This is a copy of my contribution to another thread No Sound From Headphone Jack With Realtek Hd Audio Device
http://www.softwaretipsandtricks.com...io-device.html. I've raised it as a new thread to increase the chance of people seeing it, because although it's related to that symptom, it is actually a symptom that has not been described yet.
I'm having two problems with the Reatek HD Audio soundcard in my new Acer 2942 WMLi laptop.
First of all, although the sound from the mike or the line in records perfectly well, instant messenger and chat programs such as Paltalk or MSN have appalling sound quality - very distorted and mushy. This is evident even in local "sound test" menus, and so is not a networking/internet issue - it's to do with the feed of data from the sound card to Paltalk etc.
Secondly, at a random time after talking on Paltalk, the "Stereo mix" input to the recording mixer stops working. Normally anything that can be heard through the speakers (wave, mike etc) becomes available to be recorded or to be output through Paltalk or MSN Messenger. However this input often suddenly fails: even though sound can be heard, it is no longer recordable. Mike and line-in inputs still work fine. Only a reboot cures the problem.
Looks as if some software packages knacker the sound card's capabilities.
It's not just my PC. A friend with a 2942 has similar problems.
(By the way, does anyone know why Acer build their laptops with the hard disks formatted as FAT32 rather than NTFS? Has anyone converted from FAT32 to NTFS using the DOS "convert c: /fs:ntfs" command? Does everything work OK, or should I avoid doing it?)