This problem is occuring on a Windows 95 PC. I get an error message stating: "Windows cannot play the c:\Windows\media\XXX.wav file. It may be damaged or may not be a valid sound file. Replace the file and try again." The message occurs when trying to preview the sound in Control Panel, Sound Properties window. I am trying to change the sounds associated with certain events. The error message also occurs when I try to play these same .wav files. I have copied the .wav files to another PC and played them back just fine. I have also uninstalled and reinstalled all of the items under Media, such as Media Player, sound schemes, etc , but this hasn't worked either. The strange thing is that all the sounds that are currently associated with events still play (like Windows starting and shutting down). Any suggestions will be appreciated. Thanks.

I believe the Windows 'sounds' player is kinda fussy about 'Sample Rate, Stereo Mono, 8/16 bit', etc. The files that you are trying to play are probably of the wrong type. Check the format of the sounds that it will play and convert yours to that format.

That's strange, these are the default sounds that come with Windows 95, so I don't think the format would be wrong. They also worked last week, then all of a sudden they stopped working. Any other suggestions?

Error Message: “MMSYSTEM326 No wave device that can play files in the current format installed.” or “Windows cannot play XX file. It may be damaged or may not be a valid sound file. Replace the file and try again.” Translation: This error can occur if an audio codec (a program that compresses and decompresses specific types of audio files) is not installed (with XX indicating the actual name of the file). This particular type of error occurs if the Fraunhofer IIS MP3 (MPEG Layer-3) codec is not installed, and a sound file converted from the .MP3 format to the .WAV format is played. Solution: Probably the easiest solution is downloading and installing the latest version of Microsoft’s Media Player, presently at version 7.0. Another solution (for versions prior to 7.0) is to use Add/Remove Programs to install Microsoft NetShow Player 2.0. Click the Start button, Settings, Control Panel, and double-click Add/Remove Programs. Click the Windows Setup tab, then Multimedia, and Details. Select the Microsoft NetShow Player 2.0 checkbox, click OK, and then click OK again.

http://www.geocities.com/jaysthemes/html/help.htm

just go start > settings > control panel > sounds and multimedia and change all sounds to not play

Dave - Thanks for the tips. I went to install Media NetShow Player 2.0 and it wasn't even an option to select. I also tried installing that MPEG layer 3 codec from Jason's themes page and still, the same error appears. Blair - It's not that simple. None of the sounds work. I copied the sound files to another PC and they worked fine, so it's not the .wav files I don't think. The sounds that are set as default come out when the events that are supposed to trigger them occur. It's when I go into Control Panel, Sounds, and try to change the Sounds or preview them is when the error comes up. Thanks for trying to help though.