Audio stuttering and slow overall computer performance

Question

Hi all, unfortunately this is not the way I'd like to do my first post, but this is a copy of an email I have just sent to the Dell Support site. Hopefully by posting this here as well I can double the chances of getting a solution.   During the weekend of the 7-9th of December this year, I have suddenly begun to experience frustrating problems with my Inspiron 6400. The problems I am having are, and please excuse me as I try and explain to the best of my ability what is happening. Thankyou in advance for wading through all that follows.. 1,  VERY slow bootup process, remaining on the Windows Xp screen for well over a minute, black for 30-40 seconds before an equal amount of time spent on the 'Welcome' screen before another lengthy time spent on just my desktop background before the desktop icons appear and the icon tray programmes begin to load. 2, Seemingly escessive amount of fan use. I am unsure whether this is the cpu or video card fan. Fan use during bootup and near constant during application programme use. 3, Control panel view of CPU usage seems to show more than expected waveform spikes when idle. Dual view of CPU graphs (dual core both cpus), the left graph seem to be constantly spiking near the top of the graph whilst the right shows nominal activity. This is happening when the CPU usage pecentage ranges from 0 to around 60%ish. Right graph spikes heavily when programmes are used. (Average amount of processes shown via the control panel is around 58-60)   Although I have notice that in the past day or so, if left unattended for a while these graphs tend to flatten out with nominal movement as opposed to heavy spiking. 4, Relatively slow application start time compare to before the stated time of these problems begining. Laggy open window minimising and when the windows are dragged across screen the movements are jerky and not smooth. Especially when two or more windows are open. Lag in programmes if more then one is open (eg photoshop and Daz studio or Bryce - 3d graphic programmes). 5, Audio stuttering and distortion with Windows Starting jingle, and often other windows based sounds such as error dings. Audio skipping when playing video files in windows media player, divx player and real player - same file played in each player with similar results. When running games (eg Hellgate London) audio is distorted and stuttering constatny from the begining of the game. Game speed is also noticably reduced compared to before and game loading times are increased. 6, Mouse can occasionally lag in movement, freezing then reappearing to the point where the mouse pointer should be. Problem occurs with both touchpad and external mouse. 7, Only have dialup internet at home as I only rarely use the laptop for internet purposes - but recent attempts have had a very distorted and stuttering dialtone, problems with timing out and inability to connect to the Dell and Microsoft sites. Below are segments of a DxDiag from the 15th of December showing my system specs and installed hard/software for evaluation. ------------------System Information------------------Time of this report: 12/15/2007, 08:34:05       Machine name: DCS7TP1S   Operating System: Windows XP Professional (5.1, Build 2600) Service Pack 2 (2600.xpsp.051011-1528)           Language: English (Regional Setting: English)System Manufacturer: Dell Inc.       System Model: MM061                                         BIOS: Phoenix ROM BIOS PLUS Version 1.10 A17          Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 CPU         T5300  @ 1.73GHz (2 CPUs)             Memory: 2046MB RAM          Page File: 419MB used, 3520MB available        Windows Dir: C:\WINDOWS    DirectX Version: DirectX 9.0c (4.09.0000.0904)DX Setup Parameters: Not found     DxDiag Version: 5.03.2600.2180 32bit Unicode ------------DxDiag Notes------------  DirectX Files Tab: No problems found.      Display Tab 1: No problems found. DirectDraw test results: All tests were successful. Direct3D 7 test results: All tests were successful. Direct3D 8 test results: All tests were successful. Direct3D 9 test results: All tests were successful.        Sound Tab 1: DirectSound test results: All tests were successful.          Music Tab: DirectMusic test results: All tests were successful.          Input Tab: No problems found.        Network Tab: No problems found. DirectPlay test results: The tests were cancelled before completing. --------------------DirectX Debug Levels--------------------Direct3D:    0/4 (n/a)DirectDraw:  0/4 (retail)DirectInput: 0/5 (n/a)DirectMusic: 0/5 (n/a)DirectPlay:  0/9 (retail)DirectSound: 0/5 (retail)DirectShow:  0/6 (retail) ---------------Display Devices---------------        Card name: NVIDIA GeForce Go 7300     Manufacturer: NVIDIA        Chip type: GeForce Go 7300         DAC type: Integrated RAMDAC       Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_01D7&SUBSYS_20031028&REV_A1   Display Memory: 256.0 MB     Current Mode: 1440 x 900 (32 bit) (60Hz)          Monitor: Plug and Play Monitor  Monitor Max Res: 1600,1200      Driver Name: nv4_disp.dll   Driver Version: 6.14.0010.8469 (English)      DDI Version: 9 (or higher)Driver Attributes: Final Retail Driver Date/Size: 5/1/2006 15:46:00, 3976704 bytes      WHQL Logo'd: Yes  WHQL Date Stamp: n/a              VDD: n/a         Mini VDD: nv4_mini.sys    Mini VDD Date: 5/1/2006 15:46:00, 3653280 bytesDevice Identifier: {D7B71E3E-4297-11CF-8D52-090000C2CB35}        Vendor ID: 0x10DE        Device ID: 0x01D7        SubSys ID: 0x20031028      Revision ID: 0x00A1      Revision ID: 0x00A1      Video Accel: ModeMPEG2_A ModeMPEG2_B ModeMPEG2_C ModeMPEG2_D ModeWMV9_B ModeWMV9_A Deinterlace Caps: {212DC724-3235-44A4-BD29-E1652BBCC71C}: Format(In/Out)=(YUY2,YUY2) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,1) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_PixelAdaptive                   {335AA36E-7884-43A4-9C91-7F87FAF3E37E}: Format(In/Out)=(YUY2,YUY2) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,0) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_BOBVerticalStretch                   {212DC724-3235-44A4-BD29-E1652BBCC71C}: Format(In/Out)=(UYVY,UYVY) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,1) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_PixelAdaptive                   {335AA36E-7884-43A4-9C91-7F87FAF3E37E}: Format(In/Out)=(UYVY,UYVY) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,0) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_BOBVerticalStretch                   {212DC724-3235-44A4-BD29-E1652BBCC71C}: Format(In/Out)=(YV12,0x32315659) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,1) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_PixelAdaptive                   {335AA36E-7884-43A4-9C91-7F87FAF3E37E}: Format(In/Out)=(YV12,0x32315659) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,0) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_BOBVerticalStretch                   {212DC724-3235-44A4-BD29-E1652BBCC71C}: Format(In/Out)=(NV12,0x3231564e) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,1) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_PixelAdaptive                   {335AA36E-7884-43A4-9C91-7F87FAF3E37E}: Format(In/Out)=(NV12,0x3231564e) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,0) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_BOBVerticalStretch         Registry: OK     DDraw Status: Enabled       D3D Status: Enabled       AGP Status: EnabledDDraw Test Result: All tests were successful. D3D7 Test Result: All tests were successful. D3D8 Test Result: All tests were successful. D3D9 Test Result: All tests were successful. -------------Sound Devices-------------            Description: SigmaTel Audio Default Sound Playback: Yes Default Voice Playback: Yes            Hardware ID: HDAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_8384&DEV_7690&SUBSYS_102801BD&REV_1022        Manufacturer ID: 1             Product ID: 100                   Type: WDM            Driver Name: sthda.sys         Driver Version: 5.10.5515.0000 (English)      Driver Attributes: Final Retail            WHQL Logo'd: Yes          Date and Size: 5/10/2007 10:24:34, 1222840 bytes            Other Files:        Driver Provider: SigmaTel         HW Accel Level: Full              Cap Flags: 0xB5B    Min/Max Sample Rate: 44100, 96000Static/Strm HW Mix Bufs: 1, 0 Static/Strm HW 3D Bufs: 0, 0              HW Memory: 0       Voice Management: No EAX(tm) 2.0 Listen/Src: No, No   I3DL2(tm) Listen/Src: No, NoSensaura(tm) ZoomFX(tm): No               Registry: OK      Sound Test Result: All tests were successful. ---------------------Sound Capture Devices---------------------            Description: SigmaTel Audio  Default Sound Capture: Yes  Default Voice Capture: Yes            Driver Name: sthda.sys         Driver Version: 5.10.5515.0000 (English)      Driver Attributes: Final Retail          Date and Size: 5/10/2007 10:24:34, 1222840 bytes              Cap Flags: 0x41           Format Flags: 0xCC0 -----------DirectMusic-----------        DLS Path: C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\drivers\GM.DLS     DLS Version: 1.00.0016.0002    Acceleration: n/a           Ports: Microsoft Synthesizer, Software (Not Kernel Mode), Output, DLS, Internal, Default Port                  Microsoft MIDI Mapper [Emulated], Hardware (Not Kernel Mode), Output, No DLS, Internal                  Microsoft GS Wavetable SW Synth [Emulated], Hardware (Not Kernel Mode), Output, No DLS, Internal        Registry: OK     Test Result: All tests were successful. ------------------------Disk & DVD/CD-ROM Drives------------------------      Drive: C: Free Space: 32.6 GBTotal Space: 147.3 GBFile System: NTFS      Model: SAMSUNG HM160JI       Drive: D:      Model: TSSTcorp DVD+-RW TS-L632D     Driver: c:\windows\system32\drivers\cdrom.sys, 5.01.2600.2180 (English), 8/3/2004 21:00:00, 49536 bytes I have gone through many forum pages both here at the Dell site and others in an attempt to divine what's happening. The possibilities that seem to fit the symptoms of my laptop are faulty Sigmatel audio or video drivers for the Nvidia Geforce 7300.  Possibly heat issues for the cpu or a virus, However:   1, Downloaded drivers from Dell downloads section for Nvidia video card and Sigmatel codecs. No change. 2, Ran antivirus scans with a negative result. 3, Ran Adaware programme with a negative result. 4, Ran DxDiag which shows all things are correct. 5, Tried changing levels of hardware acceleration on video and sound devices without a change. 6, Tried doing reboots using MSCONFIG and safe mode, but not really sure how to actually use these reboots to diagnose problems. 7, Tried doing a restore point roll back to a point before the beginning of these problems without change. 8, Tried restoring files from a Seagate external drive to a period before these problems without change. 9, Downloaded and used Process Explorer to aid in checking if any programmes were draining resources beyond what they should. No obvious problems. 10, Checked GPU core temp from Nvidia control panel. Average temps range from 54-60deg. 11, Cannot find cpu overclocking options also supposedly found under the Nvidia control panel but can't be found under any of the selections. 12, Running a disk defrag but not expecting much as the harddrive was defragged not long before these problems. 13, banged my head against the wall, swore and shouted at the laptop without result. strangely enough:)   I am unsure what to try next. I would have assumed if the problem was driver related new downloaded drivers do nothing and surprisingly doing the rollback and restore have had no effect. So possibly a hardwar issue? The more I read these forums the more I get confused about similar symptoms but the solutions seem to have no effect.   PLEASE HELP!! :(

Jim Coates · Answer

'The possibilities that seem to fit the symptoms of my laptop are faulty Sigmatel audio or video drivers for the Nvidia Geforce 7300. Possibly heat issues for the cpu or a virus...' Perhaps the hard drive starting to fail? 'The more I read these forums the more I get confused about similar symptoms...' I've never heard of similar symptoms being caused by the Sigmatel driver and because you had been using it with no problems I would eliminate it as a suspect. You should run the full Dell Diagnostics (To run Diagnostics restart the computer and as soon as it starts to boot up hold down f12. Select 'Diagnostic' from the boot menu. The computer will run its pre-boot assessment tests for 3 or 4 minutes before the Dell Diagnostic starts.) Another way to diagnose this is to use PC Restore. If that doesn't cure these problems then you will know for certain that there is something wrong with the hardware. I also suggest you post on the Software/Virus/Spyware board using the Navigation box on the left. They might refer you to the Hijack This board where they can find malware that other programs overlook. Jim

SabotSsnake · Answer

Thankyou Jimco for your reply and suggestions regarding the f12 reboot. I shall give that a try and see what happens. I guess I have read too many forums with regarding individual problems which mimic mine and have such mistakenly lumped them all together as a single symptom instead of their singular properties. For that I have probably confused myself more than necessary and have ended up chasing my own tail with things. For that I am also sorry for not being as correct and knowledgable as I possibly should. Thankyou for bearing with me :)   I'll post again with the results of the tests.

Jim Coates · Answer

Your description of your symptoms was impeccable. Jim

SabotSsnake · Answer

I've run the f12 diagnostics completely and have the result of no errors found in any field. I've had a response from the a Dell service rep who suggests a reformat of the hard drive should deal with the problem. This was something I didn't particulary want to try but guess I'll give it a go. I'll be backing up my hard drive for the rest of the evening and attempt the reformat tomorrow.

Jim Coates · Answer

I appreciate why you would rather avoid this but it will cut through the Gordian knot.

If you haven't reformatted since you gut the computer then you should still have the PC Restore partition on your hard drive. Using PC Restore is much better than a conventional re-installation of the operating system.

It's an image of your original operating system, drivers, applications and configuration settings in a hidden partition on the hard drive. It's like a normal reformat in that you have to save all of your data to removable media, but it's quicker (supposedly about 10 minutes)and simpler because it includes all of the drivers so you won't have to re-install those. Whatever was working when you got the computer will work after PC Restore, except for any hardware problems.

To use PC Restore you restart and press Ctrl + F11 during the restart process and it should take you to the "PC Restore" menu. Anything that doesn't work afterwards either wasn't working when the computer was shipped or is the result of hardware malfunction.

Jim

SabotSsnake · Answer

Thankyou again for some good advice. I'm doing a complete hard drive backup at the moment, and it'll take a little while to finish. I haven't done anything in terms of installing any software or hardware apart from loading a few games, my 3d art programmes and that's about it. When I got the hard drive back in May of this year I made a conscious effort to try and keep it as clean as possible from too many outside influences.  Looks like that didn't work as well as I had hoped - but the restore partition should be untouched and this may indeed be the cure to my woes, or at least a definitive answer with what maybe causing the trouble.  :)   Thanks again, and I'll probably post again in a couple of days hopefully with some good news!

SabotSsnake · Answer

Hiya,   If Jimco should read this in the near future I'd like to extend my heartfelt thanks and relief to say that the pc restore that you suggested seems to have worked like a charm. I am no longer having problems with audio stuttering or video lag with sample clips I have played so far. The general pc performance definitely seems much improved with regard to speed and multiple application handling.   I'm still unsure as to what was causing the problems in the first place, however now that I have a clean slate to work with so to speak, as I slowly reinstall stuff from my backup device, I can be on the lookout for anything that begins to compromise my systems integrity and deal with it more accurately.   Again a big thankyou, and Christmas best wishes :)   cheers,   Darien.

SabotSsnake · Answer

As ever, words of golden wisdom that I'll adopt. The good thing to have come out of all this is that I have a much greater understanding of the many more system tools available to me that I didn't know about before.   Thankyou again for your help. :smileywink:   Cheers.

Jim Coates · Answer

Darien, Thanks for the update and merry Christmas to you. Last advice, every time you install stuff make a System Restore point first. Jim

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