Common microphone problem

It started yesterday. My mic just decided to stop. The only thing I did to my computer before this problem occured is that I downloaded two video game demos (call of duty 2 and F.E.A.R.). The mic worked fine before that. I've searched the forums and I can see that this is a common problem where the mic volume stays really low. I've checked the volume levels, made sure microphone boost was checked, and looked at the suggested solutions on practically every thread to no avail (it seems no one else has been helped by this as well). I'm thinking maybe an onboard device may be broken or ruined in some way. But its just a guess. I would greatly appreciate any help I can get. Thanks.

My specs are as follows:

windows xp pro
asus a8n-vm csm mobo
athalon 3200
1 gig corsair DDR RAM
80 GB western digital HD
evga 6800 GS video card

 

update your audio drivers first, if that doesn't fix the problem try a different microphone and you should be able to tell if it is a mic problem or a computer hardware problem.

 

I updated the drivers and that didn't help. I tried the mic out on another computer to find that it worked fine. But then when I plugged it back into my comp, IT WORKED AGAIN. So now I can record fine. I absolutely have no idea how it was fixed. I still have my suspicions that the onboard may be coming and going. But thanks for your help.