tab of WinWarbler's Configuration window, click the MMTTY Setup button and select the MMTTY Setup window's Misc tab; set the Device ID selector to designate the soundcard not specified in step 4 above as the preferred device ; though this selector is limited to cards in the range of 0 to 3, you can key in a higher number if necessary. A newly-chosen soundcard is not activated until you close the MMTTY Setup window.

SpotCollector plays its audible DX announcements on the preferred device, so no configuration of that application is required.