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Your computer does not have a sound card, or your sound card is not working correctly.
Another program is currently using your sound card, so it is not available for Windows Media Player to use.
No sound card is installed
Method 1: Install sound card
If you do not have a sound card installed, obtain and install one.
Method 2: Check the default devices
To do this in Windows XP, follow these steps:Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
Click Sound and Audio Devices, and then click Audio.
Make sure that the default devices are listed here.
Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
Click Sound and Audio Devices, and then click Audio.
Make sure that the default devices are listed here.
To do this in Windows Vista, follow these steps:Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
Click Sound, and then click Playback.
Make sure that the default devices are listed here
The sound card is not working correctly
Use one of the following methods.
Method 1: Test whether the sound is working correctly by using another program
Use another program different from Windows Media Player to see whether the sound card is working correctly. For example, click Start, click All Programs, click Accessories, click Entertainment, and then click Sound Recorder.
Method 2: Test whether the sound card drivers are working correctly
To do this in Windows XP, follow these steps: Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
Click System, click the Hardware tab, and then click Device Manager.
Under Sound, video and games controller, make sure that the sound card is listed.
Right-click the sound card, and then click Update Driver to install the latest driver.
Visit the Web site of the sound card manufacturer to determine whether a newer version of the driver is available to download.For information about how to contact the sound card manufacturer, click the appropriate article number in the following list to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
65416 Hardware and software vendor contact information, A-K
60781 Hardware and software vendor contact information, L-P
60782 Hardware and software vendor contact information, Q-Z
Another program is using your sound card
If you have a sound card in your Windows NT-based or Windows 95-based computer, verify that no other programs that need your sound card are running. If such programs are running, exit those programs.
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Hardware Acceleration Slider Is Set too High
If the Hardware acceleration slider is not set to None, move the Hardware acceleration slider to a notch closer to None.
To do this in Windows XP, follow these steps: Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
Click Sounds, Speech, and Audio Devices, and then click Sounds and Audio Devices (or, in Classic View, click only Sound and Audio Devices).
Click the Audio tab, and then click the Advanced button under Sound Playback.
Click the Performance tab, and then move the Hardware acceleration slider to a notch closer to None.
Click OK, and then click OK again.
Click Yes if you are prompted to restart your computer.
