Troubleshooting Tips for
a New Sound Card
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No sound is heard from audio (music)
CDs
Various conditions may cause this problem. To troubleshoot, check
the following:
-
Microsoft Volume Control
or your mixer program mute options and volume sliders.
-
Connect headphones to
the stereo phone jack on your CD-ROM drive’s front panel; adjust
the volume control settings on the drive. If there is sound from
your headphones, check the CD audio cable connection from the
CD-ROM drive to the audio card.
-
Ensure the speakers are
properly connected to the audio card’s output
connector.
Joystick port is not working
To troubleshoot, check the following:
-
The audio card joystick
port conflicts with another joystick port in the system. Disable
the audio card joystick port, and use the system’s joystick
port.
-
The joystick drivers,
MSJSTICK.DRV and VJOYD.VXD, may not be installed. Uninstall the
joystick, then reinstall to load the drivers. The drivers should
come with the driver CD or floppy diskette with your sound
card.
Computer hangs or restarts during
installation
A hardware conflict may cause the computer to hang or restart
during the installation procedure. Check the following to resolve
the conflict:
-
A hardware conflict with
another device in your system.
-
Previously installed
sound card hardware or software needs to be removed.
-
The audio card is not
seated in the slot properly.
-
PCI bus mastering
devices may be interfering with the operation of the audio card.
Temporarily remove non-essential PCI bus mastering
devices.
Resolving hardware conflicts
Hardware conflicts occur when two or more devices contend for the
same resources. Conflicts between your audio card and another
device may occur regarding the I/O address, IRQ line, or DMA
channel:
-
Right-click the My
Computer icon on your desktop, and select Properties.
The System Properties dialog appears.
-
Click the Device
Manager tab. In the Device Manager, a plus sign(+) represents
an expandable list of items. A minus sign (-) represents an
expanded list. A circled exclamation mark denotes a
conflict.
-
Double-click Sound,
video, game controllers. A list of multimedia devices
appears.
-
Select your audio
card.
-
Choose the
Propertis button.
-
Click the
Resources tab.
-
Uncheck the Use
automatic settings option.
-
Change "Settings based
on:" if alternate settings are available.
-
Determine the conflict
by reviewing the "Conflicting device list".
-
Select the conflicting
item in the "Resource Settings" list.
-
Click the Change
Settings button.
-
Use the mouse to select
a new setting.
-
Select OK to close each
of the properties windows, and restart your computer.
Audio card is not automatically
detected
To manually configure your audio card for Windows 95/98:
-
Click "Start" on the
taskbar, and select Settings from the Start
menu.
-
Select Control
Panel. The Control Panel group appears.
-
Double-click the Add
New Hardware icon. The Add New Hardware Wizard dialog
appears.
-
Select Next to
continue.
-
Choose Yes to
have Windows search for new hardware, then select
Next
-
Select Next to
continue.
-
Select Finish,
and follow the prompts to complete the new hardware
installation.
CD
does not automatically run when you insert it in the
drive
To enable the "Audio insert notification" feature:
-
Right-click the My
Computer icon on your desktop, and select Properties.
The System Properties dialog appears.
-
Click the Device
Manager tab. A list of devices appears.
-
Double-click
CD-ROM, and select your CD-ROM drive.
-
Choose the
Properties button. The CD-ROM drive properties dialog
appears.
-
Choose the
Settings tab.
-
Click the "Auto insert
notification" option to enable.
-
Select OK until all
Properties dialogs are closed, and restart Windows for the changes
to take effect.
No
sound is heard from speakers
Verify the following:
-
Check the Microsoft
Volume Control or the Audio Mixer Program mute options and volume
sliders.
-
Ensure the speakers are
properly connected to the audio card’s output
connector.
-
Check the volume control
and power connection of the speakers, if they are amplified. (Refer
to the speakers documentation for detailed
information).
-
Ensure a hardware
conflict does not exist between your audio card and another device
in your system.
-
PCI bus mastering
devices may be interfering with the operation of the audio card.
Temporarily remove non-essential PCI bus mastering devices. If the
device is a display card, upgrade the display card drivers, or set
the card to the default Windows VGA mode.
If you are experiencing no
sound only during audio CD playback, see "No sound is heard from
audio (music) CDs" above.
Static sounds are heard in wave
files
Check to see if the static sounds are heard in all wave files. If
the difficulty occurs only with certain games, refer to the
software manufacturer’s documentation. To troubleshoot static
sounds heard in all wave files:
-
Try different resource
settings for the audio card, or set the card to use low
DMA.
-
Move the audio card to
another PCI slot. Feedback from the power supply or another device
may be responsible.
If a problem persists, please search for a solution or
post a question in our
tech support forum in our Help
Desk
.
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