Precision M4400 Owner's Lounge

What are you outputting to?

Do any of those programs have an audio option for S/PDIF?

I have only audio over DP using vlc player outputing through a DP to HDMI converter going into my receiver. It would only work when I set the audio device to S/PDIF.

 

"set the audio to S/PDIF" on VLC or on Sound Properties?

 

In VLC player.

 

Hi, I'm running Vista 64 and have installed the new sound card driver to try and fix a problem that I keep happening. The update didn't work so I was wondering if anyone knew what could be my problem. Basically every once and a while I get a Windows alert saying "Windows Audio has stopped working". I have the option to click "Check online for a solution" or "close". So basically i just check for a solution and my sound shuts off for a few second and then comes back. Why is this happening and how do i get rid of it?

 

@Xirurg

I first called dell outlet to see if they could search for one, but the first guy quickly said there wasn't any. So I decided to look at the whole inventory for a non-rgb WUXGA and hung up. I found 3 that fit my bill (non rgb of course) and called dell outlet to determine if any of them had a backlit keyboard. This next agent verified that none of the 3 I had were backlit. I asked him if he could do a quick search for a M4400 that had a t9400, 5300, and a WUXGA. First machine he picked (and it was a lucky pick) was the RGB version. I didn't care what the rest of the specs were - I wanted it. I was just fortunate that it had a 9cell, 250gb hd.

 

i have 2gb (x2 dimm) of DDR2 RAM installed in this thing i think... anyone recommend any particular ram? I'm looking to upgrade to 4gb

 

!I knew I should call them!crap!

but honestly,I don't care,since I sold mine for 1800$

 

My M4400 is acting a bit strange lately:

• Sometimes when I started my M4400 the display wasn't working. I had to attach an external monitor to see something. The tech guy from support asked me to open up the laptop and made me disconnect and reconnect the cable that connected the display with the mother board. Than everything worked fine but the problems reoccurred 2-3 times within one month.
• Some discs were unreadable by the optical drive. The tech guy from support asked me to upgrade to the latest firmware but the installer always returned an error saying the drive was not connected. He also asked me to remove some registry keys but this didn't help either.
• When running on battery power I got 2 Window alerts saying "Windows Event Log has stopped working" and "Windows Audio has stopped working". After these errors the sound was completely gone. When I plugged the power back in everything restored itself and the sound returned.

To fix the first 2 items a repair guy will come tomorrow to replace the display and the optical drive.
For the third item they are going to send me a Windows restore disc to restore the laptop to its factory settings. Than I have to check if the sound still drops when working on battery power. If the problem still exists after the restore it's probably a hardware failure and the mother board has to be switched also.

My confidence with the M4400 is very low at the moment. Would it be possible to ask for a refund or to switch the laptop for another model (Studio XPS 16)? The laptop is 5 weeks old (just before Christmas).

 

@StievieD

I would definetly ask for an upgrade if your issues aren't fixed after tomorrow. If they start alking about a motherboard replacement...DON'T let them...they'll most likely screw up more than fix so just ask for a replacement system

 

By the way, how do you use the third/middle button of the touchpad?