Win95/98 Sound Troubleshooting FAQ

You probably just need to enable sound in the game or turn up the volume. Check the Option screen settings within the game. If you have already done this and still cannot get sound, you may need to update your sound card drivers. For more information on this topic, see the section below entitled "How do I update my sound card drivers?"

Our Game Novels use DirectX, so make sure that you have installed the latest version available from Microsoft. For more information on DirectX and DirectX related problems please check out our DirectX FAQ.

There is a possibility that your sound driver has a conflict with Direct-X Sound Acceleration. Click on the "Configure Game" tool in the Siege of Avalon program group in your Start bar (click HERE for help), try turning the "Use DirectSound" on and off a couple times (try game after each click) to see if any setting will make it work. You can change your Direct Sound settings to bypass this conflict (this may be especially helpful with Sound Blaster Live cards) as follows:

 

1. Click on Start, then on RUN, then type DXDIAG and click OK
   
2. Confirm that your DirectX Version is at least as new as DirectX 7.0, then click the Sound tab.
   
3. Confirm that Driver / Certified shows Yes. Click on the Test DirectSound button and follow the directions until the test is completed.
   
4. When the test is completed the Notes display should show "All tests were successful." Otherwise you may need to update your sound card drivers or seek assistance from your computer or sound card manufacturer.
5. If all the above go well and you are still having any potential problems with the sound portion of the game, or solid game lock/crashes, then you should lower the DirectX Features / Acceleration Level. This part of the display can change depending on your sound driver software. However, the objective is to keep lowering the Acceleration Level until the driver conflict is resolved and the game can perform normally.

First, check your computer speakers to make sure that they are turned on and that the volume control is turned up. Also check the volume setting in Windows '95/'98 by clicking on the speaker icon on your taskbar. If this doesn't help, you may have a problem with your sound card. Try this:

1. Click on Start, then on Settings, then on Control Panel.
2. Double click on the System icon
3. Click on the Device Manager tab to see a list of hardware currently installed on your computer.
4. Click on the plus sign next to Sound, Video, and Game controllers. You should see your sound card in the list that appears.
   
If there is an "!" next to your sound card, then you may have a hardware conflict.

If you don't see your sound card listed, then you will need to install your sound card.

If either of the above is true, you will need to contact your computer or sound card manufacturer for assistance.

If your sound card seems to be working properly, you may need to update the drivers for your card. See the section below on "How do I update my sound card drivers?"

You probably just need to adjust the volume for sound effects or music. Check your game's documentation for instructions on how to do this, or just go directly to the Options screen and raise the volumes. Note, there are debug setting that can disable sound and/or music, so if you have made any unusual changes to the game be sure to restore them.

If the game controls have no effect on sound or music volume, you can adjust these settings in the Windows '95/'98 by double clicking on the speaker icon on your taskbar.

Lastly, if you have a CD version of a Game Novel that uses CD-Audio, you may need to have your game CD in the drive in order to hear music.

First, make sure that you have no other applications running that may interfere with your sound card. Two or more programs that are trying to share a device in your system will usually cause problems.

Our Game Novels use DirectX, so make sure that you have installed the latest version available from Microsoft. For more information on DirectX and DirectX related problems please check out our DirectX FAQ.

Next, check your sound card to see if there may me a device conflict within your system. To find out how, see the section above labeled "I cannot hear any sounds or music in any application at all".

If your sound card seems to be working properly, you may need to update the drivers for your card. See the section below on "How do I update my sound card drivers?"

1. Click on Start, then on Settings, then on Control Panel.
2. Double click on the System Icon.
3. Click on the Device Manager tab to see a list of hardware currently installed on your computer.
4. Click on the Plus sign next to "Sound, Video, and Game controllers". You should see your sound card in the list that appears.
5. Click on your sound card (only once!)
6. Click on the Properties tab.
7. In the window that appears, click on the Resources tab. You should now see a listing of your sound card's settings.
8. Write down the number in the first column of the first entry in the list. This is your sound card's port address.
9. Scroll down and find the Interrupt request and Direct Memory Access. Write these settings down as well.
   

How do I update my sound card drivers?

Most computer and sound card companies keep the latest versions of their hardware drivers on their web sites for download. If you do not have internet access, you can usually request drivers by telephone. . To learn more about updating drivers, including a list of major manufacturers, check out our How to Update Your Drivers FAQ.

If your game uses DirectX, the DirectX installation process will try to determine what hardware is present in your machine, and install the necessary drivers for your hardware. If the DirectX installer comes across a device it does not recognize, it will recommend that you keep your existing driver installed. If you choose not to do this, a generic DirectX driver will be installed. Either way, the game may not function correctly.

If this is the case, contact your computer company or the manufacturer of the device in question for an updated driver that is compatible with the version of DirectX included with your game. For more information on DirectX, please see our DirectX FAQ.

Check the system requirements for the game that you are playing. If your system does not meet the minimum requirements, it may not be able to play the game at normal speed, resulting in choppiness and skipping.

If you have a CD version of a Game Novel (instead of one of the downloaded versions) then inspect the underside of the game CD for scratches, smudges, etc. These may cause your CD-ROM drive to have trouble reading the CD. Then, check to see that your CD-ROM drive is optimized in the Windows 95 control panel.

Also, be sure to close down all other applications when running the game. Other applications may take away valuable system resources that the game needs to run smoothly. To be sure you have shut down ALL of your applications, follow these steps:


1. Find your Windows '95 taskbar. This is the gray bar where your START button is located.
2. For every button on the taskbar except for the start button, right-click once and then left-click on "Close".
3. Do the same for each of the icons on the opposite side of the taskbar. If there is no option to Close or Exit the application, don't worry, we'll deal with that in a moment.
4. Once you have closed down all of the applications that you can using this method, press [control] [alt] [delete] (only once!) to bring up the Windows '95 task manager. You will see a list of programs that are still running.
5. The only 2 programs that need to be there are Explorer and Systray. For everything else, click once to highlight the program you wish to close, and then click on "End Task". The task manager will close too, so you will need to press [control] [alt] [delete] again if you need to terminate any other programs.
6. Once you have closed down all of the applications on your system except Explorer and Systray, try running your game again.

As Game Novels are completed it is expected that CD versions of the game will be released. Windows 95/98 needs to know certain information about the speed of your CD-ROM drive and the amount of memory you wish to devote to it for peak performance.

To adjust these settings:

1. Click on Start, then on Settings, then on Control Panel.
2. Double click on the System icon.
3. Select the Performance tab, then click on the File system button, and finally select the CD-ROM tab.
   
The first setting you need to look at is "Supplemental cache size". If your computer has 8 megabytes of memory or less, this setting should be towards the left side of the slider bar. If your computer has 16 megabytes of memory or more, it should be all the way to the right.

Next, change the "Optimize Access Pattern" setting to match your CD-ROM drive. If you have a 4 speed CD-ROM or faster, use the "Quad Speed or higher" setting.