Microsoft Surface Pro 7 audio gear setup

[kathoshea]

I have a Microsoft Surface Pro 7.  I am trying to set up JamKazam using just the built in mic and speakers.  My Audio Input Device list is:  

Headset microphone (@System32\drivers\...) 
Headset microphone – WDM;  
Microphone Array 1 (Realtek HD Audio Mic input with SST)-WDM;  
Microphone Array 2 (Realtek HD Audio Mic input with SST)-WDM;  
Microphone Array 3 (Realtek HD Audio Mic input with SST)-WDM;  
PC Speaker (Realtek HD Audio and output with SST) – WDM;  
PC Speaker (Realtek HD Audio output with SST) – WDM

Output Audio Device list is:
Headphones 1 (Realtek HD Audio and output with SST) – WDM 
Headphones 2 (Realtek HD Audio and output with SST) – WDM 
Headset Earphone (@System32\drivers\...) 
Speakers 1 (Realtek HD Audio output with SST) – WDM 
Speakers 2 (Realtek HD Audio output with SST) – WDM

Regardless of what combination of input and output devices I select, I get the error message “It appears this audio device is not currently connected.  Attach the device to your computer and restart the application, or select a different device.  If you think your gear is connected and working, try a different sample rate.”

I would greatly appreciate some help.

Other info: Surface Pro 7 has USB 3.0 and USB C ports, and a combo mic/headphones jack. No other apps were running when I attempted the JK setup, and I followed the advice in another post to go to Sound Control Panel and turn off "allow applications to take exclusive control of this device" for speakers and mics.

[StuartR]

I have a Microsoft Surface Pro 7.  I am trying to set up JamKazam using just the built in mic and speakers.  My Audio Input Device list is:  

Headset microphone (@System32\drivers\...) 
Headset microphone – WDM;  
Microphone Array 1 (Realtek HD Audio Mic input with SST)-WDM;  
Microphone Array 2 (Realtek HD Audio Mic input with SST)-WDM;  
Microphone Array 3 (Realtek HD Audio Mic input with SST)-WDM;  
PC Speaker (Realtek HD Audio and output with SST) – WDM;  
PC Speaker (Realtek HD Audio output with SST) – WDM

Output Audio Device list is:
Headphones 1 (Realtek HD Audio and output with SST) – WDM 
Headphones 2 (Realtek HD Audio and output with SST) – WDM 
Headset Earphone (@System32\drivers\...) 
Speakers 1 (Realtek HD Audio output with SST) – WDM 
Speakers 2 (Realtek HD Audio output with SST) – WDM

Regardless of what combination of input and output devices I select, I get the error message “It appears this audio device is not currently connected.  Attach the device to your computer and restart the application, or select a different device.  If you think your gear is connected and working, try a different sample rate.”

I would greatly appreciate some help.

Other info:  Surface Pro 7 has USB 3.0 and USB C ports, and a combo mic/headphones jack.  No other apps were running when I attempted the JK setup, and I followed the advice in another post to go to Sound Control Panel and turn off "allow applications to take exclusive control of this device" for speakers and mics.

Short answer... Don't bother. The Windows WDM drivers are typically not suitable for real-time audio. Try installing the free ASIO4ALL driver and see if the latency is reasonable. I'd guess however that you'll need to get a real hardware audio interface.

[Hans Peter Augustesen]

It is very confusing that StuartR's answer is in the same field as
kathoshea`s text.

In this way, it is difficult to distinguish one from the other.
It is actually very bad - and in fact unacceptable and intolerable

And why and/or how does something like this happen?

[kathoshea]

StuartR: I appreciate your input. Are you suggesting that even if I got past the "audio device not connected" error, the latency would be so bad on the WDM drivers that it would be useless anyway?

I do have a Focusrite Scarlett Solo audio interface which I tried with the Surface Pro 7. The Solo is currently on loan to a friend so I can't recreate the errors but I do know that I couldn't get the Solo working either. I think it was the same audio device not connected but I can't remember for sure.

It might help me if I understood what JK is looking for during audio gear setup -- does it search for installed drivers? Or is it looking at attached hardware? One of the things that's confusing me on the Surface Pro 7 is that there are THREE microphone arrays listed for the one built-in mic. JK doesn't allow me to pick more than one array. Likewise there are two speakers listed.

I figure I will worry about latency after I get past this audio device not connected error. Can anyone help me with that?

[StuartR]

It is very confusing that StuartR's answer is in the same field as
kathoshea`s text.

In this way, it is difficult to distinguish one from the other.
It is actually very bad - and in fact unacceptable and intolerable

And why and/or how does something like this happen?

I don't know but I see it happen a lot... If I'm doing something wrong... Please let me know .. just using the Reply button.

---

StuartR: I appreciate your input. Are you suggesting that even if I got past the "audio device not connected" error, the latency would be so bad on the WDM drivers that it would be useless anyway? 

I do have a Focusrite Scarlett Solo audio interface which I tried with the Surface Pro 7.  The Solo is currently on loan to a friend so I can't recreate the errors but I do know that I couldn't get the Solo working either.  I think it was the same audio device not connected but I can't remember for sure. 

It might help me if I understood what JK is looking for during audio gear setup -- does it search for installed drivers?  Or is it looking at attached hardware?  One of the things that's confusing me on the Surface Pro 7 is that there are THREE microphone arrays listed for the one built-in mic.  JK doesn't allow me to pick more than one array.  Likewise there are two speakers listed. 

I figure I will worry about latency after I get past this audio device not connected error.  Can anyone help me with that?

It's looking for installed drivers with attached hardware to match I think. Just use the Focusrite Solo so that you can move into the Jam phase with the rest of us.

[Hans Peter Augustesen]

Thanks for your reply, StuartR.

Then it maybe is some kind of a technical error - which I have suspected all along.

Maybe we will be wiser on the case if and if ...

[sharonleef@aol.com]

I tried a number of different things to get JamKazam to work with my Surface (audio interface, external mic, various settings) then tried my husband's Dell laptop.  Went from getting booted out of sessions every 10-15 minutes to two hours of play with my friend with no ejections and no error messages.  I think you should try to find a different computer.

[StuartR]

I tried a number of different things to get JamKazam to work with my Surface (audio interface, external mic, various settings) then tried my husband's Dell laptop.  Went from getting booted out of sessions every 10-15 minutes to two hours of play with my friend with no ejections and no error messages.  I think you should try to find a different computer.

Nah.... Not been my experience. I'm using a low-end Surface Go with Jamkazam and it works just fine.
The key is usually NOT the hardware but rather the tuning that gets the hardware prepared to handle realtime audio.

Read and follow the recommendations in the Glitchfree document posted on several threads here and run the free LatencyMon tool to see how your particular Windows machine is performing.