Windows XP in a Nutshell

Name

Sounds and Audio Devices — \windows\system\mmsys.cpl

Synopsis

Configure the sounds and sound devices used in Windows.

To Open

Control Panel → [Sounds, Speech, and Audio Devices] → Sounds and Audio Devices

Command Prompt → mmsys.cpl

Description

Settings affecting the sounds Windows generates are divided into the following sections:

Volume

Your sound card’s volume is typically controlled with the Volume Control (covered later in this chapter and accessible by clicking Advanced in the Device volume section); this volume control is redundant (see Figure 4-83).

Figure 4-83. Choose whether the volume control appears in the notification area (Tray) with the Volume tab

Options that affect your speakers are found under the second Advanced button in the Speaker settings section, although most users will find little use in changing these settings. In the Advanced Audio Properties dialog, choose between the available speaker setups (used only by some games that support environmental audio) on the Speakers tab, and if you experience any audio-related problems, play around with the settings on the Performance tab.

Sounds

Formerly its own Control Panel applet, the Sounds dialog allows you to associate short clips of sounds with various system events and messages. Select an event from the list and then choose a sound (.wav) file to associate with it. When you’re done, save your choices into a Sound ...