SOLVED: Configuring COM port for Win 7 x64

[bitSync]

Trying to get D8Bridge 1.1 going with Sonar Producer 8.5.3. Device Manager for my system (Win 7 x64) has no entry for Ports (COM & LPT) in the device tree. When I boot d8bridge_x64.exe its configuration shows choices of COM1 through COM9 in the drop-down, but none of those choices work for D8Bridge, always error "Could not initialize COM port from last confiduration". The Control Panel | Devices and Printers shows the USB to Serial connection. Any advice, please to find the COM ports in Device Manager and associate one of them with the Serial/USB interface? Thanks.

[Edited to update status in title]

[neto117]

I had issues with Loop Midi so I installed Loopbe30 http://nerds.de/en/loopbe30.html with no issues (Demo version runs for one hour). I'm using Sonar X1 Expanded on Win7-64 Professional. Im currently using COM3 but that depends on which Usb port it is connected to.

[bitSync]

Are you saying that before you installed Loopbe30 you were not able to see the 'Ports (COM & LPT)' entry in the Win7 Device Manager device tree? And after you installed Loopbe30 you were able to see the ports in Device Manager?

Win7 x64 Professional is not showing me the COM ports entry in the device tree. I've seen other similar problem reports on the web not associated with MIDI loopback software; no satisfying soultions found yet. I'll try the Loopbe30 route but I'm not sure loopMIDI is the problem yet, seems like a Win7 Device Manager thing? Seemingly nothing in the BIOS I can switch to make the COM ports appear. Sonar and Reaper can both see the loopMIDI ports but the d8bridge_x64.exe cannot find any COM ports to associate with its serial/USB interface. Makes sense since the Win7 Device Manager apparently can't find any COM ports either.

I'll check out Loopbe30 as you suggest. Thanks!

[bbb]

Maybe you can add the ports manually. Try the Add Hardware Wizard' ...type hdwwiz in the search box and hit enter to get to it
Hope this works for you.

[bitSync]

@bbb

Thanks! I'll give that a shot.

[bitSync]

Inch by inch...

Well, I ran hdwwiz.exe (on Win7 x64 Professional) as advised and made a little headway. One of the options in hdwwiz was to add COM ports, which I did. The Device Manager now sees a line entry for 'Ports (COM & LPT)' and beneath it an entry for 'Communications Port (COM3)'. The Device Driver reports that COM3 isn't using any resources because it has a problem. In looking at the COM3 resources, the I/O range (03F8 - 03FF) and the IRQ (0x00000004 (04)) conflict with the PCI bus (I/O range) and the ACPI x64 based PC (IRQ).

There are a number of Basic Configurations for COM3 to choose from, but it looks like all of them have one or more device conflicts, either I/O range, IRQ, or both. Several conflicts seem to just identify the PCI bus as a conflicting device. For now, I've disabled the newly instantiated COM3 until I can resolve the device conflicts.

If anyone here has any experience with setting up a COM Port on Win7 to not conflict with another device, and to be associated with a specific USB port, please let me know. Thanks!

P.S. - Also wondering, why did the OS start choosing an available COM port at COM3 instead of COM1?

[bbb]

In the device manger you may be able to change the port number...

Find the port you want to change, right click it and select properties.
Select the Port Settings Tab.
Click the Advanced button.
Change the port number.

May lead you to the next inch

[bitSync]

@bbb

Yes, I can rename the port, anything from 'COM3' to 'COM256', according to the drop-down. What I really want is -

1) To be able to assign to the COM port an IRQ and address space that won't interfere with anything else, and
2) To be able to associate the COM port with the USB-to-serial interface servicing the D8Bridge I/O

I need to figure out what IRQs and what address space on the machine are not currently in use by other drivers, my mission for tonight.

[bitSync]

I'm beginning to suspect my USB-to-serial adapter cable is very possibly complete junk. I'm gonna step away from the Win 7 Device Manager, hdwwiz.exe, etc. for a couple days while my Win 7 certified Gucci version of a USB-to-serial adapter cable ships. Apparently, not all these adapters are created equal and some have been known to give Win 7 fits, like, for example, COM ports not automatically showing up as they should.

I need the mental health break anyways...

[bitSync]

It was the cable!

All that grief with the Device Manager and hdwwiz.exe, etc. was unnecessary and was completely due to an inferior USB-to-serial converter cable. I swapped in a higher quality cable, one asserting Win 7 compatibility, and now I've automatically got my COM3 port and the D8Bridge software and the d8b control surface are finally talking. Life is good.

FWIW, the USB-to-serial converter cable I'm using is a USconverters.com XS8801 with an FTDI processor chip.