Any ideas on HL2 crashes?

[BigDannyO]

First of all sorry to start a new thread on this subject but i cant seem to find any definite answers on it!
I have the same problem as many others in that HL2 will repeatedly freeze at random points, with a split second of sound looping.
I have browsed the steam FAQs and found a thread on the topic, and they reckon it has something to do with my sound card. There are various suggestions that they have provided, and i have tried them all, including moving my sound card to a different slot!! (something to do with latency i assume?)
Here's my sys specs:
P4 3Ghz, 512DDR2, ATi X300se 128mb, SB Audigy 2, winXP SP2
I wouldn't have thought it could be my hardware, and i'm positive it's not a OS or driver issue - i keep my machine well maintained and have never suffered anything like this with any other game.
Anyway, thanks in advance for any comments,
Cheers guys!!

 

[NiteX]

I have the exact same problem and trust me its not your hardware or drivers. Its Valve. I recently noticed that before the HL2 patch update my HL2 ran perfect. Steam installed some new patch thing and my HL2 no longer works. What's strange is that HL:S and CS:S work perfectly fine but not HL2. Therefore its not a source or driver problem. Its a game problem. I really hope Valve does something about this soon. It's funny how Valve is supporting ATI and yet every ATI card cannot play the damn game. Great job Valve!

 

[BigDannyO]

I guess i'll be wearing out my F6 key to play this game, what with the amount of quicksaves i'll have to use to make any progress. Ah well, at least i know now, thanks buddy, and thanks Valve!