Option to turn microphone (audio interface input- XLR) from 2 channels to 1 (stereo to mono) locked/grayed out

[HazyJ28]

TL;DR: LOOK AT THE PICTURES BELOW

 

 

Hello everyone. I have a quick, non urgent question. Here is some quick information about the hardware:

• MIC: MXL 3000
• Interface: Yamaha Steinberg UR22
  
   

In "Windows>Control Panel>Sound", the option to turn my microphone/interface input from 2 channels to 1 channel (stereo to mono) is locked/grayed out. This is important because my microphone is a condenser, so it's important that the input is Mono (from the left channel- the side that is facing the user). This is also the place where you set the sampling rate, however you can do this in the Interfaces audio driver control panel. 

I said this was non-urgent because I can force the microphone input to "Mono>L" in my DAW, OBS, DAVINCI RESOLVE, (etc.); Discord automatically "downmixes" to Mono anyway. The problem arises in using apps like Voice Recorder (I often take voice memos to get ideas out quickly) and playing XBOX Live games- it comes across as stereo. In this case, it doesn't record out of both sides, but it only comes out of the left channel for the listener. There are other annoyances as well, but these are my main grievances. I should note that I could maybe get around this by using an XLR cable that had a split, L/R male connection. However, I'm looking for a SOFTWARE solution, as "input 2" also doubles as a 1/4th inch auxiliary input (and even has a hi-z function). Not to mention, it has ITS OWN input gain staging, so it just doesn't make sense to go that route anyway.

USB Microphones don't do this, as it allows you to change it into Mono and the option is not grayed out. Could it be that because Windows sees it as a "line" and not a USB device (its a USB device), it only has ONE option and cannot be changed? But this doesn't make sense, because it can be changed in a DAW and other software. Just not software that is lacking in those options, like voice recorder and xbox live chat, nor the W>CP.

I was also wondering if anyone could direct me to an audiophile-specific forum/subreddit! 

(DISCLAIMER: I've done a lot of research on this using google and duckduckgo. I've asked all my friends. I've reached out as much as I could, and have found nothing helpful. I would not be on this forum if I genuinely did not believe somebody here could offer something of value or insight. I appreciate everyone's time.) 

[LstpersonalOF]

Hi I Hope This Can Help And That U can Find An answer if mine doesnt help i have the same issue with only getting one channel to bring audio from my microphone to my pc i use a mackie onyx artist 1-2 as my main audio interface but i only get one side of the stereo what i did and my solution if u dont have any drivers of ur interface installed i suggest u research for drivers and thats what i did i found a driver for my audio interface and installed it mine has a control panel that appears on the taskbar and i changed my settings from stereo to mono if u cant find any drivers i see u use voicemeeter that would be an option to use but if u need dedicated output to be stereo for like in my case zoom/discord/teams/ obs and my desktop i suggest getting the voicemeeter potato version because it has dedicated virtual outs and have them set up with every program that i use so i just have to launch voicemeeter and the voice program that im gonna be using

 

i hope this really works if not thats ok 

and hope ur staying safe and taking care of urself and ur family 

[The Flying Sloth]

This isn't an issue, everything should downmix to Mono, programs not downmixing to Mono is a program issue, not an issue for you. 
If you really want to you could use Voicemeeter to downmix the mic to Mono and use a Virtual Audio Cable to send it to the other programs.
But this isn't an interface issue, it's a program issue.

[HazyJ28]

Hi guys! Thank you for the answer! I already use Voicemeeter Potato to route DAW audio into OBS, so I will give it a try for Windows specific applications to downmix my input into mono. As for Lesantir, I have already installed the driver for my interface and it does not have an option to change channels, only sampling rate. I am grateful for the responses, though!