no sound from computer

In a word: yes.

New sound card = problem solved.

It "could" be the PCI slot you had the old card in, so I would put the new card in another slot when you get it.

if your really "serious" about sound, you'd get an RME card and $4000 worth of powered pro monitor speakers (events or mackies)... you hear all kinds of stuff on CDs you never noticed before, though unless audio is your job, I seriously doubt its worth the cost.

your onboard sound should be fine, I use an audigy, but SB cards are tied to their driver CDs, so don't lose them.

I'd guess the SB live 5.1 (what i believe you have) may have had some kind of software conflict and its also possible a power surge or various other cause flipped a bit or two on the hard drive in the wrong place... kinda hard to tell from hundreds or miles away though.

I think you're confusing "serious" with "sick" ;) or maybe "filthy rich."

Audiophiles can spend some insaaaane amounts of cash on audio equipment. I think it's really a sickness or something. I know this guy, I kid you not, who sold his car to fund his audio system. He biked to work like 10 miles away. I guess he's probably healthier now too, who knows...

In a word: yes.

New sound card = problem solved.

It "could" be the PCI slot you had the old card in, so I would put the new card in another slot when you get it.

Would it be worth trying the old card in a new slot first?

I'm not that serious...

I do listen to music on my computer all the time though, and I have a subwoofer hooked up.

If I buy a similar new sound card, should that do the trick?

Seeing as I haven't inspected your machine myself, I make no guarantees about anything:)

I would say that at this point it sounds like you've pursued all the likely troubleshooting avenues, and dropping a few bucks on an entry-level sound card would be a pretty decent idea.

Would it be worth trying the old card in a new slot first?

While you've got the box open you might as well - don't get your hopes up though.

In all my years of hardware troubleshooting I've only had one PCI slot go bad, so I'd say the chances are slim to none.

They go bad more often than you thought. I support almost 500 Dells and we've had more than a dozen go bad in the past year. It would definitely be worth trying. You'll have to get the driver from Dell, BUT it would maybe save you some cash.

http://ftp.us.dell.com/audio/R69382.EXE

Here's the link to the drivers for your sound card. I'll check the Creative site and see if there are any more updated drivers.

http://ccftp.creative.com/manualdn/Drivers/AVP/8265/0x4F656EC1/SBL5DL_PCPatch_LB_3.exe

Actually, try that link. It's probably a newer driver.

Yeah, I compared the two drivers. The one from Dell is about a year older than the one from the Creative website. Put the card in a different slot, use the Creative driver patch, restart and see if that does it.

They go bad more often than you thought. I support almost 500 Dells and we've had more than a dozen go bad in the past year. It would definitely be worth trying. You'll have to get the driver from Dell, BUT it would maybe save you some cash.

Damn! A dozen within a year? Has that been consistent over a long period of time, or is Dell's QA going downhill?

Maybe I've had better luck because I typically only deal with high-end, enthusiast level mobos ;) I had a Dell years ago...swore I'd never by pre-built systems again.

Of course I'd hate to be the guy who has to custom-build 500 machines for your company, so I see your point ;)