Missing Volume Control

[Lioness]

Computer problem, BTW.

I run Windows XP, Media Center edition, if that's relevant.

Recently, the little taskbar volume control icon went missing. At the same time, the keyboard shortcut for volume up/down and mute stopped working. When I go into Control Panel>Sound and whatever, it says there is no sound devices attached to the computer, however Windows Media Player and other movie programs are able to play sound through the computer's speakers.
When watching things on youtube, no sound comes out.

Is my computer selectively ignoring the speakers? Or is it something a tad more sinister? Has the sound thing spontaneously uninstalled itself?

Any help much appreciated.

[Pyrian]

So, the operating system lost track of the sound card, but it's still there and still responding to what are probably DirectX requests (e.g. Media Players) but not sounds that go through the operating system in any fashion (sound icon, internet explorer).

Might try re-installing the drivers for your sound card.

[Rawhide]

Might try re-installing the drivers for your sound card.

I too would suggest this course of action. Be sure to download the latest drivers from the manufacturer's website.

Brand name PC:
You will find the drivers on their website.

Other:
Do you know the brand of sound card in your computer? Or, if you have an onboard soundcard, do you know the brand of motherboard?

[FinalJustice]

In case you can`t find your Sound Card name, I think Everest does the trick in free trial. The licence is 30 dollars and it's a very useful software, so I recommend buying it anyway. You can also use Windows Device Manager (go Run and type devmgmt.msc), but there you will probably only see a generic name (no serial number, for instance). It can be useful for driver hunting nonetheless.

[IonDragon]

Right click on My Computer > Properties > Hardware Tab > Device Manager button > Are there any giant question marks, and is there anything under "Sound, Video, and Game controllers"?

[Lioness]

So, the operating system lost track of the sound card, but it's still there and still responding to what are probably DirectX requests (e.g. Media Players) but not sounds that go through the operating system in any fashion (sound icon, internet explorer).

Might try re-installing the drivers for your sound card.

Sounds like that's what happened. I'll try reinstalling.



Brand name PC:
You will find the driivers on their website.

Other:
Do you know the brand of sound card in your computer? Or, if you have an onboard soundcard, do you know the brand of motherboard?

It's an old brand of computer: Mercury. iCom Ascribe 1400A. It's not common or well-known, and a google didn't bring up any driver locations. Rather, it brought up a few people asking for drivers.
I'm pretty sure it's the soundcard that came with the computer, however the computer is second hand from my mum's boss. She wouldn't know.
I think it's possible that it might be a Realtek brand, because I recall reading something about a Realtek codec when I've been dealing with the speakers before.


Right click on My Computer > Properties > Hardware Tab > Device Manager button > Are there any giant question marks, and is there anything under "Sound, Video, and Game controllers"?

No question marks, and 7 options under that tab. They are: Audio Codecs, Legacy Audio Drivers, Legacy Video Capture Devices, Media Control Devices, Realtek AC'97 Audio, Unimodem Full-duplex Audio Device, and Video Codecs.

That seems too many, but I'm unsure.

[Ripped Shirt Kirk]

Try contacting their tech support here. (http://www.icomamerica.com/en/contactus.aspx)

[Rawhide]

It's an old brand of computer: Mercury. iCom Ascribe 1400A. It's not common or well-known, and a google didn't bring up any driver locations. Rather, it brought up a few people asking for drivers.
I'm pretty sure it's the soundcard that came with the computer, however the computer is second hand from my mum's boss. She wouldn't know.
I think it's possible that it might be a Realtek brand, because I recall reading something about a Realtek codec when I've been dealing with the speakers before.

Argh. I hate it when it is some obscure system you can't get drivers for any more. Makes fixing it over an internet forum much harder.


No question marks, and 7 options under that tab. They are: Audio Codecs, Legacy Audio Drivers, Legacy Video Capture Devices, Media Control Devices, Realtek AC'97 Audio, Unimodem Full-duplex Audio Device, and Video Codecs.

That seems too many, but I'm unsure.

That sounds about the right amount. Some sytems have more.

You can try the generic drivers for Realtek AC 97 here: http://www.realtek.com.tw/downloads/downloadsCheck.aspx?Langid=1&PNid=23&PFid=23&Level=4&Conn=3&DownTypeID=3&GetDown=false


P.S. This is not guaranteed to fix your problem, but is a very good first step.

[IonDragon]

You can try the generic drivers for Realtek AC 97 here: http://www.realtek.com.tw/downloads/downloadsCheck.aspx?Langid=1&PNid=23&PFid=23&Level=4&Conn=3&DownTypeID=3&GetDown=false


P.S. This is not guaranteed to fix your problem, but is a very good first step.

There is a very high chance (especially if this is the file that I am thinking of) that this will fix your problem.

[Lioness]

Apparently the "Object has been moved to here", however, every time I click on the 'here', it redirects to the same page.

I might just live with a half-broken speaker until I can get a decent laptop :S

[IonDragon]

I get the same thing, try it here (http://download.cnet.com/Realtek-AC-97-Driver-Windows-98-Me-2000-XP-2003/3000-2120_4-10238712.html) instead.

[Lioness]

I get the same thing, try it here (http://download.cnet.com/Realtek-AC-97-Driver-Windows-98-Me-2000-XP-2003/3000-2120_4-10238712.html) instead.


Epic. That's worked nicely. Thanks guys!