Knowledge Base

Encarta Encyclopedia Err Msg: There Is a Problem with Your Sound Card Configuration...

Article ID: 224004

Article Last Modified on 1/24/2007

APPLIES TO

Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 97 Standard Edition
Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 97 Deluxe Edition
Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 98 Standard Edition
Microsoft Encarta Reference Suite 98
Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 99 Standard Edition
Microsoft Encarta Reference Suite 99
Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 99 Concise Edition
Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 99 Deluxe Edition

This article was previously published under Q224004

SYMPTOMS

When you attempt to play a sound in one of the programs listed at the beginning of this article, the sound may not be played, or you may receive the following error message:

There is a problem with your sound card configuration; Refer to your sound card documentation or windows help to make sure your sound card is installed properly.

CAUSE

This behavior can occur if the audio codec that the program uses to play sounds is missing, damaged, or installed improperly.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this issue, use the appropriate method for your version of Encarta Encyclopedia.

Encarta Encyclopedia 99 and Encarta Africana

To resolve this issue, copy the L3codeca.acm file from the Encarta Encyclopedia 99 or Encarta Africana Installation CD-ROM to the Windows\System folder on your hard disk, and then verify that the System.ini file is properly configured. To do this, follow these steps:

Insert the Installation and Resources CD-ROM for the program into your CD-ROM drive. Press and hold down the SHIFT key when you insert the CD-ROM to prevent the CD-ROM from starting automatically.
Click Start, and then click Run.
In the Open box, type the following line, and then click OK

drive:\aref\codec

where drive is the drive letter of the CD-ROM drive.
Right-click the L3codeca.acm file, and then click Copy.
Click Start, and then click Run.
In the Open box, type system, and then click OK.
On the Edit menu, click Paste. If you are prompted to overwrite the file, click Yes.
Click Start, and then click Run.
In the Open box, type system.ini, and then click OK.
In the following sections in the System.ini file, verify that each of the following lines are present:
```
[drivers]
wave=mmsystem.dll

[drivers32]
msacm.L3acm=L3codeca.acm

[mci]
waveaudio=mciwave.drv

                        
```
NOTE: If any of these lines do not appear in the System.ini file exactly as they are list above, type a semicolon (;) at the beginning of the line, press END, press ENTER, and then type the line exactly as it is listed above.
On the File menu, click Exit. If you are prompted to save the changes, click Yes.

Encarta 98 Encyclopedia and Earlier Versions

Insert the Microsoft Windows 95/98 installation CD-ROM into your CD-ROM drive. Press and hold down the SHIFT key when you insert the CD-ROM to prevent the CD-ROM from starting automatically.
Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
Double-click Add/Remove Programs.
Click the Windows Setup tab.
In the Components box, click Multimedia, and then click Details.
Click to clear the Audio Compression check box, click OK, and then click Apply.
In the Components box, click Multimedia, and then click Details.
Click to select the Audio Compression check box, click OK, and then click OK again.
Close Control Panel.

If the issue continues to occur, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

177038 Sounds Are Choppy or Not Played in Encarta and My Personal Tutor

MORE INFORMATION

Encarta Encyclopedia 99 and Encarta Africana use the Fraunhofer IIS MPEG Layer-3 codec for sound playback. Earlier versions of Encarta Encyclopedia use the standard Windows audio codecs for sound playback.

Additional query words: multi multi-media media mm ee99 eafr ee98 ee97 ee96

Keywords: kbenv kberrmsg kbprb kbsound KB224004

Microsoft KB Archive/224004

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