Tough Vox problem...looking for help

[Simaril]

I'm posting here as well as the Tech Support forum because this problem has dogged my for over a year, and though I've worked some with skuzzy on it (and posted in the Tech forum) we've flat hit a dead end.

I have a vox problem that apparently is technically impossible, according to Skuzzy. It shouldnt happen at all, no reason he can think of for it to act this way -- but its a major pain in the patootie.

I'd given up on solving it, and just lived with being deaf in the TA...but now I've realised that its affecting the Orange arena, and possible others. (For a while thought it was quiet just because no one was in talkative mood!)

So here's the trouble. In the affected arenas, my vox can be heard fine by everyone there...but I cannot hear what anyone says at all. There are no name highlights coming through either -- none of that little lit up name in the R upper corner when someone talks, so apparently my computer has no idea someone is trying to talk.

In every other arena, my vox works absolutely 100% fine. I can hear everyone and everyone can hear me (whether they want to or not).


What makes it really interesting is that my son activated an account a few nights ago...and he has the EXACT same trouble in the exact same arenas. His computer (actually my old one) uses the same Zone Alarm, and obviously the same modem and router. Neither of us have sound cards.

I have the same problem no matter what I do. Here's what I've tried:

1) Turned firewall, antivirus, spam, parental control (all Zone Alarm) completely off. Had same issues when used Norton (hsssss).

2) Reset router

3) Manually used port forwarding off all vox ports (2000-5000) to my computer.

4) Directly connected network cable to cable modem, cutting router out completely.

5) Built a completely new computer, with no componenets from the old one. (OK, I didnt do this just to work on the vox problem...)




Here's my config:


Motherboard.............P5W DH Deluxe
CPU.......................... Intel X6600
RAM.......................... 2GB of PC6400 DDR2-800 Crucial RAM
Hard Drive................Western Digital SE16 250GB
Video Card...............HIS Radeon X1900XT 512MB
Drives....................... HP 16X CD-ROM DVD Burner With LightScribe, IDESound Card..............None for now
Operating System....MS Windows XP – Pro
Power Supply...........Antec TruePower 2.0 TP2-550W
Case........................T hermaltake Tsunami VA3000VWA



I'm desperate...any help or ideas would be great

[llama]

OK, I would think this is something that Skuzzy would know much more about, but here's my crazy thinking.

Incoming VOX must be coming in on a TCP or UDP port, and it wouldn't surprise me to learn that different arenas use different ports.

OK, now you say you've turned off all firewalling/security products, and even connected the PCs directly to your cablemodem, which is good troubleshooting data. I am ALSO assuming that you took the unusual (and normally un-recommended step) of turning off all the software security products and firewalls when the PC was connected directly to the cablemodem and you still couldn't get incoming VOX.

If all that is true, then I would only have the following conclusion: that your ISP is blocking certain incoming ports at their end, so your machine never even sees it. However, it isn't blocking ALL the different ports incoming VOX uses, which is why you can get incoming VOX in some arenas.

(This theory only works, BTW, if Skuzzy can confirm that different arenas use different ports for incoming VOX. In a perfect world, he would even tell us, right here, what those different ports are, specifically.)

Now I know this is crazy and probably unlikely, but all your other troubleshooting activities have ruled almost everything else.

So here are the tests I would do to prove this theory.

Test 1: Take your computer, or your kid's, and connect it to the internet via some other method. Take it to work. Take it to a friend's who has a different ISP than you. Heck, try a trial dialup account with a different ISP. See if VOX comes in in all the arenas. If it does, then your ISP is having a problem.

Test 2: find out what ports those arenas are using for VOX. Then set up a server (say, an FTP server) on your computer that is set to listen to those ports. OPen up your firewall/router for those ports. Now go to a different PC (maybe at work, or a friend's), and try to FTP into your server on that port. If it works, then your ISP is not to blame. If it fails, it's time to look hard at the ISP.

If it really is the ISP, then things get trickier. No tech support droid there is really empowered to open ports, or even check for them. Heck, some might not even know what you're talking about.

Anyway, these are the things I would check. If you do, please let us know what happens.

-Llama

[Skuzzy]

Actually, I just sent you an email about it.  I think it is a UDP over NAT issue.  I had not realized you had two computers on your LAN.

[Simaril]

Sorry...didnt mean to double dip, was more fishing for fresh ideas.

Would NAT still affect things when the router was out of the loop? Because I still have the exact same problems with the computer network cable plugged directly into the cable modem.

[Skuzzy]

Local firewall?  Anti-virus?  Anti-spyware?  Just taking some shots in the dark.

[Simaril]

I've tried turning off the combined antivirus/spyblocker/firewall (ZOne Alarm). Also tried directly connecting to the cable modem; havent tried doing both.

Is there ANYTHING that Orange LW and the TA have in common? I mean ports, servers location, net addresses...anything that might give a clue?

I intend to get teh program loaded onto a laptop so I can try vox with another ISP. Otherwise, I'm out of ideas.

[airspro]

I know this sounds stupid but I gonna ask you to try this and why .

Turn up the vol ALOT HIGHER THAN NORMAL . Why , well I got a web cam for my wife so that we could visit while watching our granddaughters at the same time On her machine , I thought the sound was broken or something , turned out that I had to crank up the vol sooo loud that when winxp turns off it about blasts us out of the house .

Could you trouble be the same ? donno , worth a try , ya and the game sounds will be WAY TOO LOUD IF IT IS , hehe .

gl

PS: I was thinking at work , try a dialup connection and see if your pc works , most isp's give you a free month to try them out like  llama says , well worth a try .

[Silat]

Could it be the onboard sound chip?
Can you install a sound CARD and see if it works?

[Roscoroo]

are you behind a routor ???  

do you have a "ping # " to the main arena's ???

[Simaril]

Silat:

Am planning to get sound card if I cant hear the vox with different ISP. I've installed the game at work, but havent had the chance to boot 'er up and check the sound yet.


Rosco:

Same problem with direct cable modem connect, and with router. Curious about the ping #....I always show a ping, varying between 40 and 65 or so. All arenas have same ping, if thats what you're getting at.

[StarOfAfrica2]

Do you shut off the zonealarm after boot, or did you disable it so that it wont start at boot?  There can be a difference.  Some elements of some A/V and firewall programs dont entirely shut down if you just close them from the task bar after booting.  Try disabling it entirely and booting clean (if you have not already done so).

[Roscoroo]

ok ping is good ...  mine when ever i lose a "ping" count  in the arena list i lose vox and tcp   ..  i have to reset the routor .. (happens after power outages seams to be my pattern)

[Waffle]

tried a new router?

[Simaril]

Treid leaving the router out completely...same problem.

Loaded the game at the office (shhh) I could hear vox fine. That computer has a onboard sound, ZoneAlarm, a different router, a different ISP, and DSL instead of cable modem.



My home computers are different enough that I cant believe they share ANY hardware or software features that havent been checked already. I can rule out the router, since the problem is identical with direct connection to the cable modem.


I think the next step is to call my ISP...and I'm not looking forward to working though that tree of pseudo tech guys, (Maybe I'll tape the problem explanation so I dont have to go through personally it all 800 times...)

[llama]

Originally posted by Simaril
Treid leaving the router out completely...same problem.

Loaded the game at the office (shhh) I could hear vox fine. That computer has a onboard sound, ZoneAlarm, a different router, a different ISP, and DSL instead of cable modem.



My home computers are different enough that I cant believe they share ANY hardware or software features that havent been checked already. I can rule out the router, since the problem is identical with direct connection to the cable modem.


I think the next step is to call my ISP...and I'm not looking forward to working though that tree of pseudo tech guys, (Maybe I'll tape the problem explanation so I dont have to go through personally it all 800 times...)

Your ISP tech is going to ask: did you take your home computer to the office and check it there?

I would if I were the tech.

Therefore, as I stated more than a week ago, take your computer to another network connection outside of your home ISP and test it there.

-Llama