The speakers on the computer work but there is no sound. What to do if there is no sound in Windows? Checking the Windows Audio Service

If you turned on your computer one day, the Windows system loaded, all applications were running, but there was no sound, rejoice, it could have been worse. It’s better that the sound on the computer doesn’t work than that it doesn’t turn on at all.

What could have happened? One of two things - either there are problems with the software, or the hardware has failed.

How to find the cause of no sound on your computer

First, look at the bottom right of the screen - the speaker icon should not be crossed out. If it is crossed out, most likely the sound was simply turned off accidentally. Click the speaker icon and turn it back on. Check your settings at the same time. There will be no sound if the output power is set to zero.

Now look at the speakers themselves. The power indicator on one of them should be lit. If it does not light up, the connecting wires may have fallen out or the switches on the speakers are turned off. Check and turn it on if everything is really turned off.

If your speakers have volume controls, check to see if they are turned down to zero. Turn it up to maximum. To make sure your speakers are working properly, connect them to another source. Or vice versa - disconnect the speakers from the computer and connect headphones.

If sound does appear on the tested devices, there is a malfunction in the speakers themselves. There is little you can do on your own. At most, replace the broken wires. If the wires are safe and sound, all that remains is to have the speakers repaired or buy new ones, which at today’s prices costs about the same. By purchasing new speakers, you have the opportunity to improve the sound quality. And besides, you save time and nerves.

The sound on the computer does not work - system problems

Often newly connected equipment conflicts with previously installed equipment. This may cause the PC to go silent. Have you connected anything in recent days? Or installed new programs from dubious sources? Computer viruses often cause the sound to disappear.

  • Turn on your antivirus and run full scan systems.
  • Run the cleaning utility and remove junk and unnecessary files.
  • Open the System Restore interface and find a suitable rollback point. Reset the system to one of previous states. During the recovery process, lost or damaged files will be restored. And the unnecessary ones are removed. After recovery, sound may appear.
  • If sound does not appear after restoring the system, check whether the computer detects the connected speakers. To do this, open Control Panel and find Device Manager. If there are speakers in the list of connected equipment, the drivers may be damaged. If instead of the name of the speaker manufacturer in the Device Manager list you find exclamation marks in a yellow triangle, it is likely that the computer has stopped finding connected speakers.
  • Turn off your computer. Disconnect and reconnect your speakers. Perhaps there was bad contact in connections. Turn on your computer. The system itself should detect the newly connected device. After this, the Connect New Hardware Wizard will automatically start.

Still no sound? Try installing the drivers again. To do this, go to Device Manager, find the tab for your audio equipment. Now find and click the Uninstall drivers button.

Where can I get new sound card drivers? There may be three options here:

  1. The drivers are already on your computer. Then you just need to click the Install drivers button.
  2. Download drivers from the sound card manufacturer's website or motherboard, if the sound is built-in.
  3. if you have installation disk Windows, you can download drivers from there.

Nothing again? Remains radical remedy– completely reinstall Windows. Most often, if the equipment is in order, after updating the system everything begins to function normally.

Sometimes there are conflicts between software. To check this option, during the Windows boot process, try to install the drivers for the card first.

When drivers for other devices begin to install, keep an eye on the sound. As soon as problems begin with the sound, it means that the device for which the drivers have just been downloaded is the cause of the conflict.

Sound card problem

If you checked everything sequentially, everything turned out to be fine - the problem remains in the sound card itself or in violations in its connection.

First, check if the card is turned on correctly.
Inspect the connectors for physical damage.
Remove the card and carefully clean the contacts from dust and oxides. Re-insert and check.

If nothing works, it would be good to check the card on another computer or insert a known working one into this system unit sound card. If after installation new card sound will appear - the old one is out of order and needs to be replaced.

Application problems

Sometimes there is no sound only on some programs. For example, the audio player suddenly stopped playing. Then the situation is not very scary. Updating or reinstalling usually helps. problematic program. If you've tried everything possible options, but still nothing helps - all that remains is to take the computer to a workshop or call a specialist to your home.

Let us immediately note that there can be many reasons for this problem, therefore, there will be many solutions. In this regard, it is worth warning that in order to follow the recommendations, it is worth setting aside separate time to work on your computer or laptop. If you try to do everything in a hurry, nothing good will come of it.

So, how will we work with you? To make the task easier, we will divide the problem into categories:

To make your work easier, you can immediately select your connection type and go to the appropriate block. There will be two of them, which will completely answer the question of why there is no sound on the computer:

  • Speakers, headphones and others external sources sound. Both wired and wireless types are considered here.
  • The software part, which deals with solving problems with drivers. Those who have built-in speakers (for example, on a laptop) also go straight to this block.

Please note that after each step a playback check is required. To do this, it is advisable to use the same file: it can be a video on the Internet, so that there are no problems with the file itself on the computer. For example, you turn on a song and there is no sound, but it turns out that the file is damaged. What to do if there is no sound on the computer? When you are completely ready to find out the answer, move on.

Speakers, headphones and other external sound sources

  • So, the sound on our computer does not work. How to enable it? First, you should check the correct connection of the wires that provide connection to your devices. That is, if you insert the cord into the wrong socket, then, of course, there will be no sound on the computer. To do this, you can refer to the speaker instructions from the manufacturer. If you don't have it, you can find it on the Internet.

Checking that the wire is connected correctly

  • For wireless devices sound playback you will need to check activity Bluetooth module. It is adjusted by a switch on the speaker body. We check activity in the same way wireless modules on a computer or laptop. If the connection is established via separate module, which connects to the USB of your PC, then try placing it in a different socket.
  • If the connection is fine but there is no sound, make sure you turn on your speakers using special button or switch, which is most often used in systems with a subwoofer. Some models are equipped with an indicator light, mainly having green color when turned on.
  • Next, we will check the sound volume on the speakers: turn the volume button (where Volume is written) towards increase. If you have no problems with this, but do have problems with playback, then move on.

Adjusting the volume on the speakers

  • If you have an additional cable to connect your speakers to your computer, try using it. You can also ask one of your acquaintances or friends. As a last resort, you can purchase it in a store (but it is advisable to do this, only if you are sure that the problem lies in the wire, since this will lead to additional costs).
  • Try connecting the speakers to another device. You can even connect it to a smartphone or tablet. If the device works on them, then the problem lies in the software part of your computer or laptop. Otherwise, you will need to repair your speakers or headphones. Before this, it is still recommended to buy a new wire, as described in the fourth paragraph above, or immediately take the device to a specialist for diagnostics.
  • If everything is fine with the speakers or headphones, but there is still no sound, then it’s time to check the software part.

Software part

  • So, how to turn on the sound if there is no problem with the speakers or headphones? First, make sure that the volume in the settings is set to maximum level. On the taskbar (where the Start button is located in the Windows operating system) on the right, almost at the end, there is a sound logo. Click on it with the left mouse button and move the slider to its extreme value in the direction of increase. For example, if you have a ten installed, then the value should be set to 100 percent.

Move the volume slider to 100%

  • Now go to the device manager (control panel menu). To do this, write “Device Manager” in the search bar and left-click on the found file. Open the “Audio Devices” tab and update the drivers of all audio devices. To do this, right-click on each one and click “Update Driver”. Here, check that the device is not disabled: if the same mini-window says “Disable”, then everything is fine. Otherwise, the device will need to be activated by clicking the item of the same name or the “Enable” item.
  • If this does not help, then go to the control panel, then open the “System and Security” menu, then click on the “Fix” tab typical problems computer", which is located at the very top practically. In the window that opens, click on “Troubleshoot audio playback problems.” Follow the on-screen prompts to try to resolve the issues.
  • Often, drivers are not updated, as described in the second paragraph. You can try downloading them on the official website of the manufacturer of your computer or laptop. You will need to enter or find your exact model number, then select the operating system version and only then download the audio drivers.
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Why is there no sound on Windows 7? Perhaps many Windows users 7 this problem has occurred at least once. This article contains the most common causes and ways to solve them.

The main reasons leading to loss of sound, as well as ways to solve them

Why does the sound disappear on a laptop, computer, etc.? In most cases, the reason for this is the user's own errors in handling the operating system.

So, what to do if the sound on your laptop does not work. The first step is to check the availability necessary drivers for a sound card. Perhaps they need updating, or you don't have them at all. By the way, driver errors are half the reasons why sound accompaniment on a laptop. In order to see which devices on your laptop or computer need driver updates, you need to open the device manager, which can be found in the control panel.

The manager window organizes and presents all drivers installed on a laptop, computer, etc. Using it, you can check the availability, functionality or relevance of drivers. If any item is marked with a yellow triangle, you should pay attention to it! Devices responsible for sound playback are located in the “Sound, gaming and video devices” tab.

Perhaps the most banal, but at the same time the most common reason for which the sound disappears is its unconscious turning off in the mixer. A mixer is a system with which you can adjust the volume specific applications. You can open the mixer by clicking on the corresponding inscription in the volume control window. After starting the mixer, make sure that all parameters are non-zero.

No less common is another reason why the sound on a laptop or desktop computer disappears. Its essence lies in the system disabling the output devices themselves. The reason for this may be system errors, device configuration changes and user intervention. To correct this problem very easy! For this:

Another common reason is that the service responsible for playing audio is disabled. To start it again you need to go to Control Panel - Administration - Services. In the window that opens, find the service “ Windows Audio».

If the service is disabled, double-click on the service to open the settings window, from where you can force the service to start by clicking the “Run” button.

In this window, you should configure one more parameter – the startup type. This parameter is responsible for starting the service when booting Windows. In order not to constantly start the service manually, I advise you to define this parameter as automatic.

No sound from the front panel

What to do if there is no sound on the front panel or no sound at all? The whole problem lies in the question “Why is there no sound?”

In most cases, the front panel requires Realtek dispatcher. If for some reason you don’t have it, be sure to reinstall it. After launching the manager from the control panel, go to the “Speakers” tab. Next, double-click on the folder icon on the left top corner, check the box next to “Disable front panel jack detection”

If, after completing the operation of displaying information on the front panel, there is still no panel, it means that the BIOS installed in your laptop or computer is most likely incorrectly configured. The BIOS system is present in any laptop, computer or tablet, and provides the operating system with API access to the hardware, including the front panel. To configure the BIOS for the front panel to work you need:

  1. When the system starts, namely while demonstrating the logo of the motherboard manufacturer installed on your laptop or computer, press and hold the “F2” key to exit to the BIOS menu.
  2. Then you need to find and select “Onboard Devices Configuration” in the “Advanced” tab.
  3. In the next window you need to configure one parameter, namely “Front Panel Type”, which is responsible for the type of front panel. There are usually 2 options: HD Audio and AC97.

The cause of the malfunction can only lie in two places: in the hardware of your computer, or in its software. In other words, the absence of sound is a consequence of a malfunction in the "hardware" PC, or is it related to the operating system settings, incorrect work some programs. It should be understood that the occurrence of such a breakdown does not depend on the OS or its newness. This happens both in older versions, such as Windows XP, and in the most latest Windows 8. This can also happen on Linux and other operating systems. Even if your equipment is the newest and most modern, the most expensive sound card, the highest quality speakers, you can still encounter a similar problem.

How to restore sound on a computer?

First, we must find out the very cause of the problem. We will determine the reason for the lack of sound different ways, let's start with the simplest and most basic ones.

To do this, we will follow, step by step, according to the following instructions:

If none of the above points helped you, then you need to use the latest option - call a technician for help, or take the PC to a workshop.

If the sound does not play or becomes bad.

In such cases, first of all, you need to remember what actions were performed on the computer the last time when the sound was normal. Perhaps you installed something new. In this case, the problem can be solved quite easily by uninstalling the program that you installed. In other cases, the problem may be due to the accidental removal of some important component in the operating system. Therefore, you should be careful about all programs that you remove. Follow all the recommendations for troubleshooting that were described above, most likely something will help. Always, in any unclear situations, you can use the help section, which is located in the menu Start.
When the sound is hoarse or otherwise distorted, check your audio settings. Perhaps it's wrong, or you accidentally added some sound effect, which now plays along with the sound.

It happens that the sound generally works normally, but in one specific program it is reproduced (or not reproduced) with poor quality. This can be solved by examining the sound settings in the program itself, or, as a last resort, reinstalling it, this should help.

Troubleshooting sound problems in Windows 7 and Windows XP

This supplement will discuss step by step what to do when the sound on the computer in operating rooms is lost Windows systems XP and Windows7. So let's start in order:

Look in the bottom right corner of the screen for the location of the clock, which is displayed in the form of a speaker.

If this icon is missing, as in Windows XP, check the settings through the control panel located in the “Sounds and Audio Devices” section (instructions for Windows XP, point 4).

By left-clicking on this icon, you should make sure that the sound is on and the volume control is not located at the very bottom.

A window will open in which you need to mark whether the controls are enabled:

  • Volume in the Windows XP mixer.

If you cannot change the settings due to the parameters being deactivated (they are highlighted in pale grey colour), the health of the audio device is checked in the task manager (point 3). If there are problems, you will need to reinstall the audio driver (step 6).

Before checking the settings and status of the sound card, make sure correct inclusion or connecting speakers or headphones. The audio card contains a pin for connecting speakers, marked in green.

When installing more than one sound card on a computer, you need to ensure that the speakers are connected to the connector work card(which is applied by the system). The wire connecting the speakers to system unit, should fit snugly.

It is best to check the performance of the speakers on another computer, or by connecting one of the suitable devices to the audio output.

To enter the “Device Manager”, click sequentially:
On Windows7 or Vista:

“Start”, then “Settings”, then “Control Panel” and “Device Manager”.

On Windows XP:

Right-click to call context menu, clicking on the “My Computer” icon, selecting “Properties”, going to the “Hardware” tab and clicking “Device Manager”.

Your audio device should appear under Sound, video and gaming devices.

If the device is missing, or there is an exclamation mark next to it, the problem is a damaged or missing driver. Driver in in this case completely updated or reinstalled (point 6).

To open the audio settings window in Windows7 and Vista, you will need to click: “Start”, then “Settings”, “Control Panel” and “Sound”.

After this, a dialog box will open in which a list of all your devices will be visible. In this case, the default is one device:

The fact that the audio is working correctly is indicated by the corresponding inscription called green tick near the device icon.

If this window shows a different picture, characterizing obvious interruptions in the operation of the device, you will need to reinstall the driver (step 6).

On Windows XP:

Next, go to the “Volume” tab and make sure that the “Mute sound” checkbox is not checked. Mixer volume in mandatory must have a value greater than zero.

If on at this stage the settings are normal, but the sound on the computer disappears and does not return, go to the next step.

If it is impossible to move the mixer volume control and the presence of the inscription: “There are no sound devices” instead of your device, this serves as a signal that you need to reinstall the sound driver, or that the sound card is faulty (point 6).

To do this, open: “Start”, then “Settings”, then “Control Panel”, click “Administration” and at the end - “Services”. But a slightly different option is also possible.

“Start” – “Run”, then enter the command services.msc in the line, clicking “OK” to complete. A window will open in which you will need to find a service called “Windows Audio”.

If the service is started and running in “Auto” mode, as is clearly demonstrated in the figure, you will need to close the window and move on to the next step.

If the service is disabled, you will need to enable it. After selecting it with the right mouse button, click “Properties” in the drop-down menu.

In the properties window, you need to do the following:

  1. Set the startup type to “Auto”;
  2. Click “Run” (in Windows 7 or Vista), or “Start” (for Windows XP);
  3. Click “Apply” and then “OK”.

If there is no effect, you can proceed to subsequent actions.

If problems are detected in the device manager, or in the window with audio settings, indicating that the sound device is not working correctly, we are talking about a damaged or incorrectly working sound driver. You will definitely need to update it or reinstall it.

You can find the sound card driver on the disk that comes included, or on the disk with drivers for the motherboard with a sound device integrated into the system board. A disk with drivers for the motherboard is provided with the computer at the time of purchase. Drivers must be suitable for your operating system (OS). For example, if you have Windows 7 and a driver disk for Windows XP, simply download the required driver from the card (motherboard) manufacturer's website.

Let's say you have a suitable package for installing the necessary drivers. In the "Device Manager" ("Control Panel", "System", "Hardware" and "Device Manager"), the audio driver installed in this moment, will need to be deleted. If the above is missing, you need to find “Multimedia audio controller”, and then remove the audio-video codecs installed on your PC. To do this, you will need to call “Add or Remove Programs” from the Control Panel, and then click on restart the system.

Restarting your computer in Windows 7 will allow you to update the system automatically using technology Plug and Play. To install manually, you will need to insert the driver disc into the drive.

Let's try to look at installing drivers, focusing on Windows XP. Differences in Windows versions are only minor differences appearance dialog boxes.

Once you open the Device Manager window, look for the section that has “sound” or “multimedia” in its name. To open the device properties, simply double-click on it. Having selected the “Driver” tab, you need to click the “Update” button. A menu will open in which the system will prompt you to automatically or manual installation. Click the second item and then the “Next” button:

After the window opens, check the box next to “Include next search location.” The "Browse" button will help you specify optical drive with disk. By clicking the "Next" button, find necessary drivers and install them.

Upon completion, you will receive a system notification that the driver installation was successful and you can use the equipment. As a result, you will be pleased with the sound that appears. In extreme cases, this will happen after a reboot.

7. Check if the settings in BIOS are correct

There may also be no sound in Windows due to the integrated audio card being turned off. BIOS settings. To start the computer, press Del button. IN selected models PC keys are F2, F10, F12. In the list of motherboard devices, you will need to find the sound card, and then make sure that the switch opposite is set to the “Enabled” position.

A common reason for sudden loss of sound on a computer is a broken sound card. However, before purchasing a new one, you should make sure that after applying the above options, no actions help.

The main thing to remember is that any problem can be solved and the solution may turn out to be much simpler than it seems.

One day, when trying to watch a movie or listen to music, we may encounter the problem of no sound on the computer. In this case, you need to determine why there is no sound on the computer in order to eliminate this problem.

There may be no sound due to hardware or software reasons. The problem may lie in faulty components such as speakers, audio card, or in operating system settings, settings certain programs. Sound loss can occur on any computer operating system.

Stages of problem solving

  1. If there is no sound after turning on the computer, this may indicate a malfunction of the operating system. Restart your computer, this will update operating system and restore the sound.
  2. If the sound is not restored after a reboot, you need to check the audio system connected to the computer. Check whether the audio system is connected to the power supply and directly to the computer. Check to see if the plug is inserted into the correct connector. On sound card There is a separate output for a microphone and for speakers (or headphones). Typically the microphone output is colored pink color, and for speakers – in green. If you mix them up, there will be no sound.
  3. If you have it in stock additional computer or laptop, you can try connecting an audio system to it and check it for correct operation. The same can be done by connecting an ordinary mp3 or CD player to the speakers.
  4. On computers that have been in use for a long time, these connectors may wear out. Therefore, they should be adjusted a little, the audio system wires should be removed and reinserted.
  5. Then you need to check whether the audio system itself is turned on. There is a power button on the audio system body that must be turned on. When turned on, the LED on the audio system lights up. After this, you should check the functionality of the volume knob.
  6. If after checking the audio system the sound does not appear, you need to click on the speaker icon on the desktop. If it is crossed out, it means the sound is muted. You will need to click on the icon and adjust the volume.
  7. If sound is heard on another computer, this means that the computer being tested may have problems with the audio card, or with the sound source program itself, or other problems.
  8. The computer will need to be checked for unknown devices. To do this, you will need to click on the “My Computer” icon, then “Properties”, the “Hardware” section, “Device Manager”, and select the “Sound, video and gaming devices” tab from the list. Among sound devices may appear Exclamation point. This may indicate that the device is unrecognized and there is a driver problem. The drivers could have crashed, which sometimes happens after a reboot. To fix this problem, the drivers corresponding to this audio card are reinstalled.
  9. If the drivers are ok, this means there is a problem with the sound card. To check, it is recommended to test it on another computer. If it is damaged, then you need to buy a new sound card. If you have an audio card that worked initially, you can try installing it in a computer that has no sound. If the speakers produce sound, this may mean that the problem lies in a broken audio card that needs to be changed and installed on the computer.
  10. In Windows XP, Windows 7 and Windows 8, you can perform a system restore. This is done for a refund. system files, parameters to original state. You can restore the previous restore point in this way: go to “Start”, then go to “All Programs”, section “Accessories”, section “System Tools” and click “System Restore”.
  11. The problem of sound disappearing can also occur due to a software conflict. For example, the sound could disappear due to some new installed program on computer. To do this, check the program settings; the sound may have been muted there initially. Or you may need a special software add-on from the Internet. Otherwise, it is recommended to remove it.

If you can hear from the computer bad sound, crackling, wheezing, and interruptions sound signal, then this indicates a breakdown hardware equipment or sound card.