[RevShaitan]

I bought a soundblaster because I got this system second hand and it didn't have sound for some reason although I checked and it has onboard sound in the bios. I installed the soundblaster and ran the software for it.. no problem so far. The sound worked fine and I played with it a bit..even downloaded an mp3 and it played fine.
The problems started a few minutes later when I realized the computer was running really sluggishly. I run a gateway 566mhz Celeron with 60 mgs of ram. I went online because i wanted to see if maybe there was some info on the soundblaster site. The computer suddenly froze and brought up a blue screen of death. I tried to reboot.. defrag.. etc.. but the problem didn't get fixed that way. I tried to remove the soundblaster on a whim to see if that was the problem and it was... the freezing and slowing down stopped and the system ran fine. I tried to install the card on a different slot.. in fact i tried them all with no success.. The sound works fine but my system goes on the fritz and eventually gives me a blue screen error each time.. I am running windows98se by the way. I am willing to give any more info if that might help lead to a solution.. just post the info you need. I wondered if maybe it was that i had to disable the onboard sound which i am unsure how to do. I did manage to find out that i can get to the bios by changing a jumper on the motherboard but there was no way i saw to disable it and a friend of mine said it should probably disable the onboard sound automatically. I am pretty frustrated at this point and am willing to try about anything. I would also be willing to just use the onboard sound if i could get it to work without all these problems. Thanks in advance if anyone has any clues on fixing my problem.

 

[rugrat]

Go here and download aida32,
http://www.aida32.hu/aida32-download.php

Run the program and see if you can find out what motherboard you have. Then we can maybe give you better advice.

Let us know

 

[RevShaitan]

Here is a text report of my motherboard.. hopefully it will give you a clue that might help me. I appreciate the site of that program. Let me know what you discover.

 

[RevShaitan]

I figured you might need to know more than that so i went ahead and posted this summary in the event that it might help out. thanks.

Computer:
Operating System Microsoft Windows 98 SE
OS Service Pack None
Internet Explorer 6.0.2800.1106 (IE 6.0 SP1)
Computer Name APRILS
User Name aprils

Motherboard:
CPU Type Intel Celeron II, 566 MHz (8.5 x 67)
Motherboard Name Intel Willow Springs 2 WL810E (4 PCI, 2 DIMM, Audio, Video)
Motherboard Chipset Intel Whitney i810E
System Memory 64 MB (PC100 SDRAM)
BIOS Type AMI (04/04/00)
Communication Port Communications Port (COM1)
Communication Port ECP Printer Port (LPT1)

Display:
Video Adapter Intel(R) 82810E Graphics Controller
3D Accelerator Intel i752
Monitor Gateway EV700 (10121140877564)

Multimedia:
Audio Adapter Intel 82801AA I/O Controller Hub - AC'97 Audio Adapter

Storage:
Floppy Drive GENERIC NEC FLOPPY DISK
Disk Drive GENERIC IDE DISK TYPE47
Optical Drive MITSUMI CD-ROM FX4831T!A

Partitions:
C: (FAT32) 14309 MB (10547 MB free)

Input:
Keyboard Standard 101/102-Key or Microsoft Natural Keyboard
Mouse Microsoft PS/2 Port Mouse

Network:
Primary IP Address 172.171.67.132
Primary MAC Address 44-45-53-54-00-00
Network Adapter Microsoft TV Data Adapter. (4.0.0.3)
Network Adapter PPP Adapter. (172.171.67.132)
Network Adapter PPP Adapter.
Modem 56K PCI Voice Modem SF-1156IV R9A #2

Peripherals:
Printer Lexmark Z23-Z33
USB Device InkJet Color Printer

 

[Chris A]

There is a known issue with older Celerons and soundblaster live cards.

What version of software are you installing with the sound card because it was corrected in the newer versions of software from soundblaster..

I had this same problem with my Celeron after installing a Soundblaster live Value.. But this was years ago... I know it was corrected by downloading SB live 3 or something.

 

[Chris A]

Ha even found my old thread on it Posted here... Funny reading old stuff

 

[RevShaitan]

I just used the cd that came with it. I think the manual is dated 2002 so that's not a good sign. I'll see if the website maybe has some updated drivers and install the card again. I figure if I keep troubleshooting then i'll eventually find the answer. lol thanks

 

[RevShaitan]

When it rains it pours.. i went to the creative.com website and i couldn't seem to load the link even though i know it works.. apparently i have some problem with IE or something. I can manually type the addresses and it works fine but some links don't work.. like the ones in the forum.. if i were to click on this right here-> www.creative.com it wouldn't do anything at all. I posted the question a few hours ago in a different section of the forum but i got no response. Talk about getting annoyed at my cpu. I wonder if i can just hurl it outside and kick it a few times to work out the kinks

 

[rugrat]

There is a pdf file here,
http://www.intel.com/design/motherbd/oem/index.htm

It does have a section on the BIOS setup and there is a audio portion where you can disable the onboard audio. Might be worth a try.

From the website:
WL810E

* Technical Product Specification
This product specification applies only to standard WL810E motherboards with BIOS identifier WL81020A.86A. Changes to this specification will be published in the WL810E Motherboard Specification Update before being incorporated into a revision of this document. Adobe Acrobat format

A1250401.PDF: Size: 376,442 Date: March 15, 2000

* Motherboard Specification Update
This document is an update to the specifications contained in the WL810E Technical Product Specification (Order Number A12504). It is intended for hardware system manufacturers and software developers of applications, operating systems, or tools. It contains specification changes, errata, specification clarifications, and documentation changes.

o Specification Changes are modifications to the current published specifications. These changes will be incorporated in the next release of the specifications.
o Errata are design defects or errors. Characterized errata may cause the WL810E motherboard's behavior to deviate from published specifications. Hardware and software designed to be used with any given Printed Board Assembly (PBA) and BIOS revision level must assume that all errata documented for that PBA and BIOS revision are present on all motherboards.
o Specification Clarifications describe a specification in greater detail or further highlight a specification's impact to a complex design situation. These clarifications will be incorporated in the next release of the specifications.
o Documentation Changes include typos, errors, or omissions from the current published specifications. These changes will be incorporated in the next release of the specifications.

This location contains the most current Specification Update. The revision number is indicated by the last two digits in its 'pdf' file name.

SeeYa

 

[Rollin' Rog]

Can you post the Blue Screen message? Sometimes, not always, there is meaningful information there.

Also unless you are using SB to play DOS games I suggest going into the Device Manager and disabling the SoundBlaster16 Emulation device through it's properties page. It has often been a source of problems due to the IRQ requests it makes.

And if there is another "onboard" sound device listed in the Device Manager, you can disable that there as well.

 

[RevShaitan]

I managed to fix the sound thanks to your info but I still have a strange problem. I have a game installed called Ultima Online, but when I try to run it..it just shows a blank screen.. if i hit Ctrl-Alt-Del it tells me a program named 'Winupdater' or something spelled like that is not responding.. as well as the ultima online program not responding too.. This causes the system to lock up too and i have to restart it. I play the game pretty often so it's really annoying to have to remove the card just to play the game.. I checked my directx diag and it froze up when i tried to check the sound.. is there something still not right with it? Those two things are the only current problems thanks to all the info.

 

[rugrat]

If it is Winupdater, it is a worm. See here,
http://www.sophos.com/virusinfo/analyses/w32agobotcy.html

Are you running UP TO DATE virus software? If not you should begin doing so NOW!

See here for Rog's list of security tools,
http://forums.techguy.org/t110854/s3e23677951ddcbe7d80cdef1cb4df907.html

Do an online virus scan and see what you find. I would also suggest the Stinger program along with AVG if you do not have virus protection and Spybot search and destroy along with AdAware for spyware.

Let us know

 

[RevShaitan]

Hi.. Well I did what you recommended and made sure my computer is virus and spyware free. I still have the same problem though I think I have more of an idea of the cause. I think it's something to do with DirectX.. It's the latest version and whenever i try to run dxdiag it tries to freeze up.. unless i skip the DirectSound and DirectMusic diagnostics. Does this give anyone a better idea of what might fix this problem? i still can't use my soundcard effectively because i want it for the games i have which all require directx.. Anything that takes directx to run seems to freeze up if i have my soundcard in.. but if i take it out the games/programs run fine. I am pretty over my head here and i hope someone takes pity on me and helps me out.. rofl thanks in advance

 

[RevShaitan]

Anyone got any ideas?

 

[rugrat]

Do you have the latest drivers for the sound card itself? What sound card is it?

Let us know

PS: If you do not know, get Aida32 and run the program. Althiugh the main site is now closed, you can still get it here,
http://www.webattack.com/get/aida32.shtml
OK that link does not work, try this,
http://www.majorgeeks.com/downloadget.php?id=181&file=3&evp=e292483f0de3e518ff57fb57cf6eb944

 

[RevShaitan]

It's a SoundBlaster 16 pci 4.1