Tweetie said:
Your soundcard may have included some tools.
I've worked in audio.
This probably isn't a job for any type of digital/software diagnostic
routines -- the issue is strictly physical.
The mini-phone connectors used for computer sound are ratty and lose
contact very easily. Lately, I've been seeing a lot of intermittant
contact loss at the tips of the plugs, and this will cause one channel
to drop out. There seems to be some disagreement between different parts
of China as to the length of the plug/jack, resulting in loss of contact
in various devices that I own (Panasonic cordless phone, Sharp portable
cassette player, Sony headphones, Wigo MP3 player, etc. -- same exact
connector type). A classic failure location is at the spot where the
cables enter the plug; yank on the cord a few times, and here's where
the wires break. What looks like strain relief is as phony as the claim
that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction.
Re-soldering the wires onto a new plug at this location is surprisingly
tricky, at least for me -- I'm a lousy solderer. The method that you
should use for diagnosis is by substitution: substitute a different
speaker set: borrow it from a friend. Also, wiggle the cable and plug
while playing audio to spot the failure point. Clean the plug with
alcohol; clean the jack with genuine electronic contact
cleaner/preserver liquid. This fluid is horribly expensive. I prefer to
buy this stuff from a real electronics parts store ( a _real_ one where
electronics technicians go, not that boutique chain where they have
"answers" and sell mostly cell phones nowadays).
Richard
