Companies like Logitech and Creative’s innovative foray into the multimedia and audio market have definitely enhanced the multimedia facet of the computer. They have contributed to the great increase of technology within this sector and the amounts of new products that have been coming in are legendary.

With THX certified sound cards, multimedia hubs and cutting edge speakers in the mix, there are more and more things for you to choose from if you so decide to trump up your computer with the latest and greatest multimedia audio solutions for your computer. But with all this technology, of course there comes a problem.

In the world of computing, there are many combinations and configurations of computers that cannot be numbered and counted, and while the R&D divisions of these companies are top rate, they cannot possibly keep up with the exponential growth of customisability options that the PC has in store for end users.

So there are bound to be conflicts and mistakes, and one of the most common one is the device manager error, which shows a yellow exclamation mark next to either the new product that has been installed or the audio and multimedia devices already in the computer. The reasons for this occurrence number in the dozens, but this article will discuss a bit on how you can resolve the issue without having to grapple with cumbersome tech support, return your product or even lug your entire CPU to the repair store. One of the problems with this is outdated drivers, which conflicts mostly with the OS and its internal driver database.

So what you need to do is to ensure that you have the latest drivers on hand and ready to use. This can be found on the manufacturer’s website and you can check if you have the latest drivers. If you have the latest drivers and you still have the problem, then it is on to phase 2, which is essentially you hitting the tech forums and searching for your problems. The good thing is that there will definitely be people who have either encountered exactly the same problem as you or have a problem that is quite similar.

Check for the responses on the forums for ways to work around this or if there is no topic set, then you need to post one up. Make sure you include a detailed write up of your PC configuration and the make and model number of your product. And of course, you need to write what exactly the problem is. An informed user will reply you are the webmasters and the tech support people will give you the steps you need to take to resolve the issue.

Reinstalling the product may be one way after a clean re start of the computer, but of course, that is a rudimentary approach to the problem and you might need to do much more to get the problem solved. With these troubleshooting tips, your ‘multimedia audio controller driver not found’ problem will be a thing of the past.

It is very easy to install a graphics card, all it needs is only 15 mins of your time and you can get your gaming computer booting up with the new graphics card.

AGP slot was the standard for graphics card interface with the motherboard. As technology advances, the newer PCI-Express has taken over and many graphics card nowadays use PCI-E slot as its interface with the motherboard.

Before you can install the graphics card, you need to identify which type of slot does your graphics card uses.

If you are not sure which slot does your graphics card use, check out the user manual that comes with the graphics card.

Once you are ready to install your graphics card, follow these four steps…

Step 1: Uninstall the current graphics card drivers

Before you install your new card, you have to uninstall your current card driver. This is because the current driver might not be compatible with the new graphics card and it might result in hardware conflict.

On your Windows desktop, click ‘Start’ -> ‘Control Panel’. In the new window that pops up, search for the ‘System’ icon and double click on it. Look for the ‘hardware’ tab. Click on the ‘Device Manager’. This will pop up a new window showing your entire hardware configuration. Your graphics card should be listed under the ‘Display Adapter’ heading. Double-click the name of your graphics card. In the next window, go to ‘Driver’ tab and right below, there is an ‘Uninstall’ button. Click the Uninstall button. Once it is done, close all the windows and shut down your computer.

Step 2: Remove old graphics card

Now, unplug the power socket from the wall and remove the casing of your computer. Locate the AGP slot (short brown color slot above the rows of long white PCI slot) with your old graphics card. To prevent static charge from damaging your computer parts, touch a metal part of the case to ground yourself. Remove the screw on the back plate of the graphics card and unplug the graphics card from the slot.

Step 3: Install new card.

Align the new card correctly with the AGP slot (align with the PCI-e slot if your graphics card is of the PCI express type). Applying even forces on both end of the card, slowly push the new graphics card into the slot. Secure it to the back plate with a screw.

Step 4: Install new drivers.

Plug in all cables and boot up your Windows. Your operating system should now automatically recognize the new hardware and walk you through the installation wizard. Most of the time, you will need to insert the driver CD that come with the graphics card into the CD-ROM. Locate the ’setup.exe’ file in the driver CD and double click on it. It will then walk you through the installation process. If your graphics card is not the latest model, then most probably there is a newer version of the driver on the Internet. Check out the manufacturer’s website and download the latest drivers. Install it. Once done, reboot your PC. Now, you’re ready to start gaming.