[pip22]

Your problem is almost certainly caused by the Intel driver's incompatibility with Windows Vista, as confirmed by your statement that the same driver and same speaker setup works fine on Windows XP.

Alas, many early-adopters of Vista have fallen foul of driver incompatibility. Unless a particular driver is stated by it's developer to be 'Vista compatible', then it most likely won't work or won't work properly. The hardware manufacturers are currently playing "catch up" with their drivers which is why many who realise this situation have put off buying it even on pre-installed new systems until the drivers are available for the printers and scanners they already own.

In your case, anyone intending to build their own system, or install Vista on an existing one, should first ascertain if Vista drivers are available for each piece of hardware they have (or intend to buy) before going down that route.