Mic not working on Vista

[djad23]

So Im new to this Karaoke thing for the computer software so I'm really hoping someone can help me fix the problem Im having with Vista.
Where should I start. Well to make my problem as short as possible here it is in a nutshell. I tried installing Hoster on a vista laptop and the external mic that is connected to the mic input on the laptop is not being recognized. When trying to do a test with sound recorder on vista, it shows that it is being recognized because the line moves when I speak. But when I record, no sound is recorded. To make this situation weirder, I have another laptop with Vista and had the same issue. Being fedup with Vista already, I just wanted to test out the mic input, so I connected the mic to XP,unmuted the mic and viola it worked, sound coming out of the speakers fine. The Dilemma I'm having is that I installed Hoster on 2 laptops that have Vista and the mic works with XP not Vista. I have contacted HP, Microsoft and I have tried to troubleshoot it myself with no solution. Please help, I have had Hoster for about 2 weeks now and I am dieing to use it but I cant get the darn mics to work with Vista, but as I said they work fine with XP. Does any one know where the setting are in Vista where I can unmute the mic and use them. Please Help. Thanks
Amos