Multiple Sound Cards, USB Sound, and USB Issues

[over_clox]

I have 2 sound cards in my system and would really like to configure one of them to be used by the host and the other by the guest (both XP Pro), but VBox isn't smart enough to recognize anything other than 'Windows DirectSound', which essentially means the default sound device _only_. Why is there no option to select which sound device to use? Given that USB audio doesn't work right now either, this is quite annoying as I'd like to set my computer up where the host and guest can be used simultaneously with their own dedicated resources.

[Sasquatch]

I expect that you could have figured this one out yourself, as you kinda do what I do here . VB passes the sound to the Host sound system. For Linux this is OSS, ALSA, pulse or jack or whatever you have installed as sound system, for Windows this is DirectSound. Strange that USB audio doesn't work, as it should be just another USB device.

[over_clox]

Granted, and I understand the effort it takes to maintain portability, but is it really that difficult to have VBox select which sound device to use with DirectSound?

As for the USB, it's not quite that simple. I've tested a number of USB devices and have been disappointed each time when I try to plug a hub into the guest and find that it doesn't work. None I've tried ever have. Hubs and composite devices like my USB sound just don't work right. This also counts devices with a built-in hub to branch between something like a card reader, scanner, and printer. The problems with composite devices aren't as obvious as hubs since they don't result in error messages, but they still don't seem to work right for me. I've had a similar problem with wireless adapters installing but not working as well. I just tested my U3 Cruzer 4GB again (with U3 features already removed), and am dissapointed to see that it doesn't work either. Same goes with a keyboard/smartcard reader combo. It all seems to be tied to USB devices that contain multiple controllers.

I do have a weird exception to these bugs. I have an external hard drive that for some reason also installs a phantom Prolific card reader, but it doesn't install a hub or a composite device to branch the two . . . I'm not sure how or why, but it works fine for me (except for the extra drive letter I have to disable drivers for), and I'm glad it works.

I hope this can shed some light on the USB audio problem many have had, along with other USB issues too.

[jezza]

I second the request to be able to select a sound card! If I go into multimedia settings on the (XP) host and change my default sound card, launch VB then change it back, I can force the guest to use that card.

So... surely this would be a very simple feature to add?

[JSW321]

As a unique web publisher, sound engineer, and video editing + production, there are quite a number of features and software I need to use through windows, the catch is that I need the stability of linux, but I need multiple soundcards to be configurable in windows, as well as video capture devices.

After using virtualbox for the past three years for my servers, I experimented a week with virtualbox and on the verg of having to use vmware...

Is there anything that I might have missed or is it true that virtualbox just doesn't have the ability to configure and add more hardware such as sound cards?

Neither I or my secretary have been able to find anything to help.

[fo0k]

I'm not certain this is the same issue but sounds like it. I have an external USB EMU Tracker-Pre Sound card. I can select it within VB and its recognised by guest, the drivers install fine into guest and I do 'kinda' get sound but it its just weird feedback for the duration of the sound. (even the click of a web link will trigger the click sound but it sounds nothing like it). In addition although I can select The EMU device for playback I can't select anything for recording.