Flight Simulator: No Instructor, Pilot, or ATC Voices in Lesson or Adventure (177252)



The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Flight Simulator 98
  • Microsoft Flight Simulator 2000
  • Microsoft Flight Simulator 2000 Professional Edition
  • Microsoft Flight Simulator 2002
  • Microsoft Flight Simulator 2002 Professional Edition
  • Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004 - Century of Flight

This article was previously published under Q177252

SYMPTOMS

When you start a lesson, adventure, or flight in Microsoft Flight Simulator 98, Microsoft Flight Simulator 2000, or Microsoft Flight Simulator 2002, the Instructor, Pilot, or Air Traffic Controller (ATC) voices may not be played, or the engine sounds may not be played.

CAUSE

This behavior can occur if either of the following conditions is true:
  • An audio codec installed on the computer is missing or damaged.
  • The Flight Simulator 98 or 2000 disk is not inserted in the CD-ROM drive.
  • The lessons/adventures sound is disabled within the program.
  • The ATC option is disabled.
  • The sound driver for your sound card is outdated.
  • Your sound card does not support the necessary hardware features that are needed to play the game.
  • You are playing in Multiplayer Mode.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this issue, verify that the Flight Simulator 98 or Flight Simulator 2000 CD-ROM is inserted in the CD-ROM drive.

For additional information about problems you may experience in Flight Simulator 98 or Flight Simulator 2000 if the CD-ROM is not inserted in the CD-ROM drive, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

178383 Scenery, Airport, Adventures, VOR, Sound Problems Without Correct CD

Note If you are running Flight Simulator 2002 under a full installation, the CD-ROM is not required.

If the issue continues to occur, proceed to the next method.

Enable Sound

  1. Within the cockpit, click Options, point to Settings and then click Sound.
  2. Select the Lesson/Adventures or Air Traffic Control option. If this is selected, move the lever to the right to increase the sound level.
  3. Click the green check mark or OK.

Delete the .cfg File for Your Flight Simulator Product

If you are using Flight Simulator 98, Flight Simulator 2000, or Flight Simulator 2002, delete the game's .cfg file, and then restart the game:
  1. Click Start, and then click Find or Search. If you are using Microsoft Windows 98, click Files or Folders and if you are using Microsoft Windows XP, click All files and folders.
  2. In the Named box or All or part of the file name box, type the file name for your version of Flight Simulator:
    • fs2002.cfg - Flight Simulator 2002
    • fs2000.cfg - Flight Simulator 2000
    • Fltsim98.cfg - Flight Simulator 98
  3. In the Look in box, click My Computer.
  4. Click Find Now or Search.
  5. In the list of found files, right-click the .cfg file, and then click Delete.
  6. When you are prompted to confirm the file deletion, click Yes.

Enable ATC in Flight Simulator 2002

  1. Start Flight Simulator 2002.
  2. Click Create A Flight.
  3. Select Start Flight with ATC window open.
  4. Click Fly Now.
If the issue continues to occur, proceed to the next method.

Enable Microsoft Audio Compression Codec

Note These steps are only for Windows 98.
  1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
  2. Double-click Multimedia.
  3. In the Multimedia Properties dialog box, click the Advanced tab.
  4. Under Multimedia Devices, expand Audio Compression Codecs.
  5. Click Windows Media Audio, and then click Properties.
  6. Click to select the Use this audio codec.
  7. Click Apply, and then click OK.
  8. Repeat this process for each Microsoft codec in the list.
  9. Click OK when you are finished.
If the issue continues to occur, proceed to the next method.

Installing/Reinstalling Windows Audio Compression

If the issue continues to occur, install, or remove and reinstall, the missing or damaged audio codec. Use the appropriate steps below for your version of Windows:

Microsoft Windows 9x or Windows Millennium Edition (Me)

To verify that the audio and video compression components of Windows are properly installed, remove and reinstall Audio Compression and Video Compression. To do so, use the following steps:
  1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
  2. Double-click Add/Remove Programs.
  3. On the Windows Setup tab, click Multimedia, and then click Details.
  4. Clear the Audio Compression and Video Compression options.
  5. Click OK, and then click Apply.
  6. Follow the instructions on the screen. You may be prompted to insert your Windows CD-ROM or floppy disks.
  7. Exit Control Panel.
For additional information about how to use remove and then reinstall audio/video compression, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

142731 How to Install and Remove Codecs and MCI Devices in Windows

Microsoft Windows 2000

For additional information bout how to change audio codecs in Microsoft Windows 2000, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

254354 Reinstalling Audio Codecs or Media Control Devices in Windows 2000

Reduce Hardware Sound Acceleration in Dxdiag

If you run Combat Flight Simulator or Flight Simulator 98 on a computer that is running Microsoft Windows 95, Microsoft Windows 98, or Microsoft Windows 2000, reduce the Hardware Sound Acceleration setting:
  1. Click Start, and then click Run.
  2. In the Open box, type dxdiag, and then click OK.
  3. On the Sound tab, under DirectX Features, move the Hardware Sound Acceleration Level slider all the way to the left (the "No acceleration" setting).
  4. Click Exit.
If you are playing in multiplayer mode, then you will not hear the Air Traffic Control tower. This is by design.

Install High Quality Sounds

If these steps do not resolve the issue, install high quality sounds:
  1. Quit Flight Simulator 2000 if it is running.
  2. Insert the Flight Simulator 2000 disk 3 into your computer CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive.
  3. Click Start, click Run, type CD-ROM:\EXTRAS\SOUNDS in the Open box, and then click OK, where CD-ROM is the drive letter of the CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive.
  4. Double-click the file for the aircraft whose sounds you want to replace. Each aircraft has its own self-installer to copy the appropriate files.

    Note By default, the files are extracted to the c:\Program Files\Microsoft Games\FS2000 folder, in the appropriate aircraft sound folder. If you installed Flight Simulator 2000 someplace other than the Program Files\Microsoft Games\FS2000 folder, change the path listed in the self-extraction program in the Extract To box.
  5. Click Unzip to extract the files over the original files that are installed by Flight Simulator 2000 Setup.
  6. Click OK when the unzip process completes.

    Note If you remove Flight Simulator 2000, the upgraded sound files are also removed. For more information about the high quality sounds, see Flight Simulator 2000 Readme.txt file on disk 3 in the Sounds folder.

Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:9/1/2006
Keywords:kbenv kbprb kbsound kbui KB177252