Smart Sound Technology for USB Audio interfering with USB device

[Tom9919]

I expect Intel will give me the run around and say contact the computer manufacturer though it really is an Intel issue with how Intel has developed the Smart Sound Technology software.  The computer manufacturer has to live with Intel design choices.

I am with a company that has developed sensor products that use the USB Class 1 audio protocol.  The products return vibration data instead of audio data but show up a USB microphones as far as Windows is concerned.  I have to try to provide support to customers of our products to try to get them to work.  So this issue will occur across all computer manufacturers.

Unfortunately, some computers have added Smart Sound Technology for USB Audio that inserts itself in front of the standard microsoft audio drivers that work well with our device.  The first symptom is apparently disabling support for 24 bit audio.  Second symptom is not working with the Windows kernel streaming audio interface causing application to fail.

This will occur across all manufacturers incorporating Smart Sound Technology.  So directing me to the computer OEM will be pointless as this is happening at a level totally controlled by Intel.

The current solution appears to be disabling Smart Sound Technology so the standard Microsoft audio drivers or other OEM drivers are used.

So my question is, it is possible to disable Smart Sound Technology for a specific USB audio device?  Because the functionality is not only not useful for my device but detrimental.

[Steven_Intel]

Hello Tom9919,

Thank you for posting on the Intel® communities.

The Intel® SST driver is wrapped by the audio codec driver and then provided to the OEM, therefore, there is no support from Intel Customer Support. To find out if Intel® SST can be disabled in your USB device, our best recommendation is to contact the OEM for further assistance.

Contact OEM: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/contact-intel.html?tab=system-manufacturers

Please keep in mind that this thread will no longer be monitored by Intel. Thank you for your understanding.  

Best regards,

Steven G.

Intel Customer Support Technician.

[Beeugene]

I found a workaround - plug it in via a hub (I use ugreen 20265), then it is detected the same way, but works normally.

[AnaWilliam850]

Unfortunately, it is not possible to disable Smart Sound Technology for a specific USB audio device. Smart Sound Technology is a system-level feature that is designed to improve the audio quality of devices that support it. Disabling it would affect all devices that use it, not just your USB audio device.

However, you may be able to work around the issue by using a different audio interface for your sensor products. You could try using an external audio interface that does not rely on Smart Sound Technology, or a different USB port on your computer that does not have Smart Sound Technology enabled.

Another option would be to contact Intel directly and report the issue. They may be able to provide a solution or a workaround that could help you and your customers.

[Beeugene]

Probably, that's why my woraround works.