PCs For Dummies, 13th Edition

Chapter 12

PC Audio Abilities

In This Chapter

Understanding sound hardware

Configuring speakers

Setting up sound in Windows

Changing the volume

Playing sounds for certain events

Recording sounds

Using Windows dictation

Originally, a computer’s audio was a simple bell. Ding! When the first microcomputers came out in the 1970s, they had small, tinny speakers to emulate the bell. Beep. Your computer’s audio system has moved far beyond that primitive beep. Built into the chipset on the PC’s motherboard is specialized sound circuitry, including a complete music synthesizer. [Insert symphony sound here.] The computer can talk, sing, and even ding like a bell. It can also listen to your utterances.

The Noisy PC

All PCs include sound-generation hardware on the motherboard. This hardware ...