Murasame:
Thanks for the suggestions.........I have not done a defrag nor a scandisk as of yet. They are on my list of "things to do", however. Like you say, one never knows----it just might discover something.

I did de-select the LW mp3 player yesterday to no avail. I deleted and reinstalled my audio drivers but that did not solve the problem, either. I also ran Norton Virus Scan--no results.

I really think that the LW v4.0.5 upgrade somehow corrupted my audio files during its installation--most probably something in the registry? At least that is when the audio stopped coming from the speakers--during the installation routine of v4.0.5. I am still awaiting a response from customer service @ LiveWire to an inquiry along those lines.

Again, what is most puzzling about this problem is the headphones are working normally when plugged into the speakers, but the same desktop speakers and subwoofer produce no sound on their own. They are seemingly dead as can be---even though they show "power on" lights.

Worst case senario: If nothing else, this may provide an excuse to upgrade my speakers or (gasp!) my whole computer---but it would be a shame if that is the only solution. And not a very good advertisement for the LiveWire product, either.

Again, thanks for your input--if you come up with anything else--let me know. I think that the basics of this software/hardware problem will be the same, even though you are running a Mac.....Are you truly in Paris? Almost half way around the world from me. Bon Chance.....