No sound coming out of speakers

[Explicit]

my computers has lots of problems. not only with the constant ads popping up.

Now when I go to Control panel - sounds it goes to a list of items i have to choose from. I dont have the little box that pops up and to turn up everything, it's actually a list where u can change the sound. where can i higher up the volume. i think they all turned down.

also, when I'm on AIM and hit enter to type something, my computer has a little "click" sound. problems?

[GaryRouth]

Hi again Explicit -

To combat the constant pop-ups, you can try an antispyware tool that can block them for you [if you already have a recent version antivirus package, that might have the same ability, but you'll need to check in the manual or up in the toolbar menus for the exact settings]. AdAware has a component called AdWatch that can block such things. PC Magazine recently gave an Editor's Choice to SpySweeper version 3 for it's prowess at stopping all sorts of nonsense from ever loading, pop-ups included. It's going for about $20 - $30 (USD) around here. AdAware has a free-for-personal-use version. A quick way to find links for both (and many other programs as well, is to visit the antivirus section at download.com).

I think that the sound controls you're looking for, if overall sound levels are what you want to set, are in Start/Programs/Accessories/Entertainment/Sound Volume. It will display a group of slider bars for each input & output you have selected. If you head over to the "Advanced" menus, you can control which input/output lines display. I recommend muting your Microphone and Auxiliary inputs if you're not using them - they can cause background hiss. [You mute them by placing a checkmark in the box that is marked "Mute"]

You are hearing a click while on AIM because a click sound has been assigned - in that same "Sounds" area in Control Panel. Look again at the list: you'll notice you can have Windows play that sound (rather like a "preview") if you click on the little speaker icon. Go through the list that is your current Sound scheme, you may hear the click assigned to several different actions. If you see a special area of the list for AIM, preview the sounds, and if you dislike the click, you can remove that sound from that action. [I imagine if this sounds forbidding, you could also simply check in your AIM menus, for a menu titled "Options" or "Preferences" and see if you can choose not to hear sounds as messages come or are sent, etc.]

Best of luck
. . . Gary

[hmmm - I suppose I should also add that any time speakers are having trouble, don't forget to check the connections. Sometimes the plugs get a bit finicky about connecting well after they've been stepped on a few hundred times]

[thorlo6]

Explicit, Gary is right about that. There is another alternative, however. Look at your taskbar, is there an icon that looks like a little speaker? If there is, you can double click on it and it will bring up the same volume control panel Gary was taking about. You can adjust your volume from there. However, if there isn't any icon like I mentioned, then follow the steps Gary outlined. Hope this helps.thorlo6

[Explicit]

When I went to volume control, click it, nothing popped up..

[Panama Red]

Originally Posted by Explicit When I went to volume control, click it, nothing popped up..

Try "right clicking" it.

[Explicit]

Right click where? I got no icon on the bottom left.

[thorlo6]

Originally Posted by Explicit Right click where? I got no icon on the bottom left.

It's not on the left, it's on the right side of your taskbar next to the time or clock. thorlo6

[GaryRouth]

Hi all

Explicit - if you clicked on a Volume Control speaker (or sometimes mixer) icon on the lower right-hand side of your screen [this is the one thorlo6 was telling you about], and nothing "popped up", try again. Left clicking on that icon should bring up the overall system volume slider bar (up is louder, down is quieter, and the little box "Mute" will turn off ALL sound). Right-clicking on that icon should bring up a menu box where you can choose to bring up the more detailed Volume Control screen - that lists the several input and output slider bars.

Now, if it was the Volume Control in your Start/Programs/Accessories/Entertainment/ menus, and nothing popped up - first, try again [might just be a problem with your mouse]. Second, there could be a problem with your sound driver [though this is unlikely if you can hear sounds and play music!]. Perhaps your Volume Control shortcut got bonked along the way - to test this, you can start that program directly from the Start/Run box (no need for a shortcut). In the Start/Run box, type "SndVol32" without the quotes = you should see the program screen with the several input/ouput slider bars.

Let us know if you are still having trouble with it after trying that
. . . Gary

[Explicit]

I typed in the Run box SndVol32, nothing popped up. And also, there's no icon on the bottom right.

[glc]

With all these issues you have been having, I have to ask this. Have you done a total hard drive wipe and a clean reinstall of Windows and all your apps - with NO connection to the Internet or a LAN - then set up a firewall, antivirus, and antispyware scheme BEFORE enabling any connections?

[Explicit]

Yes, I have.

[GaryRouth]

Can you still hear sounds and play music, but they are just quieter than you'd like? - And is the volume of the AIM click seem loud in comparison?

What program do you use to play music? - And, do you know what sound device you have [the name of either your onboard sound or add-on sound card]?

Can't hurt to run the antivirus/antispyware tools you have. Since you use AIM, make sure to set up your antivirus software to protect you while using AIM [most recent antivirus programs from the major vendors have an IM component, but it often needs to be set up manually for each IM account you use] . . . if you are facing a reinfection, it's possible that it's sneaking in through Instant Messaging.

When you set up your firewall, did you leave any ports open for peer-to-peer file-sharing?
. . . Gary

[Explicit]

I don't hear anything with playing sounds. I didn't set any clicks for AIM. The clicks come from within the PC. Not from the speakers.

[GaryRouth]

Try booting into Safe Mode (tap the F8 key while the computer is starting), and from Start/Settings/Control Panel/System/DeviceManager - go to the section for sound devices and click the plus (+) sign to show the list of sound devices. Click on each one that you see there, one at a time, to select it (it will show highlighted when selected) and then click on the "Remove" button. If you don't see any sound devices, don't worry. Then exit from the Device Manager screens & you should be back in Control Panel. Go to "Add/Remove Programs" and remove any sound drivers or sound software you see listed there. If you don't see any, don't worry. Then reinstall your sound drivers on reboot.

After reinstalling your sound drivers (if they are the right ones, and no other problems with the PC prevent them from working), you should see the speaker or mixer icon in your system tray on the lower right-hand side of your screen.

Also, try to identify for us exactly when you hear the clicking sound on AIM, and whether it's somewhat continuous (like a little swarm of clicks) or usually a single click, or perhaps double-click, and that's all. Hard drive access can cause a clicking sound - on older disks especially, it can be a sign that the drive is failing. You might want to download & run the disk diagnostics for your drive (available as a free download from the website of the manufacturer of your hard drive - Western Digital, IBM, Seagate, Maxtor, etc). Try to determine, too, if you can - if the clicks ONLY happen with AIM, and NEVER with any other program/game.

I'm still curious to hear how you set up the firewall.
. . . Gary

[Explicit]

Reinstall your sound drivers? Which program is that?

[GaryRouth]

A "driver" in the PC world is a name for the software program that helps a hardware device work. Your operating system, and your other installed software (word-processors, games, music players, etc.) use standardized procedures to send requests to the hardware devices. If you are using a music player, that program requests a sound, that request is passed to the Operating System, then to the "driver" for the sound device in your computer. Some computers have their sound processing chip soldered right onto the motherboard ("onboard sound"). Some have an add-on card in a slot (usually PCI, soon PCI-X) and there are also USB sound devices.

You ran a Recovery Disk set at one time on one of your computers that was having trouble. That Recovery Disk should have restored your original setup, and you should have had sound again. However, if you've changed the sound device since you bought the computer, then the Recovery Disk will likely have the wrong driver (it will be for the original sound device, not your new one). If this is the case, since you added the new card, you should have a "driver disk" that came with it. That CD will have an option in a menu something like "Install Drivers". After you boot into Safe Mode and remove the sound devices and drivers (as explained in the previous reply), then run your driver CD, and see if you now have sound.

If you haven't changed your sound card, and you've got good backups: it'd be easiest to run your Recovery Disk set again. Scan your backups for virus/spyware before restoring them.

Best of luck
. . . Gary

[Explicit]

I think during the boot, it deleted "sndvol32.exe" maybe that's why no sound is coming out. Maybe if I redownload it it'll work. I went to this other Sndrec32 and it says something about no Sound Device, even though I know I do since it worked fine till the reboot.

[GaryRouth]

Hi again

I don't think that it's likely that your Recovery Disk wouldn't include a copy of the Windows 98 Volume Control (which is what SndVol32.exe is). SndRec32 is Windows 98's "Sound Recorder". Both of these are part of the "Multimedia" options when installing Windows. If your computer came with working sound and Windows 98 installed, then these two were probably present. You can try the Recovery Disk again, if you haven't changed many parts in your computer, and have recent (and clean) backups. The Recovery Disk should have the drivers right there on the CD.

The fact that Sound Recorder can't find a sound device indicates that the correct drivers for your sound device aren't installed. So you currently have either the wrong drivers installed, or none at all. Give it another try; don't forget the malware precautions (update your antivirus & visit Windows Update immediately after).
. . . Gary

[Explicit]

I found my Dell Resource CD. It doesn't let me install anything with it. It shows all these folders and everything. And I can't find sndvol32 on it.

[glc]

Dell resource CD's are set up to autorun into a menu. You need to use the menus to install the sound card drivers. You need to know which exact card you have, because the CD covers all factory options.

Are there any flagged devices in device manager, like maybe a PCI multimedia controller? That would be your sound card, and you need to install the driver.

[GaryRouth]

. . . to help you identify your sound device, you can try several things (the easiest of which is to find your Dell manuals and specs that arrived with the computer - there will be a list of the parts in your computer).

Try
1) Finding your Dell literature
2) Finding your Dell customer ID or system ID (look for a sticker on your computer case) - then visit Dell.com and go to the support pages.
3) Check in your Start/Program menus for a Dell folder: it may contain your system information, and other helpful links (such as your manual).
4) Look in the back of your computer: if there's only one row of pink, green, and blue sound connectors up close to where you plug in your keyboard & mouse, then you likely have onboard sound. If there are two rows of these connectors [especially if one is farther down (on a "tower" case)], then you likely have an add-on sound card. Open the case (shut down, power-off, and unplug first!) and look at the markings on the chips - whether onboard or on the add-on card.
5) Try running a hardware discovery program like BelArc Advisor http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/fil...C8078%2C00.asp
6) call Dell

My first guess is that you likely have onboard sound.
. . . Gary

[Explicit]

I've got it, I downloaded the sound device on the Resource CD and now works.

[glc]

NOW - are there any other flagged devices in Device Manager, before you complain about something else not working? Reinstalling Windows from the Dell restore CD does not reinstall any drivers other than for devices that have native Windows support - that's what the resource CD is for!