I never was a huge fan of the Windows startup or shutdown sounds, which is why I was and then happy they were removed in Windows 8. Nevertheless, if y'all want to accept your own custom startup and shutdown sounds in Windows, it's possible. In Windows XP, it's a piece of cake.

In Windows 7, yous have to use a third-party programme to change the startup sound because if you try via the Control Console, it doesn't exercise annihilation.

In Windows 8, information technology gets worse if you miss your honey startup sound because information technology'southward completely disabled, so you showtime accept to enable it in the registry. Later on that, y'all have to run the third-party plan and even after that, you accept to shutdown and restart the computer in a sure manner in order to actually hear the sound.

I'll go through each operating system below to make it as like shooting fish in a barrel as possible depending on your OS. Before we get into the details, you lot will first want to find an appropriate audio file in WAV format. If you have an MP3, yous can convert it to WAV format easily using a free online tool like Media.io. Endeavor to continue the file size small, less than 1 MB if possible.

Windows XP Startup Audio

In that location are 2 means to go nearly changing the startup and other sounds in Windows XP: simple drag and drop into the appropriate folder or using the Command Panel. Permit's start with copying the sound files to the sounds directory.

Step one:Rename each WAV file to Windows XP Startup.wav and Windows XP Shutdown.wav respectively.

Stride 2: Now go ahead and navigate to the binder with the current startup and shutdown Windows sounds, which isC:\Windows\Media. Here y'all will find the files Windows XP Startup.wav and Windows XP Shutdown.wav forth with a agglomeration of other Windows sounds.

windows sounds

Become ahead and move the two original files from the Media folder to some other fill-in folder. This is just in example the two WAV files you created do not work and y'all desire to revert back to the original sound.

Stride 3: At present copy the 2 renamed files to the C:\Windows\Media folder and restart your computer! You should at present hear the new sound play rather than the default sounds.

If you don't like some of the other default Windows sounds, y'all can change them besides in the aforementioned way. Simply create a file that has the exact same proper noun as the one in the Media binder and replace it.

The second method is to become to Command Console and click on Sounds and Audio Devices. Click on the Sounds tab then click on Start Windows in the list box.

start windows xp

Go ahead and click on the Scan push button and merely choose the replacement WAV file. You tin can follow this aforementioned procedure in Windows 7, but for some reason information technology doesn't really change the startup sound.

Windows 7 Startup Sound

In Windows 7, y'all accept to rely on the 3rd-party plan chosen Startup Sound Changer. Just download information technology and run it. Thankfully, it doesn't install anything on your arrangement, so you lot tin can just delete information technology once you are finished.

startup sound changer

The programme is very easy to use. Click Play to hear the current startup audio, Supplant to modify the startup audio and Restore to revert back to the original startup sound.

The only other thing you lot have to check a setting under Sound in Control Panel. Click on the Sounds tab and make certain the Play Windows Startup audio box is checked.

windows 7 sounds

In one case you exercise that, y'all should hear your new startup audio when you log onto Windows. Notation that you can still use the Audio Control Panel settings to change other sounds like shown for Windows XP. For example, you can click on Windows Logoff, click on Browse and pick a dissimilar WAV file. This will piece of work simply fine.

Windows eight Startup Sound

Windows eight is a different beast altogether and pretty much all the startup and shutdown sounds are disabled by default. This is considering Windows 8 sports a new fast boot (hybrid boot) that cuts downward on the kicking time significantly. There are two problems with Windows eight:

1. The sounds are disabled and accept to be enabled in the registry.

2. Even if you enable the sounds, the fast boot process bypasses all sounds. In order to hear the sounds, you take to perform a full shutdown of your system. Even performing a restart will result in the sounds not playing.

Manifestly, this is quite annoying and I'm pretty sure 99% of people just use Windows viii without worrying most whatsoever sounds. If you really want the sounds, even so, hither's how to do it.

Enable Sounds in Registry

In Windows viii, if you open Command Console, click on Sound and so click on the Sounds tab, y'all'll notice that the Windows Logon and Windows Logoff options don't even exist in the list box. Hither's how we can enable the sounds in the registry.

Press Win Fundamental + R on your keyboard to bring up the Run dialog box and blazon in regedit. You can also just get to the Start Screen and first typing regedit and it'll evidence up in the Charms bar on the right.

open regedit

Now navigate to the post-obit key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\AppEvents\EventLabels

You'll run across a whole agglomeration of items listed hither, just the ones nosotros are interested in for this post are WindowsLogon and WindowsLogoff.

windowslogin registry key

Click on WindowsLogon so double-click on the ExcludeFromCPL key in the right pane. Change the value from ane to 0. You should now be able to open up Sound from Command Console and see the items listed without having to restart or log off.

You will too demand to bank check the Play Windows Startup sound box considering it will be unchecked for sure in Windows eight.

windows 8 startup sound

Side by side, you have to download the startup audio changer programme mentioned above and run that to replace the actual Windows logon sound. Again, you tin can still modify the other sounds in Windows 8 by click on the sound and choosing Browse, it's but the startup sound that requires all this actress work. However, you lot still accept the extra step of enabling the sounds in the beginning place in Windows 8 using the registry.

Lastly, you have to perform a full shutdown in Windows 8 in club to hear the login audio when you startup. In society to perform a full shutdown in 8.1, you have to right-click on the Start Push button, choose Close down or sign out and then click on Shut down.

windows 8 full shutdown

If you endeavour to shut down using the Start Screen or by going to the Charms bar and clicking on power push, it will perform a hybrid shut downward and not play the audio. Here are screenshots and then you know exactly what will non work.

shutdown windows 8

windows 8 shutdown

So that's about information technology for Windows XP, Vista, 7 and 8. I'll as well update this mail when Windows 10 gets closer to release this year, as it'll probably exist different from all the methods above! If y'all have any questions, postal service a comment. Enjoy!