Are you troubled by audio not working properly on Windows 10 computers? The lack of sound from a computer can be frustrating, but we are always there to assist you.
Below, we introduce some fast and simple solutions to fix the issue of sound not working on Windows. Although we focus on Windows 10 here, many of these solutions are also applicable to Windows 11.
- Check the volume level and mute output
Firstly, you should find the most obvious repair method. If your computer has no sound, please carefully check to ensure that you have not muted the audio. Click on the volume icon in the bottom right corner of the computer to view the main volume bar; Ensure that it is not muted or set to an extremely low level. If muted, you will see an X next to the speaker icon.
Afterwards, right-click on the same volume icon and select Open Volume Mixer to view the current volume level of all applications playing audio. Raise them as needed and confirm that they are not mistakenly muted or too low to be heard. If you hear sound but it is too low, you may need to troubleshoot the bass output in Windows.
Please make sure to check the volume level in all active applications, games, video players, or similar devices. For example, even if you adjust both the main volume and browser volume to Windows level, silent YouTube videos will still not produce sound.
Related to this, you should also close all audio intensive applications that are not frequently used. Some programs can control your audio device, so you won’t hear any sound from other devices. For example, when using Bluetooth headphones, being in a Discord call may prevent you from hearing audio from other applications.
Before continuing, it is also wise to restart the computer at this time. Your sound issue may be temporary, possibly due to pending updates locking the audio output.
- Ensure that you use the correct audio output
If your computer is connected to multiple audio output devices, Windows may play sound through the wrong device.
To change the device used for playback, click the volume icon again. If multiple devices are enabled, you will see the name of the current device above the volume slider. Click this button to open a menu of all available devices, and then select the output you want to use from the list.
This is just a quick switcher, so it may not display all available devices. To view the complete list of audio devices connected to the computer, right-click on the volume icon and select Open Sound Settings. This serves as a shortcut to the Settings>System>Sound menu.
On this page, click on the Manage Sound Devices under the Output Device heading to view all content connected to the computer. Use the test button on any available device to play a quick prompt sound. After changing the output device, you may need to check the volume level again, as described above.
Check the disabled section to ensure that you have not turned off the device you want to use. If necessary, click on an option and click Enable to reopen it.
If you do not see the expected audio output, or if it is not working, please continue with the following steps. Your speakers, headphones, or other audio devices require further troubleshooting.
- Check all audio cables and wireless connections
Next, you should check the physical connections of all audio devices, especially if the output you want does not appear in the menu above.
Ensure that all audio (and power) cables are securely plugged into the computer and device. It’s best to unplug everything and reconnect to ensure there are no loose connections. Confirm that you have inserted the audio cable into the correct port. Generally speaking, audio output devices should enter the green port, sometimes with a headphone icon.
If any cable is worn, excessively bent, or otherwise damaged, it may not be usable. You may need to shake it to get a good connection. If possible, replace all worn cables.
For wireless audio devices such as headphones, please visit Settings>Devices>Bluetooth and other devices, and ensure that you have correctly paired the device with your computer. Please refer to how to troubleshoot Bluetooth in Windows 10 for more help on wireless devices.
If you are still using these Bluetooth headphones on your phone, tablet, TV, or similar device, please disconnect them from other devices first, and then try connecting them to a Windows computer again. When the Bluetooth earphones are currently connected to your phone, attempting to play audio from the computer to the Bluetooth earphones will not work.
Finally, try disconnecting all audio devices from the computer except for the one you want to use to prevent interference from other devices.
- Try troubleshooting Windows audio
Before continuing, it is worth running the built-in audio troubleshooting program. This allows Windows 10 to sometimes self identify and fix issues. These Windows troubleshooting programs may not always solve problems, but they are worth a try before you delve deeper.
Go to Settings>Updates and Security>Troubleshooting>Other troubleshooting, and then select Play Audio. Follow the instructions and hope that Windows can automatically correct the issue. After completion, you will see which fixes (if any) have been applied by the troubleshooting program.
On Windows 11, this tool is located under Settings>System>Troubleshooting>Other Troubleshooting>Audio.
- Rolling back or reinstalling audio drivers
Drivers usually work properly after initial configuration, but problems can lead to annoying issues. Your audio driver may be damaged or may need to be updated to resolve the issue.
Windows 10 provides some options to deal with problematic drivers. You can find these contents in the Device Manager, which can be accessed from a convenient menu by right clicking on the Start button or pressing Win+X.
Firstly, you can try simply rolling back the driver to the last good configuration. To do this, please expand the audio input and output section in Device Manager. Right click on the audio device you are using, select Properties, and then browse to the Driver tab.
Press the rollback driver option (if available), Windows 10 will start using the previous driver version. However, this feature is only available when there are old drivers available for use.
If you are unable to roll back the driver, you need to choose to update the driver or uninstall the device.
You can try updating drivers through this menu, but you may need to manually update drivers because Windows is not good at finding unique drivers for your system. Assuming no updates are available, please choose to uninstall the device. This will remove the problematic driver so that you can reinstall a new copy.
Before continuing with uninstallation, please download the latest manufacturer’s version of the driver (if available). You can usually download these files directly from the hardware publisher’s website. Google search for your device name, followed by “driver” should be enough to find it – do not download drivers from suspicious third-party websites.
If there are no specific drivers available for your device, please continue and Windows will reinstall the universal drivers upon restart.
Click on the uninstall device in the properties window, and you will see the confirm device uninstallation box. Depending on the driver, this window may also include an option to delete the driver software for the device. If this option is available, please select the box and press OK.
After erasing the driver, restart the system. If you are able to download the new driver, please install it now. Otherwise, Windows should have reinstalled the universal driver for your device.
If performing the above actions on a specific device does not solve the problem, please try these steps for device entries under the categories of sound, video, and game controllers.
- Update IDT high-definition audio codec
Some systems may encounter issues with IDT high-definition audio codecs. This can be resolved by manually updating the driver, which allows you to choose the sound driver you want to use.
As mentioned above, access the device manager again. Expand the sound, video, and game controller sections. If you find IDT High Definition Audio CODEC, right-click on it and select Update Driver. You may not be able to see this, depending on your computer. If not, please proceed to the next section.
In the next panel, select browse my computer to find drivers, and then select let me choose from the list of available drivers on my computer. This allows you to choose from any pre installed drivers on the system.
Ensure that display compatible hardware is selected. Then under the model, select the high-definition audio device, then select Next, and finally select Yes. You may need to restart the system for the changes to take effect.
If this solves your audio problem, you may consider improving the sound quality of your computer next.
- Fix Realtek high fidelity audio issues
Based on your computer manufacturer and hardware, you may have Realtek audio drivers instead of IDT. Realtek drivers also frequently appear in forum posts discussing Windows audio issues.
Firstly, follow the same IDT process as above to check for driver updates for Realtek audio. If this doesn’t work, you can try some more specific repair methods for Realtek audio issues.
Refresh your Wi Fi driver
A common repair method when there is no sound in Windows 10 is to disable the Realtek WLAN driver, uninstall and then reinstall the latest version – even if you have already installed the latest version.
Firstly, visit the Realtek website and download the latest driver version suitable for your system. Then open the Device Manager again. Browsing to your Realtek wireless LAN drivers: These drivers should be located under the network adapter and include both Realtek and wireless in their names.
Right click on the driver and click on uninstall device. Now go to the new driver file you downloaded, extract its content, find setupexe or a similar installation file, and follow the instructions to proceed. After installation, you need to restart the system.
Disable front panel audio jack
This fix may be system specific, but it fixes at least one person’s audio issue, so it can also solve your problem.
Reddit user Tiflotin solves persistent Realtek audio issues by disabling front jack detection in the Realtek HD audio manager. You can open this utility by double clicking on the Realtek speaker icon displayed in the system tray in the bottom right corner of the screen. When you click the small arrow, it may appear in the displayed extended menu.
On newer systems, this application has been replaced by Realtek Audio Console and can be used by searching your PC like any other application. Under Advanced Device Settings, you will see an option titled “Disable Front Panel Jack Detection.”. Try enabling this slider.
If you have already started to go crazy, then this may be worth a try!
- Disable Windows audio enhancement feature
Next is the audio enhancement feature of Windows 10. The audio enhancement feature is a built-in Microsoft and third-party software package designed to make your system audio sound better (or at least different) in multiple ways. However, these “enhancements” may be the cause of Windows 10 audio issues. Fortunately, they are easy to close.
To access audio enhancement features, right-click on the speaker icon in the system tray, and then select Sound to open the sound window of the control panel. Here, switch to the playback tab, and then double-click the audio device you are using.
In the next window, click on the Enhancement tab. There, select the box marked to disable all enhancement features (if not already selected), and then click Apply. If you encounter audio issues while using multiple devices, please repeat this process for each device in the playlist.
When you are here, it is best to ensure that the device you want to use is set as the default device. Right click on it and select Set as default device to perform this operation.
- Restart Windows audio service
If you still encounter a problem, the reason why the sound cannot be emitted on your computer may be a behind the scenes issue with Windows services. Although audio services should work properly, they may sometimes disable themselves for no apparent reason. If this happens, you will have no sound.
Type Services in the Start menu to find and open the Service Manager. Scroll down to Windows Audio. If the service is not running, your system audio will not function properly. Double click and select Start to start it again.
When you are here, please carefully check the startup type of the service. By default, the audio service should be set to automatic. If there is any difference – automatic (delayed start), manual or disabled – change it back.
Check Windows Audio Endpoint Builder in the same way, as audio also depends on its proper operation.
Is there no sound on your computer? Now you can hear clearly
We have fixed audio issues with Windows 10 (and Windows 11). I hope you can hear the sound of the computer again.
Although it is not a clear fix for every issue, Windows 10 seems to prefer you to use the built-in high-definition audio driver, and the many fixes we have read involve updating, uninstalling, reinstalling, and rolling back the driver.
