terrace,

Maybe I misunderstood your first post. I don't understand how you may have configured your alerts for your contacts only - the default is for all mail items.

The info I gave you earlier is for customizing alerts (you'll need a 3rd party program for that).

Here is where you can make sure anytime anything comes into your inbox that it makes a sound:

In Outlook:

1. Click Tools > Options to open the Options dialog box.
2. From the Preferences tab of the Options dialog box, click email Options.
3. From the email Options dialog box, click Advanced email Options.
4. From the Advanced email Options dialog box, click Desktop Alert Settings.

I hope this is more helpful to you. Let me know!