Vista - video sound acting up

[PC Hobbyist]

Whenever I watch divx or xvid videos on WMP11 or DivX in Vista, the sound starts off fine and after a couple of minutes, it starts to have a continuous static-vibrating type of noise. The only way to get rid of it is to close the program and restart the video. Sometimes, DivX totally freezes soon after the sound goes bad. And also, whenever I use Divx Player, Vista switches the theme to Vista Basic due to compatibility issues. As soon as Divx is closed, Vista switches back to Aero style.

Anyway, it wouldn't surprise me to see issues with Divx in Vista, but this also happens with WMP11. I assume the divx codec is causing the problem and that is why it happens with either one of the programs.

I tried playing the videos with VLC, but they won't play. I just get some blurry patterns with the sound, but no video.

Is there another codec I can install for WMP so I can play divx / xvid videos with it?

Anyone else having these problems?

 

[PC Hobbyist]

UPDATE with question at the end:

I searched and found that this is a common problem.
http://apcmag.com/5773/vistas_divx_woes

As suggested in that article, I will try installing the xvid codec and see if that is more stable.
http://www.xvidmovies.com/codec/


EDIT: Ok, I just installed the Xvid codec, but WMP is still not playing the videos correctly (sound not in sync with video). How do I know if WMP is using the new xvid codec instead of the previously installed divx codec? i.e. How can I delete the divx codec or at least prevent WMP from using it?