Technical Note 24
Overcoming Problems Under Microsoft Windows

 
This topic was originally written for Windows 7 and Vista but it also applies to Windows 8.x, 10 and 11. Plus, some of the suggestions in it also apply to earlier versions of Windows (such as the sections dealing with "Best Installation Practices" and "Over-Protective Security Software").
 
BassBox 6 Pro, BassBox 6 Lite and X•over 3 Pro have been tested under both 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows 11, 10, 8 and 7 using U.S. English editions of these operating systems and no installation or operational problems have been observed at our facility. Yet, from time to time we receive reports of problems in the field. If you have trouble installing or running these programs, the following suggestions and procedures may help:

Solutions
Best Installation Practices
Over-Protective Security Software
Compatibility Mode and Privilege Level

 

Best Installation Practices

In some ways, each new version of Microsoft Windows has more stringent security system than previous versions and this reduces the number of installation options. The following suggestions should help you avoid unnecessary problems:
 

• If it has been a while since you last started Windows, restart your computer so you are using a fresh instance of Windows.
   
  
• Use a Windows user account with administrator privileges to install BassBox Pro, BassBox Lite and/or X•over Pro. Use the same user account to run them after they are installed.
   
  
• Exit all unnecessary programs before beginning the installation. Ideally, the only program that is running when you start the setup program is Windows, itself.
   
  
• Use the default settings for the installation, including the default path for the programs.
   
  
• If you need to re-install the programs, first remove any previous installations of them (see the "Over-Protective Security Software" section below for instructions on how to remove them).

 

Over-Protective Security Software

Security software is important and we recommend that all computer users take adequate steps to protect their computers with up-to-date security software like antivirus, antispyware, anti-malware and firewall programs. Unfortunately, security software is sometimes too aggressive and interferes with the legitimate operation of setup programs when software is installed or updated. We've never had a problem with the Norton/Symantec security software but some users have reported problems with security software from other vendors.
 
The symptoms can vary: The BassBox Pro, BassBox Lite or X•over Pro setup program may appear to start okay but then hangs. Or the setup program may appear to run and finish properly yet BassBox Pro, BassBox Lite or X•over Pro won't start. The solution is to temporarily turn off the security software during the installation process. However, you should first remove any previous copies of the programs that may have been partially installed on your computer. The following steps may help.
 
Note: These steps use our "Pro Bundle" containing both BassBox 6 Pro and X-over 3 Pro as an example (it is our most popular package). The removal steps are nearly identical for individual installations of BassBox 6 Pro, BassBox 6 Lite and X•over 3 Pro. We'll describe the few differences where they exist.
 

1. If this is not the first time that you've attempted to install BassBox 6 Pro and X•over 3 Pro on this computer, then any existing full or partial installations of these programs should be removed as follows:
    
   How to Remove BassBox 6 Pro and X•over 3 Pro
   Launch the Windows Control Panel from the Windows Start menu and click on "Uninstall a program" as shown below:
    
   
     A list of the programs installed on your computer should appear as shown below. Select BassBox 6 Pro and X•over 3 Pro from the list and click on the "Uninstall/Change" button at the top of the list. Note: If only one program was installed, then select it (BassBox 6 Pro, BassBox 6 Lite or X•over 3 Pro).
    
   
     A Confirm File Deletion dialog will appear (shown below). Click on the "Yes" button to proceed.
    
   
     If a message similar to the one shown below appears, it indicates that a system file that was installed with BassBox Pro and X•over Pro does not appear to be needed any more. Respond by clicking "Yes to All" so that all unneeded system files that were installed with the programs are removed. Remember, you are about to reinstall the programs and the system file will be reinstalled with them. Removing it here is a good idea to insure that dependent files are properly installed and linked during the next attempt to install the program.
    
   
     After you click on the "Yes to All" button above, you'll be asked for comfirmation. Respond by clicking on the "Yes" button.
    
   
     Finally, a Remove Programs From Your Computer dialog will appear to display the progress as BassBox Pro and X•over Pro are removed from your computer. When it has finished, click on the "OK" button. You should now be ready to continue to Step 2 below.
    
   
     If, on the other hand, BassBox 6 Pro and X•over 3 Pro do not appear in the Uninstall list (or the setup program was unable to finish during the previous attempt to install them), then you will need to manually check to see if the programs and/or their folders were installed on your computer. If they were, then you should delete them. However, before this can be done, you must configure Windows to show its hidden system files and folders. To do this, launch the Windows Control Panel again from the Windows Start menu unless it is still open. Then click on "Appearance and Personalization" (highlighted below).
    
   
     Next, click on "Show hidden files and folders" under the "Folder Options" (shown below).
    
   
     The Folder Options dialog will open (shown below). Turn on the "Show hidden files, folders, and drives" option. It might also be helpful to uncheck the "Hide extensions for known file types" option if it is checked. This will make it easier to differentiate files with identical names but different extensions. Then click on the "OK" button to accept the changes and close the dialog. You can also close the Windows Control Panel now.
    
   
     Next, launch the Windows Explorer (Windows key+E) and navigate to the "Local Disk (C:)" drive of your computer. This is normally the drive where Windows is installed. If it is not, then navigate to the drive where Windows is installed. Then search for an "HT Audio" folder inside either the "c:\Program Files" folder (32-bit) or the "c:\Program Files (x86)" folder (64-bit). The example shown below uses the 64-bit version of Windows 7 so the "Program Files (x86)" folder was selected. Delete the "HT Audio" folder and all of its contents if you find it.
    
   
     Next, you need to navigate to the folder of your Windows user account. We used "User X" below as a generic placeholder. If you gave your user account your name and your name is Jane, then look for a "Jane" folder. You'll probably see it above the "Computer" in the treeview on the left of the Windows Explorer. Once you find it, open it and navigate to "AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files (x86)" as shown below. Delete the "HT Audio" folder and all of its contents if you find it. Note: If you're using a 32-bit version of Windows 8, 7 or Vista, the path will be "AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files".
    
   
    
2. Restart your computer. One way to do this is to select "Shut down > Restart" from the Windows Start menu (shown below).
    
   
    
3. Disconnect your computer from all networks including the internet.
    
   
4. Turn off or disable all antivirus, antispyware, anti-malware and firewall programs. Ideally, just Windows should be running.
    
   
5. Install the Pro Bundle (BassBox 6 Pro and X•over 3 Pro) or an individual program (BassBox 6 Pro, BassBox 6 Lite, X•over 3 Pro). See Technical Note 22 for detailed step-by-step instructions.
    
   
6. Turn back on or enable the antivirus, antispyware, anti-malware and firewall programs before reconnecting to a network including the internet.
    
   
7. If desired, restore the Folder Options back to their orignal settings with the Windows Control Panel.

 

Compatibility Mode and Privilege Level

This section addresses the unrelated subjects of compatibility and privilege because they are managed in the same place in Windows and because problems involving them can manifest similar symptoms.
 
Regarding compatibility, some older programs cannot run as native applications under Windows 11, 10, 8.x and 7. If they run at all, they require you to configure Windows to emulate an older version of Windows while the application is running.
 
Regarding privilege, one of the purposes of the security system in Windows is to prevent unauthorized changes to the operating system and programs on your computer so it restricts the privileges of applications. Unfortunately, it sometimes appears that this system is over-protective and will prevent legitimate operations which you did authorize like the running of the BassBox 6 Pro, BassBox 6 Lite or X•over 3 Pro installer or the running of BassBox 6 Pro, BassBox 6 Lite or X•over 3 Pro, themselves.
 
As we wrote at the top of this page, we have not been able to get Windows 11, 10, 8.x or 7 to exhibit problems with either compatibility or privilege in our lab and, even though it is rarely reported by our users, enough reports have surfaced to prompt this section. In most cases (but not all) the computers involved where not in the U.S. and were running international versions of Windows. The symptoms vary and include:

• The setup program fails to start even when you double-click directly on it.
• The setup program hangs even though you have turned off or disabled all antivirus, antispyware, anti-malware and firewall software.
• BassBox 6 Pro, BassBox 6 Lite or X•over 3 Pro, themselves, fail to start or they hang after you start them.
• Every time that one of these programs are launched, their Welcome/configuration system starts. This should only happen the first time that you run each of these programs. After you've completed the initial configuration process for each one and clicked on their respective "Finish" buttons, you should not see the Welcome/configuration dialogs again. If you do, then the link between the programs and their "VirtualStore" folder in Windows has not been established.
• Changes made to the Preferences of BassBox 6 Pro, BassBox 6 Lite or X•over 3 Pro are not remembered after you close and restart the programs.
• Every time you save a speaker or crossover network design, it disappears and cannot be opened again.

 
The following steps begin with the Pro Bundle (BassBox 6 Pro and X•over 3 Pro) setup program on the installation CD-R and describe how to control its compatibility and permission settings of Windows 7 to help you circumvent these kinds of problems. Similar principles apply to Windows 11, 10, 8.x and to the BassBox 6 Pro, BassBox 6 Lite and X•over 3 Pro programs, themselves, and the maintenance updates available from our website.

1. If this is not the first time that you've attempted to install BassBox 6 Pro, BassBox 6 Lite and/or X•over 3 Pro on this computer and the installer appeared to start earlier, then you should remove any partial installations before proceeding. See the previous Over-Protective Security Software section for removal instructions.
    
   
2. With the installation CD-R disc in the computer, run the Windows Explorer (Windows key+E) and navigate to the "setup-z" folder on the CD-R (BBx-Xo Bundle). Here are the setup folder names for the other installation discs in case you are using one of them:

   Pro Bundle  -  disc: "BBx-Xo Bundle" | setup folder: "setup-z"
   BassBox 6 Pro only  -  disc: "BassBox Pro" | setup folder: "setup-b"
   X•over 3 Pro only  -  disc: "X-over Pro" | setup folder: "setup-x"
   BassBox 6 Lite  -  disc: "BassBox Lite" | setup folder: "setup-bl"

   Right-click on the "setup.exe" file and select "Properties" from the popup menu as shown below:
    
   
    
3. The Setup.exe Properties dialog will open. Select the "Compatibility" tab as shown below:
    
   
    
4. Check "Run this program in compatibility mode for:" at the top and choose "Windows XP (Service Pack 3)" for the mode.
    
   
5. Check "Run this program as an administrator" in the Privilege Level section at the bottom.
    
   
6. Click the "OK" button to accept these settings and close the dialog.
    
   
7. Now you are ready to attempt to install the Pro Bundle or the individual BassBox 6 Pro, BassBox 6 Lite and/or X-over 3 Pro programs again. Return to the Windows Explorer and double-click on the setup.exe program to launch it and begin the installation. If desired, see Technical Note 22 for detailed step-by-step instructions.
    
   

Important: If the above steps correct the installation problem, then it is also likely that you will need to do the same thing to the individual BassBox 6 Pro, BassBox 6 Lite and X•over 3 Pro program files after they have been installed or they may not run properly. The steps are nearly the same only, instead of setting the compatibility mode and privilege level for the setup program (setup.exe), you'll set them for each of the program files (BassBox 6.exe, BassBox 6L.exe, Xover 3.exe).
 
The following steps use BassBox 6 Pro as an example. You'll need to do the same thing to X•over 3 Pro and BassBox 6 Lite if they are also installed.

1. Right-click on BassBox 6 Pro and select the "Properties" command from the popup menu. There are three places where you can do this and you only need to do it at one of them. If you see a large BassBox 6 Pro icon in the Windows Start menu (shown below), you can right-click on it there.
    
   
     Or you can click on "All Programs" in the Windows Start menu, locate the "HT Audio" folder and right-click on "BassBox 6 Pro" there (shown below).
    
   
     Or you can use the Windows Explorer (Windows key+E) to navigate to the place where the BassBox 6 Pro program file (BassBox 6.exe) is stored on your computer's hard drive and right-click on it there. This will usually be at "c:\Program Files\HT Audio" for 32-bit versions of Windows or "c:\Program Files (x86)\HT Audio" for 64-bit versions (shown below).
    
   
    
2. Once you've selected the "Properties" command in the popup menu, the BassBox 6 Pro or BassBox 6.exe Properties dialog will open. The number of tabs it contains will vary depending on which of the three locations described above that you chose, but they will all have the "Compatibility" tab as shown in the examples below. Select it.
    
   
    
    
3. Check "Run this program in compatibility mode for:" at the top of the dialog and choose "Windows XP (Service Pack 3)" for the mode.
    
   
4. Check "Run this program as an administrator" in the Privilege Level section at the bottom.
    
   
5. Click the "OK" button to accept these settings and close the dialog.
    
   
6. Repeat Steps 1-5 for X•over 3 Pro and BassBox 6 Lite if they are also installed.
    
   

Once you've made the above changes to the compatibility mode and privilege level settings of BassBox 6 Pro, BassBox 6 Lite and/or X•over 3 Pro, you'll be confronted with a User Account Control dialog (shown below) every time you launch these programs. This is Windows' security system checking to make sure that you want to allow the programs to run with these elevated privileges and it should list the Program Name as BassBox 6.exe, BassBox 6L.exe or Xover 3.exe. Simply click on the "Yes" button and the program should start properly.
 

  If you find these User Account Control notices to be too annoying, you can disable them by clicking on the "Change when these notifications appear" link on the bottom of the dialog the next time it appears. When you do, the User Account Control Settings dialog will appear (shown below). You'll need to select the lowest setting (Never notify) in order to suppress the notifications. Warning: This setting is not recommended because it will also suppress legitimate warnings that may prevent unauthorized access to your computer by malicious software (such as a virus, trojan, worm, spyware or malware). Therefore, we recommend caution. Besides, is it really that difficult to click "Yes" each time you launch one of these programs?
 

  Note: You can also reach the User Account Control Settings at any time from the Windows Control Panel by clicking on "System and Security" and selecting "Change User Account Control settings".