Windows 10 sound control. Checking the audio playback device. Restoring the correct system configuration through BIOS

Quite often I come across a situation where a user buys an excellent sound system, but at the same time cannot understand why all its fine tuning does not work quite as expected.

Many people go to the store and complain about the defects, throwing the consultants into a stupor. Recently, one of my acquaintances showed sufficient ingenuity and woke me up with a request to explain whether the sound settings in the system could affect the sound quality of the speakers? And then there was a long explanation of how to do it. So I'll just leave detailed instructions how to set the sound to Windows computer 10.

Main settings block

And here I will immediately make a reservation, there is great amount subtle adjustments that you should pay attention to. Having set out to write this article, I also did a little magic on myself to achieve the most pleasing sound to my ears. Don't forget, unless you are an experienced sound engineer, you will have to experiment a little to find the option for yourself.

It's pretty obvious that right-clicking the volume icon in the bottom right corner system window will open up more customization options than just adjustments. Let's go through the list, detailing the description of the functions.

  1. Open the volume mixer. This button opens the ability to adjust sound and volume for current applications. Why is this necessary? The first thing that came to my mind personally was to set up different volumes For music player and systems so that you can listen to music while working, but not miss critical system messages.
  2. Playback devices. This part is responsible for finer adjustments of devices. From here you can adjust, for example, the volume of playback calls in Skype, if necessary. It will be useful for this last tab settings.
  3. Recording Devices and Sounds Are Essentially Duplicate previous tab. They just open different pages of this window.
  4. Detect audio problems. The tab is responsible for possible elimination problems. If there are system failures with sound, then this tab will be your first aid.

Driver settings or fine tuning

IMPORTANT! I start this section with a similar note for a simple reason. Your settings block may not only be different, it will be different. It depends on the motherboard and specifically the version of the sound card.

If you follow the path: “Control Panel” - “Hardware and Sound”, you can find a program that is responsible for more fine tuning sound. In my case, this program is “”. It is by running it that you can find the most detailed setup sound signal.

When you open the manager window, you can find quite a few important elements. Some of them are designed to adjust the volume - this adjustment operates in parallel with the general volume of the system. That is, by moving the volume slider in the manager, you will also move the slider on the volume panel. There is also the sneakiest part of the configuration, which often confuses users. We are talking about setting the environment and equalizer.

I have everything set to default, because these days I listen to a wide variety of music, and I watch movies quite often and I don’t want to leave an imprint on the film’s voice acting. The room can distort the sound very much. Just try to change the settings in this section while listening to music and everything will become clear.

Microphone settings in Windows 10

Since the microphone is also sound equipment, then it would be a sin not to mention it. In fact, the microphone only has 2 main settings: “gain” and “noise reduction”. Gain makes the sensitivity greater and allows you to speak more quietly, rather than shouting into the microphone if it is placed at a certain distance. Noise reduction ensures that the microphone only picks up the user's voice and not extraneous sounds.

ADVICE! Despite its apparent usefulness, the noise reduction function is useful only when it is turned off. It often happens that a user's quiet voice is perceived as noise. And then completely serviceable microphones are sent for repair.

Such sound settings are present in Windows 10. Of course, the second point can and will be different for everyone. Different versions drivers and different nuances make the system sound completely different. However, in in capable hands or with the proper amount of time, these settings can achieve excellent results.

It should allow you to do more than just adjust the volume of the sound being played. Multi-sound systems must be configured and controlled accordingly. The sound itself should also be processed to obtain interesting effect sound.

The tools available in Windows 10 allow you to adjust the volume level, define playback options, offer an advanced sound and data equalizer, and additional effects.

Secrets of sound control in Windows 10

Windows 10 includes many tools that allow you to customize the sound to suit your needs. The times when only the volume level was available are long gone - today you can select the same parameters for speakers and headphones, or set individual parameters for each music playback program so that the quality of the reproduced material is as high as possible.

Most quick way, to get to sound settings, – use the speaker icon in the system tray. After clicking it with the left mouse button, the gain adjustment slider appears.

If the system has several playback devices installed, an arrow is visible at the top that opens a list of them - just select the one you need. Click the speaker icon in the window that appears to mute the sound.

Gives more freedom system audio mixer. To use it, click right click mouse to the speaker icon in the system tray and select Open Volume Mixer.

Using the sliders visible here, you can separately adjust the audio gain for the system and each running application using sound. Playing sound via individual programs can be turned off. The first slider on the left controls maximum level volume of the device used in this moment.

Open volume context menu in tray and select Playback devices. On portable devices and laptops there will, as a rule, be one sound playback device, but in the case desktop computers, a lot of them. These are, for example, external speakers, headphones or speakers that the monitor is equipped with.

You can choose the one that offers best quality sound, or the one you work with most often. To set the default playback device, right-click on the corresponding entry and select Use default communication device. It is worth checking it first using the Check command.

If you are using multi-channel sound system, you can customize it. Select your playback device and click the Configure button. Select the location of the speakers you are using from the list and start the test by clicking Test. This will ensure that all speakers are working correctly. You can also click the speaker icons in the picture.

Removing selections from fields in a list Additional speakers, You will select the kit to suit your configuration. In the next configurator window, select which pair of speakers reproduces the full frequency range. Finally, confirm the settings with the Finish button.

After configuring the device parameters (section "Properties") on the tab Levels adjust the balance of individual speaker pairs. Please also indicate their volume. On the tab Enhancements Various sound effects are available.

For example, this could be an equalizer or a filter that mutes the words of a karaoke song. The list of parameters provided by the system developers is quite extensive.

The higher the bitrate and audio sampling frequency, the higher quality music. If your hardware allows it, you can increase these parameters on the Additionally.

If you want to use Dolby Atmos, for example with headphones that support it, click on the tab Spatial audio. You can choose from Surround format option Dolby Atmos for Headphones and take advantage paid solution offered by Dolby Laboratories or with free option, built into the system. In the latter case, use Windows Sonic for headphones.

In the same way as playback devices, recording equipment, that is, microphones, is configured - you only need to first select a category from the list.

There are many users who prefer to install various devices sound output for different programs. For example, you might want to set the 5.1 surround sound setting for VLC Media Player to watch movies, and headphones as the standard audio device for apps like Groove Music for listening to music. There hasn't been yet simple way install various audio output devices for different applications. But now you can set different audio devices for different apps in Windows 10 without any help third party applications. Additionally, you can set different levels sound for different applications. The ability to install different audio devices for different applications was introduced in Windows 10 April (1803).

Installing different audio devices for different applications in Windows 10

1 . Go to Options > System > Sound> on the left scroll down and click on Device and application volume settings.

2 . As you can see in the image below, the page displays all current applications and games. If the program or application for which you want to set the default audio output device does not appear in the list, make sure that the application or program is currently running, or if it is already running, then restart it. If you have multiple tabs playing audio in your web browser, all tabs will appear as separate entries.

  • To set the audio output device for an application, select it from the drop-down list " Conclusion" next to the application entry.
  • You can also set different volume levels for different apps from this page. Simply move the slider next to an app entry to set the default volume level for that app.
  • For example, I have a monitor with speakers. I set all notifications to Monica speakers, and the quality digital audio in browsers, for movies and music. You can also set different input devices for different applications.


Sound is an integral part of the perception of information when working at a computer. Games, programs, movies - everything that runs on a computer has sound. Working with a number of applications without sound is impossible or simply inconvenient. Sound drivers are installed automatically along with the motherboard software. operating room Windows system 10 installs drivers on its own when you first start the computer, but it doesn’t always do it correctly. Sometimes the sound on your computer may disappear for no reason at all, even if it previously worked normally. In most cases, you can solve a sound problem yourself, and below are ways to do it.

Checking the audio device

Before you start software setup computer, you need to make sure that the lack of sound is not due to a malfunction of the speakers or headphones. Connect another audio playback device to the computer and make sure that it also does not work, or, conversely, try connecting headphones or speakers to a smartphone, tablet or other computer to check their serviceability.

Often the sound disappears for no reason precisely because of a malfunction of the sound playback device. For example, the wire through which the signal is transmitted may fray or break, or the elements on the speaker board may fail due to overvoltage.

If, as a result of the check, it was determined that the sound does not work precisely because of the computer, you can proceed to the next steps of the instructions.

Sound failure due to driver issues

As mentioned above, drivers for setting up sound on a computer are installed along with the motherboard drivers. Even if a sound icon is displayed on the notification panel, it is far from certain that the drivers were installed correctly. At the first Windows startup 10 operating system automatically selects drivers from its library and installs them for all elements of the computer. If after this there are problems with the drivers, they need to be reinstalled to the versions recommended by the manufacturers.

To reinstall the sound drivers you will need:

  • On the computer. Determine the model of the motherboard used in the computer. Next, you need to go to the motherboard manufacturer’s website, find your model and download the latest drivers for Windows 10.
  • On a laptop. Find out the laptop model, go to the manufacturer’s website and download the necessary drivers.

Note: If you still have a disk with drivers from your motherboard or laptop, you can try installing software from him. But it is important to understand that during the time that has passed since the purchase of the device, the drivers may have been updated more than once, and the most current version is available on the manufacturer’s website.

Problems with sounds due to incorrect settings

When reinstalling drivers does not help solve the problem with sound playback on Windows 10, you need to make sure that the settings are correct. To check the audio output settings from your computer, you will need to do the following:


After completing all the settings, restart your computer, after which the sound problems should disappear.

Sound card disabled in BIOS

In the BIOS it is possible to disable the sound card built into motherboard. This may be necessary, for example, if a professional external sound card. At standard connection speakers to the computer, the sound card must be activated in the BIOS.

Problems with sound on Windows 10 are not uncommon, especially after updates or switching from other versions of the OS. The reason may be in the drivers or physical problem speakers, as well as other components responsible for sound. All this will be discussed in this article.

The causes of sound problems vary. You may need to update or reinstall the drivers, or maybe replace some components. But before you start performing the manipulations described below, be sure to check the functionality of your headphones or speakers.

Method 1: Adjusting the sound

The sound on your device may be muted or set to minimum value. This can be fixed like this:


Method 2: Update Drivers

Your drivers may be out of date. You can check their relevance and download the latest version using special utilities or manually from the manufacturer's official website. The following programs are suitable for updating: , . Next, we will consider the process using DriverPack Solution as an example.


Method 3: Run the troubleshooter

If updating the drivers does not produce results, then try running an error search.


Method 4: Rollback or remove sound drivers

If problems start after installation Windows updates 10, then try this:

Method 5: Check for viral activity

Perhaps your device has been infected and the virus has damaged certain software components responsible for sound. In this case, it is recommended to check your computer using special antivirus utilities. For example, . These utilities are quite easy to use. Next, the procedure will be discussed using Kaspersky as an example. Virus Removal Tool.


Method 6: Enable the service

It happens that the service that is responsible for sound is disabled.

Method 7: Switching Speaker Format

In some cases, this option may help.


Method 8: System Restore or OS Reinstallation

If none of the above helped you, then try restoring the system to a working state. You can use or.

  1. Restart your computer. When it starts to turn on, hold down F8.
  2. Follow the path "Recovery" - "Diagnostics""Extra options".
  3. Now find "Restore" and follow the instructions.

If you do not have a restore point, try reinstalling the operating system.

Method 9: Using the Command Line

This method can help with wheezing sound.


Method 10: Turn off sound effects


If this doesn't help, then:

This is how you can return sound to your device. If none of the methods worked, then, as was said at the very beginning of the article, make sure that the equipment is in working order and does not need repair.