My dance with Windows 10 and Beats

This should be self explanatory.
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Armistice
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My dance with Windows 10 and Beats

Post by Armistice »

Not actually a recording issue, more of a listening one...

So, in a moment of not-paying-attention a few years back, persuaded by the huge staff discount my cousin could get me, I bought a HP Envy laptop. .It's not my recording machine, just my day to day beast.

It has "Beats sound" and it's horrible - if I want to listen to anything serious, it mangles it completely. Huge compression. Hyped top and bottom. You know what I'm talking about.

So, obviously, I need to kill it. And I do. Device Manager - uninstall / remove driver. Reverts to generic Windows audio driver which fucks the volume for general listening, but is at least vaguely flat.

I have a limited bandwith connection for reasons I won't bore you with, so in Win 10 I set it as "metered connection" so the damn operating system doesn't go berserk on the Windows upgrades.

Trouble is, I take the laptop over to my GF's place occasionally, when I think I'm going to be there for a while, and she's got a decent ADSL service, and so this isn't set as a "metered connection" (because if I set it there, I'd never get any updates at all), and so I'm over there, just doing stuff, and Windows goes "Aha, I've got you, ya bastard, I'm going to download upgrades!!!!" and I never notice except when I turn it off and come home and when I boot up again they all install.

Always, always, always, it redownloads (or finds...) the Beatz driver and re-establishes is as default sound device, and I don't really notice until I listen to something either in our "clinic" or the HR one...

I was listening to teh Gerg's Bright Eyes punk banjo meisterwerk and just had the start of a thought "Gee, the volume balance from the start to the main bit is really cra...." then I realised that, fuck it, the damn Beatzzzzz beast has reinstalled itself, and so back I go into Device Manager and KILL THE FUCKER AGAIN!!!!

Really, annoying, and noted for next time I buy a laptop! :headwall:
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JD01
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Re: My dance with Windows 10 and Beats

Post by JD01 »

What you could do is get a cheap AI that you put in your laptop bag. I have an old AI that I carry around with my lap top when I'm away during the week. Then it also means that if you want to record anything when you're away you can just plug a mic in.

Then if you playback with an AI attached it wouldn't be using the generic windows drivers... or the Beats ones
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ido1957
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Location: Edmonton. Alberta

Re: My dance with Windows 10 and Beats

Post by ido1957 »

The AI is a good idea but it would have to be nice and small. My home and work laptops have absolute garbage sound cards and I use my AI at home for any serious listening.
People want something for nothing, they want it right now. Either they can't tell quality or don't care but feel it is important that everyone agrees with them.
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rayc
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Re: My dance with Windows 10 and Beats

Post by rayc »

Other than service packs I disable updates.
WWhen a new SP is being distributed I allow it. In W7 & XP updates are preceded by a list and if I want stuff I select it. I don't know about 10 - I think they want you by the short'ncurlies so it's probably option free.
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rayc
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vomitHatSteve
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Re: My dance with Windows 10 and Beats

Post by vomitHatSteve »

You really ought to install all security updates at minimum.

That being said, I always set my computers to prompt me to install new updates instead of doing automatically.

My win 7 PC, I had to check all the KB items to keep it from installing the "Upgrade to win 10!" prompt update.
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