No sound

I'm a complete computer noob so bear with me.

Yeah so I haven't had any sound for quite a few days. WMP, youtube, just no sound at all. When I play a music file a sound appears to be playing but I can't hear anything. I've turned the volume to maximum and there is no mute on any of the categories in Volume settings.

I think the problem is with the Drivers. I uninstalled the driver "PC1 Serial Port" but now I can't reinstall it. I don't have the disk for it and I'm not sure what to do. When I open up device manager there's a big yellow question mark next to it.

Any help?

 

A make and model # would help if your PC is not a home built.
Or even better:
Use Everest to get a report of your system’s hardware, OS, and drivers. Upload the report as an attachment
Everest: http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=4181
When Everest is done scanning, click "Report" at the top of the Everest window, click next to get to "Report Profile", select "Hardware related pages", click next, select "Plain Text", click "Finish". Then when it is done processing, click "Save To File". Save it where you want to. (I would use Desktop.)
Click "Go Advanced" in the MG reply box, scroll down a little way until you see "Manage Attachments", click it, browse to your file, click "Upload", and close the window. Then submit the post. You may have to also type something in the reply box, like, "Here's my report.", so that it will submit.

And check that Windows Audio Service is started.
Go to Control Panel>Administrative Tools>Services
Scroll down the list of services until you find the Windows Audio service.
Right click on it and choose Properties.
Make sure it is set to Automatic and Start is checked.

Also, if you could post a screen shot of any devices in Device Manager that have a yellow ? or ! next to them, that would help, too.
Taking Screenshots

 

Here's the report

Cheers again

 

First, highlight the PCI device that you uninstalled and then right click it and scan for hardware changes. See if that works, if not here is your Chipset and Audio drivers.
Both these drivers are from HP.
Install your chipset first.

Make sure to read the installation instructions.
Intel Chipset Support for Windows
ADI SoundMax AC97 Integrated Digital Audio Driver

 

I tried to download the chipset but once I got to installation it said "The contents of this file cannot be unpacked. The executable you are attempting to run has been corrupted. Please obtain another copy of the file, verify its integrity, or try again".

 

Bump. Any help? Please?

 

Have you tried re-downloading the file?
And have you extracted it into a new folder and then tried installing it?

Have you tried installing the Audio driver without the chipset driver?

 

I've tried. But it says the files are corrupt.

Here's a screenshot of my Device Manager:
http://i31.tinypic.com/6f13sm.jpg

 

Ok, I'm a little confused. I was thinking this when I posted awhile back. Your serial ports shouldn't have anything to do with your sound. I am not fully sure of whether WIndows would handle them or if the chipset driver would.

This is the Intel driver for the 800 series chipset:
[FONT=Arial,helvetica]INF Update Utility - Primarily for Intel® 800 Series Chipsets

Try installing that and rebooting to see if that solves the serial port problem.

Device Manager doesn't seem to show a problem with your audio. Work through the steps in this Read Me and see if you can resolve your problem.

I don't trust HP's search that well, anymore. It's possible it linked me with the wrong system. Everest says you have Realtek (Soundmax uses the Realtek chip) If your audio still isn't working after installing your chipset driver and going through those Read Me steps, try this driver:
http://www.majorgeeks.com/Realtek_AC97_Drivers_d4400.html

[/FONT]

 

Yes! The chipset has worked this time. The computer does find new hardware BUT I can't quite finish the installation.

There's 2 options
1. Install software automatically (recommended)
2. Install from a list or specific location (advanced)

Neither of those 2 options seem to work for me especially option 1. Option 2 could work but even when I put in the location of the file it doesn't work. Or I could choose the option of "Don't search. I will choose the driver to install." but in that case what driver would I have to choose?

Maybe its me being a noob :confused
Thanks again.

 

I just took a good long look at your Everest report. The Realtek driver I suggested probably will not work and isn't needed. It looks like your SoundMax drivers are installed and should be working. Make sure to look through the Read Me, I posted for XP sound problems.

I haven't dealt with this serial port problem before. The only suggestion I really have is to uninstall both and then scan for hardware changes or reboot after uninstalling them.