Why can't I hear the system sounds from my computer?

In oder to hear the system sounds and to hear sounds from standard applications such as iTunes, Windows Media Player, etc. via your ESI audio interface, you need to select it as the default device in your operating system. How this is done depends on the operating system:

Windows Vista / 7 / 8 / 10

Go to Control Panel > Hardware and Sound > Sound. In the Playback tab you can see a list of devices. The following picture shows this with the example of MAYA44 XTe:

Select the device and then Set Default and click OK.

Mac OS X / macOS

Go to System Preferences > Sound. In the Output section, you can see a list of output devices. The following picture shows this with the example of U46 XL:

Select the device and close the panel.

Windows XP

Go to Control Panel > Sounds and Audio Devices.  In the Audio tab, you can find a list of playback devices under Sound Playback / Default device. The following picture shows this with the example of Dr. DAC nano:

Select the device and click OK.