I've got an Alesis I/O 26 F'wire device that's having driver issues.  Since it's already 7 yrs. old it's support has been discontinued, let alone drivers being updated.  I've been getting frequent BSOD's lately, so I disconnected the device, and "unfortunately" the BSOD's stopped occurring.  I could send it to 1 of their authorized service dealers, but they're all the way across the country from me.  What I'm wondering is I might be able to kind of solve 2 problems at once.  I could test a wee bit further using the ASIO4ALL to see if I continue to get the BSOD's, and if I don't get them, then I could continue to use that until I can afford to get a new device.  
 
My next question is if I use ASIO4ALL do I need to use the Audio driver on my MOBO?  If that's the case, do I connect my keybd wrkstation OUTs to an analogue mixer, etc.?  Is that how it works?
 
KC

King
You just route your audio interface to the phono input off your mixer that should be suffient. Hope the info helps

Byrdy

Tnx Byrdy60, but I'm not sure I follow.  I do have a Phono In on the Alesis, but I DON'T have that on my Allen-Heath, but I DO have a USB audio port on the AH... What to Do?  Also, as for MIDI, I'm assuming I would simply buy a traditional MIDI to USB, and plug that into 1 of the several USB's on the PC?

King
Iam not familiar with your gear but usually the USB out on the back of your computer connects to a audio interface who's output then via phono leads go into the input on the mixing desk. That's what iam using at the moment with a asio4all driver. Mind you if your mixing desk has a usb port it might have a built in audio interface so that would mean routing from your pc directly into your mixers usb port. I hope the info helps if not you might need another opinion

You have the latest drivers from here ? They are for W7 as per your signature. And they were updated 2010 so are not not from 7 years ago .........?
 
Do you have a TI fire wire chip . If not, have you tried using the legacy fire-wire driver in W7 ?
 
Do NOT use Asio for All thingy unless its really necessary (in your case it shouldn't be). Delete it if necessary if the above works
 
Cheers,
Jerry
 
 

Not totally sure I understand the situation, but a couple thoughts...
 

• First you need to find out if the IO26 has a hardware issue or not. Check if there is a firmware update, but be aware that if a problem occurs during a firmware update (e.g., a bad cable, power goes out, etc.), the device could be rendered unuseable.
• Try using WDM/KS drivers instead of ASIO. The performance can be more or less equivalent. If it works all the time, then that's one solution. You can continue using the interface as you always have.
• Try ASIO4ALL. While it's a workaround and has been know to cause problems under some circumstances, it's probably worth a try.

 
You kind of lost me with the last question. ASIO4ALL is simply a "universal" driver that makes Windows drivers look like ASIO. You should be able to use your interface as you always do, plug your keyboards or other instruments into it, record in to Sonar, and use its audio output to drive your audio monitoring system.
 
Also, consider disabling the onboard sound chip as it can sometimes conflict with other drivers and interfaces.
 
Good luck!

where can I get asio4all for win 8? the asio4all.com site seems to be no more.

http://www.asio4all.com/   and just tried it, seems to be fine.
Am using Firefox 29.0.1  Apparently the beta vs will work with Win 8.
 
Good Luck!

http://asio4all.en.lo4d.com/
Hi spinedoc
Try this link for your windows 8 asio4all driver

http://www.asio4all.com/
 
I just went to it.
 
I would try out Craig's advice above, except I happen to disagree on disabling the on-board sound.  (I would only do that it there was a definite conflict, otherwise, my recommendation is to assign your on-board sound as the Windows Default Audio Device, and only let your music production programs get access to either your audio interface or ASIO4ALL - I also turn off all Windows sounds, but that is just a personal choice and not any requirement).
 
Something to consider.  IF downloading the drivers from the link someone posted above don't work, and you decide your current audio interface really is toast, then I would suggest you consider picking up a basic but good audio interface, rather than using ASIO4ALL and buying a USB/midi adapter.
 
My rationale for this is that a USB/midi adapter can run from a low of maybe $30 to $50 or more, while a good quality but not feature rich audio interface can start at only about $150-$200.
 
A new basic audio interface would not have more than a couple of inputs (usually mic/instrument), with phantom power and some decent analog/digital converters, but would be FAR better at keeping resource load of your CPU down, since it would take on the task of doing the analog/digital conversion, rather than making your CPU do it. 
 
In addition, the new audio interface would also have midi in and out/thru ports, so you would be covered there, too.
 
So, the difference between the 2 options is something like $100 to maybe $150, and would give you years of MUCH better performance than the band aid approach of using ASIO4ALL and a USB/midi adapter.
 
Again, all of the above would be best evaluated only AFTER determining that your current audio interface was actually beyond salvage.
 
IF you end up going the ASIO4All route, then per the other poster's advice above, make SURE that you completely uninstall it once you ever get another audio interface, because it DEFINITELY can be problematic to have installed in the presence of another ASIO device.
 
I looked at audio interfaces from Guitar Center (www.guitarcenter.com), and found one that I would suggest you consider.  It is a Presonus AudioBox USB 2x2, runs brand new at $119.99, and gives you decent mic pres and converters, midi ports, and has drivers available all the way up to Windows 8.
 
Here is the direct link for that:
 
http://www.guitarcenter.com/Presonus-AudioBox-USB-2X2-USB-Recording-System-104841978-i1388074.gc
 
I also looked at other available interfaces in the $100-$200 range, but many did not have either drivers for Windows 8 or if they did then they were missing midi ports.
 
I use the bigger brother Presonus AudioBox 1818 VSL audio interface, and have never had any issues whatsoever with it, and I am aware of others that are successfully using the smaller one I am suggesting you consider, so I have no reservations about recommending it to you.
 
It's pretty hard to beat $120 for a brand new audio interface with the features of the Presonus AudioBox USB 2x2.  (from what I understand, the Focusrite pres may well be a bit better, but their $150 audio interface definitely does not have midi ports, though there is Windows 8 support for it).
 
Good luck, 
 
Bob Bone