26-08-2005 05:04									#1
	My computer thinks it has no audio hardware: huh? Support Apolyton

OK, so I'm hearing music perfectly fine from WMP. I discovered the problem when I tried to start SW: Battlefront. It said "No sound hardware detected: do you want to continue?" I was like wtf but clicked yes, and lo and behold, the game produces no sound. This is bizarre. I go to control panel -> sounds and audio devices, go to the "audio" tab, and everything is grayed out completely. This wasn't the case yesterday - I know this because I was trying to mess with the sound recording device earlier (after which everything still worked, AFAIK). Everything on the Volume and Voice tabs are grayed out as well, and on the Sounds tab I cannot play the sound - the play button is grayed out. Everything in the Hardware tab says that it is working properly, however.

Someone please fix my computer

	26-08-2005 05:05									#2
	Increase the size of your Attachments

wut kinda sound card?

	26-08-2005 05:05									#3
	Increase Your PM Length

are your speakers plugged in? I guess so since you can hear music.

my speakers came unplugged when moving my computer around once.

as they always say: update your drivers. . in this case it would be your sound card drivers.

	26-08-2005 05:06									#4
	Support Apolyton or Terrorists Win

quote: Originally posted by Sava wut kinda sound card?

SoundMAX Digital Integrated Audio.

	26-08-2005 05:09									#5
	Put an end to popups!

try using system restore if you can't get it working again

	26-08-2005 05:20									#6
	Support Apolyton, buy Alpha Centauri

quote: Originally posted by Kuciwalker SoundMAX Digital Integrated Audio.

*dies*

Fix that first.

Anyway, Start -> run and type "dxdiag"

Maybe DirectSound can't find it.

	26-08-2005 05:26									#7
	Support Apolyton, buy Call to Power 2

I fixed it! I rebooted. I forgot that I had ctrl-alt-deleted a bunch of processes on boot this morning. Apparently one of them was sound.

quote: *dies* Fix that first.

It serves my purposes. I don't actually care about great quality sound

	26-08-2005 05:29									#8
	Support Apolyton buy from Amazon

quote: Originally posted by Kuciwalker I fixed it! I rebooted. I forgot that I had ctrl-alt-deleted a bunch of processes on boot this morning. Apparently one of them was sound. quote: *dies* Fix that first. It serves my purposes. I don't actually care about great quality sound

then you need to fix yourself first.

sound is important in games. or do you not use this computer for gaming?

	26-08-2005 05:31									#9
	Enter the AD-FREE zone

Graphics is more important. I'm buying a new graphics card first. Plus, really high quality sound isn't that important, not when I just have two speakers.

	26-08-2005 05:44									#10
	Inflate your Upload Space

quote: Originally posted by Kuciwalker Graphics is more important.

our children is learning - george w bush

get a job

get both

sb audidy 2 zs platinum isn't that expensive...

well worth it kuci

	26-08-2005 05:47									#11
	Support Apolyton, buy GURPS/ Alpha Centauri

: tongue :

	26-08-2005 05:48									#12
	Support Apolyton, buy Civilization 2

there's always identity theft

	26-08-2005 07:34									#13
	Support Apolyton, buy Civilization III: Complete

Sound is even less important than graphics in games, while graphics is less important than gameplay.

	26-08-2005 08:00									#14
	Support Apolyton buy from Amazon

A properly done sound system makes a good game better.

I hate playing Halo/Halo 2 on a non-Dolby Digital 5.1 system, and I hate playing games with surround sound disabled as well. EAX-HD is awesome also.

What I want is the new Creative SoundBlaster X-Fi.

That chip is a monster. The SoundBlaster Live chip can do 335 MIPS (million instructions per second), Audigy can do 424 MIPS, and the new X-Fi can do 10340 MIPS.

Live can do 16 audio channels at once (with effects), Audigy can do 64, and X-Fi can do 4096.

Live had 2 million transistors, Audigy had 4.6 million, and X-Fi has 51.1 million.

The X-Fi even comes with 64 MB of RAM onboard dedicated to audio samples/processing, and Battlefield 2 is a game that can already use it.

Plus the usual 24-bit/192 KHz support, and 109 dB SNR. To put that SNR in comparison, it's two orders of magnitude higher than the iPod (quite literally 100x better )

	26-08-2005 08:15									#15
	Increase Your PM Length

What probably happened is that your sound system (decoders) is run in software rather than hardware. Kill the process and no sound. I'm surprised that your system was stable after you killed the processes.

	26-08-2005 08:16									#16
	Support Apolyton, buy Civilization 2

I'm surprised I could still hear music after that.

	26-08-2005 08:17									#17
	Support Apolyton, buy Civilization: The Boardgame

quote: Originally posted by Asher A properly done sound system makes a good game better. I hate playing Halo/Halo 2 on a non-Dolby Digital 5.1 system, and I hate playing games with surround sound disabled as well. EAX-HD is awesome also.

OTOH, I don't want to spend the time or money to set up a surround sound system, and don't care that much about quality sound rather than decent sound.

	26-08-2005 08:20									#18
	Support Apolyton, buy Civilization III: Complete

You can get 5.1 surround sound speakers for $50.

	26-08-2005 08:20									#19
	Support Apolyton or Terrorists Win

quote: Originally posted by Urban Ranger Sound is even less important than graphics in games, while graphics is less important than gameplay.

WRONG

you need good sound to hear footsteps in counterstrike

so you can tell where they are

then you walk...

wait for them

they turn the corner


then

BOOM HEADSHOT!

a true gamer you are not

	26-08-2005 10:03									#20
	Support Apolyton, buy Call to Power 2

quote: Originally posted by Sava you need good sound to hear footsteps in counterstrike so you can tell where they are

Sorry to break this to you, but human hearing is (mostly) nondirectional.

Go into a patch of woods in the summer. See if you can find where the closest cicada is by hearing alone.

	26-08-2005 10:04									#21
	Lose 30 kilos (of popups)

sorry to break this to you, but CS is not real life

	26-08-2005 10:14									#22
	Avatar Enlargement: We've got the solution

quote: Originally posted by Urban Ranger Sorry to break this to you, but human hearing is (mostly) nondirectional.

Welcome to the real world UR...positional audio works, that's why we have two ears.

At least those of us with capable brains can process the signals and figure out a position, based on how loud the sound is in one ear compared to the other.

I don't know about you, but if someone's walking up behind me I can hear that. In regular stereo sound, I can't tell if they're behind or infront of me.

	26-08-2005 10:19									#23
	Enter the AD-FREE zone

quote: Originally posted by Sava BOOM HEADSHOT!

	26-08-2005 11:20									#24
	Support Apolyton buy from Amazon

quote: Originally posted by Kuciwalker sorry to break this to you, but CS is not real life

I can agree with that.

	26-08-2005 11:21									#25
	Support Apolyton buy from Amazon

quote: Originally posted by Asher At least those of us with capable brains can process the signals and figure out a position, based on how loud the sound is in one ear compared to the other.

You need to actually look at literature.

	26-08-2005 12:04									#26
	Got spare money?

What literature. He's right.

There I said it. Asher is right.

	26-08-2005 12:28									#27
	Support Apolyton, buy GURPS/ Alpha Centauri

quote: Originally posted by Dis What literature.

Hm, actual research?



Human hearing is only very vaguely directional. Under almost ideal conditions you can tell in which general direction is the sound source, most of the time you can't.

	26-08-2005 12:45									#28
	Full PM-box? Change here!

quote: Originally posted by Urban Ranger Sound is even less important than graphics in games, while graphics is less important than gameplay.

Totally agree, but it depends on the game (I loved the sound in the old X-Com).

	26-08-2005 12:46									#29
	Support Apolyton, buy Civilization 2

haha, you guys are freakin' deaf. It's easy to tell if something is in front of you are behind you.

Yes pinpointing exact position is near impossible. But anyone can tell if something is in front of them or behind them. Though in some environments, echoes will throw that off. But if there is no echo, you should have no problem.

	26-08-2005 12:47									#30
	Full PM-box? Change here!

I can tell to within 10 degrees where a sound is coming from, generally.