The Tutorial On How To Fix No Sound On Laptop (step-by-Step)

It is more exciting to talk about your laptop’s memory size – how many applications or programs your system can handle or boast about your graphics card if you’re a gamer. Rarely will you find anyone commenting on how good their laptop’s sound is unless it is their home theater system? But what happens if you can’t hear any sound on your laptop? 

The truth is sound does play a role in having a good experience with your laptop, and it can be exasperating if your PC has no sound. So let’s go over some essential troubleshooting tips for your laptop if you’re suddenly not getting any sound. Of course, you can also use these tips to fix the no sound issue on your desktop.

1. Check the Volume

This might seem an obvious solution, but it often may be what keeps your laptop mute, which is quite upsetting to realize. So the first thing you should do is check if the volume is muted, often indicated by a cross mark beside the volume icon in the bottom-right corner of the Windows taskbar. Next, click on the volume icon and use the volume slider to adjust to a volume favorable to your ear.

Adjusting volume windows

If you can’t see the volume icon right-click on the empty space on the Taskbar and select Taskbar settings

Windows taskbar settings

Scroll down to the Notification area and click on Select which icons appear to the taskbar. Now, look for the volume icon, toggle it on, and then adjust the volume using the slider as above.

Tip: Many laptops have a designated mute button on their keyboards that if pressed, could stop volume output even if changed in Windows 8/8.1 or 10 operating system. Try locating the key on your keyboard and press it to unmute.

2. Open the Volume Mixer

Sometimes the audio may be disabled from the volume mixer. To check it, right-click on the volume icon and select Open Volume mixer

Open volume mixer

Check if anything is disabled and enable it by clicking the no sound volume icon. If anything is muted, you won’t be able to hear any sound from it.

Windows volume mixer

3. Change the Audio Output Device

Currently, there are different output devices, for example, audio and video, which, when we forget to connect appropriately to the laptop, will direct sound to the wrong device, even if your speakers work well. For instance, if you connect the monitor to the HDMI port, the audio output will also be changed to the monitor. If the monitor has no in-built sound system, you will not hear any audio. 

Change audio playback device

To change the volume output, click on the volume icon and then click the up icon to switch to the appropriate audio output. If you’re unsure which playback device is the right one, try all of them until you hear a sound.

4. Disable the Output Device

To check if the output device is disabled, press the Windows key + I shortcut to open Settings

Windows-system-setting

Click on System, then go to Sound.

Windows sound settings

Click on the Manage sound devices under the Output section.

Now, if your output device is disabled, you will see it in the disabled section. Click on it, then enable it, and you will start getting the audio back.

Manage sound devices

5. Enable or Disable Audio Enhancements

Disabling the audio enhancements sometimes fixes the no audio issue on your laptop. To do this, go to Settings (using Windows + I key or clicking Settings icon in Windows Start menu) and select System. Then, from the Sound menu, click Sound Control Panel on the far right side of the window under Related settings.

Windows Sound related settings

Then, right-click on Speakers and choose Properties.

Sound control panel playback settings

Now, click on the Enhancements tab.

Speaker properties enhancements

Tip: If there’s no Enhancements tab, click on Advanced Tab and disable the audio enhancements under the Signal Enhancement section.

Uncheck the Disable all enhancements tab to enable audio enhancements. If the Disable all enhancements has no checkmark, check it to disable the enhancements. Then, depending on your audio issue, try enabling and disabling these audio enhancements and click Apply to see any changes to your audio output.

6. Check Your BIOS Settings

BIOS does fundamental but crucial things that ensure your laptop is functioning properly. Rarely will you make changes to your BIOS settings, but if someone was playing with your BIOS setup utility, they could have disabled the audio unknowingly.

To check this, reboot your laptop and press Esc or F10 severally to enter the BIOS Setup Utility. Now look for the audio settings and enable it if it is disabled. Alternatively, if this doesn’t help, try updating you BIOS to the latest version from your laptop manufacturer’s website using their guide, as different vendors have different BIOS setup utility interface. 

Caution: If an update is done improperly, it can interfere with your laptop’s functioning.

How to Enter BIOS

7. Check Your Connections

Check connections like your headphones and external speakers for any loose connection and ensure they are connected to the correct jack. Try plugging in some headphones or external speakers to diagnose if there’s an issue with your laptop’s built-in speakers. If you’re getting sound through your external audio devices, the problem might be with your laptop speakers.

Laptop and headphone

Alternatively, you can try connecting to your Bluetooth sound device or plug in some USB headsets and check if you’re getting any audio, as these avoid the in-built sound card. This will verify if the problem is with your sound card or audio drivers.

If your headphones don’t work while the Bluetooth device connected produces sound, it means the audio jack and in-built speakers are faulty; thus, you can seek the help of a technician.

8. Install or Update the Audio Drivers

Is there a possibility that the above fixes may not work? It is possible, and if you’re having trouble with the no sound issue, you can check audio drivers, without which you won’t hear any sound should they be outdated or malfunctioning.

Type in Device Manager and press Enter in the Windows search bar to open the Device Manager window.

Device manager sound

If you see any yellow mark, then that means that the device has no drivers and would need to install its drivers.

Anyways, scroll down and expand the Sound, video, and game controller menu. Then, from your list of audio output devices, in my case High Definition Audio Device, right-click the device, choose Update driver, and select search automatically for drivers.

If Windows cannot find the audio driver, you need to download it from your manufacturer’s website. This will similarly update your audio driver. Next, search for your laptop model audio driver, download it and install it.

Alternatively, you can uninstall your laptop’s audio device and restart your laptop after confirming its uninstallation. Windows will automatically try reinstalling the driver during reboot. If unable, you can right-click the device and reinstall it again, then choose its location on your device. Or, you can install the updated version you previously downloaded.

While you’re at it, you can run the troubleshooter from the Settings window. Choose Update & Security option and select troubleshoot from the left panel.

Windows settings Update and security

Click Additional troubleshooters and select Playing audio, and then Run the troubleshooter. It will detect the issues and suggest fixes. Apply the fixes and see if the no audio issue is resolved.

Audio troubleshooter windows

Share with us if any of the fixes helped you in the comment section below. If you’re still having difficulty with the no sound issue, give us a detailed description of your issue, and we’ll help wherever possible. You can also try reaching out to your laptop’s manufacturer for repairs. Or, if you’re good with tech repairing service, you can try fixing your own laptop’s in-built speakers using the manufacturer’s repair guide. Anyways, we hope your laptop will break its silence soon.

Chris Martin is a professional tech writer. He's been covering tech tutorials, hardware reviews, and more as a professional writer for over seven years now and it doesn't look like he'll be stopping anytime soon! In addition to writing about the latest gadgets on the market, he also covers topics such as how to set up your home network or troubleshoot any computer problems you may have.

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