Realtek HD Audio and Sound Manager Install

Discussion in 'Software' started by twistedsymphony, Jun 1, 2008.

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  1. twistedsymphony

    twistedsymphony Private E-2

    I've read every other thread in this forum on Realtek audio drivers, googled searched dozens of times and tried everything I can think of...

    I'm building a new PC for a relative, I've built maybe 6 PCs in the last year for friends/relatives... every last one of them gave me headaches with the Realtek audio drivers. This machine I've been banging my head on the drivers for the last week or so.

    The motherboard is a Gigabyte X48T-DQ6 and I'm running Windows XP Professional x64 Edition

    I've tried the drivers from the included motherboard disc, the drivers from realtek's website and the drivers from gigabytes website (all completely different versions of the same drivers mind you) and none of them work properly. I've uninstalled and reinstalled the MS's UAA HD Audio driver multiple times. It seems to me that X64 uses a different UAA HD Audio driver because the KB#### is different than the one that keeps getting mentioned here, and if I attempt to install the "KB888111" driver it says that it's incompatible...

    Since I've installed Realtek drivers on several other machines I know that once it's running properly I should have the Realtek sound manager in my system tray... I've got to the point several times were everything "seemed" to be installed properly but I couldn't get any sound despite the fact that it recognized a device called "Realtek Rear Audio Output".

    FWIW one of the other machines I ended up having to re-install windows and immediately disable all sound devices, install the drivers, then re-enable the devices before things would work properly.

    I'm tearing my hair out over this... I'd like to avoid re-installing windows because doing so would mean I have to re-install a disc drive for RAID drivers as well but I'd like to avoid it if I have to.

    any help would be much appreciated.
     
  2. musksnipe

    musksnipe Guest

    I don't know a lot about 64 bit OS's, but the Realtek HD Audio driver is supposed to be compatible for XP 32 and 64 bit.
    It also contains the MS UAA (at least the .zip download from Realtek does), so it should also be compatible.

    If you read the Realtek threads you probably have seen and done these things:
    Check: Speakers connected?
    Check: Master Volume control. (not muted)
    Check that Windows Audio Service is started.
    Check: Device Manager for bad drivers.
    Check: BIOS to insure on-board sound is enabled.
    Updating through Hardware Wizard
    Right click either multimedia device in Device Manager. Choose Update driver,
    Choose "No, not this time" on the first window of the Hardware Wizard, click Next.
    Choose "Install from a list or specific location", click Next.
    Choose "Don't search, I will choose the driver to install", click Next.
    Click "Have disc".
    Then browse to the proper driver. Select the .inf file.

    KB835221 Hotfix
    1. Remove "Audio device on High Definition Audio Bus"
    2. Download from Microsoft the KB835221 hotfix and install it:
    KB835221 Hotfix: http://couponmeister.com/blog/HD_Audio/KB835221.exe
    3. Restart the system, and XP will automatically detect the devices
    4. After this you should be able to install Realtek drivers.
     
  3. twistedsymphony

    twistedsymphony Private E-2

    I just attempted to post a reply (twice) and it doesn't seem to want to post... i'm wondering it if it some site filter?
     
  4. musksnipe

    musksnipe Guest

    Yes, there's a spam filter. Possibly your post got caught in that?
     
  5. twistedsymphony

    twistedsymphony Private E-2

    lets see if it will let me post the most important part:
    running the hardware auto detect will not find the device, if I manually select the device the WDM folder in the install zip contains about 2 dozen inf files of which I have no idea which one to pick (since the realtek installer is supposed to do this for me) and even if I do pick one I'll get a dozen choices of devices all named exactly the same thing "Realtek HD Audio Device" picking one at random it will finish the install but tell me that my device doesn't work and I get a new device in my device manager with an exclamation next to it.

    Attempting to install that hotfix file I get a message that says "Setup could not find the update.inf file needed to update your system"

    I've had success installing the MS UAA HD Audio bus through an installer I got from Gigabyte's website called "motherboard_driver_audio_microsoft_bus.exe" which includes a file called "ASetup.exe" and 26 different folders all containing KB825221.exe.. uninstalling the device from device manager and then running asetup.exe seems to install the MS HD audio bus properly, running any instances of that file directly yields the same error as the version of the file you linked.
     
  6. musksnipe

    musksnipe Guest

  7. twistedsymphony

    twistedsymphony Private E-2

    When I install the driver there are no unknown devices, nor are any of the Realtek devices listed anywhere in the device manager. (I actually tried to explain this earlier but it was part of the post the forum wouldn't accept)

    Running the windows patch from that link (which I think I found and attempted before posting here, not sure since there are so many things I've tried at this point) I get a message that says "Setup has detected that the Service Pack version of this system is newer than the update you are applying. There is no need to install this update" <_<
     
  8. musksnipe

    musksnipe Guest

    To be honest, if you have read and tried all or most of the Realtek or UAA threads and fixes here, then you read and tried about everything I know. I don't know where to start with this one.
    The only cure for that would be to uninstall your SP'3 back to at least SP2, I believe. Then if the patch doesn't work, you have the headache of re-updating. (I'm not really suggesting this but it is an idea)

    Normally, uninstalling your Realtek audio drivers, the KB888111 or SP3 equivalent, installing your motherboard chipset, then the MS UAA, and finally the HD driver should do the trick.

    Also, have you made sure windows Audio service is running and sound enabled in BIOS?
     
  9. twistedsymphony

    twistedsymphony Private E-2

    well.. here are my theories
    Theory 1. The HD audio codec is installed properly and somehow the Realtek codec driver is not installing the correct version of xp x64. I have this theory because if I look at the list of running processes soundman.exe runs but it's running 32 bit mode... I would think that if it was REALLY supported it would run in 64 bit mode (if you've never used x64 it marks which processes are running in 32 and which are in 64)... despite the fact that it's running it's not visible anywhere.

    Theory 2. The HD audio codec is corrupt and cannot be fixed short of a complete windows reinstall. :cry

    I'd really like to avoid re-installing because then I'd have to re-install a floppy drive for the RAID drivers and deal with all the windows activation garbage
     
  10. musksnipe

    musksnipe Guest

    I looked through a .zip of the Realtek HD and don't see a 64 bit soundman.exe in it. Not sure, if it is the same for both.
    The codec could be corrupted but a uninstall of it and reinstall should fix it, without a reformat of your OS
     
  11. twistedsymphony

    twistedsymphony Private E-2

    I never installed an SP3, I did install a number of other updates and fixes but I did so after I started having problems. I tackled all of my drivers from the provided discs before doing a single windows update....

    the install disc comes with SP2 pre-installed so there really isn't anything I can roll back to...

    I dumped all of the new drivers I've accumulated to a jump drive and I've started the re-install process... once the system is booted I'll start with the MS HD audio drivers and the Realtek codec drivers... I'll post back with the results.
     
  12. musksnipe

    musksnipe Guest

    Make sure to install your chipset driver before all others
     
  13. twistedsymphony

    twistedsymphony Private E-2

    reinstalled windows...
    loaded chipset drivers -reset
    loaded MS HD Audio drivers -reset
    loaded Realtek HD Audio drivers -reset

    still nothing :cry

    if I ever meet the bastards who designed these drivers I owe them a punch in the face.
     
  14. twistedsymphony

    twistedsymphony Private E-2

    i sent an email to gigabyte support... but I'm not holding my breath for a worthwhile response...

    If anyone else has any ideas... I don't know WTF I'm going to do

    the worst part is, I'm building this computer for my uncle... he's a musician and this will be his audio editing machine :***:***:***
     
  15. musksnipe

    musksnipe Guest

    Give them a shot for me, too LOL
     
  16. twistedsymphony

    twistedsymphony Private E-2

    doing a little more research I think I discovered what the problem is though I'm not sure how or if i can overcome it...

    apparently in order for the Realtek drivers to function properly the MS UAA bus driver needs to be patched... this is done by the various hotfixes and is sometimes included in the driver installation package itself.

    these patches DO exist for the XP x64 version of windows... however they are incompatible with SP2.

    I found two instances of people with similar configurations to myself and it was noted that the UAA driver needed to be patched prior to installing SP2 or it will never function properly.. MS has yet to release a new patch for post SP2 UAA drivers

    ... now my problem... my copy XP x64 comes with SP2 built in...:cry
     
  17. musksnipe

    musksnipe Guest

    Can you uninstall SP2 from the Add/Remove, patch the UAA, and then download SP2 from Windows Updates?
     
  18. twistedsymphony

    twistedsymphony Private E-2

    no, unfortunately when windows installs with an SP incorporated it doesn't show up as a unique item to roll back to...

    .... If I don't get this stupid thing working by tomorrow I'm just going to dig an SB live card out of my parts box and forget that the onboard audio even exists
     
  19. musksnipe

    musksnipe Guest

    I found out some facts about SP3. It does not support HD. This is a fix I found which actually is the whole fix of one I offered earlier but seems to be going around the 'net incomplete.

    UAA HD AUDIO DEVICE SUPPORT IN WINDOWS XP SP3
    This is another MS nasty for all the deployment folks pushing XP SP3 to computers with UAA HD Audio devices. Yes SP3 will support the devices and the drivers are included however,, the patch IS NOT included! The update to KB835221, KB888111 doesn't link to the download but instructs you to call MS Support to get the patch which doesn't work on SP3.

    This patch is required before any of the HD device drivers are installed
    1. On your PC change the CSDVersion registry key to XP SP2:
    HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Windows\CSDVersion value=200
    2. Restart your PC
    3. Install KB888111xpsp2.exe http://couponmeister.com/blog/HD_Audio/kb888111xpsp2.exe
    4. Change the CSDVersion key back to XP SP3 again:
    HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Windows\CSDVersion value=300
    5. Restart your PC, finalize configuration of your PC, sysprep and capture.
    (Not exactly sure what you must do here)
     
  20. twistedsymphony

    twistedsymphony Private E-2

    Unfortunately I've already deliver the PC with a separate PCI based card :(

    FWIW the XP x64 disc came pre-loaded with SP2 not SP3 (AFAIK SP3 has never been released for XP x64) and I did try running KB888111xpsp2.exe at one point to no avail.
    That exact file was actually included on the motherboard disc but would not run as it claimed it was not 64 bit compatible.

    I've built dozens of PCs for friends and family and suffice to say this one will be my last, I've never run into a problem I couldn't at least fully diagnose until this one... Gigabyte just told me to install the latest drivers on their site (after I told them I already did) and Realtek gave me some RtHDDump.exe file to run that would help them diagnose the problem but it simply gave me an error message that said it couldn't find the audio codecs (even though they were installed, and I reinstalled and tried again with no luck).

    I will never buy another Realtek product as long as I live... this is total BS...
     
  21. wizzo49

    wizzo49 Private E-2

    Sounds like you need to go into your Sounds and Audio Devices in your control panel, then your hardware and select your Realtek VIA AC97' Enhanced Audio Controller and select Properties, Driver and then Updater Driver. Then select the box to select from a list (Advanced), Next, Don't Search, I will choose the driver to install, then click on Next a box appears saying that The software you are trying to install doesn't pass the Windows Logo. Well, select to Install anyway and put your disk in and let it finish and restart the computer and see if it works from there. That is what I did, then it worked fine which was a miracle after putting up with this for over 2 months. I just didn't listen to the Microsoft and went on with it. Good Luck!
     
  22. twistedsymphony

    twistedsymphony Private E-2

    I'll stop you right there...
    the problem with everything in this install is the fact that THE DEVICES WERE NEVER LISTED IN THE DEVICE MANAGER

    there is no Realtek VIA AC97 option availble in the device manager... nor was there any "unknown devices"

    I appreciate you trying to help but this fact is made abundantly clear on multiple occasions.

    in the end I wound up installing an external sound device and disabled the Realtek audio in the bios (so the in the event it ever decided to "wake up" it wouldn't cause conflicts)
     
  23. hindart

    hindart Private E-2

    Hi

    I had been on receiving end due to this Realtec audio driver issue. Finally I believe I have a solution worth mentioning. I had earlier installed this on XP with built in SP2 and I just completed it ON XP with built in SP3.

    Here goes the sequence.
    Go to Add/remove software and remove anything you have about realtek.- Restart
    Remove the all MS KBXXXX patches to avoid any confusion.-restart
    Goto device manager remove/ uninstall anything unidentified ( mainly the unknown audio)-restart
    Canceal the found new hardware wizard
    download the latest audio driver for your card/MB from realtek website
    WINXPSP2 buit in-
    Search/download/install KB888111XPSP2.exe- restart
    use the found new hardware wizard and point it to the driver you have already downloaded.
    you should be fine.
    WINXPSP3 builtin
    Search/download/install/KB835221.exe-restart
    use the found new hardware wizard and point it to the driver you have already downloaded.
    you should be fine.
     
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