It can be difficult to figure out why your Windows 11 PC’s sound has suddenly stopped working. Fortunately, you can investigate a number of common causes, such as incorrect audio output device configuration, missing sound device drivers, and improper audio enhancement.
As a result, let’s go over how to troubleshoot a Windows 11 PC that doesn’t have any audio.
1. Make sure your audio is muted.
A dedicated mute button is included on some Windows laptops. You may accidentally silence your device, or it may happen automatically due to a bug. The mute button is frequently accompanied by an indication that indicates if the device is in mute mode.
Use the Fn key + Mute key to unmute your device if it has a multi-function mute button. Toggling the volume slider in Action Center will also unmute the device.
The system audio is the default output device in Windows 11. If your computer has numerous audio devices connected, make sure the correct audio device is selected.
2. Verify that the appropriate audio output device is selected.
To change Window 11’s default audio output device, follow these steps:
1. To access the Settings app, press Win + I.
2. Select Sound from the System tab.
3. Select your default audio device in the Output section.
Alternatively, you can use the Action Center to easily change the default audio output device.
To change the sound output device from the Action Center, follow these steps:
1. From the taskbar, select the Speaker icon.
2. Next to the volume slider in the Action Center, select Manage Audio Devices (arrow icon). It will list all of the audio devices that are connected to your system.
3. Choose the audio output device you’d like to use as your default.
3. Use the Windows Audio Troubleshooter to fix the problem.
A built-in audio troubleshooter is included with Windows 11. Microsoft’s built-in troubleshooters have recently been shown to be fairly successful at detecting and resolving common issues.
To use the Windows audio troubleshooter, follow these steps:
1. Select Settings from the Start menu.
2. Select the Sound option from the System tab.
3. Under Audio, go down to the Advanced Section.
4. Click the output device to troubleshoot typical sound issues.
5. Windows will look for sound output devices that are available. Click Next after selecting the item you want to troubleshoot.
6. The troubleshooter will look for driver problems and incorrect device configuration and provide solutions. Then, put the fixes in place and see whether anything has changed.
4. Disable the audio enhancements.
When enabled, Windows 11’s audio enhancement function improves sound quality automatically. By default, this is turned off to avoid sound issues with incompatible devices.
To undo any modifications made to your audio device properties recently, check and disable audio enhancement.
To turn off audio enhancement in Windows 11, follow these steps:
1. To open Settings, press Win + I.
2. Select Sound from the System tab.
3. Then, from the list, select your audio device to see its properties.
4. Scroll down to the Enhance audio section of the Properties screen.
5. Toggle the button to turn off your device’s audio enhancement.
6. Then, under Advanced, select Disable all enhancements from the drop-down menu.
7. Select OK and Apply to save the changes.
5. Uninstall and Reinstall the Audio Device Driver
Corrupt or outdated device drivers can often malfunction and cause sound-related issues in Windows 11. You can reinstall the audio device drivers to restore the driver to its working state.
To uninstall the audio device driver:
1. Press the Win + X to open the WinX menu.
2. In the WinX Menu, select Device Manager.
3. In the Device Manager window, expand the Audio inputs and outputs section.
4. Locate and right-click on the audio device that you want to troubleshoot.
5. Select Properties from the context menu.
6. In the Properties window that opens, open the Driver tab.
7. Click on Uninstall Device. Next, click Uninstall again to confirm the action.
8. Once uninstalled, restart your PC. Windows will automatically reinstall the device during the restart.
After the restart, check if the audio device is working and listed among the other audio devices. If not, open Device Manager, then click Action, and select Scan for hardware changes.
Windows will now look for connected but undetected devices and reinstall the necessary drivers.
6. Upgrade the Audio Device Driver
If your existing audio output device driver is buggy, updating it to the latest available version can help. Driver updates for hardware devices often include bug fixes and enhancements to get your devices working perfectly again. You can update device drivers manually using the Device Manager or by using a third-party driver updater for Windows. Here’s how to do the former:
1. Press Win, then search for and open Device Manager.
2. In the Device Manager window, expand the Audio inputs and outputs section.
3. Right-click on your audio device and select Update Driver.
4. Select Search automatically for drivers. Windows will download and install the latest available version (if available).
5. Once installed, restart your PC and check for any improvements.
7. Install the Latest Windows 11 Updates
If it is a widespread issue, Microsoft will likely release a hotfix to address the problem. At times, regular Windows updates also contain bug fixes to plug known audio problems on your PC.
Go to Start > Settings > Windows Updates. Click on the Check for updates button, and scan for pending updates. If available, download and install any or all the updates available for your system.
8. Restart the Windows 11 Audio Services
The audio troubleshooter above during scan checks if the essential audio services are running. However, you can also manually restart them to verify their working status. Here’s how to do it.
1. Type service in the Windows search bar and open the Services app.
2. In the Services window, locate the following services:
Windows Audio
Windows Audio Endpoint Builder
Remote Procedure Call (RPC)
3. Right-click on each service one by one, choose Restart. Repeat the steps for all three listed services.
9. Check Your Audio Device for Hardware Issues.
Try connecting your external speaker or Bluetooth headset to another device that it can play from. By doing so, you can determine if the problem is with your PC or the audio device.
If you are using wired headphones, try using a USB Audio adapter to bypass a faulty audio jack problem. If you have USB-powered speakers, try changing the port.
If you only use your system’s speakers, try connecting Bluetooth or wired headphones. This will allow you to determine if your laptop’s integrated speakers are faulty.
10. Perform a Factory Reset Using Reset This PC
As a last resort, try resetting your PC to factory default with the Reset This PC option. It allows you to reset Windows 11 to factory default by keeping or removing your personal files. However, the reset process will remove all third-party apps installed on your PC.
To reset Windows 11 to factory default:
1. Open the Settings app by pressing Win + I.
2. In the left pane, open the Windows update tab.
3. Under More options, click on Advanced options.
4. On the Advanced options page, scroll down to Additional options.
5. Next, click on Recovery.
6. Click on the Reset PC button for Reset this PC.
7. In the Choose an option window, click on Keep my files.
8. Next, select Local Reinstall or Cloud Download.
9. Read the description under Additional settings and then click Next. Follow on-screen instructions and wait for your Windows 11 to reset successfully.
Fixing Audio Issues in Windows 11
Sound output related issues are not exclusive to Windows 11. However, the solution is usually the same across editions. By changing the audio drivers, running the Windows audio troubleshooters, and double-checking that you haven’t accidentally muted your device, you should be able to get your audio back to normal in no time.
That said, if you think there are one too many bugs in your version of Windows 11, you can always downgrade to tried and tested Windows 10.
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