Ok. So I made most of a game with previous version of QDK. Now when I try it in 4.03, my sound files don't play when they should. I have certain sound effects when things occur, but they are not playing or are waiting to play when they shouldn't. I'm using Vista. Is anyone else experiencing a similar problem?

Alex,

I sent you a follow-up email concerning sounds stalling.

Well, first I'd point at Vista and laugh.

Secondly, are you using a sound card or a motherboard solution (ie creative sound card/drivers)?

If you're using creative IN ANY WAY then that could point to it a fair bit - they use dodgy drivers which use an older method for output.
Perhaps the windows media plugin for VB (6.4 I think) uses that old method too?

Were you using your ethernet when this happened?
I've heard Vista can get confused over putting ethernet/sound first (usually it slows the ethernet to a crummy rate though).

When you mean 'they don't go off when they should", have you tried using debugging to aid (using debug logging to output "sound should launch now" just before doing the sound).
Are you putting in the full pathname or just the filename - does this make a difference.
Have you tried altering the quality of the files (to gain load-time) - and different formats (wav/mp3/ogg/wma).
Does everything else on the machine run slowly (general hardware problems) - key thing to note is memory or disk free space or disk access times.

How are you kicking off these sounds?
Are you placing them inside a timer, or a room script event/procedure?
Have you tried just making a blank game, with a command "test" which loads the sound (one by one) and plays it?

... Just a few idea's to get you on your way.

Hey P1, thanks for the lengthy, in-depth reply.

I'm using SPS-25 sound card in Cakewalk's Sonar Power Studio 250 audio interface. I've been using this device for about a year for everything from recording/playback of large music files, movies, internet sites, games, etc., and have not experienced any problems whatsoever.

What's happening is my first sound effect chimes correctly, but the second sound effect sometimes plays or sometimes doesn't, and if it does, it plays the incorrect amount of times (usually only once) and late; I say "late," because each sound effect should ring as text blinks on the screen. The third sound effect plays, but many seconds after it should. I tries "synchronizing" as Alex requested, but although this allowed all sounds to play correctly and on time, instead of the correct time lapse of the text, it slowed the whole sequence of text/sound events down by about 400%.

So I tried switching to the sound card in my computer, and everything worked right. So it definitely has something to do with Quest and SPS-25 sound card connection, because every other instance of sound playback using SPS-25 has worked fine. But I have to open up Sonar recording software, readjust sound card choice, switch headphone jacks, yada yada yada to have to switch back and forth when I want to use Quest. I'd like to see if there's a solution, so I can just use SPS-25. (Cakewalk program doesn't work well with computer's sound card).

So there's nothing wrong with Vista, my code, or any other reason, except between Quest and SPS-25, specifically.

Any other ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Ok, that kind of points me towards the version of media player in quest only doing one sound at a time - or playing 2 at the same time causing probs with that sound card.

Have you trimmed all the space off the sounds so they don't just give blank sound (may help bring down the 400%).

I haven't heard anything bad about SPS - but it's not like I try to read anything related to windows anymore.

That's all I can suggest - sorry.