My new computer does a funny thing.

The sound works when it's first booted up, but after several hours the speakers won't work. No sound at all, for music, word processing 'dings', or anything.

When I shut the computer down, it gives the familiar Windows closing theme. And then it will reboot with sound.

It's not the speakers. Two different pair do the same thing. Is it the sound card? Why does it work when signing off?

Is it something major? Can I fix it myself?

I thought I'd throw it out on these boards before I unplugged my computer and dropped it off at the shop.

Thanks.

My sound card basically shuts down when it's not in use. If it has no input, there is no output. You say when you shut down, you get the sounds? Have you played with the settings? Which card do you have? Does it have a control menu? Can you play mp3s or a CD?

Hope I can help.

if it works (dings, etc) for a while, then fails after a few hours, I would guess that there is a prob with your sound card........component failure which manifests as the faulty component heats up.

Sound cards are pretty cheap.

yeah, what herfsnipe said. If it makes sound when you shut down after hours of use, I'd say something is toggled off in the settings.

I was under the impression that everything worked, then would degrade.

herf, I may have confused you. When I used the word "sound card" you may have mistaken that for me knowing what one was...

I've tried to play CD's and it does the same thing.

It's an E Machine T6520 which means it has plenty of speed and memory, but I'm afraid that if I took the back off, the sound card might be a component of another larger board. I don't know this for sure, and I think it's a Realtek AC97 Audio, if that makes sense.

Andy, I thought about it heating up, but I can turn the computer back on immediately and have sound again.

realtek 97 is a standard onboard sound. Sounds like you need to reinstall the drivers. They might be corupt or reading errors. Check the jack holes to see if theres anything blocking it(packing foam etc..)

I would call up the manufacturer for help desk or to return. Is it HP, or one of those big name companies??

Forgot to ask...but did you buy it off tiger direct?? That model is known for lots of various problems. E machines in general are biult using generic parts and even the graphics has SHARED MEMORY. which means it uses memory off your ram. If you JUST bought it, I would return it and get a dell or something along the lines. If you paid more than $600 for it w/o a monitor....sorry to say, you overpaid.

I paid under 600 with the monitor (and a printer I'll never use).

The computer works great other than the sound. It's faster than my similarly equipped HP at work. We've got a few E-Machines at work out on the production floor. Bought as cheapies just to run small programs on laser monitoring equipment.

Out in the dust (and cigar smoke)of the production floor they've lasted a couple years with no problems. That's what made me decide to "trust" the E-machine for my home computer.

I have a dell and I have the same problem. It doesn't happen all the time, but the sound often goes out on me. I've also noticed that whenever I try to play a video after that happens that they don't play smoothly. All's fine after a reboot.

It's more than likely the motherboard. Usually the onboard (built into the motherboard) sound works fine. I would reinstall the audio drivers. If that doesn't fix it, go get a soundcard. You can pick up a SoundBlaster Live! card for less than a Padron 1926 🙂

i believe the beeps, etc. are not even through a sound card. so if its beeping but no music i would agree its the card....

Tailgater, try uninstall the sound card and reboot the computer. Let Windows reinstall the drivers for you.

If you need detailed steps on how to....shoot me and email

boofa75 at aol dot com

email sent.

Thanks.