[XPtanfan]

I recently came across this problem as of Tuesday evening. Suddenly having Winamp open and playing had my sound crackling and video slows down while I browsed the internet with Firefox 3. Started looking for a solution to this problem but none of them matched what I had. I decided to scan for spyware and adware but that only yielded the usual cookies and trackers which I got rid of. Tried updating my sound card with some "critical" items as the website called them. That proved useless when one part of the update failed to pass the "Windows Logo" so I canceled that part. When I finished, all speaker settings were disabled so I had to rollback.

There are no actual driver updates for my SoundBlaster Audigy SE card. Apparently Creative Labs doesn't care for this card as most drivers clearly say "DO NOT INSTALL into SoundBlaster Audigy SE, Audigy 2, etc.".

Adobe's Shockwave Player, Shockwave for Director, FireFox3, Winamp are all updated as well. This is really boggling my mind. Is there a solution to this problem?!

PC Specs:

Windows XP Pro 32-Bit Serv. Pack 3
Intel Dual Core 2.40Ghz Processor
2.0GB of RAM
eVGA Nvidia GeForce9600 GT (forgot the RAM...512MB maybe?)
MSI P35 Neo2 Motherboard
CoolMaster 1000watt Power Supply

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Hello XPtanfan...

As an FYI, when a driver "hasn't passed Windows Logo Testing", it doesn't necessarily mean the driver won't work. It's more likely that it's a new driver that hasn't completed the Logo testing yet.

If this is a very recent problem, try a system restore to a date before the problem began. Sometimes a bad update can cause strange problems like the ones you describe...restoring to before the updates installed will sometimes clear the issues.

wannabe1

[wannabe1]

Hello XPtanfan...

As an FYI, when a driver "hasn't passed Windows Logo Testing", it doesn't necessarily mean the driver won't work. It's more likely that it's a new driver that hasn't completed the Logo testing yet.

If this is a very recent problem, try a system restore to a date before the problem began. Sometimes a bad update can cause strange problems like the ones you describe...restoring to before the updates installed will sometimes clear the issues.

wannabe1

[XPtanfan]

Haven't tried that, though right now I'm updating my graphic card's driver...maybe that will fix things as I noticed that viewing a youtube video, just scrolling down to where 1/4 of the video screen is cut off, the crackling audio and stuttering goes away O__o. Odd isn't it?

Thanks for your reply. I'll post if there is any change after this possible solution and a system restore to a much later date.

[XPtanfan]

Alright, neither one solved the problem. Crackling and stuttering still remain :\.

[wannabe1]

Aside from the crackling and stuttering, how does the machine run? Does it seem sluggish? Slow to open applications?

[XPtanfan]

After the "Welcome" screen fades out and my desktop appears, it does take it a while to fully wake up. I think I have too many unnecessary programs at Start Up and some just take their sweet time. After a while though, it runs fine...except on the occasion FF loads some pages that I frequently visit slowly, sometimes.

I don't think a virus can mess with just the audio/video part of a machine...especially when it deals with just IE or FF :\.

[wannabe1]

I wasn't really thinking about an infection. I was thinking about transfer modes...let's check them.

Right click on My Computer and choose "Properties". Click the "Hardware" tab and then the "Device Manager" button. Expand (click +) IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers.

Right click on the Primary IDE channel, choose "Properties", then click the "Advanced Settings" tab. List the Current Transfer Mode for each device shown for this channel.

Right click on the Secondary IDE channel, choose "Properties", then click the "Advanced Settings" tab. List the Current Transfer Mode for each device shown for this channel.

[XPtanfan]

I saw that on someone's else thread and checked that out but here are my results:

(And for some reason it took its time to load the next window while Winamp was open)

1st Primary IDE Channel-
(Device 0)Current Transfer Mode: Not applicable
(Device 1)Current Transfer Mode: Not applicable

2nd Primary IDE Channel-
(Device 0)Current Transfer Mode: Ultra DMA Mode 5
(Device 1)Current Transfer Mode: Not applicable

3rd Primary IDE Channel-
(Device 0)Current Transfer Mode: Ultra DMA Mode 2
(Device 1)Current Transfer Mode: Not applicable

1st Secondary IDE Channel-
(Device 0)Current Transfer Mode: Not Applicable
(Device 1)Current Transfer Mode: Not Applicable

2nd Secondary IDE Channel-
(Device 0)Current Transfer Mode: Not Applicable
(Device 1)Current Transfer Mode: Not Applicable

3rd Secondary IDE Channel-
(Device 0)Current Transfer Mode: Not Applicable
(Device 1)Current Transfer Mode: Not Applicable

That's not good right?

[wannabe1]

Not bad, either. The channel I was most concerned about is set correctly.

Let's see how it behaves in diagnostic mode. Click Start, then Run, type msconfig and click "Ok". Under the General tab, tick the box next to "Diagnostic Startup", apply the change, and reboot.

See if things improve using this configuration. This will help us see we might be looking at a service or driver as the culprit.

[XPtanfan]

Restarted Windows under Diagnostic Startup. After it started nothing seemed to happen, no window messages or warnings. I couldn't even access the internet and the menu bar at the bottom was missing my AV, nVidia control panel and SoundBlaster Control Panel. Normal?

On the plus side...I think...after I switched back to Normal start up (forgot what mode I had it on as Ehehe...) I got a window message about a new Java Update Available. So installing now...

Edit: That didn't change anything...

Edited by XPtanfan, 29 August 2009 - 03:23 PM.

[XPtanfan]

The audio crackling and video slowdown seems to have disappeared o__O. When I shut down my PC, I had a Windows update waiting to be installed so I turned off my PC and let the update get automatically installed.

This morning when I turned it back on and watched a few Youtube videos, I heard no more crackling. Could a corrupt Windows Update have caused it?

Thanks for taking your time in helping me wannabe1!

(I just hope I'm not celebrating too soon though <<; )

[wannabe1]

Hmmmm...wonder why I didn't get an e-mail notification of your last reply...

Could a corrupt Windows Update have caused it?

That was my assumption right from the start. Perhaps the new update addressed a "known issue" in a previous update. Let's hope so, anyway.

Let me know if the crackling starts back up.

My pleasure to assist...

[kane090]

I had the same problem and changing to Diagnostics Mode did the job.
Thanks