Right Channel is NOT working - Is it the Sound card?

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Level 1

19 points

Right Channel is NOT working - Is it the Sound card?

Sometime, and I don't know when exactly, I started to notice that the sound in my home sound system was sounding "peculiar". The sound of the left and right channel appeared to be combined (?) somehow. When I tested my amplifier, turning the balance control to the left, only the left channel would sound; then I turned the control to the right and only the right speakers would sound...... OK!!

So I went into the computer system Preferences > Sound; AND WHEN I MOVED THE BALANCE TO THE LEFT, SOUND WOULD OK ON THE LEFT; WHEN I MOVED THE BALANCE TO THE RIGHT, THERE WAS NO SOUND AT ALL. See the diagram.

Checking the AUDIO DEVICES on my iMac 10.15.7 Catalina I found an "additional" output called Soundflower (2 ch) - see the photo enclosed - and I have no idea what this is or how it even got there.

Can someone tell me how to get rid of this "SOUNDFLOWER" and help me solve the issue of NOT having any sound on the right channel?

iMac 21.5″, macOS 10.15

Posted on Aug 6, 2022 09:50 AM

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Answer 1

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MartinR

Level 7

23,493 points

Aug 6, 2022 04:54 PM in response to rbfrank

So, it turned out to be a cable problem or perhaps a connector that wasn't plugged in all the way. Sometimes I have that problem when I plug a cable into the headphone port on my iPhone 6!

I have seen evidence that some versions of Roxio Toast do in fact install Soundflower. I would keep it, as it may be a necessary component for recording your analog vinyl & reel-to-reel. I assume you are using some kind of audio interface; if so, Toast probably needs Soundflower to record the audio.

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Answer 2

MartinR

Level 7

23,493 points

Aug 6, 2022 02:14 PM in response to rbfrank

Soundflower is a popular and useful kernel extension whose purpose is to route audio between applications on a Mac. It's old, but still supported up to macOS Big Sur (11.1). If you select Soundflower as your sound output, all audio will be routed through Soundflower, not your Mac's speakers. If it is not selected, then it should have no effect on the audio through your Mac speakers, headphone output or even a USB audio adapter.

You would have had to install Soundflower in order to have it on your Mac. You can remove it, but before you do so, think back about when and why you may have installed it - perhaps it came with some other app. Users typically use it with an audio recording app. You don't want to remove it if your system is actually using it.

At this point, with the information provided, there is no way to know if Soundflower is involved in the problem you cited. It probably isn't, so don't assume it's the culprit until doing further work to figure out the cause of your L/R problem.

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Answer 3

rbfrank Author

Level 1

19 points

Aug 6, 2022 02:42 PM in response to MartinR

Thank you MartinR. Your info is most helpful.

First thing I did was to disconnect the "old" cables from the headphone output and the 2 jacks from the external amplifier.

Then I opened the Systems Preferences > Sound .... and made sure if the BALANCE was working with the Headphone Port active; and I had full function of the Balance .... ! That was great.

Then I connected brand new (and better quality) cable to the headphone output of the iMac and the RCA plugs to the CD input of the amplifier. THAT ALL WORKED WELL.

Now the second question of yours: I have no idea how that Soundflower was installed. Maybe it was installed with Big Sur, but now I am on Catalina. Everything now seems to be working well and the sound is fabulous.

I did install about a week ago the new Toast 20 so I can record my old vinyls and some reel-to-reel tapes I wonder if when installing Toast 20, it was that application that installed Soundflower. Question is why? If Catalina does NOT use it and it will not affect new recordings, do i really need it?

I would still like to know how to remove it, especially if it plays no part in the overall sound system and does nothing(?).

Please advise. Thank you for your advise and hope to hear you shortly replying to my comments.

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Answer 4

rbfrank Author

Level 1

19 points

Aug 6, 2022 05:07 PM in response to MartinR

Thank you Sir. You have helped me a great deal. The Apple store where I am located had me convinced I needed to buy a new iMac since "replacing" the sound card implied replacing the entire motherboard. And I could only buy a 24-in or 27-in iMac as they no longer carried the 21.5-in.

I am truly happy that with your help I was able to avoid a huge unneccesary expense.

Regards, Richard

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Right Channel is NOT working - Is it the Sound card?

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