X-Fi Screech of Death

Personally I think the onboard sound chip sounds better anyway. I also had the SOD, along with many other X-Fi users. A replacement card will not help your situation from what I hear. I doubt if Windows 7 will correct the poor design of the latest Creative products. Just my opinion.

i replaced the Dell Branded X-FI card with an Asus Sound Card , im very happy with the Asus Card, please go to the Asus Sound card foums and read what asus owners say the good and bad of Asus sound cards ,

I have XPS 420, I also wrote about the SOD, sorry to sound ignorant but how did you bypass creative and go to onboard audio?

I physically removed my card and enabled the onboard sound in the bios. If you have Vista, it should automatically install the drivers. If not, you will have to install them manually. You can download the drivers from here for your XPS420 onboard sound chip:

http://support.dell.com/support/downloads/download.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=gen&releaseid=R157052&SystemID=DIM_PNT_9200_XPS_420&servicetag=&os=WLH&osl=en&deviceid=8907&devlib=0&typecnt=0&vercnt=1&catid=-1&impid=-1&formatcnt=1&libid=3&fileid=209657

I have XPS 420 with X-treme gamer card also have SOD issues, how did you go to onboard audio?

I have XPS 420 with X-treme gamer card also have SOD issues, how did you go to onboard audio?

Remove you sound card. Start your system and hit F2 several times while you see the Dell Logo. you should enter the bios. Now that your in system bios use your right arrow and hit enter on the "Advanced tab". Down arrow to "Integrated Peripherals"Down arrow to "Onboard Audio" Hit enter and select "Enable". Hit F10 and hit enter...Thats it.. Like I said before, the drivers should automatically install. If not, you need to manually install them.

Edit: Dont forget to plug your speakers into the green connector. There may be a black plastic cover that you have to remove covering the connector.

I tried new drivers from Creative for my X-Fi ExtremeGamer that came with my XPS730 a couple of months ago, and still got the dreaded SOD.

So far so good, have two 420's with the Xtreme Music cards and no SOD.  I am using the creative drivers direct from their website, dated from July I believe it is.

DId anyone try those drivers to see if they solved the issue?

So far so good, have two 420's with the Xtreme Music cards and no SOD.  I am using the creative drivers direct from their website, dated from July I believe it is. DId anyone try those drivers to see if they solved the issue?

I have been using the drivers from the creative site shortly after receiving my computer. I never had the SOD (probably jinxed myself there) - however I had the cracking and popping when loading webpages and scrolling. The 1.04 version of the bios for the 730 machines solved that issue. I'm more than pleased with the sound aspect of my machine now.

Well, I just recently had what I THINK is the screech of death. My speakers started squealing really loudly, my system froze, and it wouldn't stop until I rebooted my pc.   Is THAT what the SoD is?

Sure is. My system did the same exact thing a few times. But at least I was able to turn the volume down right away since I use a separate amplifier.  Almost blew out my speakers because the SOD was so much louder than the music i was playing. Since I'm now using the onboard sound chip for over 2 months , the SOD is no longer an issue.

Well, needless to say, I'm pretty peeved considering I bought this silicone piece of junk less than 2 months ago. I guess I'll have to use the onboard sound until I can get the money to buy an Auzentech or an HT Omage Claro Halo.

On a side note, is it possible to get my front I/O panel to worth with the onboard sound? If so, where do I plug it in?

Well, needless to say, I'm pretty peeved considering I bought this silicone piece of junk less than 2 months ago. I guess I'll have to use the onboard sound until I can get the money to buy an Auzentech or an HT Omage Claro Halo. On a side note, is it possible to get my front I/O panel to worth with the onboard sound? If so, where do I plug it in?

Yes you can very easily. The the front panel connection wire connects to the XPS730's motherboard. The connector is located in the upper right hand side of the motherboard near the edge. It's keyed and will only plug in one way if I remember correctly. I hope that helps.

EDIT: I see you have an XPS710. It's unfortunately a totally different setup than my XPS730. I suggest looking at the online manual, and look at your motherboard layout.

So far so good, have two 420's with the Xtreme Music cards and no SOD.  I am using the creative drivers direct from their website, dated from July I believe it is.   DId anyone try those drivers to see if they solved the issue?

I have a XPS 410 with the Xtreme Music cards and no SOD. I have been using the sound bar speaker. Will the SOD happen with the sound bar speaker or just with a speaker system?

[quote user="eskymi"] So far so good, have two 420's with the Xtreme Music cards and no SOD.  I am using the creative drivers direct from their website, dated from July I believe it is.   DId anyone try those drivers to see if they solved the issue?

I have a XPS 410 with the Xtreme Music cards and no SOD. I have been using the sound bar speaker. Will the SOD happen with the sound bar speaker or just with a speaker system?

[/quote]

It shouldn't make any difference what speakers you have connected unless the Creative sound card is very sensitive with the high impedance load of powered speakers which vary from speaker to speaker. (I doubt it though) Your Dell Sound Bar is powered with an internal amp just like the big boys BTW. I just think it's hit or miss with Creative cards, more on the miss side.