Instruction Manual

1233
Audio Hardware (Sound Cards) and Drivers
Beginner’s Guide to Cakewalk Software
not cause a conflict). If your sound card shares an IRQ with another device,
and you are experiencing problems with your sound card, see IRQ
Conflicts.
IRQ Conflicts
Newer motherboards often use something called ACPI (Advanced
Configuration and Power Interface) which controls IRQ settings, in effect
overriding the motherboard IRQ settings. ACPI, just like Plug and Play, can
sometimes lead to shared IRQs and problems with your sound card.
Checking for ACPI on Your System:
1. Look at your IRQ settings. If you don’t know how, see Checking IRQ
Settings in Windows 98 and Windows Me or Checking IRQ Settings in
Windows 2000 and Windows XP.
2. Look for an entry that says “ACPI.”
Resolving IRQ Conflicts on a Non-ACPI System
The easiest way to resolve a conflict may be to remove the piece of
hardware that is conflicting with your sound card. Of course, this is not
always possible, but if you have a modem, network card, or some other
hardware device that you do not use, removing it (and its driver) may free
up an IRQ for your sound card.
Sometimes you can change a sound card’s IRQ setting by physically
moving the card to another PCI/ISA slot, or by moving several hardware
devices to new slots. To do this, uninstall the hardware you want to move,
along with its driver, put the hardware devices in their new slots and
reinstall their drivers. Once you have completed this, check the IRQ settings
again.
If moving or removing hardware did not help, you may be able to use the
system BIOS to change an IRQ setting. To see if your BIOS allows you to
make changes to your systems IRQ settings, consult your motherboard’s
documentation.
Resolving IRQ Conflicts on an ACPI System
If you are experiencing an IRQ conflict on an ACPI system, you may want to
turn off ACPI. This varies depending on your OS, BIOS and motherboard.
Consult your PC manufacturer’s documentation or technical support for
instructions on how to do this.
Cakewalk and Audio Hardware
The following tips will help you get the most out of your sound card and
Cakewalk software: