The sound disappeared afterwards. Installing an additional program

The main components of a computer's sound system are a sound card and an audio output device - speakers (speakers) or headphones. Sound cards of modern computers are sold in two main categories:

integrated into the computer motherboard (on board);
separate (discrete) sound cards installed inside the computer system unit.

There are also cheap or very expensive (for professional musicians) external sound cards with a USB connector.

The widespread first option involves wiring the sound chip onto the motherboard. The more expensive the latter, the better the chip used in it. But even in this case, the sound quality in on board cards cannot be called high, although it is quite satisfactory for ordinary users. The influence of interference from nearby other elements of the system unit sometimes leads to the audio signal in such cards being distorted. In addition, if the processor is heavily loaded, the sound stutters.

Discrete sound cards have significantly higher audio performance. The audio signal is processed in them by a specialized sound processor. The delivery package of such a board includes special software that implements various acoustic effects. It should be noted, however, that the potentially high sound quality can be offset by ordinary speakers or headphones. It is recommended, in particular, to use speakers with wooden bodies.

Reasons for sound loss

Sometimes, after turning on or during operation, the computer may lose sound. Why is there no sound on my computer? The reason for the disappearance or distortion may be problems in its software or hardware components:

poor contact or failure of speakers or headphones;
incorrect audio device settings;
driver damage;
malfunction of the sound or motherboard (for on board version) board;
incompatibility with other programs or drivers;
incorrect BIOS settings;
exposure to viruses.

The easiest ways to recover

If the sound just disappeared, you should restart your computer. It happens that problems with sound are the result of an accidental failure. If the problem persists, make sure that the speaker switch is turned on and not pushed to its extreme position. Then visually check that the speaker (or headphone) plug is securely connected to the corresponding (green) socket on the computer. Poor contact with the jack can also cause the sound to wheeze. The functionality of the speakers themselves can be checked by connecting to another sound source - a player, smartphone, or another computer.

In the entire line of operating system versions in use - Windows 7/8/10, as well as in the outdated Windows XP, there is a universal tool - “System Restore”. It allows you to return your computer to a working state. If the sound was normal, for example, a day or a week ago, then you can “roll back the clock” and return to this state. The screenshot below depicting sequentially opened windows explains the return algorithm (“Control Panel” -> “System” -> “System Protection” -> “Recovery” -> selecting a restore point -> “Next”). After the computer automatically restarts, the sound should be restored.

Configuring Audio Settings

Inexperienced computer users could unknowingly turn off the sound from the taskbar (crossed out speaker or down slider). If this is the case, then you need to restore it, as shown in the screenshot (to delete the shutdown, click on the speaker icon).

Then you should go to “Start” -> “Control Panel” -> “Administrative Tools” -> “Services” and make sure that the Windows Audio service is automatically started and running; otherwise, restart it.

To check the audio settings, go to “Start” -> “Control Panel” -> “Sound” and make sure there is a green checkmark next to the sound device you are using. This means the speakers are working. Otherwise, click on the “Properties” button,

then open the lower list in a new window, select the “Use this device” option and click OK.

Reinstalling drivers

You can verify that the sound card is working in the device manager: “Start” -> “Control Panel” -> “Device Manager”. After opening the “Sound, video and gaming devices” list, the presence of a model (Realtek High Definition Audio) and the absence of an alarming yellow exclamation mark next to the line means that everything is in order. If you right-click on this line, then click “Properties”, a notification “The device is working normally” will appear in a new window.

Otherwise, you need to update or reinstall the driver. The same need sometimes arises after installing a new, partially incompatible device or program. To update, right-click on the Realtek High Definition Audio line and click “Update drivers” in the drop-down list.

A new window offers two ways to find updated drivers with explanations.

In some cases, the effect is achieved only after removing the existing driver (see previous screenshot) and installing it again from scratch. The Windows 7 operating system should automatically install the missing driver upon reboot (Plug and Play). If this does not happen, then the required driver can be taken from the disk included with the discrete sound card or motherboard upon purchase. Finally, as a last resort, the driver can be found and downloaded on the Internet on the website of the card or board manufacturer.

Sound or motherboard problems

These faults are complex and are detected using special equipment in service workshops. However, if you have the same computer in your office or home (for example, a neighbor), you can replace the suspected board with a known good one. After checking in this way, the problem can be solved by purchasing a new board.

BIOS Settings

It is possible that an inexperienced user, unwittingly, turned off the integrated sound card in the BIOS settings. To enable it, you need to restart the computer, enter the settings (by pressing the Del key before the system boots), find the Onboard Devices Configuration section and replace Disabled with Enabled. At the same time, keep in mind that if you are using a discrete sound card, this option must be disabled.

No sound may be due to insufficient antivirus protection. In such cases, you need to carefully scan the entire computer, possibly using other antiviruses. Once viruses are detected and removed, the drivers will most likely need to be reinstalled as described above.

Conclusion

Consistent application of the above recommendations will restore normal sound on your computer. Similar advice can be found in other articles for the search query “Why the computer sound disappeared.”

If you compare a computer and a laptop, it turns out that the latter device is more problematic. Therefore, users often prefer to have a PC, despite the mobility of a laptop. What are the problems with the laptop?

The fact is that a laptop is a device that is difficult to take apart. If in a computer you can separate the video card, sound card or RAM from the motherboard, then in a laptop most of the components are built into the motherboard. Therefore, if any problems occur with one piece of hardware, the entire system may suffer. If the entire system suffers, then replacing it will be very expensive. But with a computer in this regard, things are simpler. The video card is broken - we take it out and replace it with a new one. It's the same with the sound card. But what to do if the sound on the laptop disappears?

Causes

There are quite a few reasons for this problem. Most of them can be solved programmatically by correcting some settings or updating drivers. But if the problem lies precisely in the sound card, then more serious troubles may arise.

If you notice that there is no sound on your laptop, what should you do first? Do not rush to grab the device and take it to the service center. There can be many reasons for this breakdown. Some can be solved on your own in just a few minutes. Among the main reasons are:

problems with the playback device;
reset volume settings;
driver failure;
sound manager settings;
activating the sound card in BIOS;
audio and video codecs.

Playback device

You can determine why the sound on your laptop disappears without the help of specialists. To do this, just take a close look at the devices that reproduce sound. For example, headphones served as such a device. They often encounter problems that are difficult to solve. Most of them result in the headset being sent back to the store, to a service center, or even thrown into the trash.

If you were listening to music on your laptop, turn them off and listen to whether the laptop's speaker plays the melody. If everything is fine, then most likely there is a problem with the headphones. But such a check does not guarantee that the headset is really broken. It happens that you used headphones in the evening, the next day you turned on your laptop, but it makes no sound. You turn off the headset, but the speakers don't make any sound either. As practice shows, this is a common hardware failure. You need to connect and disconnect the headphones several times, and the sound will appear.

Often users use speakers instead of headphones. Acoustics also does not last forever; problems occur with it that are difficult to properly assess at first. The speakers may fail; their plug or power cord may be damaged. In this case, it is better to check them on another device. This is more likely to show the whole situation. Perhaps it was a malfunction of the acoustics that led to the loss of sound on the laptop.

And finally, no matter how stupid it may sound, in case of such a breakdown it is important to check the sockets and plugs. Perhaps you forgot to connect the speakers to the outlet or turn them on. The wire that connects to the laptop may have been damaged. All this can also cause the problem described.

Volume settings

Not all PC users can be called experienced. Some people's knowledge is limited only to starting the system and logging into the browser. Therefore, it is important for such people to be attentive to all the processes that occur while they are using a laptop.

If you notice that the sound on your laptop has suddenly disappeared (with Windows or another operating system - it doesn’t matter), take a closer look at the tray (lower right corner of the screen). This area usually displays the date and time, there is an input language setting, wireless network, power supply, etc. There is also a special sound icon.

It happens that by pressing some combination of keys you could turn down the volume or turn it off completely. In this case, you need to click on the icon in the tray and look: if there is a cross on it, then the sound is muted, if not, perhaps the volume scale is turned to the left, so the sound is very quiet, and therefore it seems that it has disappeared.

Mixer

But that's not all. If you right-click on the sound icon, the usual volume scale will open, and if you use LMB, you can select several settings. First, go to the mixer.

This option is also important in the sound settings. The mixer indicates several programs on the laptop that use sound. For example, Skype, a browser, system sounds, etc. can be displayed here. Each program has its own volume scale. Perhaps the browser volume was turned off, so when you turned on a video on the Internet, you thought that the sound on your Windows 7 laptop was missing.

Next you need to check the installed playback device. To do this, LMB click on the tray icon and select the appropriate section. The sound settings will open. The first tab will indicate the playback device. There may be several of them. You need to take a closer look at the names. It happens that one speaker system is installed instead of another.

It is important to set everything up correctly. If you can’t determine which device you need, try LMB-clicking on each of them and turning them on one by one. When you select the one you want, you will notice that the volume scale activates next to the name.

Alternatively, you can also try running the internal troubleshooting service. To do this, left-click on the tray icon again. Find the line “Detect sound problems.” The system will automatically launch diagnostics and indicate possible solutions as errors are found. Sometimes it will automatically fix the problem.

System Drivers

If all the above solutions do not work, what should I do? There is a possibility that the problem lies in the drivers. Let's say you notice that there is no sound on your laptop. How to fix this problem? You need to check that the drivers are working correctly. To do this, go to the “Start” menu, in the right column we find the “Control Panel” section. A new window will open in which you will need to find the “Device Manager” section. All connected devices to the system will appear in a new dialog box. Here you need to find the line that relates to the sound. Most often it is called “Sound, video and gaming devices”.

Click on the plus sign next to this name. Another list will open, which will indicate all the devices belonging to this category. You need to look at them carefully. You may notice that one of them has an exclamation mark or a red X next to it. This means that the device has failed.

If something really happened to the drivers, you need to click on the faulty device LMB and select “Disable” and “Enable” again. If this doesn't help, click Update Drivers. If this does not give any result, you can try removing this device from the system. Uninstalling may work, but to do this you will have to install new drivers. If there are no installation disks left, look for the necessary files on the Internet. Most of them are on the official website of the laptop manufacturer.

If you don’t notice any exclamation marks or crosses, see if there is an “Unknown Device” in the list. There is a possibility that the system was unable to determine the device model and install drivers for it, so you will need to do this yourself.

Helper program

To cope with the drivers and fix the problem that the sound on the laptop has disappeared (“Windows 10” can especially “please” the user with this and other problems), you can install a special program. It will definitely be useful for restoring other devices in the future. The Driver Booster utility can be installed for free. It quickly checks and finds the necessary drivers for all system devices. The user only needs to give his consent to download the relevant files.

Problems with the sound manager

Above we looked at the sound settings in the system itself. But there is another service that helps with deeper device configuration. This program is installed along with the sound drivers. In almost all systems it is called Realtek High Definition Audio. The utility helps you set the optimal settings if there are any problems with the sound.

To do this, go to the “Control Panel”, as described above. Then you need to select a viewing option. It is in the upper right corner. You can choose to display large or small icons, and also select the “Category” section. It’s the last option that you need to click. All elements in the dialog box will be rearranged. You need to find “Hardware and Sound” and select the very last item.

The built-in audio configuration service will open. It needs to be examined carefully. Depending on your requirements, you can customize the sound for yourself.

BIOS settings

Also, if there is no sound on a Windows laptop, what should you do? Of course, BIOS is one of the last options that could fail. However, there are also cases when the laptop turns off the sound card, and you need to turn it on yourself.

To go to the BIOS, you need to turn off the computer and press the Del or F2 button while it starts. This is a common option for how to get to this menu. But he is not always like that. Therefore, check in advance on the Internet which combination of buttons your particular laptop model supports.

The BIOS version may also differ depending on the firmware. Therefore, you will have to “travel” through the entire menu. You need to find the Audio or Advanced section. There you will notice the name of the sound card. Most often it sounds like High Definition Audio. Opposite the line will be written Disabled if the option is disabled and Enabled if it is enabled. Select the desired item and do not forget to save the changes. Below is a key that must be pressed for the changes to take effect.

Working with codecs

It happens that the sound disappears on the laptop while playing a track or movie. At the same time, you hear everything. Most likely you are faced with codecs. What do we have to do?

remove existing codecs;
reboot the laptop;
download and install new codecs.

Removing codecs will depend on what software you are using. Therefore, it is difficult to describe the algorithm of actions here. It can be different for each existing program. Usually, when starting a movie, you need to go to the player menu, and there find the “Filters” item. It is there that the codecs are indicated. You can also use a special program that allows you to manage codecs.

Windows 10

It happens that the sound disappears on a laptop with Windows 10 on board. In this case, there are no fundamental differences in fixing this problem relative to other systems. You also need to first check the playback device, then examine the sound settings, both system and software. You'll have to work with drivers and BIOS.

Solution

If none of the above works for you, and there is still no sound, you can start blaming the sound card. If your laptop has problems with it, then you will have to take it in for repair or buy an external device.

If you decide to renovate, there is a chance that it will take you a lot of time and money. Therefore, many people choose to buy an external sound card. It looks like a regular flash drive that has microphone and headphone jacks. Of course, the ideal option is to purchase a “native” sound card, but if this is not possible, try to find the highest quality model.

There is one drawback to such a solution. It is difficult to understand for sure that the problem is in the sound card. The sound problems may be caused by viruses or system clogs. Therefore, many people finally recommend reinstalling the operating system. There is a possibility that some system files have been damaged, which will be restored when the OS is installed. If this option does not help, then the problem is definitely in the sound card.

Owners of laptops from Asus, Acer, Samsung, HP and other models encounter a variety of audio problems during operation. In this article we will look at why the sound on the laptop disappeared, what to do and how to correct the situation. Don’t rush to call a technician or run to a service center; often the problem can be solved with your own hands.

The reasons for the loss of sound from a laptop are varied, but they can be divided into 2 areas: software and hardware. The problems discussed and solutions in this manual mostly relate to software, since they are more common than hardware ones and can always be fixed.

Changing the volume level and status indicator

The first step is to check for muted status in the volume mixer. You can recognize this by the red crossed out circle on the volume icon, but not always. Users randomly or due to system glitches turn off the sound on their laptop. The following situation may exist: complete disappearance of sound or partial (in applications). To view and change the volume scale, follow these steps.

In the system tray, right-click the volume icon. From the menu, select "open volume mixer". If you do not see this element, read the instructions on why the volume icon disappeared from the taskbar in Windows.

In the volume mixer you will see two areas: “device” and “applications”. The “device” area controls the sound of the laptop speakers. In the “application” area, system and application sounds are regulated. Each element has a volume slider and a status indicator. If the indicator has a speaker icon with a red crossed out circle, then left-click on it to set the “sound on” position. If necessary, adjust the volume sliders to an acceptable level.

If there is no sound on the laptop in a separate program, then launch it, after which it will appear in the volume mixer in the “applications” area. Switch the indicator and adjust the position of the slider. The screenshot below shows an example with the Yandex browser.

Don't forget to look at the settings or volume indicators in the programs themselves. For example, in browsers the sound is also regulated by the Flash player, which also has a volume slider and an icon for completely muting the sound in the player.

Laptops have shortcut keys for controlling overall audio, so you don't always need to visit the volume mixer. To turn on the missing sound, hold down the Fn button and press the button with the crossed out volume icon or similar (usually located in the top row of the keyboard). You can also hold down the Fn key and press the volume up key with the volume icon (usually located on the keyboard arrows, next to the buttons). In the screenshot below, see the hot keys of an Acer laptop.

When there is no sound on your laptop, first follow the steps above. If the problem persists, restart the laptop, as long-term operation may cause a system failure and after restarting the system, performance may be restored. Read on if the recommendations above do not bring success.

Reinstalling sound drivers

If the volume settings are fine, then there may be a problem with the sound drivers. If the drivers fail or are unsuccessfully updated, the sound on the laptop disappears. To restore them, consider reinstalling and rolling back the sound drivers.

Open Device Manager. Enter the command devmgmt.msc, then click OK. In Device Manager, expand the sound devices item (see screenshot).

If your audio device is not working properly, it will have a small "!" or "?" icon. Double-click the audio device to bring up the properties window. Visit the “driver” tab, click the “update” button.

In the open window, select automatic search for drivers. If drivers are found, they will be downloaded and then installed automatically. If the OS did not find the driver, then read on.

Pre-download a set of sound drivers from the laptop manufacturer's website or a third-party resource. The most common audio device manufacturers include:

Realtek
Creative
Logitech

Many driver packages have an installer. By installing this software, you will automatically install the driver, thereby restoring sound on your laptop. Next, you will need to reboot the system.

If you have a set of drivers without an installer, then in the properties of the audio device, when you click on the “update” button, select search and install drivers manually (second point). Specify the folder, click “next” and wait for the installation process to complete. Next, you will need to restart the system. For more detailed information, read the recommendation on how to install drivers on Windows.

After an unsuccessful driver update, you may notice that the sound on your laptop has disappeared. The reason may be that the new driver is damaged or incompatible. In this case, clicking the “roll back” button (returns the previous driver version) in the audio device properties window will help you. Click “yes” in the message.

Enable the audio service

It happens that the Windows Audio service, responsible for sound playback, has stopped. The volume tray icon has a red circle with a white cross. When you hover over the volume icon, a hint pops up that the audio service is not running. To restore sound on your laptop, you need to left-click on the sound icon. Then the troubleshooting wizard will automatically fix the problem, and you will see that the red cross icon has disappeared.

You can start the audio service manually. Press the Win + R button, copy services.msc into the input field, then click OK. Sort the services by name, then find the Windows Audio service, double-click on it with the left button.

On the "General" tab in the properties of the sound service, set the startup type to "automatic". Next, click the “run” button and wait a bit. Now the missing laptop sound will be restored.

Other ways to restore sound

There are many reasons why sound disappears. These reasons can be varied, so it is not always known why the sound on the laptop disappeared and what to do to restore it. Here are some recommendations that may help you:

Run the troubleshooter to help fix common audio problems.
In the sound settings, set your audio device as the default playback device.
In Device Manager, enable the audio device.
and turn on the audio device there.
Update your BIOS.
Make sure that the external speakers and headphones are in working order, and also make sure that the plug is plugged into the line output.
Install OS updates.
Do a system restore.

You can consider some of the recommendations above in more detail in the article, the sound on the computer does not work in Windows 7, 8, 10. Now you know why the sound on the laptop disappeared, what to do and how to restore it. If you have tried all the methods and your audio device still does not work, most likely the problem lies in the hardware. At home, a full-time user cannot fix problems with equipment, so a trip to the service center is indispensable.

How to restore sound on a computer.

Imagine this situation: you turn on your computer as usual, but instead of a pleasant shimmering melody, you are greeted only by the hum of a working system unit. No sound on the computer! What to do, why is there no sound on the computer? You, in the silence of your speakers, go online and enter the cherished question: “Why is there no sound on the computer.” This article discusses the main causes and ways to eliminate them. You will find out the answer to your question, namely, step-by-step restoration of sound on your computer.

Here's the question - why is there no sound? And where can I find the answer to this and some instructions?
">
Why is there no sound on my computer?
The reason for the lack of sound on the computer can only be in the hardware or software environment. That is, you either have faulty components, or you have problems in the settings of the operating system or individual programs. This is independent of the operating system. Similar incidents can happen with Windows XP; sound can disappear in Linux and even in the latest Windows 7 system. Moreover, speakers, headphones and a sound card can be the most modern and expensive.
How to restore sound on a computer?
The first step is to find out the reason for the missing sound on the computer. There are several ways to do this, but you should start with the simplest.

So, sound restoration step by step. Each subsequent step will bring you closer to the result.

1). Try restarting the computer, it is possible that the sound will appear when the operating system starts. This happens.

2). Check that the speaker plug is inserted into the socket. When disconnecting, plug the plug into the socket.

3). Check the switch on the speakers to see if it is turned off. Turn on the sound on the speakers by turning the control clockwise. The LED on the column with the control knob should light up (almost all models have it).

Are the speakers turned on - usually the power light is on on one of them

4). Look at the taskbar and find the speaker icon. It must not be crossed out. If this is the case, then turn on the sound simply by clicking on the “Turn on sound” button.

Desktop sound is muted. Click on the speaker logo

5). Check the speaker level, it can be reduced to a complete minimum - to zero. If the sound is reduced, then simply increase the sliders to the desired level.

6). Check the functionality of the speakers on any sound source. On the player, on the phone, on another computer. The other computer can be a laptop, yours or your friend's.

7). Check Device Manager for unknown devices. This device appears with an exclamation mark. You can open the device manager like this: Start -> Control Panel -> System and Security -> In the “System” column, find the inscription “Device Manager”. All devices there should be identified in this window, there should be no exclamation marks. If there is such an icon, then you need to install sound drivers.

The reason for the sound not working can be found in the task manager

8). Install sound drivers. The sound processor can be built into the motherboard or installed on a separate sound card. Download drivers from the website of the sound card or processor manufacturer.

9). Try inserting a known working sound card into the system unit. You can borrow it from a friend for a while. If the problem is solved in this way, then try the next step or buy a new sound card.

10). Try restoring to a previous restore point in your operating system. In Windows 7, this software environment is located in the “Start -> All Programs -> Accessories -> System Tools -> System Restore” menu.

When the sound disappears, it may be worth restoring the system from a restore point. Suddenly a sound appears.

eleven). Try reinstalling the operating system. And install the sound drivers first, immediately after the drivers for the motherboard chipset. There may be hardware conflicts. If the sound appears, then gradually install the equipment and programs further. The sound may disappear at the most unexpected moment. This could be either a hardware conflict or a software conflict.

12). If nothing helps and sound does not appear on the computer, then the only option is to contact a specialist, or take your computer to a service workshop.
What to do if there is no sound on the computer or the sound is bad?
Before you take action, remember what you did yesterday when the sound on your computer was working. What programs did you install on your computer? Perhaps the problem will be solved if you remove it. Or maybe you deleted some necessary file from your computer. If you haven’t done anything like this, then follow the steps above. Surely something will help you. You can also try using the Help and Support section in the Start menu.

Help and support section - Music and sound, will help you find and eliminate the reason for the lack of sound

If the sound is quiet, wheezing or something else, then try manipulating the software sound settings. Or maybe you just added some kind of effect to the sound, which is why your sound on the computer sounds like it’s coming through a pipe, wheezing and hissing.

If there is no sound only in a certain program, then you need to look at the settings of that particular program. You can also simply reinstall the program, the sound will probably appear.

Don't despair. Everything can be decided, everything is in your hands. Today you can buy a simple sound card quite cheaply and within the reach of any normal person.

Often, users may encounter such a failure on their laptop and PC when the sound disappears. And this does not depend on whether you have speakers connected or are wearing headphones. The problem can happen at the most inopportune moments, for example, while watching a movie or playing a game. Let's figure out why this happens!

As a rule, the root cause can be completely different things. If there is no sound on a Windows 7 computer, what to do and how to fix the problem is not always clear. Moreover, this can happen periodically, which often completely confuses the user. Depending on the specific situation, the methods for resolving the problem may be directly different. It is important to understand that any information about the PC and analysis of all recent actions performed with hardware and software will help solve it. So people don't often see cause and effect when there is no sound on Windows 7, 8, 10 or OS like XP, Vista. And there are enough reasons.

The device was previously connected to other speakers or other sound output devices.
There was an attempt to update sound drivers or other software responsible for the functioning of computer components.
Changes have been made to system configurations and registry settings.
Additional software was installed to enhance the capabilities of the PC or laptop.
Windows was reinstalled, or another OS was installed.

In any case, there is no need to despair and worry. But thinking and remembering that the sound disappeared after some action will be much more useful and will quickly lead you to a solution. We will consider almost all the ways: from the simplest and most common ones, to those that can be called a little complex. In any case, if the potential cause is not clear to you, all that remains is to do a search, during which there is a high probability that you will identify the factor that caused the failure.

Why did the sound disappear after reinstalling Windows?

This applies to absolutely all versions of the OS - for Windows 7, 8, 10 and HP, Vista - if the sound worked before installation and disappeared after it, you should pay attention to the drivers. The likelihood that it was at this moment that the equipment for reproducing it failed is extremely small. The most interesting thing is that the system tray on the “Taskbar” can even display a sound icon, although it is missing. And if you updated your drivers, and Windows notified you about their installation, but when you moved the volume slider, you still didn’t hear anything, this may indicate an incorrect installation of the software. How to fix it?

Laptop owners can immediately go to the official website of their manufacturer and download a whole package of driver updates for the device. This is very convenient and allows you to put absolutely all computer components into working order without having to search for individual programs.
Often in the box of your device you can find a disk on which all the drivers will be available. The optical drive comes with the purchased PC or laptop and may be included with other drives (for example, with Windows).
If the search did not lead to success, and your computer is stationary, determine the model of the motherboard that is installed in it.
Now you need to go to the official resource of the motherboard manufacturer on the Internet and download from there a complete driver package that will help update other software.
After making the changes, as well as installing the drivers, do not forget to restart the computer so that all the changes are applied, ensuring the normal functioning of the module.

As a rule, the short guide described above will solve the sound problem in most cases.

Checking the speaker connections and their functionality

Sometimes it is the speakers or headphones that can cause a malfunction, leading some users to a point of hassle. But you shouldn’t immediately blame the equipment itself, because sometimes it can simply be plugged into the wrong connector! Therefore, first of all, make sure that the audio output device was connected correctly - it is quite possible that someone living with you unknowingly made this mistake by plugging the plug into the adjacent socket. Oddly enough, users can sometimes connect headphones themselves, forget about it and decide that the sound has disappeared due to some problem.

Be sure to check that the speakers or other equipment on your PC are connected correctly. If you have no doubt about this, test the audio output equipment by connecting it to another device: smartphone, player, TV, laptop. It is logical to assume that the problem will be in the computer if everything is played on another device without problems.

Windows sounds disappeared - change settings

The next thing the user can do is find a special volume icon in the tray and right-click on the icon. A context menu will pop up. Now click on “Playback Devices”.

In the new window, you will need to check which of the connected devices is configured for audio output parameters. This should be a playback device, but not an audio recording device. By default, this role is played by the speakers of your PC or laptop. In general, here you can see complete information about the state of the sound card. If you are currently using an additional audio card (connected via USB) as a standard configuration, then change it to an external speaker and look at the changes.

If the columns are already selected, you need to go to their “Properties” in order to check all the important parameters, carefully studying each tab containing information about the equipment.

Are common. Here is the data registry for the audio card. If you click on the "Properties" menu and go to "Drivers", you can find out the exact date when the software was installed. Also make sure the Device Usage section is set to Use.
Levels. They are responsible for the volume - the sliders should not be at minimum at all.
Improvements. It is recommended to disable all these effects.
SRS Audio Enhancement. For now we leave it unchanged.
Additionally. The green triangle was specifically added there to indicate functionality. Click on "Test" - immediately after this you should hear an audio signal. Also make sure that its default format is 16 bits and 44100 Hz.

If all the parameters were set in a similar way, but you still do not hear anything, or it is possible that the sound disappears and appears from time to time, you need to look for another reason. Check again that the plug is fully inserted into the correct socket, and if special additional software is used to set the audio system settings, then check the configurations in it. Go ahead!

There are no sounds for Windows and there is nothing in playback devices

If you went to the registry of devices that reproduce sound, but did not see anything there, then you should follow these steps.

Click the pointer (RMB) on an empty space.
You will see a context menu.
Now check two boxes: display disabled devices, as well as previously disconnected devices.

After the operation is completed, absolutely all audio devices marked “disabled” will be displayed in the window. Accordingly, click on our speakers and start their work. If you did everything correctly, then after clicking on the “turn on” item the device will work, and no more problems should arise.

Playback devices are turned on, but sound does not work

It’s also possible that there’s a green check mark next to the audio output device, informing that it’s fully operational, but the user still doesn’t hear anything. What is the problem? Try connecting other speakers to the computer, or check the sound from headphones. If they are also “silent”, the problem is definitely not in the speakers. We try to search further and again pay attention to the drivers.

It is likely that they may not have installed correctly, especially if you installed them on top of other software. It would be a good idea to completely remove all components and do a clean installation again. This procedure is easy to do using the “Device Manager”. In the “Start” section, click on the search bar, and then enter its name. The service can also be opened through the “Control Panel” by going to the subsection responsible for “Hardware and Sound” and again selecting the section that interests us.

After Device Manager starts, remove all sound drivers installed in the OS. Uninstallation is quite easy - the user right-clicks on the components, and then clicks on the “Delete” line. At the end, you should reboot so that the system normally “accepts” all the changes made. Of course, then the drivers will need to be installed again, but now this will be done correctly and not on top of other software. Most likely, the procedure will help restore the sound. But if you don’t really want to do all this, you can use system recovery - this is a fairly convenient and effective method. Choose!

Device Manager displays strange characters

The next version of the problem we are considering looks like this. In this case, the user installs Windows 7 on his computer and, perhaps, except for audio, everything works fine on it. But when you launch Device Manager, the following icons will be displayed.

Most often they signal that old drivers were simply installed. For example, now you have Windows 7, and this software was still relevant on XP. Of course, an update needs to be done. However, if it is not possible to download other drivers, then do the following to fix this error.

Right-click on the Windows Driver Installer.
Select the option labeled “fix compatibility issues.”
Follow the simple instructions that the Windows installation wizard will offer you.

How to enable sound through BIOS?

You may be surprised, but a simple malfunction or malicious program can disable the PC sound card in the BIOS system settings. To make sure everything is working now, follow these steps.

When booting your PC, press F8 to exit to the BIOS main menu. For many computers, this may be a different key, and it depends directly on the type of motherboard. The BIOS can be launched via F1, F2, Del and other buttons. There is enough comprehensive information on this matter on the Internet.
Here we find the line we need with the audio card parameters. There is nothing complicated about this, however, on different computer models the main menu may appear slightly differently.
Once the desired setting is found, make sure it works. "Enabled" means that the module is enabled. “Disabled”, on the contrary, stops the operation of the equipment.

Checking the health of services

What else the user can do is check whether Windows Audio is functioning. Yes, this is a special separate service, the work of which can also be interrupted for a variety of reasons. What need to do?

Open “Start” and go to the “Control Panel” section.
Now select the “System and Security” subsection.
In it, open “Administration”, and then “Services”.

Actually, for a more convenient and, most importantly, quick search, services can be sorted by name. In this case, scroll immediately down and find the line “Windows Audio”. Make sure that such a service is currently active. The “Status” column should contain the word “Running”, and the startup type should be set to “Automatic”. If any parameter is specified differently, right-click and change its setting.

Now don't forget to restart your laptop or PC. If this does not help, all that remains is to move on to special measures and try to test the performance with a special utility built into the Windows OS, which helps to quickly find and identify problems.

Windows Diagnostics

As a rule, many users often underestimate this function, treating it with disdain. However, it’s still not worth doing this, especially in cases where it seems that nothing will fix the problem. You can start diagnosing in literally three steps by doing the following.

Launch Control Panel and click on System and Security.
Select "Windows Support Center".
Click on “Troubleshooting”.

An additional dialog box will open in front of you, where you will be able to select a specific area in which to search and further troubleshoot problems. Actually, we are setting up the sound, so the choice will be made in the appropriate “Sound and Equipment” section. Next we are interested in “Reproduction”. You will see a menu for the built-in Windows troubleshooting service. For the utility to start and begin diagnosing problems, correcting them along the way, just click “Next”.

If Windows manages to detect the source of the problem during the process, then the algorithms will automatically “determine” a more suitable option by loading the missing software (drivers) or returning all settings to the “default” state. All that remains is to reboot!

Audio card is faulty

If you have accurately followed the steps described in this manual from start to finish, the problem probably lies in the equipment. The audio card module or some other hardware part could have failed. You can again try to restore the OS, or perform a “clean” installation of Windows. If you are only sure that nothing could have happened to the PC itself, especially if the problem only appeared after changing the operating system. However, do not forget that the audio card is the same ordinary device in a computer, like all other hardware. It can fail and even has a limited shelf life. Maybe it's worth changing it?

We are glad if you managed to solve the problem by studying a rather large guide on how to restore sound on your PC and laptop. Share this page Hide-Info with friends! We are waiting for your ratings and questions, if you have any, of course. Thank you!