No sound

OK I am hoping some one can help me, I am having problems getting any sound from my PC.

My spec-

-ASUS A8N-SLI nForce4- no extra sound card
-2GB RAM
-Athlon 64 X2 4800+
-nVidia GeForcce7800GTX 256 - 2 cards
-XP home

What I have tried-

-have check the speakers on another system, and they are fine
-windows volume control is fine, not muted
-the sound device is set as default and enabled
-device driver is up to date and signed
-no hardware conflicts
-sound device is compatible with windows
-sound device is enabled in BIOS
-tried turning 'plug and play' on, but no diff

Can anyone suggest anything? This thing is driving me nuts!!

For claitry: you mean no sound at all, from any source at all, not just SL.

This is almost certainly either a blown output amplifier on the onbard sound chip or a defective sound jack. As it would be at least three times as expensive to replace the either of these as it would to get a soundcard, sounds like it is time to get a soundcard.

The amp could have blown from an accidental shorting of the output terminals - which can happen very rarely on plug insertion - or just because sometimes comonents fail. Most sockets are rated for 1000+ insertions, but like any component can physically fail before that. That the software seems to think everything is happy is the reason I think the fault is on the analog side. The final thing you might check is that sometimes the output jack is not soldered onto the mobo but is connected via socketed wires that attach to pins on the board. If the jack has wires on the back, check that the connectors are seated - but make real sure you are putting it on the right pin - otherwise you could kill your whole mobo.

Good luck.

Thnx Malcahi, thats kinda what I expected. Was hoping there might have been something obvious that I was missing It's getting late so I will leave it until tomorrow before diving into my case with a hatchet The PC is brand new, but I think getting a new sound card is preferable to the customer care nightmare I would have to sufffer to get the motherboard replaced/fixed.

Thnx again

OK the jack is soldered onto the motherboard, so I can't check for loose connections Looks like I will have to try a sound card and hope it's not the jack that's to blame. Any advice on which sound card?

Hi Hiro

I suggest the Audigy2 ZS gamer .... it's a good price point, between the regular Audigy and the Platinum. And.. as a bonus you'll gain a little bit more power from your proc, as the Audigy will handle the sound encoding itself.

^_^

And, check individual temps on those 7800's. I use them in SLI also and SL was only using one, until I tweaked the settings... I don't recall what woke the second one up, but don't be afraid to jack up the AA and AF... Besides local lighting, that's what those two workhorses are great at... I run 1200x1600 res on a 20" LCD, and can not see ANY jaggies

~M~

Tnnx Margaux

So how do I check the 7800 temps? Just checked the cpu and motherboard temps and they're both at 39c

go to... control panel - display - settings - advanced ....

that'll bring up your card config... look for the temperature display in the choices to the left... If card 1 is about 10 degrees hotter than card 2... ^_^

Cool thnx, 1 degree difference

OK it seems that the 'gamer' isonly available in the US...pfffft! So do you guys reckon the basic Audigy2 ZS is the one to go for?

ALSO...

I have checked out the motherboard (still a geek in training), and there are 3 PCI slots below the bottom 7800. It looks like the sound card would have to go in the top slot, as thats the only one with a free space for the jacks. Is it bad news to have the sound card up tight against the 7800 like that?

AND...

I am a little worried when I compare the PCI slots on my board to the pics of the sound card. The sound card has 3 'parts' to the connection, and the PCI slot only has 2 'parts' to the slot. Does that make sense? Lacking terminology here. Can anyone explain why I am worrying needlessly?

Thnx in advance for any help you guys can give me

*bump* any help appreciated

I still use my Audigy1 sound card, I never found an need to upgrade, I don't have the need for the extra channels, but that is just me. I have found that soundblaster makes great sound card, I have yet to be unhappy with any of them.

You say you have 3 empty slot, but you can only use the top one? I am a little confused on that. Do you just have the covers that can be removed in the other ones, or is there something using the slot? Give cards room to breath is always a good thing, but it should not really hurt if you have good air flow in your case.

PCI is PCI, unless it is PCIe. I think I understand what you are saying, and the card should just slide into the slot. Not all the pins are used, so sometimes they juat aren't put in.

Yes the bottom 2 'case slots' are taken. I could move them but the leads to those being used are very short and could pull them too taut.

They are PCI and not PCIe (I have one of them elsewhere on the board). As far as it fitting, hmmm hard to explain. The slot is divided into 2 'parts', where as looking at the pic of the card, it has 3 'prongs'

Now stop laughing at my terminology at the back!

The pins have a short, long, short pattern, but your case has a long, short pattern? This is very normal. They will work together. Look at this image, this I hope will explain it better to you. http://www.servercase.com/32bit-PCI-1.gif

Great! Thnx Dnate, was looking everywhere for something like that Time to go order