Sound Card Problem...

Got an eMachines (1st problem - I know...) on board audio does not work and does not even show up in Control Panel -> Sounds.....

OK, installed a PCI Sound Blaster...PnP ran....put in a audio CD and Win Media Player started to play the CD but nothing thru the speakers?????

Next, rebooted and got the latest drivers for the Sound Blaster and installed them and rebooted....

Now, put an audio CD in and Win Media says that there is an error in that the the Sond Device is not installed or is in use by another application....
What the ?????

Any ideas or can you point to me to an app or utility that can diagnose what the hell is going on???

I'll even delete all the codes and rebuild the audio stuff if I can find a guide on how to do it.

Thanks in advance for any help!!!!!!

 

Troubleshooting Sound Problems Checklist:

1. Is the sound cable attached between the drive and the analog audio connector on the sound card?

2. Are the speakers turned on?

3. Is the speaker volume turned down?

4. Are the speakers plugged into the line out or speaker port of the sound card?

5. Is the transformer for the speakers plugged into plugged into an electrical outlet on one end and the speakers on the other?

6. Is the volume control for your OS turned down?

Does the sound card have a diagnose file on the install disk?

7. Does Device Manager report a problem with the card? Is another device using the same I/O address or IRQ number?

8. Using Device Manager, uninstall the sound card and then reinstall it using Add New Hardware in the Control Panel.

9. To check for bad connections, turn off the computer and then remove and reinstall the sound card.

10. Replace the sound card with one you know is good.

 

For onboard audio;
"... on board audio does not work and does not even show up in Control Panel"

Have the mobo chipset drivers for the audio been installed, and is the onboard audio enabled in the bios?

For either onboard or PCI/PnP;
Have you checked the mixer properties to make sure that volume levels for the various inputs are up and not muted? (R-click the sound device (Volume) icon in the task bar.)

If there is no icon in the Task Bar it can be added through Control Panel, (and depending on your O/S*) Sound or Sounds and Audio devices, and place a check mark in the "Show volume control in the task bar" box. The proper drivers have to be loaded first for this.

tjet has covered the rest.

*You should include your system specs as asked in the Announcement post at the top of this forum; Before You Post Asking For Help, Please Read This