WinXP Error ''Another App is playing audio'' -but which one?

[Vante]

Originally, I had no sound in Flash player. after exploring the problem, I don't
get sound in sndrec32.exe either- the play/record buttons are greyed out. when I
set a startup sound, it doesn't play, and I can't preview it.

However, a PCM 16bit 22Khz mono wav (Ding.wav) plays fine in the following-
WMP9
wmplayer2.exe
winamp
directx games are fine.

I've checked the mute button. My volume is fine. newest BIOS(abit NF7-S), WinXP up-to-date,
latest drivers for soundcard (onboard nforce). Strong possibility of audio codecs
messed up somehow.

other odd things I noticed- winlogon.exe never exits... maybe I've just never noticed
it in my tasks. But it's possible that winlogon is trying to play a wav and screwing
up, not exiting, then when I try to play in other things I get the "Sound in Use"
error.

Other than that it doesn't appear that a program is using my sound at all. If someone
has any idea about this issue, let me know. Thanks.

 

[bcastner]

Winlogon.exe never exiting is normal. (You do not want to see Winlogin.exe).

If you could post the error message exactly as it appears it would help a great deal. There are several similar sounding error messages and they suggest different problems.

One great web resouce on WMP problems is here:

http://www.nwlink.com/~zachd/pss/pss.html

There is an MS Troubleshooter that you can hopefully find the exact error message and a resolution:

http://www.aimsmultimedia.com/support/wmpmskblist.html

 

[linney]

262256 - No Sound Events Are Played

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;262256&FR=1&PA=1&SD=HSCH

Sound Problem..
thread779-384988


HOW TO: Resources for Troubleshooting Sound Problems in Windows XP

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q307918

No Sound in windows XP Professional Computers
thread779-689922

 

[Vante]

bcastner, thank you for your help. I'm reassured winlogon is not a concern. The Error message in sndrec32.exe when drag/dropping ding.wav on it: "Another Application is playing audio. You can either interrupt the application or wait until it is done. Then try using sound recorder again."

The message itself is easy to reproduce- just play a long wav in sound recorder, start another instance of sndrec32.exe, and try to play another wave at the same time. This however is not my specific issue, as I have no idea what sound is being played, or where something is going wrong.

Thank you for the links to WMP, though what I meant to say was WMP plays sounds perfectly fine. it is (to my distinction) directx apps which play fine, non directx (mfc stuff) that are having trouble.

Linney, thank you for the links, they were very informative, I reviewed them thoroughly. The first link about no startup sounds seemed particularly similar, but the issue described is not present. My situation seems to be larger than 'no startup sounds' but smaller than 'no audio at all'.

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to track down a rogue attempted sound? I know there's easy ways to monitor the registry, or files accessed, is there a way to spot any audio commands?

It further complicates the debugging process that in safe mode, XP doesn't load any sounds. Is there a way to selectively enable audio in safe mode, or a similar process?

Thanks again for everyones help and concern, I have hope yet.

 

[linney]

Some general things to try.

See if System Restore will get you back to a restore point before your problem with Windows.

Run the System File Checker program from the Run Box by typing.....Sfc /Scannow in it and have your XP CD handy.

HOW TO: Verify Unsigned Device Drivers in Windows XP

http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q308/5/14.asp

If they don't work you could try repairing windows itself by running it over itself. You will lose all your windows updates but your files will be untouched.

How to Perform an In-Place Upgrade (Reinstallation) of Windows XP (Q315341)

http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q315/3/41.asp

 

[bcastner]

The unambiguous way to determine if another process has hijacked the file is to use the absolutely terrific freeware utility Process Explorer from sysinsternals:

http://www.sysinternals.com/ntw2k/freeware/procexp.shtml

You can kill the other process, or figure out other ways when you identify the rogue process using the file.

Strongly recommended for all to add to their toolkit.

 

[linney]

If you feel like experimenting -


The following registry key lists the driver and service groups enabled in safe mode:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\SafeBoot\Minimal

http://www.petri.co.il/safe_mode.htm

310353 - How to Perform a Clean Boot in Windows XP

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;310353&FR=1&PA=1&SD=HSCH

316434 - HOW TO: Perform Advanced Clean-Boot Troubleshooting in Windows XP

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;316434&FR=1&PA=1&SD=HSCH