no audio device

i accidentally deleted the sound on my computer. well i think i did. i was trying to make space on my computer because the little yellow box kept popping up. so i deleted real player since i only use itunes. after that i noticed that the sound icon on the bottom of the screen disappeared. my speakers are still connected but in the control panel it says i do not have an audio device. can you please help me get sound back on my computer again?
thanks

 

quick fix.try a windows update non critical it may find your drivers for sound.

 

my windows version is windows XP and it a DELL computer.
i don't really know the model number of my computer. i also tried to look for my sound drive to see if there was a yellow box next to it but i never got there. i went to My Computer, properties and the hardware tab, but i could not find the list of my audio devices.

 

Ok I had the same problem stemming from me uninstalling some software. I do not know exactly which software screwed me but I am pretty sure it was either symatic or HP related. From what I have been researching this can happen to anyone. It doesn't matter if you are using on board audio or a sound card. I was using on board audio.

Here is all the things I did first from all the extensive reading on other forums.
I made sure my on board sound in bios was enabled. I made sure windows audio service was running\start and was configured as automatic. I uninstalled and reinstalled my audio drivers (Realtek AC'97) every which way you can think of and I finally just stopped with the ones that came from the motherboard website. I ran a system file scan with the windows cd using the cmd console and entering "sfc /scannow". I made sure there were no audio IRQ sharing using msinfo. I even verified I had the sndvol32.exe file in my system32 folder. I downloaded and used "easy cleaner" in safe mode as well as normal windows mode to get rid of invalid registry entries. In the device manager I had no conflicts and everything seemed installed. Going to audio sound and audio devices in the control panel only showed "no audio device."

Ok here is what saved my life, I didn't create this so I do not deserve the credit.

1. n Device Manager, System Devices check that Plug and Play Software Device Enumerator is installed and running

If not , then you need to reinstall it:

1. Copy machine.inf from %windir%\inf to your desktop
2. Remove line ExcludeFromSelect=*
3. Use Add new hardware wizard using the Have Disk option
4. Select the machine.inf you saved on the desktop
5. Install Plug and Play Software Device
6. restart the computer
7. if sound does not come on try to uninstall\reinstall the audio drivers one last time and reboot

For some reason I had to do this twice but when I saw the speaker icon come up after reboot (well you know the feeling). Oh and it also doesn't hurt to remove it and reinstall it anyway.

Anyway, this is a first for me because usually I just read how to fix my problems and don't follow up to help other people. I figured since this was a pretty frustrating issue and it being Christmas I should help someone out. I hope someone finds this useful without having to restore or reload windows.
I might copy and paste this in other forums to the word out, so if you see this elsewhere forgive me because I am just lazy.

 

Hey, I have the same problem. I had this happen to me once before and I had to call someone to fix it. He installed soundMAX and it worked fine. Im running a pentium 4 XP home edition. modle number is DHS. THis problemed occured when I had a virus report on AVG and i clicked deny. But the problemed kept coming back up over and over and over and over, so i finally clicked delete over and over and over untill it deleted it. So it deleted my soundMAX and I have no idea how to get it back, i went to their site but im young so I don't know which one to install.

 

bump

 

Im trying the role back right know. Its a Dell.
Field Value
Motherboard Properties
Motherboard ID <DMI>
Motherboard Name Dell Dimension 4500S

Front Side Bus Properties
Bus Type Intel NetBurst
Bus Width 64-bit
Real Clock 100 MHz (QDR)
Effective Clock 400 MHz
Bandwidth 3200 MB/s

Memory Bus Properties
Bus Type DDR SDRAM
Bus Width 64-bit
Real Clock 133 MHz (DDR)
Effective Clock 267 MHz
Bandwidth 2133 MB/s

Chipset Bus Properties
Bus Type Intel Hub Interface
Bus Width 8-bit
Real Clock 67 MHz (QDR)
Effective Clock 267 MHz
Bandwidth 267 MB/s

Motherboard Manufacturer
Company Name Dell Computer Corporation
Product Information http://www.dell.com
BIOS Download http://support.dell.com

Here is the PCI/PnP Audio if that helps at all
Device Description Type
Intel 82801DB ICH4 - AC'97 Audio Controller [A-1] PCI
if that helps at all

 

1. Copy machine.inf from %windir%\inf to your desktop
2. Remove line ExcludeFromSelect=*
3. Use Add new hardware wizard using the Have Disk option
4. Select the machine.inf you saved on the desktop
5. Install Plug and Play Software Device
6. restart the computer
7. if sound does not come on try to uninstall\reinstall the audio drivers one last time and reboot

I do not know much about computers so how do you do step 1 and 2? What is machine.inf from %windir%\ mean?

 

Thanx man, I got it fix. Your the best!!!

 

Hi,

I have Window XP,after I reinstalled the system, I have no audio device.

Please help!!!

Thank you,
Hui

 

It would be best for you to post a new thread with your problem. Make sure you add your PC make, model and audio device. Include your OS again. too.
Welcome to MG's.:wave

 

I encountered the same problem last night whilst trying to get around GTA San Andreas and its silly sound issues when it rains. Tried everything I could think of.

1) Updated the drivers. This caused my PC to not recognise my CD drives for some reason. It also screwed up my P & P enumerator.
2) Checked services.msc/windows audio. Service was on - no cigar
3) Uninstalled my Soundblaster Live and removed the card. Enabled my onboard AC97 - drivers installed okay but still no device present. :cry
4) Went to bed.
5) Woke up and turned on the PC in the hope that I had just dreamed my problem. No chance.
6) Checked out this forum page and used the machine.inf solution to reinstall the P&P Enumerator.
7) Reloaded the drivers...
8) Restarted the PC...
9) Heard the grating chimes of Windows kicking in. It sounded like heaven. Thank you.