A few months ago Windows stopped producing sound. Occasionally I would get sound, but this was hardly audible. Using System Restore the problem can be temporarily fixed. Once System Restore has rolled-back the computer to a past point in time I type in my password to login and the ‘Loading Personal Settings’ box reads ‘Restoration Complete’. The computer then operates as normal, until I re-login at which time the sound is again lost. How can the problem be permanently solved? The computer is running Windows XP Professional.

Firstly, we should check the obvious that the sound is not muted or turned down to a low volume. Go to the ‘Start’ menu > ‘Control Panel’ and open the ‘Sounds and Audio Devices’ control panel. In the window that appears, click the ‘Volume’ tab. Make sure the Device Volume is set reasonably loud and that ‘Mute’ is not enabled. Then, click the ‘Advanced’ button to show the Play Control window. Ensure the volume settings for the various channels are adequate and no channels are muted. Secondly, we should make sure the devices have been correctly configured. Click the ‘Audio’ tab and ensure the sound playback, sound recording and MIDI music playback are configured to the correct playback device (i.e. your sound card). Do the same on the ‘Voice’ tab. If you change any settings, click the ‘Apply’ button then OK to save the changes then check if the problem persists.

If you continue to have problems, we should attempt to reinstall the drivers for your sound card. Before proceeding, ensure that you have the drivers for your sound card at-the-ready. Open the ‘System’ control panel and click the ‘Hardware’ tab. Click the ‘Device Manager’ button. In the window that appears, expand the ‘Sound, video and game controllers’ tree. Highlight your sound device, right-click and select ‘Properties’. In the next window, click the ‘Driver’ tab. Click the ‘Uninstall’ button. Once the drivers have been uninstalled, restart Windows. When Windows starts, your sound card should be detected, at which point you can reinstall the drivers. If not, go back into the Device Manager and look for your sound card which should be listed as either a disabled device (as the drivers have not been installed) or as an unknown device. Either way, open the properties to install the drivers. Should the problem continue with the original drivers, try downloading the latest drivers for the card from the manufacturer’s website. Please let me know how this goes. Should the problem continue, please contact me again and I will try to provide more assistance.