Onboard Sound Card Not Detected:dv6736nr

all of a sudden my ONBOARD SOUND CARD is not detected.

all i see is an X mark on the speaker icon.

i cant really pinpoint the culprit but i do remembering doing the latest updates (this is a windows 7 ultimate system btw) and installing WINXP as a VM.


the SOUND BUTTON seems to be stuck. it just stays lit and i cant turn it off.

what i have done so far:

- tried to install vista drivers from hp.com, but obviously am unable to install it since its a win7 system. link to a win7 64 bit driver for a CONEXANT HIGH DEFINITION AUDIO 221.

- tried to do a system restore but fails.

- tried having win7 detect what the problem is and i come with a .reg file which supposedly contains the audio settings but i am unable to install it..

im running of ideas and your help guys will be really appreciated.

thanks.

 

Follow the Conexant HD Audio link in my signature.

 

dude thank you for your help.

but i think im more screwed than i think.

i think my onboard sound card may be fried! reason im unable to install any drivers i have tried and worse i cant find any SOUND/SOUNDCARD/AUDIO entry on my DEVICE MANAGER.

how would i know if my ONBOARD SOUND CARD is really FRIED and would i be able to replace it (which i doubt!)

thanks.

 

Yes it could be fried... and it's not replaceable either. I have busted the input on my DV9000 as well, only the internal mikes are still working.

Do you get anything under Other Devices? If not, your sound is toast. Buy an external card (i recommend a PCMCIA one, don't let that slot sit idle)... or a new motherboard.

 

well ill probably try to do a SYSTEM RESTORE from my WHS server and see if does anything.

i was looking at THIS since i dont want to be limited with just using a headset. would you know if there is a PCMCIA unit that comes with the specs. im looking for..

i guess getting a new motherboard will be costly and will probably get killed by the wifey, but for all intents and purposes.. do you have any suggestions/links where i can look up one?

thanks again dude.

 

Hmm, does it really need to have speakers? You can always hook any powered speakers to it when you use it at home, and have your headphones in the rest of the time. And my USB ports tend to get busy at times, so i'd certainly not want a USB soundcard taking a port for itself.

Newegg doesn't seem to have PCMCIA soundcards though. As for the board, you can either order it directly from HP, or go the cheaper ebay route. As long as you buy from a reputable seller i doubt you'll have trouble with ebay.

 

dude,

more bad news.. my onboard nic i dont think is working as well..

what are the chances of the onboard nic getting fried along with the onboard soundcard?

only difference is that i can still the onboard nic on the device manager unlike the sound card..

should i expect any more problems?

 

It sounds more and more like the classic nVidia chipset/video failure. Your motherboard is going bad.

 

Frank! what the heck!

like terminal cancer then? geez.. i knew i should have gone with a fujitsu all along. twas my reliable companion for 5 years! and took all the beating from me... ive had this crap for probably at most 2 years and its starting to fail me already..

thanks for the input dude,,, anything else i can do? mod wise perhaps.. i havent done anything to it really except for upgrades to memory, hd and OS...

 

You can send the board in for reflow. It's cheaper than buying a new board, and it should last you another year or so.

 

Fujitsus aren't any better: if you chose model with nvidia chipset and gpu it will fail just as certainly as similarly configured HP.

The you would curse just like now, only at another company

 

reflow?

think ill stand by FUJITSU. last one i had lasted me 5 years withstanding all the beating you can possibly imagine.. but then again probably depends where you get it from.. i got mine from HK...not that id know if US distributed FUJITSU's come also from the same region..

 

http://www.reflowrepairs.co.uk/

Or you can try to ghetto it yourself. I've saved a couple boards like this... If you can take the laptop apart and put it back in one piece (hint: service manual available free from HP), try this: Remove the motherboard, also remove CPU from motherboard. Cover everything except GPU and chipset with aluminum foil.

Now comes the fun part. Make 4 foil balls and put them under the corners of the mobo so the board doesn't directly touch the cooking tray. Yes i said cooking tray. Preheat oven to 210C, put board in and bake for 7 minutes. Mmm, nvidia flavored steak. Turn off oven, carefully open and retrieve tray. Keep it steady, any bump to the hot board will send parts flying and then it'll really be game over. Put the tray somewhere safe and allow to cool for at least 30 minutes. Assemble laptop back and keep your fingers crossed.

It's also a good idea to do the copper shim mod for the GPU while you're at it. It reduces the risk of the thing going bad again. You can also use a hot air gun instead of an oven, but i don't have one so i can't comment on that.

 

or u can do it like in this thread...

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=437683

 

interesting.. will try this on a SONY LAPTOP given to me that i thought is beyond repair... it'll just wont boot up and just will show a black screen with a blinking cursor on the top left side...

now, ill have to ask my wife how to run the oven..

 

That sounds like damaged BIOS. I don't think it'll get fixed by this method but it's always worth a shot.

 

with a damaged BIOS, wouldn't you be able to get into the BIOS setup? if i remember it right, with this unit i could... will know later after i dig it up from the basement..

 

No, if the BIOS is shot the board will do nothing at all.

 

Remove hard drive: if computer now boots and you get "disk not found" -error it probably was just broken hdd. Simple thing to do and saves lot of time troubleshooting if it's the cause

 

did that... replaced with different hd, same results..

btw the laptop ill be BAKING is a SONY VJN-FJ270. now sometime october 09' will i was trying to rule out what was wrong with it, i came across a site that showed me how to disassemble it.

now that im baking this son-of-a-gun, i can't find or remember the site.. anybody have any idea what site that was? it was very descriptive with pictures and stuff and did not charge for anything..

im still searching as of this writing, but if anybody has any idea what site to go to.. ill appreciate it...

 

nevermind.. GOT IT! only thing though is i got the motherboard out but i still have wires attached to it... will double check link with pictures just to be sure im not screwing what is already screwed..