Good luck. I have had tons of IDT issues with my dv7-2040US. It would crash right after the desktop loaded up after a fresh boot and audio would stop working at random and would only be restored by restarting the computer. For some reason it stopped having issues then started a while later at random. It hasn't done this in a couple weeks but I also leave my computer hibernated 99% of the time so who knows, it may still be funkled up.
That error you are getting appears to be indicating a lack of audio hardware. Have you downloaded the latest drivers from HP? Make sure you get all of them in case there are drivers for multiple different audio hardware options because I wouldn't be surprised if HP loaded the wrong drivers onto the restore disk! Sounds like something HP would do ha! If you figure it out, make sure to post it here! Thanks! If the freshly acquired drivers do not work then you may be in for a warranty runaround erm I mean repair.
I found it best to use a Microsoft issued install disk coupled with the HP drivers from HP's driver download site. Make sure to get ALLLLLLL the newest drivers and install them ALL. Try installing in safe mode or selective startup with all 3rd party stuff disabled. Start menu -> Type "run" in the search field -> type "msconfig" in the window that pops up then ENTER. Or "System Configuration" in the search field will also pull up msconfig.
You can also open up "System Information" and under "Summary" expand the "Components" section and click "Problem Devices." then post 'em here.
