VIA WCE X86 AC97 Audio Mixer Installation Guide
11/30/2000
Copyright (C) 2000 VIA Technologies, INC.
1. Release note
This software package release is version 1.0, which provides
a user-friendly graphics user interface facilitating the
control of the volume of wave out, line-in, CD digital audio,
auxiliary audio-in, and microphone. The OEM can enable or
disable the audio sources individually through registry,
depending upon the actual audio hardware design on the platform.
Moreover, with proper persistent registry management utilities
installed, the Audio Mixer can restore the last saved volume
settings upon system reboot.
The package operates on any X86-based platform using VIA's
south bridge chips including VT82C686A, VT82C686B, and VT8231,
which integrate an on-chip audio controller complying AC97 2.1
specification. The Audio Mixer works properly with Microsoft
Windows CE 2.12; 2.12 with DXPAK 1.1; 3.00; 3.00 with Add-on Pack;
and it should also work for later versions of Windows CE.
2. File descriptions
The package contains 10 files as described below.
11/28/00 03:17p 25,655 \DEBUG\VIAMIXER.EXE debug version
11/28/00 03:17p 99,328 \DEBUG\VIAMIXER.PDB debug pdb file
11/30/00 10:06a 11,103 \DEBUG\VIAVC.DLL debug version
11/30/00 10:06a 9,938 \DEBUG\VIAVC.MAP debug map file
11/30/00 10:06a 126,976 \DEBUG\VIAVC.PDB debug pdb file
11/28/00 03:17p 11,264 \RETAIL\VIAMIXER.EXE retail version
11/30/00 10:13a 6,128 \RETAIL\VIAVC.DLL retail version
11/27/00 02:17p 155 PLATFORM.BIB sample bib file
11/28/00 04:36p 394 PLATFORM.REG sample reg file
README.TXT this readme file
3. The following step-by-step instruction assumes your X86-based
target platform is VIACEPC with the Windows CE 3.00 MAXALL
configuration adopted. A CD-ROM device, a microphone, and
a speaker system are required for an initial evaluation of the
Audio Mixer. Connect a 4-wire audio signal line between the
analog audio port of the CD-ROM drive and your target platform.
Make sure an IRQ is allocated for the on-chip audio controller
by proper BIOS settings.
4. Make a WCE binary image
Refer to "VIA WCE X86 Driver Installation Migration Guide for
Microsoft Windows CE Platform Builder 3.00 & Add-on Pack"
and "VIA WCE X86 AC97 Audio Driver for Playing & Recording
Installation Guide" to finish a binary image. Download the
image to your target platform and confirm it works.
5. Copy binary files to the current release directory
For a retail build, copy the following two files:
VIAMIXER.EXE
VIAVC.DLL
For a debug build, copy the following five files:
VIAMIXER.EXE
VIAMIXER.PDB
VIAVC.DLL
VIAVC.PDB
VIAVC.MAP
6. Update bib file in the current release directory
In the Platform.bib file add following lines:
IF CEPC_VIAUDIOMIXER
AUDIOMIXER.EXE $(_FLATRELEASEDIR)\VIAMIXER.EXE NK
VIAVC.DLL $(_FLATRELEASEDIR)\VIAVC.DLL NK SH
ENDIF
A sample Platform.bib file is included for your reference.
7. Update registry file in the current release directory
In the platform.reg file, add the following registry settings:
IF CEPC_VIAUDIOMIXER
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Drivers\BuiltIn\VIAVC]
"Prefix"="VVC"
"Dll"="viavc.dll"
"Index"=dword:1
"Order"=dword:0
"AuxDisable"=dword:1 ;0: enable Aux, 1: disable
"CDDisable"=dword:0 ;0: enable CD, 1: disable
"LineInDisable"=dword:0 ;0: enable Line In, 1: disable
"MicDisable"=dword:0 ;0: enable Mic, 1: disable
ENDIF
Modify as needed the values of the last four subkeys according
to the actual audio hardware design on your platform. By default
their values are set to 0 (i.e. enabled). Included for your
reference is a sample Platform.reg file, where the auxiliary
audio-in is disabled with the rest three enabled.
8. Add the environment variable
In the PB3.00, choose "Settings" from the "Platform" menu.
Select "Environment" to define a variable as below:
set CEPC_VIAUDIOMIXER=1
9. Build a binary image
Choose "Make Image" from the Build menu to make a new OS image
to include the new driver.
10. Basic testing
Run the "AUDIOMIXER" program and 5 control slides pop up on
the screen. Note their initial positions except wave out are
put at 0 dB level. Then follow the test instruction below.
(a) Wave out test
Use "WPLAYER" or "Volume & Sounds" in Control Panel to
play a wave file. Confirm you can adjust the volume
and mute.
(b) CD digital audio test
Insert a digital audio CD into the CDROM drive. To hear
the music, press the "Play" button on the front panel
or run sample program "CDPLAYER" (within VIA's CDROM
driver releases) to select an audio track. Confirm you
can adjust the volume and mute.
(c) Microphone test
Insert a microphone into the microphone jack on your
target platform. Speak to the microphone and confirm
you can adjust the volume and mute.
(d) Auxiliary audio-in test
Assume this feature is available on your platform
and is enabled. Reconnect a 4-wire audio signal line
between the analog audio port of the CD-ROM drive and
the auxiliary audio-in connector on your target platform.
Redo the test as for CD digital audio. Confirm you can
adjust the volume and mute.
(e) Line-in test
Insert a microphone into the line-in jack on your target
platform. Speak to the microphone and confirm you can
adjust the volume and mute.
(f) Persistent registry test
Close the Audio Mixer, and then open it again. Verify the
settings are kept the same as last set.
(g) Audio sources disable test
In the current release directory locate the
platform.reg file, modify the values of subkeys AuxDisable,
CDDisable, LineInDisable, and MicDisable to 1. Then choose
"Make Image" from the Build menu to make a new OS image.
Download the image to your target platform, and confirm
these four audio sources are in gray and disabled.
11. Known problems & limitations
The Media Player in the Add-on Pack for WinCE 3.00 controls
the volume independent of the Audio Mixer. That is, the Audio
Mixer has no control over the volume of the Media Player.
12. Trouble shooting
In case you encounter any problem, first connect the debug
port in your target Windows CE platform to a serial port in
your PC-based NT development platform, e.g. with communication
parameters {38400, n, 8, 1}. Make a debug build binary image
and download it to your target platform. Dump related debug
messages and then contact VIA's representatives for further
technical assistance.
Download Driver Pack
After your driver has been downloaded, follow these simple steps to install it.
Expand the archive file (if the download file is in zip or rar format).
If the expanded file has an .exe extension, double click it and follow the installation instructions.
Otherwise, open Device Manager by right-clicking the Start menu and selecting Device Manager.
Find the device and model you want to update in the device list.
Double-click on it to open the Properties dialog box.
From the Properties dialog box, select the Driver tab.
Click the Update Driver button, then follow the instructions.
Very important: You must reboot your system to ensure that any driver updates have taken effect.
For more help, visit our Driver Support section for step-by-step videos on how to install drivers for every file type.