So one day I start using my computer and it works perfectly. Then I leave it sitting for a while (with iTunes playing) and come back about an hour later. iTunes is still playing, but nothing else will play sounds. I restart the computer, and hear the Vista start up sound. Then, again, nothing works. So I restart again, and now the start up sound doesnt play. To see if this was a problem with the hardware, I booted up into ubuntu, and all sound worked perfectly.

I've reinstalled/updated all the relevant drivers, tried playing sounds on the built in laptop speakers, and ensured that it wasn't muted/turned too far down. None of this has helped.

Any advice?

If your running x64:
Windows XP Pro x64 Edition.
otherwise:
bang your head on a desk coz i havent seen much reliable support for vista

*bangs head*

Neither the bar nor the numbers indicating the position of the song on iTunes change when I'm "playing" a song.
A seemingly unrelated problem that started at the same time is the tendency of certain flash videos (youtube) to have horrible framerates.

format your machine

format your machine
... what a great advice. :rolleyes:


@zanahoria: Since you heard Windows startup sound, I think your hardware and driver should be okay.

It could be the settings in iTunes or in Windows. Check the audio settings in both... you might have some channels muted or set to lowest volume.

Check that the audio cables are plugged in? I once by accident plugged my mouse into the keyboard port, and spent an hour trying to figure out why my mouse wasnt working. Thank god its a sub mouse so I pulled it out, plugged it into the USB port and was happily on my way. Only the next day in the middle of class did it hit me.

I don't hear the start up sound anymore... windows plays no sound whatsoever.
And I know the speakers are hooked up right because 1) sound plays in ubuntu and 2) the laptop has built in speakers that play when other speakers aren't plugged in

windows sucks a fat one :p

you still might need to take a breath, back up and format (unless you are microsoft certified)

*sigh*
I guess I'll just have to wait until XP becomes on sale after Christmas...

are you running 64 bit? you should try "windows xp pro x64 edition"! microsoft doesn't sell it to home users, but many online stores will sell you copies quite legally (i called microsoft directly on the phone to find out). they are between $70-$140 dollars and i havent had but two issues with it. and these two issues are also vista issues: i couldn't install drivers for old old old ass printer and webcam.

Did you...

1. Right Click on the volume icon, choose "Open Volume Mixer"? You may have put certain sound levels necessary to hear stuff to zero without putting the master volume to zero.

2. Uninstall the sound drivers before putting them back on? This will help ensure no remnants of the previous ones are messing up your sound.

3. Check for viruses? I'm sure viruses exist that mute all sounds.

4. Check the "Sound" part of the Control Panel (switch to Classic View if you can't find it) and make sure your Playback devices are working correctly?

Also see if there's a red "X" icon by the speaker icon on your taskbar. That indicates sound drivers are not install (and may indicate incorrect installation - I've yet to incorrectly install drivers).

Other than that, my next-best idea would be back up and reinstall Vista. I haven't delved into the sound substructure and what would cause that to stop working correctly (or, indeed, at all).