playback stuttering and slow song loading

I am having windows media player 11 playback problems. This issue never was a
problem when I was beta testing Vista, only recently (since I’ve had a
registered copy).

The symptoms are simple: any time I am playing music (almost always mp3’s)
the computer takes about 5 seconds to load up the song, or even change songs.
More importantly, during the playback- the sound stutters once to three times
in every song (about one to three seconds skipping at a time). The problem
actually sounds somewhat like the computer is being overloaded and can’t keep
up with playing music.

I have a gateway m-285e with core duo 2.0ghz processors, a gig of 667mhz
ram, and an ati x1400 graphics card. The audio is by Sigma Tel and I have
updated to the most recent drivers. I have tried to roll back the driver to
the generic Microsoft one but Vista will not allow me to.

This sound problem is only evident in windows media player 11. I have not
noticed it while streaming music online, playing games, or watching movies in
divX. Also, it does this even when the player is the only program running
(besides the windows essentials) and the cpu and ram usage are minimal.

I have a second problem which is not allowing me to chat directly with a
tech support person. I have an activated edition of windows Vista business
that I purchased from my university. I do not know why the online chat,
e-mail, and phone service will not work with the product ID I have.

Any help would be greatly appreciated-

hdc4@hotmail.com

This will fix it right up for you:

Go to control panel, sound, select speakers and properties, go to
enhancements tab, and check 'disable all enhancements'

Not sure what the enhancement does, but I haven't noticed any difference in
sound quality after disabling them all, and WMP11 plays songs instantly now.

"hdc4@hotmail.com" wrote:

> I am having windows media player 11 playback problems. This issue never was a
> problem when I was beta testing Vista, only recently (since I’ve had a
> registered copy).
>
> The symptoms are simple: any time I am playing music (almost always mp3’s)
> the computer takes about 5 seconds to load up the song, or even change songs.
> More importantly, during the playback- the sound stutters once to three times
> in every song (about one to three seconds skipping at a time). The problem
> actually sounds somewhat like the computer is being overloaded and can’t keep
> up with playing music.
>
> I have a gateway m-285e with core duo 2.0ghz processors, a gig of 667mhz
> ram, and an ati x1400 graphics card. The audio is by Sigma Tel and I have
> updated to the most recent drivers. I have tried to roll back the driver to
> the generic Microsoft one but Vista will not allow me to.
>
> This sound problem is only evident in windows media player 11. I have not
> noticed it while streaming music online, playing games, or watching movies in
> divX. Also, it does this even when the player is the only program running
> (besides the windows essentials) and the cpu and ram usage are minimal.
>
> I have a second problem which is not allowing me to chat directly with a
> tech support person. I have an activated edition of windows Vista business
> that I purchased from my university. I do not know why the online chat,
> e-mail, and phone service will not work with the product ID I have.
>
> Any help would be greatly appreciated-
>
> hdc4@hotmail.com
>

I spent about two hours talking over the problem with Gateway. We came to the
consensus that the Sigma Tel audio driver 6.10.51** was causing the problem.
(For some strange reason the only problem was in WMP11.) I was able to get
the most recent driver 6.10.5337.0 (only a few weeks newer than the one I
had) and the problem has been solved. Media playback is much better. Sorry
Ben, I don’t use any of the enhancements but thanks for trying.

I am still having a problem getting any support from Microsoft even though
I have a new activated copy of windows. The support log on site will not
accept my code. (#@!?)


"Ben" wrote:

> This will fix it right up for you:
>
> Go to control panel, sound, select speakers and properties, go to
> enhancements tab, and check 'disable all enhancements'
>
> Not sure what the enhancement does, but I haven't noticed any difference in
> sound quality after disabling them all, and WMP11 plays songs instantly now.
>
> "hdc4@hotmail.com" wrote:
>
> > I am having windows media player 11 playback problems. This issue never was a
> > problem when I was beta testing Vista, only recently (since I’ve had a
> > registered copy).
> >
> > The symptoms are simple: any time I am playing music (almost always mp3’s)
> > the computer takes about 5 seconds to load up the song, or even change songs.
> > More importantly, during the playback- the sound stutters once to three times
> > in every song (about one to three seconds skipping at a time). The problem
> > actually sounds somewhat like the computer is being overloaded and can’t keep
> > up with playing music.
> >
> > I have a gateway m-285e with core duo 2.0ghz processors, a gig of 667mhz
> > ram, and an ati x1400 graphics card. The audio is by Sigma Tel and I have
> > updated to the most recent drivers. I have tried to roll back the driver to
> > the generic Microsoft one but Vista will not allow me to.
> >
> > This sound problem is only evident in windows media player 11. I have not
> > noticed it while streaming music online, playing games, or watching movies in
> > divX. Also, it does this even when the player is the only program running
> > (besides the windows essentials) and the cpu and ram usage are minimal.
> >
> > I have a second problem which is not allowing me to chat directly with a
> > tech support person. I have an activated edition of windows Vista business
> > that I purchased from my university. I do not know why the online chat,
> > e-mail, and phone service will not work with the product ID I have.
> >
> > Any help would be greatly appreciated-
> >
> > hdc4@hotmail.com
> >

I didnt use any of the enhancements either - they are all 'off' by default,
but for whatever reason, as soon as you go and check the 'disable all
enhancements' button, it corrects the problem. Did you try it at least? I
was having exactly the same symptoms as you, and found another forum that
suggested this, it worked for everyone there. I'd try it, if you haven't
already.

"hdc4@hotmail.com" wrote:

> I spent about two hours talking over the problem with Gateway. We came to the
> consensus that the Sigma Tel audio driver 6.10.51** was causing the problem.
> (For some strange reason the only problem was in WMP11.) I was able to get
> the most recent driver 6.10.5337.0 (only a few weeks newer than the one I
> had) and the problem has been solved. Media playback is much better. Sorry
> Ben, I don’t use any of the enhancements but thanks for trying.
>
> I am still having a problem getting any support from Microsoft even though
> I have a new activated copy of windows. The support log on site will not
> accept my code. (#@!?)
>
>
> "Ben" wrote:
>
> > This will fix it right up for you:
> >
> > Go to control panel, sound, select speakers and properties, go to
> > enhancements tab, and check 'disable all enhancements'
> >
> > Not sure what the enhancement does, but I haven't noticed any difference in
> > sound quality after disabling them all, and WMP11 plays songs instantly now.
> >
> > "hdc4@hotmail.com" wrote:
> >
> > > I am having windows media player 11 playback problems. This issue never was a
> > > problem when I was beta testing Vista, only recently (since I’ve had a
> > > registered copy).
> > >
> > > The symptoms are simple: any time I am playing music (almost always mp3’s)
> > > the computer takes about 5 seconds to load up the song, or even change songs.
> > > More importantly, during the playback- the sound stutters once to three times
> > > in every song (about one to three seconds skipping at a time). The problem
> > > actually sounds somewhat like the computer is being overloaded and can’t keep
> > > up with playing music.
> > >
> > > I have a gateway m-285e with core duo 2.0ghz processors, a gig of 667mhz
> > > ram, and an ati x1400 graphics card. The audio is by Sigma Tel and I have
> > > updated to the most recent drivers. I have tried to roll back the driver to
> > > the generic Microsoft one but Vista will not allow me to.
> > >
> > > This sound problem is only evident in windows media player 11. I have not
> > > noticed it while streaming music online, playing games, or watching movies in
> > > divX. Also, it does this even when the player is the only program running
> > > (besides the windows essentials) and the cpu and ram usage are minimal.
> > >
> > > I have a second problem which is not allowing me to chat directly with a
> > > tech support person. I have an activated edition of windows Vista business
> > > that I purchased from my university. I do not know why the online chat,
> > > e-mail, and phone service will not work with the product ID I have.
> > >
> > > Any help would be greatly appreciated-
> > >
> > > hdc4@hotmail.com
> > >

I upgraded to 6.10.0.5343 and it didn't do squat. Yahoo jukebox 2 which
came with the new dell pc won't work either. never did. this is really
pissing me off

"hdc4@hotmail.com" wrote:

> I spent about two hours talking over the problem with Gateway. We came to the
> consensus that the Sigma Tel audio driver 6.10.51** was causing the problem.
> (For some strange reason the only problem was in WMP11.) I was able to get
> the most recent driver 6.10.5337.0 (only a few weeks newer than the one I
> had) and the problem has been solved. Media playback is much better. Sorry
> Ben, I don’t use any of the enhancements but thanks for trying.
>
> I am still having a problem getting any support from Microsoft even though
> I have a new activated copy of windows. The support log on site will not
> accept my code. (#@!?)
>
>
> "Ben" wrote:
>
> > This will fix it right up for you:
> >
> > Go to control panel, sound, select speakers and properties, go to
> > enhancements tab, and check 'disable all enhancements'
> >
> > Not sure what the enhancement does, but I haven't noticed any difference in
> > sound quality after disabling them all, and WMP11 plays songs instantly now.
> >
> > "hdc4@hotmail.com" wrote:
> >
> > > I am having windows media player 11 playback problems. This issue never was a
> > > problem when I was beta testing Vista, only recently (since I’ve had a
> > > registered copy).
> > >
> > > The symptoms are simple: any time I am playing music (almost always mp3’s)
> > > the computer takes about 5 seconds to load up the song, or even change songs.
> > > More importantly, during the playback- the sound stutters once to three times
> > > in every song (about one to three seconds skipping at a time). The problem
> > > actually sounds somewhat like the computer is being overloaded and can’t keep
> > > up with playing music.
> > >
> > > I have a gateway m-285e with core duo 2.0ghz processors, a gig of 667mhz
> > > ram, and an ati x1400 graphics card. The audio is by Sigma Tel and I have
> > > updated to the most recent drivers. I have tried to roll back the driver to
> > > the generic Microsoft one but Vista will not allow me to.
> > >
> > > This sound problem is only evident in windows media player 11. I have not
> > > noticed it while streaming music online, playing games, or watching movies in
> > > divX. Also, it does this even when the player is the only program running
> > > (besides the windows essentials) and the cpu and ram usage are minimal.
> > >
> > > I have a second problem which is not allowing me to chat directly with a
> > > tech support person. I have an activated edition of windows Vista business
> > > that I purchased from my university. I do not know why the online chat,
> > > e-mail, and phone service will not work with the product ID I have.
> > >
> > > Any help would be greatly appreciated-
> > >
> > > hdc4@hotmail.com
> > >

Please can you stick to one or other thread, not all threads. Ta

Cheers - Neil

On Fri, 2 Mar 2007 21:18:00 -0800, Pissed off Wes <Pissed off
Wes@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote:

>I upgraded to 6.10.0.5343 and it didn't do squat. Yahoo jukebox 2 which
>came with the new dell pc won't work either. never did. this is really
>pissing me off
>
>"hdc4@hotmail.com" wrote:
>
>> I spent about two hours talking over the problem with Gateway. We came to the
>> consensus that the Sigma Tel audio driver 6.10.51** was causing the problem.
>> (For some strange reason the only problem was in WMP11.) I was able to get
>> the most recent driver 6.10.5337.0 (only a few weeks newer than the one I
>> had) and the problem has been solved. Media playback is much better. Sorry
>> Ben, I don’t use any of the enhancements but thanks for trying.
>>
>> I am still having a problem getting any support from Microsoft even though
>> I have a new activated copy of windows. The support log on site will not
>> accept my code. (#@!?)
>>
>>
>> "Ben" wrote:
>>
>> > This will fix it right up for you:
>> >
>> > Go to control panel, sound, select speakers and properties, go to
>> > enhancements tab, and check 'disable all enhancements'
>> >
>> > Not sure what the enhancement does, but I haven't noticed any difference in
>> > sound quality after disabling them all, and WMP11 plays songs instantly now.
>> >
>> > "hdc4@hotmail.com" wrote:
>> >
>> > > I am having windows media player 11 playback problems. This issue never was a
>> > > problem when I was beta testing Vista, only recently (since I’ve had a
>> > > registered copy).
>> > >
>> > > The symptoms are simple: any time I am playing music (almost always mp3’s)
>> > > the computer takes about 5 seconds to load up the song, or even change songs.
>> > > More importantly, during the playback- the sound stutters once to three times
>> > > in every song (about one to three seconds skipping at a time). The problem
>> > > actually sounds somewhat like the computer is being overloaded and can’t keep
>> > > up with playing music.
>> > >
>> > > I have a gateway m-285e with core duo 2.0ghz processors, a gig of 667mhz
>> > > ram, and an ati x1400 graphics card. The audio is by Sigma Tel and I have
>> > > updated to the most recent drivers. I have tried to roll back the driver to
>> > > the generic Microsoft one but Vista will not allow me to.
>> > >
>> > > This sound problem is only evident in windows media player 11. I have not
>> > > noticed it while streaming music online, playing games, or watching movies in
>> > > divX. Also, it does this even when the player is the only program running
>> > > (besides the windows essentials) and the cpu and ram usage are minimal.
>> > >
>> > > I have a second problem which is not allowing me to chat directly with a
>> > > tech support person. I have an activated edition of windows Vista business
>> > > that I purchased from my university. I do not know why the online chat,
>> > > e-mail, and phone service will not work with the product ID I have.
>> > >
>> > > Any help would be greatly appreciated-
>> > >
>> > > hdc4@hotmail.com
>> > >
------------------------------------------------
Digital Media MVP : 2004-2007
http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/mvpfaqs

[sciencemagic]

I have had this problem ever since I bought my new Dell E1505. I have a Sigmatel 9200 sound card. I have dual boot Vista and Windows XP. In XP the sound is fine. In Vista it always stutters. I tried the solution of disabling the sound enhancements, but it did not help me.

What DOES work for me is turning off the onboard wireless. I've read in other forums that there is some kind of conflict between the wireless card and the sound card that causes the music to stumble. Turning off the card (at least on my computer) causes the problem to go away. I've also heard you can use a USB wireless adapter instead, and you won't have the problem.

Obviously this is not a very good solution, since it means I can't listen to music while surfing. But at least it is a solution! Now the question is, who is responsible? Dell? Microsoft? Sigmatel? I'm sure they will all pass the buck!

Here's another forum about this issue: http://www.notebookforums.com/thread192513.html

On Mon, 26 Mar 2007 12:27:40 +0530, sciencemagic
<sciencemagic.2o1k3e@DoNotSpam.com> wrote:

>
>I have had this problem ever since I bought my new Dell E1505. I have a
>Sigmatel 9200 sound card. I have dual boot Vista and Windows XP. In XP
>the sound is fine. In Vista it always stutters. I tried the solution
>of disabling the sound enhancements, but it did not help me.


You should have also followed the first part of the instructions,
which were to update the sound card drivers using the download
provided on the Dell support site.


>What DOES work for me is turning off the onboard wireless. I've read
>in other forums that there is some kind of conflict between the
>wireless card and the sound card that causes the music to stumble.


Look in Control Panel, System then choose Hardware Manager.
Try to see if there's a yellow exclamation mark next to either the
sound device or the wifi device, indicating a conflict between memory
address, DMA or interrrupt (IRQ) use between the devices. Manually
move one to a different set of settings.


>question is, who is responsible? Dell? Microsoft? Sigmatel? I'm sure
>they will all pass the buck!

Sigmatel only make the hardware - they supply that hardware directly
to OEMs like Dell and Gateway. Microsoft make the OS and media player
software which uses the device driver layer to talk to the hardware..

Dell wrote and supplied the drivers for the device, and it's them you
should be contacting through their usual "support" channels.

Cheers - Neil
------------------------------------------------
Digital Media MVP : 2004-2007
http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/mvpfaqs

[sciencemagic]

Thanks for the advice! Unfortunately it didn't help. :( Downloading the latest Sigmatel drivers from Dell's web site just makes WMP slow to start up, and doesn't solve the stuttering issue. There are no device conflicts. I'm thinking the conflict is hidden, and not "user serviceable."

Oh well, I can always boot into XP when I want to play music. It just seems like someone at Microsoft would have tested this out before they released Vista!

Did you disable the audio Enhancements on your sound card? Problematic
Enhancements can cause this behavior, and the issue can be found on any
audio playback when bad enhancements are in the mix.

--
Speaking for myself only.
See http://zachd.com/pss/pss.html for some helpful WMP info.
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.
--

"sciencemagic" <sciencemagic.2obl7j@DoNotSpam.com> wrote in message
news:sciencemagic.2obl7j@DoNotSpam.com...
>
> Thanks for the advice! Unfortunately it didn't help. :( Downloading
> the latest Sigmatel drivers from Dell's web site just makes WMP slow to
> start up, and doesn't solve the stuttering issue. There are no device
> conflicts. I'm thinking the conflict is hidden, and not "user
> serviceable."
>
> Oh well, I can always boot into XP when I want to play music. It just
> seems like someone at Microsoft would have tested this out before they
> released Vista!
>
>
> --
> sciencemagic
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> sciencemagic's Profile: http://forums.techarena.in/members/23850.htm
> View this thread: playback stuttering and slow song loading
>
> http://forums.techarena.in
>

[sciencemagic]

Yeah, I tried that "fix" early on, but it didn't help. I'm messing with disabling the 802.11a, which I've been told helps.

hey can anyone tell me how i can to enhancements tab in Vista...
plzzz



On Feb 28, 12:27 am, Ben <B...@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote:
> This will fix it right up for you:
>
> Go to control panel, sound, select speakers and properties, go to
> enhancements tab, and check 'disable all enhancements'
>
> Not sure what the enhancement does, but I haven't noticed any difference in
> sound quality after disabling them all, and WMP11 plays songs instantly now.
>
> "h...@hotmail.com" wrote:
> > I am having windows media player 11 playback problems. This issue never was a
> > problem when I was beta testing Vista, only recently (since I've had a
> > registered copy).
>
> > The symptoms are simple: any time I am playing music (almost always mp3's)
> > the computer takes about 5 seconds to load up the song, or even change songs.
> > More importantly, during the playback- the sound stutters once to three times
> > in every song (about one to three seconds skipping at a time). The problem
> > actually sounds somewhat like the computer is being overloaded and can't keep
> > up with playing music.
>
> > I have a gateway m-285e with core duo 2.0ghz processors, a gig of 667mhz
> > ram, and an ati x1400 graphics card. The audio is by Sigma Tel and I have
> > updated to the most recent drivers. I have tried to roll back the driver to
> > the generic Microsoft one but Vista will not allow me to.
>
> > This sound problem is only evident in windows media player 11. I have not
> > noticed it while streaming music online, playing games, or watching movies in
> > divX. Also, it does this even when the player is the only program running
> > (besides the windows essentials) and the cpu and ram usage are minimal.
>
> > I have a second problem which is not allowing me to chat directly with a
> > tech support person. I have an activated edition of windows Vista business
> > that I purchased from my university. I do not know why the online chat,
> > e-mail, and phone service will not work with the product ID I have.
>
> > Any help would be greatly appreciated-
>
> > h...@hotmail.com

"Go to control panel, sound, select speakers and properties, go to
enhancements tab, and check 'disable all enhancements'" ?

Cheers - Neil

On 17 Apr 2007 09:27:32 -0700, bishek@gmail.com wrote:

>hey can anyone tell me how i can to enhancements tab in Vista...
>>
>> Go to control panel, sound, select speakers and properties, go to
>> enhancements tab, and check 'disable all enhancements'
------------------------------------------------
Digital Media MVP : 2004-2007
http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/mvpfaqs

On Feb 27, 10:27 am, Ben <B...@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote:
> This will fix it right up for you:
>
> Go to control panel, sound, select speakers and properties, go to
> enhancements tab, and check 'disable all enhancements'
>
> Not sure what the enhancement does, but I haven't noticed any difference in
> sound quality after disabling them all, and WMP11 plays songs instantly now.
>
> "h...@hotmail.com" wrote:
> > I am havingwindowsmediaplayer11 playback problems. This issue never was a
> > problem when I was beta testing Vista, only recently (since I've had a
> > registered copy).
>
> > The symptoms are simple: any time I amplayingmusic (almost alwaysmp3's)
> > the computer takes about 5 seconds to load up the song, or even change songs.
> > More importantly, during the playback- the soundstuttersonce to three times
> > in every song (about one to three seconds skipping at a time). The problem
> > actually sounds somewhat like the computer is being overloaded and can't keep
> > up withplayingmusic.
>
> > I have a gateway m-285e with core duo 2.0ghz processors, a gig of 667mhz
> > ram, and an ati x1400 graphics card. The audio is by Sigma Tel and I have
> > updated to the most recent drivers. I have tried to rollbackthe driver to
> > the generic Microsoft one but Vista will not allow me to.
>
> > This sound problem is only evident inwindowsmediaplayer11. I have not
> > noticed it while streaming music online,playinggames, or watching movies in
> > divX. Also, it does this even when theplayeris the only program running
> > (besides thewindowsessentials) and the cpu and ram usage are minimal.
>
> > I have a second problem which is not allowing me to chat directly with a
> > tech support person. I have an activated edition ofwindowsVista business
> > that I purchased from my university. I do not know why the online chat,
> > e-mail, and phone service will not work with the product ID I have.
>
> > Any help would be greatly appreciated-
>
> > h...@hotmail.com

yup, thanks...turning off enhancements definitely solved it for me.
Playback was brutal up until then. Funny thing was it was only for
MP3s, windows media files were fine.

thank you so much! finally got the music to play like it should!!

"christian.giarretta@gmail.com" wrote:

> On Feb 27, 10:27 am, Ben <B...@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote:
> > This will fix it right up for you:
> >
> > Go to control panel, sound, select speakers and properties, go to
> > enhancements tab, and check 'disable all enhancements'
> >
> > Not sure what the enhancement does, but I haven't noticed any difference in
> > sound quality after disabling them all, and WMP11 plays songs instantly now.
> >
> > "h...@hotmail.com" wrote:
> > > I am havingwindowsmediaplayer11 playback problems. This issue never was a
> > > problem when I was beta testing Vista, only recently (since I've had a
> > > registered copy).
> >
> > > The symptoms are simple: any time I amplayingmusic (almost alwaysmp3's)
> > > the computer takes about 5 seconds to load up the song, or even change songs.
> > > More importantly, during the playback- the soundstuttersonce to three times
> > > in every song (about one to three seconds skipping at a time). The problem
> > > actually sounds somewhat like the computer is being overloaded and can't keep
> > > up withplayingmusic.
> >
> > > I have a gateway m-285e with core duo 2.0ghz processors, a gig of 667mhz
> > > ram, and an ati x1400 graphics card. The audio is by Sigma Tel and I have
> > > updated to the most recent drivers. I have tried to rollbackthe driver to
> > > the generic Microsoft one but Vista will not allow me to.
> >
> > > This sound problem is only evident inwindowsmediaplayer11. I have not
> > > noticed it while streaming music online,playinggames, or watching movies in
> > > divX. Also, it does this even when theplayeris the only program running
> > > (besides thewindowsessentials) and the cpu and ram usage are minimal.
> >
> > > I have a second problem which is not allowing me to chat directly with a
> > > tech support person. I have an activated edition ofwindowsVista business
> > > that I purchased from my university. I do not know why the online chat,
> > > e-mail, and phone service will not work with the product ID I have.
> >
> > > Any help would be greatly appreciated-
> >
> > > h...@hotmail.com
>
> yup, thanks...turning off enhancements definitely solved it for me.
> Playback was brutal up until then. Funny thing was it was only for
> MP3s, windows media files were fine.
>
>