I have been looking for someone with this same problem for 4 months. I got
my computer in Aug 2005. My first one. I am not that computer savvy. I had
purchased some music download software in Aug. The first week in Sept I put
Yahoo Instant Messenger on my system. The stutter started approx. 9 days
later. All my sound, including the Windows login and logout chime was
suttering and skipping. It does not go away. Not knowing the problem, I kept
on doing system restores until I ran out of them and had to do a PC restore.
One month later, same thing. I finally did another PC restore on 4 Nov. Did
not put Yahoo IM or my music download software back on my system. No
problems. I added my music dowlnload software and it went ok for 2 months.
Then I added Bellsouth IM ( that also interfaces with Yahoo), thinking it
would be ok and it happened again. If you can't do a System restore back to a
point where you didn't have the stutter problem, the only solution I have
found is doing a PC restore. But I don't advise it unless it is a last
resort. I narrowed the culprit to ANY Instant Messenger. No one, not even
Microsoft or Dell or Yahoo, has been able to figure this one out. All
hardware and software diagnostics and virus software have not found a
problem. I have spent hours on the phone with software support people and
still have not found what is causing it. I hope this helps.
