Sony CD rootkit Problems

I have spent several hours trying to fix the HP computer. I bought 4 new CDs on Wednesday: The Legend of Johnny Cash, Rent Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, and Sarah Brightman Andrew Lloyd Webber Collection and Sarah Brightman Encore.

I always make MP3s of all CDs that I buy because I don't like to put CDs in the player and to keep changing them after they are done. I usually have a playlist of at least 250 songs. After extracting the songs from the 4 CDs, my computer no longer can play any MP3 file nor can it extract anymore MP3 files.

Wow, what happened. I checked all the new CDs. One of them was a Sony CD, Rent. Bingo! Sony CD rootkit scandal... Damn. Did I get caught up with the mess? I tried to play some of the MP3 files that I have...both my players told me that they do not support the wave out file. Then I popped a CD into the computer and that played just fine!!

So far, I have downloaded all the rootkit removers I can find. I used one from the Blogger that discovered the problem, also used one produced by Norton and the last one was released by Microsoft in beta. Neither of these three programs have been able to locate the offending files. It is just too coincidental. My computer is now totally disabled where MP3 are concerned. But, I can still play a CD without problems and all the computer sound effects work. How can this be?

I am really getting angry about this. It does seem like my computer has been compromised by something that does not want me to make or play MP3s. This is really intrusive. I do not know what to do. I am inclined to just give up, reformat and start all over again. I have not reformatted this computer in three years. It may be time.

I have been researching this issue. I cannot make anymore MP3 files because of reported buffer overruns. This has been reported as a some time side effect. I have not heard of anyone prevented from playing MP3 files this diagnostic:
WaveOut Format Not Supported.

I am not sure if I should keep pursuing this problem. This is taking a lot of hours. I shall have someone look st this a final time. He is coming here in about 15 minutes. I am cutting it close because we have to leave in 15 minutes for lunch.