XP audio and video stuttering NOT HDD problem - Looks like iTunes caused it

[rickdrew]

OK. I installed the newest version of iTunes on my PC so I could play with my new iPod. Instantly, all my video and audio started stuttering. It's made the PC useless for watching videos or using audio. Since I also use this machine to edit video and audio, this is a problem. Why do I know it's not the HDD? I can play the video and audio over my LAN just fine.

I also have the stuttering on streaming media, and when accessing media on other computers on my LAN.

I have three SATA-II drives, all configured correctly (I've tried all the suggestions on the stuttering problems...)

What else I have tried....

Updating audio and video drivers
Replacing all the Codecs
Deleting and reinstalling the video and audio cards

Tried the bare bones basic Windows Media player. Same problem. Even previewing the audio effects (the various beeps, books, and other noises Windows makes) stutters. "Boop" is often a rap sample "bobobo ooop ooop ooop op." Even the default Explorer "click" when clicking on a link is "clclclclclclclclikikikik" - it sounds like the page is redirecting 20 times!

I know for a fact this happened after installing iTunes - at first I thought iTunes had corrupted files when ripping - but this was not the case. I have the latest version of iTunes installed.

Any ideas?

[Suspishio]

I can't at this stage say what iTunes may have done to overwrite any drivers or system siftware - shouldn't have done anything bad. Certainly hasn't on any of my systems.

ANyway, stuttering in my experience is cause by any of these three usual suspects in no order of likelihood:

1/
Something's hogging the CPU. Let us know what Task Manager/Processes reports as having the three highest CPU utilisations whilst stuttering.

2/
Anti-virus scan is occurring. In that case the problem will disappear when the scan is finished.

3/
Graphics drivers have been replaced - but you reinstalled all that stuff.

So what about item #1? And what is your system configuration?

[rickdrew]

Hi;

Dual Core Pentium overclocked to 433. 2 gig of RAM, ASUS 5n LE motherboard, 512 meg of ram on the video card. CPU use averages 15%-50%. System idle processes are usually 98%. I built this PC around 6 months ago and had no problems with sound until recently. No hardware changes, just software.

Highest Mem usage is iexplorer (146 meg) tmproxy (92 meg) and svchost (22 meg). I have 2 gig of RAM.

The stuttering is constant. While typing this I played some music. Stuttering constantly. Performance currntly shows CPU usage of 0%-3%, PF use of 1.16 gb.

I've tried closing all programs and turning off the antivirus software and firewall. Still stutters.

I'll try safe mode and see if that does anything.

Thanks

Rick

[Suspishio]

Did you uninstall iTunes or go back to the last system restore point?

I just noticed on your first post you said: "I also have the stuttering on streaming media, and when accessing media on other computers on my LAN.".

But you also said: "I can play the video and audio over my LAN just fine.".

So I'm trying to understand exactly what you mean?

[rickdrew]

Any media played on my computer, even files I access over my LAN, stutter.

If other computers access my files, they play on those computers just fine.

I really don't want to uninstall iTunes, as my 8,000+ songs, album art, etc. is all ripped with itunes.

Rick

[Suspishio]

I know you don't want to de-install iTunes! Even worse if you take my advice and it doesn't clear up the problem.

But if you have just mad a change to your system involving audio drivers (iTunes), it's a fair bet that's your problem, especially because there's nothing hogging the CPU and you've reinstalled your drivers.

Have you checked for a virus or trojan?

[rickdrew]

Tried safe mode. Installed a new sound card. Downloaded and installed Direct X 10. Updated iTunes. Still no better.

[rickdrew]

Spent another few hours on this oday:
Replaced all...
Audio drivers
SATA drivers
IDI drivers
Network Drivers
Codecs

Removed all but One SATA drive. Changed modes (PIO, etc.) Sill stuttered. Put the other SATA drives back (three total). Tried all combinations of settings. No help.

In BIOS: Turned overclocking off. No difference. Changed timing. No help. Changed access modes for HDD. No help.

Wasted all day on this, and tried TWO different audio cards. Nothing made a bit of difference.

[rickdrew]

Figured out the cause, but not the solution. When I disable my network card, NO STUTTERING. The second I enable it - stuttering. I have the newest drivers. Perhaps I neet to try an old one. There must be a compatibility issue with itunes and windows xp nvidia nforce drivers.

[Suspishio]

Is there any interrupt sharing between the devices? The network card can usually be set to a different interrupt number.

Ugh - should have thought of that earlier! Still I've been there before on different problems but where the thing has all but been rebuilt only to find there's some simple setting ot other that I could have used!

[damienxx]

OK. I installed the newest version of iTunes on my PC so I could play with my new iPod. Instantly, all my video and audio started stuttering. It's made the PC useless for watching videos or using audio. Since I also use this machine to edit video and audio, this is a problem. Why do I know it's not the HDD? I can play the video and audio over my LAN just fine.

I also have the stuttering on streaming media, and when accessing media on other computers on my LAN.

I have three SATA-II drives, all configured correctly (I've tried all the suggestions on the stuttering problems...)

What else I have tried....

Updating audio and video drivers Replacing all the Codecs Deleting and reinstalling the video and audio cards

Tried the bare bones basic Windows Media player. Same problem. Even previewing the audio effects (the various beeps, books, and other noises Windows makes) stutters. "Boop" is often a rap sample "bobobo ooop ooop ooop op." Even the default Explorer "click" when clicking on a link is "clclclclclclclclikikikik" - it sounds like the page is redirecting 20 times!

I know for a fact this happened after installing iTunes - at first I thought iTunes had corrupted files when ripping - but this was not the case. I have the latest version of iTunes installed.

Any ideas?

I had tried every suggestion I could find on google to fix the stuttering apart from re-installing Windows XP until I found a solution that works for me. Maybe it will work for you.

I've got Windows XP Service Pack 3, 2 gigs of ram and it was stuttering badly.

To fix this all I had to do was go to Task Manager by pressing ctrl-alt-del, right click on iTunes.exe under the Processes tab and set priority to Above Normal.

You will have to do this every time you use it unless you create a .bat file to make it happen automatically.

This is how I created the bat file (below). You will need to change the bit after "abovenormal" to wherever you have saved iTunes. Mine is saved on my P drive in the itunes folder, but yours will be saved somewhere else.

I opened Notepad and typed the following:

start /abovenormal p:/itunes/itunes.exe

Then Save As itunesloader.bat

Now all you have to do is double-click on that bat file to open iTunes in above normal priority mode every time.

Hope this helps some frustrated people out there.

Damien