Bmocrab:
I don't mean to interfere w/Milton, but let's try a couple things here & see if the dog hunts:
The first thing to make certain of is that your speakers/headphones are connected properly, &, if speakers, that they're plugged in, turned on, the volume is sufficiently high, & no headphones are plugged in.
If all that is true, then:
1) Go to control panel by clicking start menu > control panel, or, if using classic style, start > settings > control panel;
2) If in category view, click classic view;
3) Click the + by the sounds & audio devices entry;
4) Your first tab here is the volume--make certain it's not turned down all the way. Another thing to note here is the advanced button--activate it. Note a mute checkbox for all sounds--make certain it's unchecked & make certain the checkbox to mute the wave driver is also unchecked;
5) Next, click the audio tab & make certain the proper device is selected. I don't know what that is precisely. I assume you're not using any kind of USB headset, so the device should just be your RealTech soundcard or something similar.
If everything seems in order, close out the sounds & audio devices aplet & go to the system aplet, still in control panel. Click the hardware tab, then activate the device manager button. Click the + by the sound, video, & game controllers & make certain there are no red x's or yellow ! marks by your soundcard. If you've got those, let us know.
Assuming all is well so far, u can close out control panel & then double-click windows media player. Click the tools menu, then options, then the devices tab. Make certain your soundcard is selected as the correct device.
If that is in order, close out the options menu, click file, then open. Navigate to where your music is & pick a selection. Did it work, or, if not, was there some sort of error message? If it didn't work, which file did u try to play? I'm particularly looking for the file extension, e.g., .mid, .mp3, .wav, etc.
Lastly, I've seen malware, especially viruses, on a system trash sound drivers. Generally what needs to happen if that's the case is to remove the malware, then remove the soundcard driver in device manager of control panel & restart. The sound driver will be reinstalled & work like a champ.
I've given u an *awful lot* of information. Take it slow. Don't get overwhelmed. Print out the post & follow me step by step. Let us know the results & we'll take it from there.
