Well to start off your new Lexicon Core2 sound card is sure up to the task. It is a highly rated sound card. The only possibility of something amiss with the sound card is that it may be defective. You said you bought it on Ebay, right? Was it a brand new right off the shelf one or was it a used and possibly "abused" one? If it was a new one then I would tend to think it is not the sound card causing the problem although sometimes even a new piece of Hardware will be defective. This is going to be a process of elimination like Gary stated and the more people there is to input their ideas the better. So don't be shy guys and gals. Please chip in to give Tony some of our ideas and expertise.

Tony, you say you have a breakout box for the Lexicon. I have a breakout box too on my Delta 44 PCI. What I do on my setup is I run my 1/4" Main Outs on my PSR 2000 using Monster Studio Link Mono Left/Right cables to my Mackie 1202 Pro Mixer's Line 1 & 2 inputs. I adjust the EQ's to my preference which is High EQ: +5 or so, Mid EQ: slightly below Detente, Low EQ: around +2 or +3,then I run the Outputs (again, using Monster Studio Link Gold Series 1/4" cables but the Output Cables are "Balanced", ie., TRS Stereo cables. I run them into my Delta 44's inputs 1 & 2 on the Breakout Box and the Delta 44 is nestled in the #2 PCI slot on my computer.

I use Sound Forge mostly but I also have and use n-Track Studio 24 bit. I record my audio using one of the Multi-track software programs then I convert the .Wav file to .MP3 using dBpowerAmp Music Converter or n-Tracks mp3 decoder. I also use Music Match Jukebox Plus which uses the Franhoufer Decoder technology which is one of the best.

My Mic is definitely not a cheapie. I use a Shure Beta 87A. I run the Mic through the PSR 2000's Mic IN using a Blue Series mic cable to a ROLLS Phantom Power Adaper and outputting a Studio Link cable to the PSR 2000's Mic/Line In. That way I am able to incorporate the Vocal Harmony of the PSR 2000 into the Mix. So there you have my configuration.

What model of Behringer Mixer do you have? I have heard there lower end models are not up to snuff. Unless the new ones coming out have improved in quality.

It sounds more to me like it is something within your computer causing the problem. How is your Volume Play Control configured? Your Wave/Direct Sound should NOT be muted of course. Neither should you have "1 Digital Output Only checked under the Advanced Play Controls. In the Control Panel/Multimedia icon, make sure your "Preferred" device is selected from the drop down list and the "Use only perferred devices" is selected. Under the Advanced Audio Properties make sure the "Audio Hardware Acceleration" is set to 'Full' and the Sample Rate Conversion quality is set to 'Best'. The same goes for the Recording Advanced properties, ie., 'Full' and 'Best'. In the Control Panel/System Properties, make sure in the Device Manager there are no Hardware Conflicts. If you don't see any "yellow flags" anywhere you should be okay.

What is the speed of your Processor, ie., CPU? 500Mhz, 800Mhz, 1.5 GigaHertz? The faster the CPU the better when it comes to recording Audio. How much Memory does the computer have? I recommend 256 MB, preferably more, for Windows 98/SE when using Multimedia applications. PS: There are many potential bottlenecks that can occur when recording Audio using Multi-track software. The Muddy sound you are getting tells me either something Hardware specific is not hooked up right or possibly defective or not up to snuff somewhere along the line or some parameters within Windows 98/SE are not set up right.

My 2 cents. PS: Detective work will eventually sort this out Tony.

Best regards,
Mike