BleepingComputer.com: Sound works but very low volume please help :)

hello friends, i currently encountered this problem with my computer, i have a windows xp and currently have a Realtek AC97 as my audio drivers, all was working fine volume was loud and clear all of a sudden the sound just went real low, tried changing speakers, checked all my volume settings under device manager, all settings are fine, reset and restarted pc, did a system recovery, tried using headphones, still same results, nothing is muted, all volumes levels are set to high as when they were working fine, so now i basically ran out of options to try, i also updated all drivers to include audio/video drivers to current dates and still the volume is crisp and clear but very very low. if anyone could give me a few more pointers of what to try i would gladly try anything, thanks in advance buddies

Desktop, or laptop?
You may simply have audio chip damaged.

thanks broni, it is a desktop, how would i go about checking it? are there any more in depth troubleshooting steps i should take?

There is really no way to check, but looking at what you've done so far, it looks like the only possibilities.
You can get simple PCI audio card for 15 bucks, or so.

oh ok, thank you buddy, so this would explain the low volume level?

I think, it's worth a shot...