Tascam US 122 USB interface causes Windows to hang at shutdown

Question

On Windows XP, my Tascam US 122 USB audio interface works fine. On my Windows 7 computer the device works, however when I restart/shutdown, it hangs at the "shutting down" screen forever.

If the USB cable is removed prior to initiating restart/shutdown then everything goes fine, the computer restarts normally.

This is a known problem, running any other driver in compatibility mode doesn't fix the problem.

Is there a method I can use to unload the device/drivers so that I don't have to reach round physically and disconnect the cable? Somebody suggested a spdt switch on the cable itself, but I am looking for a simpler method. Surely I can automate the unloading of the device through a script or such?

Answer 1

Based on your comment, I think the best solution would be to develop commands to disable and enable USB sound card device, then schedule those commands to run at Shutdown / Startup.

Windows 7 (and Vista) includes an enhanced Task Scheduler that can schedule automated tasks triggered by events like Shutdown, Startup, and Login.

Microsoft has a command-line tool called DevCon.exe which they include for free with the Windows Driver Development Kit (specific 32- and 64-bit versions are included). Using this utility, a user with Local Admin privileges can retrieve information about installed devices and enable / disable them, as you would do from the Device Manager tab.

So, the solution would be

• download the Windows 7 Driver Dev Kit
• extract the 32- or 64-bit version of DevCon.exe and copy it to folder
• open Device Manager so you can see the Sound Card device
• open a Command prompt (CMD.EXE) using Run As Administrator
• follow the documentation for DevCon.exe until you determine command lines that will enable and disable the sound card
• First, you'll have to determine how to identify your sound card for DevCon to enable/disable it (by name, or by hardware ID, as shown in the documentation)
• as you figure out DevCon.exe, you should be able to monitor the device status in Device Manager
• Use Task Manager to schedule your Enable command at Startup or Login, and schedule Disable at either Logoff or Shutdown.

Here is the link to the documentation

And here is the link to the latest Windows Driver Kit (7.1)

Answer 2

I've normally seen this sort of error with USB storage devices (external hard drives or flash drives), and in those cases a good bet is to go to the BIOS and disable booting from those devices.

In your case, it's an Audio adapter, so I don't see how Windows would think there is storage associated with it (except for MIDI sound profiles, etc., which is far fetched).

My best advice is to try different drivers. Start by updating the chipset drivers for your motherboard, since those will update the USB controller drivers. Of course, try updated drivers for the audio device.

If you have access to a USB adapter card you can insert into a PCI, PCI Express, or ExpressCard slot, I would try installing one and moving the audio device to one of its ports. It's possible you have a driver conflict between your USB chipset on the motherboard and the USB supporting chips in the Audio adapter.

Finally, though it's a lot of work, it would be interesting to know whether the card acts differently in Windows 7 32-bit vs. 64-bit versions. Drivers for the 64-bit version are often newer and better written, and Windows requires digitally signed drivers for security purposes.

Good luck!