FIRMWARE / BIOS on the audio c

Question

so i've been doing research here on the forums trying to figure this out.
basically, i am now trying to fully install my 3rd X Fi elite pro card. when i got either the 2nd or third card, i did an install on a test machine, starting with drivers from the CD, then applying the web update 5.
when i did that, i got a message from the driver update, that it had to update the bios/firmware of the audio card and reboot. at the time, i didn't think anything of this, i have had video cards where a driver update updated their firmware. i thought so little of it, i don't even recall the exact message, but I KNOW IT HAPPENED. and i am a CompTIA A+ certified tech, i know the difference between a driver and a fw update message.
so i did it and it seemed to do what it wanted and thats that. but now i find out creative swears up and down this is impossible. both in the forums and on the phone. see here:
http://forums.creative.com/creativel...blaster&page=4
http://forums.creative.com/creativel...id=37900#M0437
http://www.pcper.com/comments.php?nid=480
http://forums.creative.com/creativel...ssage.id=26289
so i can't even get them to listen to this.
so anyway...
now, my 3rd card, which presumably has the newest firmware, is NOT EVEN DETECTED by the CD. i can't use the CD to install this card!? but the web drivers update 5 DO install this card.
they are sending me a new cd, which i predict won't work either unless the cd itself is somehow newer. my cd DID work, and is undamaged. so now why suddenly can't it tell i have a supported product?
i think the card is too new fw wise.
in any case i am so sick of creative. i can't even DL the vol panel app which would let me run the diagnostics, and i can't install it from the cd. my computer since installing the card does not reliably (almost never) go into sleep and hibernate anymore, (the only thing different is the audio card). i will never buy creative audio cards again, and i mean NEVER. this is the worst hardware exp i have ever had in 25 years of using computers.
Message Edited by MrSinatra on 07-29-2008 0:58 PM

Answer 1

MrSinatra,
I think it is very well possible that the drivers on your cd do not recognize the updated x-fi anymore. the cd is probably useless now.
a screenshot of this firmware update will most likely not be possible because you cannot repeat it! since you cannot downgrade the firmware, the update routine won't run again the next time even if you run the same driver update again.
let them call you a stupid idiot. it doesnt matter. you have seen it, i have seen it, others have seen it. so we know it happens, right?
as to what this cthelper.exe actually is, i have also wondered already. i also have read Soundcard sams comment as well and checked and i also do not see it anymore in vista. it seems to be gone. I have googled a little but it looks like nobody really knows what it does. its probably just not necessary anymore with the new drivers i suppose.
Just check your startup reg and disable it. see if it makes any difference. maybe u don't need it anymore either. maybe its just the old registry entry that didn't get deleted and still calls it at startup? just try. I can still see it being acti've in my Windows XP Sp3 installation (32bit) though. Seems like its just not acti've in vista anymore. just toy around with it a little. you'll notice if it breaks something if you mess it up ;-)
Oh and btw: there is another tool running now, its called Ctxfihlp.exe and it might just be a replacement of the old one...