Windows 2000 was Microsoft's business-focused successor to Windows NT, released in 2000 after a long public testing period in which preview builds circulated among testers and enthusiasts. Each build could carry a different startup sound, and build 1946 preserves one of those interim chimes rather than the familiar final version. Retro computing channels and collectors later shared these rare sounds online, and they remain popular as authentic period audio for nostalgia videos, operating system histories, and comparisons between Windows versions.
About this sound
The startup chime from Windows 2000 build 1946, a short orchestral jingle used in retro computing videos, nostalgia edits, and tech history content.
The brief startup sound from an early Windows 2000 test build opens with a soft, rising synth pad before settling into a calm, melodic chime that feels both futuristic and dated. It lasts only a few seconds, yet its clean, polished tone instantly signals a computer powering on in the late 1990s. For viewers, it triggers a wave of nostalgia for beige desktops, dial-up setups, and the optimism of early personal computing, making it a perfect audio cue for retro tech videos, throwback edits, and jokes about old software.
