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  • #2146277

    Installed new RAM, . . . Now no sound !

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    by whdjr ·

    I am new at this, I learn something new every day. My son had installed new “ram” for me,BUT now I have no sound at all from my speakers.
    (only 2).
    I’ve tried everything I could think of, and then some. I don’t want to mess up my p.c.
    because I downloaded the wrong software.
    I have a Compaq presario SR1303WM (Windows XP). I am getting very frustrated.
    I spent 2 days trying to figure something out that will give me sound. When I turn the speakers on, I hear them turning on, But after that, . . . . Nothing !
    As mentioned above. . I am new at this !
    P.s. I am disabled. unable to lift the modem.
    Can Anyone help me ? (whdjr@atlanticbb.net)

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    Replies
    • #2462057

      Clarifications

      by whdjr ·

      In reply to Installed new RAM, . . . Now no sound !

      Clarifications

    • #2462047

      Correct?

      by grey hat geek ·

      In reply to Installed new RAM, . . . Now no sound !

      Did your son install the correct type of memory for your motherboard and computer? You can’t just buy any kind of RAM and throw it in there.

      • #2462035

        RE: RAM, but no sound.

        by whdjr ·

        In reply to Correct?

        He and I went to circuit City and asked a pc
        tech. I told him I only had 256 mb.DDR running in my pc. The original RAM that came
        with the system.

        He then sold me two (2) 512mb. DDR.
        to speed up my pc.
        Do you need any more info ?

        By the way, Thanks for responding !

    • #2462039

      Check the Device Manager

      by nepenthe0 ·

      In reply to Installed new RAM, . . . Now no sound !

      The Device Manager should flag a bad [i]driver[/i] or misbehaving hardware. I doubt you have a hardware problem.

      To view the Device Manager in XP, click

      Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Computer Management > Device Manager

      Look for [i]Sound, Video Game Controllers[/i]

      If this has been flagged, the likely culprit is the wrong driver. You can open a wizard by right-clicking the flagged device and selecting [i]Properties[/i]. Windows will search for an [i]updated[/i] driver. If this doesn’t work, you can [i]undo[/i] the change.

      Be sure your speaker cable is connected to the correct port on the computer. It is easy to misconnect.

      Also, check out yesterday’s TR posting on the [i]Discussions[/i] forum:

      http://techrepublic.com.com/5208-6230-0.html?forumID=102&threadID=263180&start=0

      Rick/Portland, OR

    • #2462029

      My first suspicions…

      by captbilly1eye ·

      In reply to Installed new RAM, . . . Now no sound !

      Either the speakers are not connected properly at the back of your case.
      OR
      The sound is muted or turned down. – Go to Start-Settings-Control Panel-Sounds and Audio Devices. Click on the Volume tab and make sure Mute is not selected. Then click the first Advanced button and check the slider settings and mute boxes. And, of course, check the physical volume control on the speakers.
      OR
      While your son was adding the RAM, he inadvertently disconnected a wire that was connected to the system’s sound card or possibly the power cord going to it. Reopen the case and make sure the sound card is connected and seated properly. – be sure the computer is disconnected from all power sources and you are grounded before touching anything inside! (the being ‘grounded’ part is to protect delicate circuits from static shocks)

      Good luck.

      • #2461985

        RE: RAM, but no sound.

        by whdjr ·

        In reply to My first suspicions…

        Ok, I am responding to both replies @ 1 time:
        First One:
        I am not a pc. tech. I’ve looked into the device manager. And I came up with this message: Lead MCMP/mjpeg Code(VFW).
        Second One: As much as I would love to get into the modem, I would realy love to,trust me !
        But it’s advising me to “roll back” the driver in Realtek AC’97 Audio for VIA (R)
        Audio Controller.
        Suggestions ?

        • #2461914

          Well, friend….

          by captbilly1eye ·

          In reply to RE: RAM, but no sound.

          Is there a yellow triangle with an exclamation point inside it next to the audio device in Device Manager? If not, I cannot recommend making any changes. If there is, then yes, you can roll back the drivers. However, I find this HIGHLY unlikely to be related to your issue unless your son also updated sound drivers when he was adding physical RAM.

          Have you asked him exactly what changes were made and have you shared with him that the sound no longer works?
          Adding RAM does not change system settings or device driver installations. But it may be that if you have a separate audio card, there may be a conflict with the on-board sound (Realtek) that is part of your motherboard. It is possible that changes were made accidentally in the BIOS and on-board sound needs to be disabled.

          If physical RAM was added, and you have an added sound card rather than just on-board audio, I would check sound card connections since it is very easy for connections to be disconnected or loosened when making changes inside the computer’s case.

          If you are unsure of your systems configuration, consult the documentation that came with it or use the Compaq\HP support site: http://tinyurl.com/4jtvab

          If your son cannot help or if you do not feel comfortable with tinkering around inside your computer’s case, I strongly suggest you get a trained professional involved by taking it to a reputable service center.

          Oh…. and please do not send peer mail when you need help with an issue. Respond to the thread and someone will reply back as soon as possible. Since we all do this for free, many get annoyed getting email from people they don’t know and will simply not respond at all. When a post is added to a thread, all those that have previously responded get an alert email from TechRepublic.

          Good luck with correcting your sound issue.

          Please let us know if you resolve your issue and if so, what the final solution was.

          .
          It is greatly appreciated if you tag all useful responses as ‘Helpful’ by opening those posts and clicking the ‘Mark Helpful’ button at the bottom. That way, people with a similar situation in the future will be able to quickly see what ultimately helped. Thanks.

        • #2461865

          Query for the Captain –

          by nepenthe0 ·

          In reply to Well, friend….

          How do you squash the URL the way you do?

          Please share the trick with those of us who simply bootstrap our primitive knowledge the old fashioned, painful way –> trial and error…

          Ah – got it:

          http://tinyurl.com/

          This will be [b]very[/b] useful.

          Rick/Portland, OR

        • #2461842

          Enjoy the new found knowledge…

          by captbilly1eye ·

          In reply to Query for the Captain –

          and use it for good rather than evil. 🙂

          yea, it comes in specially handy when the address is a really long one.

          Lemme know if there is anything else I can help with… like inserting graphics, emoticons, animated avatars, unusual characters (♪♫), etc.

          Glad to have ya aboard.

        • #2461834

          ♪♫ ♪♫ ♪♫

          by rob miners ·

          In reply to Enjoy the new found knowledge…

          Now that is cool Capt’n Billy. You may have to clue us up on a few of these little tricks that are in your swag. ♪♫

        • #2459717

          If I didn’t know better….

          by captbilly1eye ·

          In reply to ♪♫ ♪♫ ♪♫

          …I’d think you were bein’ sarcastic.

          An Ol’ Salt like you needs direction? I’m shocked. 🙂

          The musical notes are courtesy of Character Map (Start-Programs-Accessories-System Tools-Character Map.) It adds the capability of using tons of additional characters above the normal QWERTY keyboard ones.

          BTW… I will make animated AVs to order for free upon request.

        • #2564151

          Made a new flag for ya, TrueBlue …

          by captbilly1eye ·

          In reply to ♪♫ ♪♫ ♪♫

          here ya go:

          or

          hope ya like ’em.

        • #2564143

          Nice!

          by nepenthe0 ·

          In reply to ♪♫ ♪♫ ♪♫

          True Blue, I’m envious, but you deserve it.

          [b]Really[/b] classy.

          Rick/Portland, OR

        • #2564111

          and here’s one for you, nepenthe0 :-)

          by captbilly1eye ·

          In reply to ♪♫ ♪♫ ♪♫

          hope ya like it.

          You can add it by editing your Profile.

        • #2564088

          Wow Capt’n Billy I like them both ;)

          by rob miners ·

          In reply to ♪♫ ♪♫ ♪♫

          I will be using the first one soon. You guessed right, I wasn’t being sarcastic at all, I had to right click on the page and select ‘View source’ to find your code. Animating is not my forte. 🙂

          Your flag looks a lot smoother than the one that I am using. Thank you very much for that pleasent surprise. I found out how to turn text upside down but it wont work in the Name tag on TR. 😉

        • #2563971

          How to edit or add a custom avatar:

          by captbilly1eye ·

          In reply to ♪♫ ♪♫ ♪♫

          In case you need ’em, here are the steps:

          1. Right click the graphic and select ‘Save Picture as’.
          2. Save it to your Desktop as a GIF.
          3. Go to Photobucket and create yourself an on-line album http://photobucket.com/ (there are other choices out there but this is the most popular, easy to use and free).
          4. Upload the graphic to Photobucket.
          5. Copy the Direct Link URL address of the graphic.
          6. Go to your TechRepublic Workspace page.
          7. Click on the Profile tab (not the ‘edit profile’ link).
          8. Click the Edit Profile button.
          9. In the Photo section, paste the URL address of the graphic.
          10. Click the Update My Profile button at the bottom.

          Whew! Done.

        • #2563967

          whdjr, What’s the word?

          by captbilly1eye ·

          In reply to RE: RAM, but no sound.

          Were you able to resolve your issue?

          If so, what was the ultimate solution?

    • #2461975

      I agree with the [i]pirate’s[/i] response –

      by nepenthe0 ·

      In reply to Installed new RAM, . . . Now no sound !

      The most likely explanation is that the speaker cable is plugged into the wrong port. I know you’re irritated with your son, but perhaps you can ask him to recheck the connection, and switch the cable to the correct slot for speakers.

      If the Device Manager indicates that the Sound controller is working properly, and no trouble code is flagged, I would not mess with the driver update wizard.

      Once you get the speakers working, however, you may be compelled to apologize to your son, because your computer will indeed perform much better with the additional RAM…

      Rick/Portland, OR

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