WIN 98 reinstall -- no sound

[edmat]

Hi,
I formatted my HD and reinstalled WIN 98. I'm OK with that part but when it came to answering the question about all the devices it found, there were no drivers that they could use from the system. I've spent much time going around the 'Net downloading all kinds of drivers and none of them work. The Multimedia Audio device is Conexant Riptide Racoo, Model 90079. I have the drivers but this code 28 is probably telling me that the card is broken! I have taken all the cards out of the computer and reinserted them, hoping there was a bad connection, but to no avail. Could the card be damaged? Or could the problem be the mother board itself? No modem, no ethernet, no game port . . . If it is the sound board, why doesn't the Ethernet card install properly?
Lots of questions, does anyone know what my next step should be?
Thank you for any help.
Ed

[The Dude]

Welcome my friend

It shoukld have found most of the drivers in your 'WIN98' folder... (That folder is basically a backup of the whole WIN98 disk)

Good luck with this project :)

[edmat]

Thanks, dude for the quick reply.

I don't think the problem is with drivers -- the program doesn't recognize the card or is able to get the proper drivers from the WIN98 disk. Is there a way to see if the card is no good without going out and buying one?

Ed

[gdpafred]

The following site will give you the meaning of code 28. Scroll to code 28 and follow steps to remove and reinstall your card.
http://www.usbman.com/Guides/Error%20Codes%20Explained.htm
Since you say you have previously downloaded the drivers, and if the steps explained in the site above do not work, there might be one other way to get your computer to recognize the card. Remove the card from the computer. Shut down and leave off for a couple of minutes. (With The Card Still Out of the Computer) Start up the computer and let it fully boot up. Ignore any warning signs you might see. Shut down the computer the second time. Plug your card back into the slot. Start up the PC and let PNP (plug and play) sequence locate the hardware, drivers and install.
By the way....while you were removing and reinserting all your cards, I do hope you were grounded. If not, it is very easy and highly likely you might have shorted the printed circuit on the card if you touched any part of the circuit(s). Good Luck.

[gdpafred]

Go to http://www.usbman.com/Guides/Error%20Codes%20Explained.htm, scroll down to code 28 and read through the steps to resolve your issue. If after you remove the hardware through the Device Manager, restart and it still does not find the card or the drivers, shut down the computer. After a couple of minutes remove the card. With card out, start up pc and let it boot up completely. Ignore any signs, warnings, etc. you might see. After it fully boots, shut down and wait a couple of minutes. Reinsert the card. Start up computer and let PNP find the hardware and drivers and install. I hope you were grounded when you were removing and reinstalling all your cards and whatever else you touched. If you were not grounded and you accidently touch part of the printed circuit, static electricity could have ruined the components. This does not always happen but it can and it does. To answer your question, there is no way to 'test' the card except by inserting it into another computer. Good Luck.

[edmat]

Hi FES,
I did all that you suggested but no luck. It must be a bad card. I'm just worried that if I install another card and that wasn't the problem, we have done all this for nothing.

But, thanks for your efforts.

Ed

[gdpafred]

Hi Ed.
Thanks for your post-back.
If you use exterior speakers, you probably have checked the wire jack plug into the back of the computer making use it is tight and seated. Do you have another set of speakers or a portable media player that has the same size jack as your speakers jack? Plug it into the computer and see if you get audio...if so, either your speakers are shot or the lead wire has a short in it. You could verify any short with an ohm tester. If there is no sound, when you try using some other speakers or media player, then it is in your computer. Could be the speaker feed wire from your audio card slolt has broken loose either from the mother board or from the output jack. This is a very fine gauge wire and the connection can break away easily, especially if it gets nudged, in anyway. Since you have gone through the motions of updating the drivers, I doubt if your problem is drivers but more so, with a loose / broken connection or (sorry to say) audio card or possibly a component on the mother board. I wish you luck.

[edmat]

FES:
No, the speakers are OK. I should mention that the modem is inoperable and so is the USB, Telephony, game port, etc. Gotta be the board (or mother board) I believe.

Thanks again,
Ed

[gdpafred]

OK. Originally you said you had code 28 which has to do with audio drivers. Did you read through the site I sent you ?
Since you are now saying all this other stuff is not working too, my guess is, your mother board is fried because the audio card controls the sound, not the modem. Sounds like its time for another computer.
Maybe someone else can provide better ideas. I don't have any more.

[The Dude]

Try taking your card out of the slot and clean it and then clean the slot,see if that works :)

[Prometheus12345]

Use a *quality* pencil-eraser to burnish the card's contacts on both sides, then wipe with a lint-free cloth under firm pressure. try it again. If it still doesn't work, it is not the connection to the MB, but perhaps a faulty card or as said above, a MB issue.

Good-quality pencil-erasers are excellent tools for burnishing low-current connections such as PC cards. Any eraser that smears is not worthy. Be sure you use a *quality* pencil eraser or it will smear and do more harm than good. "Pen erasers" can be used, but are far more abrasive and only recommended for reconstructive purposes on contacts.

Failing that, you may want to look into a new card, but try the following as suggested above:

Power off
remove card
power up
remove excess drivers through device manager (if any)
power down
power up again
power down
identify card make and model...write it down
install card
power up
refuse to install drivers for "new hardware"
download drivers for card
install drivers via installer from home site or 3rd party
reboot

Failiing this, you might have a bad card after all, or the MB just won't cooperate with it. Try this before failing the card.

I have win98 now, and i know the above procedure spounds silly, but it's what you must do to reinstall hardware cleanly with win98. If the driver is not on the OS disc, just refuse it and go find drivers based on the make/model....most likely installed in your windows/system directory anyway, so not much effort involved once you find it.

Post if ya need more help

[edmat]

Hi Prometheus,
I've actually done all that you have suggested. I purchased a new board with the same results. Checked all wiring and cleaned contacts, etc. I guess it must be something on the MB. I'll just forget about the modem -- I'm going to get cable modem anyway.
Thanks for your help.
Ed