Sound Problems with MS-DOS-Based Games in Windows 98

ID: Q192232

The information in this article applies to:

SYMPTOMS

After you upgrade your computer to Windows 98, the sounds in MS-DOS-based games may not work properly.


CAUSE

This problem can occur if you are using any of the following sound cards:

If the driver for your sound card is upgraded from a virtual device driver (VxD) to a Windows Driver Model (WDM) driver, the Sound Blaster compatibility components may not be loaded.


RESOLUTION

To resolve this problem, disable the BLASTER= line in the Autoexec.bat file. To do so, use the following steps:

  1. Click Start, click Run, type "sysedit" (without quotation marks) in the Open box, and then click OK.


  2. On the Window menu, click the Autoexec.bat file.


  3. Type "rem" (without quotation marks), followed by a space at the beginning of all lines that begin with "BLASTER=."


  4. On the File menu, click Exit.


  5. Click Yes when prompted to save the Autoexec.bat file.


  6. Restart your computer.


NOTE: You may need a BLASTER= line in the Autoexec.bat file when you start in MS-DOS mode to play games. If so, add a BLASTER= line to the Dosstart.bat file. For information about how to do so, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
ARTICLE-ID: Q134400
TITLE : General Tips for Using MS-DOS Mode


STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Windows 98.

Additional query words: 98 sbemul fmsynth 


Keywords          : kbenv kbsound win98 
Version           : WINDOWS:
Platform          : WINDOWS 
Issue type        : kbprb

Last Reviewed: January 28, 1999