From reading some posts on another board, a lot of HP Pavilion users are experiencing a similar problem, namely getting fatal exceptions when trying to load, save, or exit a game. This is happening on even the lowest graphics and sound settings, and with completely updated DirectX7 drivers. Two of the BioWare support guys have been very active and helpful on that board, and I have e-mailed the problem to their support department as well. So if there's anyone out there having the same problem, watch this space for updates.

I've got an Hp Pavilion and i`ve no problem...
it's a HP6330 and it all is fine...so maybe it depends of the model but anyway the hp desktop are the worst pc to buy, i`ve sell a lot of them and i can tell that there is always a problem with these...

I've got a 6638, the problem seems to be stemming from the Crystal Audio Codec it uses for sound. And it seems to be solely related to BG2 -- I've run Icewind Dale and Diablo 2 on full install at high graphics and sound settings and had no problems.

I've got the same problem Daily, and the same PC, is there any more news on the subject?

Yes Wyrmslayer, got an e-mail back from BioWare, apparently it is not the HPs themselves but the Crystal Audio sound cards that they come installed with. BG2 will NOT work with it, and it is an issue they say the manufacturer, Cirrus Logic, will have to fix. However, Cirrus does not make the drivers, only the hardware, and refers you to your PC manufacturers website for updates, and HP has no sound driver updates. I sent this info on to BioWare, maybe there's something they can do patch-wise, but I'm thinking SoundBlaster is starting to look really good right now.

Hey guys I have a newer Hp and no problems so far (Knock on wood)! Where exactly in the game is it happening or is it only at start, save and exit?
Good gamin,
Lars

Lars, it happens sporadically (with me at least) when loading a saved game at the beginning of the game or when saving or exiting from options menu. Quick save for me seems to be unaffected but it has caused problems for others. And if you've installed a sound card other than the Crystal Audio that came with the HP, you should be fine, this seems to be the only compatibility issue so far (too many HP users with the same problem for it to be a coincidence). Unfortunately, it may be necessary to get a new sound card, since I don't know how soon or likely a fix is.

i have a hp pavilion 4535 i do not have a problem because i am using soundblaster live x-gamer, and it works fine

It's definitely an issue with the Crystal Audio sound card that comes standard with the HP Pavilion series. And unfortunately, according to BioWare, the only way to run the game with this card is to disable all sound.

Knock on wood....I havent had any problems yet.But I have only had the game one day I did have that problem with Ice Wind Dale.Every time I quit the game,that fatal messege would come up.Very annoying,especially when you dont know how or why its doing it.Does anyone know if this harms the computer???