Drivers (particularly audio drivers) for old RM tower PC

Hello,

I have an old RM desktop tower PC that I needed to reinstall Windows XP on. It is one of those off white towers that has started to yellow over time.
I can't remember the model number off the top of my head (will update this when I can) but it has an Intel Pentium 4 at 2.8GHz, 512MB DDR RAM and a 40GB IDE hard drive. It also has built in AGP graphics (with 16MB video memory) and an inbuilt ADI Soundmax 1985 for audio.
It also has USB 2.0, USB 1.1, PS/2 (for keyboard and mouse - the original mouse is actually a ball mouse!) and a whole host of other obsolete ports, including a floppy drive.

Basically, I've reinstalled Windows XP Home (SP3) and all is good, except for a few drivers.
Getting the LAN driver installed was OK, as the USBs work (and I used a more modern PC to download the drivers onto it.
However, I am having/have had huge issues with the in built audio drivers.
The sound seems a bit off (the beep noise that it makes on the volume slider) and there is always noticeable static in the background, especially at higher volumes and also when I move the mouse around. (Yes, I tried another mouse, it still has issues.)
I also tried a TP Link wireless USB adapter, with the correct drivers for Windows XP, and it also had problems - firstly, it came up as a wireless device (with a ? next to it), then after manually installing the driver which I copied across, it either comes up with a ? symbol next to 300Mbps Wireless adapter, or (more often) just shows up as unknown device and "windows could not recognize the device" error.

Any ideas on how I could get any of this working properly again? I will update this thread with the model number and anything else that is relevant, when I can.
P.S. It also has IE6 installed, which does nothing, and whilst I have Firefox 52.9 ESR installed (most up to date browser I can find - better than the years old Chrome release from 2016), I need to try and get IE8 on there for Windows Update. Try as I might, I cannot seem to find any download for IE8! (IE6 won't connect to anything - and Firefox does work)

Thanks!

 

https://www.pcilookup.com/

you have to get the info from device manager see my notes below: except for pcidatabase is no longer active


DRIVERS



How To Find Drivers For An Unrecognized Device

1. Open Device Manager (Control Panel>System>Hardware>Device Manager)
2. The hardware whose drivers are missing will appear as Unknown device, so it's easier to locate the device.
3. Right click on the unknown device and click on Properties.
4. Under the Properties window click on Details tab and select Device Instance Id from the drop down box.
5. You should see a code similar to this

PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_27DC&SUBSYS_30868086
&REV_01\4&1E46F438&0&40F0

6. The portion of the code highlighted in RED is the Vendor ID and the portion highlighted in GREEN is the Device ID. In this example:

Vendor ID = 8086
Device ID = 27DC

7. Once you have obtained both the IDs, proceed to


http://pcidatabase.com/


There you can either search for the vendor from the vendor ID or directly get information about the device along with the vendor name by searching with the device ID.

8. Then from there you can go directly to the hardware manufactureres website and get the driver.



ORDER FOR DELL INSTALL DRIVERS


Desktop System Software or Notebook System Software

Chipset or SMBus driver

Processor Driver (if applicable)

Video

Audio (sound)

Input Drivers (keyboard/mouse)

Modem

Network Card



http://en.community.dell.com/support-forums/desktop/f/3514/t/19281817.aspx

how to find your dell sata drivers


JoJo, one of the contributors here likes slim utilities:

https://www.slimwareutilities.com/slimdrivers.php

WATCH OUT, that you click on the download from slim utilities and not from download.com

let it scan your pc and find the drivers for you





"How to find drivers"



Part 1

Finding drivers is NOT any easy task.

You can pay for a program like Driver Detective, but why pay for third party software when the information you need is right there in your operating system?

Run a Program like Everest
Everest will produce a report that will list all hardware ID's on your computer. The report is very detailed and can be confusing to read if you do not know what to look for. Errors in the Device Manager will usually show up in Everest as Unknown or Other Devices.

Or the "back door" way



For the sake of argument I will use a laptop with an Intel Chipset and XP for an Operating System
(Although it is important to always have the exact make and model of the computer you are working on).

When it comes to ID an Unknown Device or Other Device the most important info you need is the PCI\VEN_####&DEV_#### (# = number). You may come across other types of error numbers (ACPI, USB PID's etc), but I will limit this post to just PCI devices.
PCI = PCI Device (Not necessarily a device in a PCI slot)
VEN = VENDOR or the manufacture of the Device
DEV = Type of Device

Everest will give you these numbers, but so will the OS (Operating system).

Open the Device Manager

XP users

Press the Windows + R keys to bring up the Run box

In the Run box, type or copy and paste the following

devmgmt.msc

Click Enter





Now that we're in Device Manager:

Right Click on the Device in question
Properties
Details Tab

In XP the VEN_ #### and DEV_#### is located under Device Instance ID

Once you have the PCI\VEN_####&DEV_#### , the search is on!

NOTE: You must find not only the exact VEN_#### and DEV_#### that matches your number, but it also has to match your operating system!

There are millions of these numbers, but there is hope and several ways to narrow down the device (or driver). I will use this number for an example: pci\ven_8086&dev_2792

A quick Google Search of pci\ven_8086&dev_2792 will give you several hits.
Mobile Intel(R) 915GM/GMS,910GML Express Chipset Family Device
The key words here are Intel and 915GM/GMS,910GML Express Chipset Family Device
(You may find an exact hit as this number is an easy one, but I am going to take you through this one step at a time).

We know from this info it is an Intel (VEN or VENDOR) and the device (DEV or Device) has to do with the 915GM/GMS,910GML Express Chipset Family , but it does not specify what the device is exactly.

Is it the Chipset Driver or the Graphics Card driver (Graphics Cards do have chipsets, just like most devices)?
So we know who the vendor (Intel) is but not sure what the device is?

If you go to Intel you may have to search all over and download a lot of drivers to find one that matches your number (pci\ven_8086&dev_2792 ). But thanks to data bases it makes it a little easier. Use of Data Bases is not 100% though.
The Data Base I use is:
PCI Vendor and Device Lists

When you go here a window will open
Input both the VEN#### (Vendeor) and the DEV#### (Device)
For the pci\ven_8086&dev_2792 the results would be:
PCI Vendor and Device Lists

Yes, it is the same info as your Google Search:
Mobile Intel(R) 915GM/GMS,910GML Express Chipset Family Device

But click on the Intel link to the right and you will end up with a very LONG list of DEVICE ID:
PCI Vendor and Device Lists
If you scroll through the list (its too bad they are not in numerical order) you will end up with this:
0x2792
Chip Number: Mobile 82915GLx/x/x
Chip Description: Mobile Intel(R) 915GM/GMS/, 910GML Express Chipset Family
Notes: Use Mobile 915 drivers from Intel.com (sometimes you may get a direct link, but even the "Note" (Hint) helps)

Another Google Search of the Chipset Number: Mobile 82915GL comes up with: (google intel mobile 82915gl)
Intel® 915G/915GV/915GL/915P/915PL/910GL Express Chipset Datasheet
(You may have several hits, so you may have to search a little)
THE RESULTS SHOULD BE
For the Intel® 82915G/82915GV/82915GL/82910GL Graphics and Memory Controller Hub (GMCH) and Intel® 82915P/82915PL Memory Controller Hub (MCH)

So, we now know that pci\ven_8086&dev_2792 is an Intel® 82915G/82915GV/82915GL/82910GL Graphics and Memory Controller Hub
Basically a Graphics Driver

So now you go look for a graphics driver for a Mobile Intel 82915GV/82915GL/82910GL Chipset, but guess what? You will not find it on the Intel site.
Thought you had it
You probably forgot you have a:
Mobile Intel(R) 915GM/GMS,910GML Express Chipset Family Device ,

Intel uses the 82 (82915GV) to identify it is a graphic driver on some chipsets (but I wasn't going to let you go that easy), so you have to look for the graphics driver for a Mobile Intel(R) 915GM/GMS,910GML chipset.

If you go to Intel Support and input the info:
Graphics
Laptop graphics controller (remember we are working on a Laptop)
Mobile Intel(R) 915GM/GMS,910GML Express Chipset Family
XP (our operating system)
Drivers

You should end up with:
http://downloadcenter.intel.com/Sear...01&FamilyId=39
I am using the ZIP driver:
Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator Driver for Windows* XP (zip)
Once you have the driver and want to confirm it is correct, there is a way to do it. Remember the VEN_#### and DEV_#### MUST MATCH along with the OS (Operating System):