The advent of the first computers did not offer any kind of reproducibility. sound files, not to mention recording and processing them. These computers were intended mainly for solving other tasks - processing large and performing various mathematical operations... The only sound the user could hear was the unpleasant beeping of the built-in system speaker. He usually notifies about the presence of any error during the loading of the operating system.

Reasons for no sound on PC

Faced with a similar situation, many, most likely, were in a hurry to call a specialist who solved the problem. But any specialist costs money, which, as usual, is not enough. Therefore, it is best to learn how to fix intermittent malfunctions ourselves.

Note that there are many reasons for the sudden absence of sound. It could be like systemic problems and technical ones related to the performance of the sound card.

In this article, we will take a closer look at the necessary actions if the sound on the computer suddenly disappears.

If a similar problem occurs, you need to determine the cause. To do this, you should start with the simplest steps, namely, from the volume control icon located in the system tray.

Volume icon location

Volume control

Check where the volume slider is. For the sound to be heard normally, it should be located approximately in the middle position.

It is possible that due to some oversight the slider was moved to its initial position, so the sound is not output to your computer speakers.

In addition, the sound can be turned off completely. In this case, you will see a prohibition icon next to the speaker icon. It can look like a red circle with an oblique stripe inside or a cross.

The sound on the computer is muted

In order to turn on the sound, you need to click on the speaker emblem. If this was the problem, you will hear the long-awaited sound of the speakers again.

Volume mixer

If you encounter no sound on your computer, check the sound mixer settings.

To open it, move the mouse cursor over the speaker icon located in the system tray and right-click.

In the menu that appears, select the topmost item - "Open Volume Mixer".

Mixer open menu item

In the mixer window that opens, check that all sliders are in the middle position - these are the default settings. Also, keep all speaker icons on.

After these manipulations, the sound should appear. If this did not happen, proceed to the next steps.

Checking playback devices

The next step, if the sound is missing, will be to check the devices that are responsible for this.

In order to go to the tab responsible for the playback of devices - again click on the speaker icon. In the menu that appears, select the appropriate item, namely - "Playback devices".

Menu item "Playback devices"

After selecting this item, the "Sound" window will open, containing all the sound devices available on your computer.

Find the section "Speakers" - "Sound", which is responsible for connecting external speakers to the system, and make sure that this device is defined by default and functions normally. In this case, a green circle with a check mark inside will be present next to the speaker icon.

Confirming that the speakers are working properly

If this confirmation missing, you should right-click on the item "Speakers" and select the item Use as default.

Default Device Usage Menu

If the speakers connected to the computer are installed by default, but are not active - they are gray - you will need to activate (turn on) them. To do this, use the right mouse button again and select the "Enable" item in the menu that appears.

Turn on inactive speakers

It may be like this - when you open the window of devices responsible for playback - the item "Speakers" will be completely absent. This means that the device that plays the sound is disabled for some reason.

What to do in this case?

And you just need to select a free (empty) place in this window and, by clicking on it, select the item Show Disabled Devices.

Disabled devices display

After the speakers appear in the Sound Devices window, you will need to enable them and set them as the default device.

Then you can enjoy the sound that appears.

It is possible that after that the speakers will remain silent. In this case, proceed to the next step of the check.

Sound card control

At this stage, you should check the sound card available on your computer. It is no secret that she is directly responsible for the appearance of sound.

Sound cards are currently classified into the following types:

• cards that are built into the motherboard - integrated;
• separate cards designed for installation in PCI or PCIe ports - internal;
• independent devices that are connected to a personal computer via a USB connector are external.

Each of these cards differs not only in resource consumption, but also in the quality of the output sound.

Integrated cards are the simplest ones and you simply won't be able to get very high-quality sound from them. In addition, they load well.

Integrated sound card

Internal cards have their own processor and allow high synchronization of audio streams.

Internal card

Despite the variety of sound-reproducing devices, users are often faced with the lack of sound reproduction.

First go to "Device Manager" and check if the sound card is shown in the list present there.

To do this, right-click on the "My Computer" icon located on the desktop. In the menu that appears, select the lowest item - "Properties".

Selecting the "Properties" item

In the system window that opens, select the item "Device Manager", on the tab of which find the line “Sound, video and gaming devices» .

Device manager window

Expand the list and see if your sound card appears there. If it is displayed but inactive, turn it on. To do this, click on its name and activate the "Enable" item in the menu that appears.

It may be that there is no sound card in the section of sound and game devices. In this case, you should look for it in the section "Other devices".

Section with other devices

There is nothing wrong with that, just your audio device is located on the bus. If it is inactive, turn it on in the same way as described above.

If you see that near the name of the audio device there is an icon in the form of a yellow circle with an exclamation mark inside - the problem is not with the device itself, but with the drivers installed on it. In this case, you will need to reinstall them.

Installing sound drivers

Due to the "crooked" installed or outdated, very often a situation arises when the sound on the computer has disappeared.

And you need to do the following - install missing or reinstall existing drivers. Old drivers do not need to be removed, as they will be updated anyway when new ones are installed.

First, determine which one requires installation. To do this, open the Device Manager tab again and select your existing sound card. Double-click the left button on its name to open the properties window.

Sound card properties window

In this window, go to the "Details" tab and in the drop-down list of properties select the value "Equipment ID"... The "Value" section will display the hardware ID. Select and copy the first one.

Details tab

Then you need to use the Internet and open the site devid.Info, which will search for drivers for the audio device.

Site for searching drivers by device type

Difficulties in working with this site should not arise, since it supports the Russian language. In the search field located at the top of this resource, you need to paste the copied ID of your sound device and click the "Search" button. At the end of the search, a window with its result will open.

A floppy disk icon will be displayed in the lower right corner of this window, by clicking on which you can save the found driver on your computer. After its download is completed - click on "Exe" file in order to start the installation process.

Running the installation file

It may happen that the downloaded file does not have the extension "Exe"... Do not be alarmed - its installation is carried out by updating the drivers.

To do this, open again "Device Manager" and double click on the name of the sound card. In the window of its properties that opens, go to the "Driver" tab and click on the "Update" button.

The "Driver" tab of the sound card properties window

After that, a driver update window will open in front of you, in which select the item "Search for drivers on this computer".

Selecting a driver search option

Then you will need to specify the location of the previously downloaded file. This is done using the "View" button in the update window.

After installing the new driver, be sure to restart your computer for all changes to take effect. If you then open the properties window of the sound card, you can see that the sound driver has been updated.

Windows Audio Service

Another reason for the lack of sound on the computer is the disabled state of the service. Windows Audio.

In order to enable it, you need to go to the "Services" tab.

First of all, open "Control Panel".

Control panel window

Select from the elements present in it a section "Administration".

Administration tab

Then go to the Services tab and find Windows Audio in the list.

Services Tab

If this service is in a disabled state - double click on it. After that, the properties tab of this service will open, where it is necessary to enable it.

In the Status option, click the Run button and then Apply for the changes to take effect.

Windows Audio service properties tab

If you do not want to constantly start this service manually, set the parameter in the "Startup type" section "Auto".

Installing an additional program

In the fight against the disappearance of sound, a small auxiliary program called Realtek High Definition Audio Driver.

However, this "program" is suitable only for those who have a Realtek sound card installed. Although, to be honest, it is installed on most computers.

First you need to download and install it on your PC.

Download

Appearance Realtek software.

During the installation process, the program copies the files necessary for operation and reboots the computer. After that, the installation continues. After its completion, the computer must be rebooted again - only in this case, the changes made will be able to take effect.

If the installation was successful - near standard icon speaker icon will appear in the system tray.

Realtek software icon

By clicking on it, you will be taken to the tab of this program, where you can configure it.

Realtek HD Manager Window

Checking speaker connections

Another step in solving the problem of no sound is to check that the external speakers are connected to the computer correctly.

Remember that the audio jack is green. The color of the speaker plug is often the same. If the connection is correct - remove and reinsert the plug into the socket - it is quite possible that the required contact is missing.

Appearance of the audio input jack

Also check the integrity of the wires, as well as the connection of the speakers to the network. If possible, connect to another computer to make sure they work.

If the previous actions did not have the desired effect, check the BIOS settings.

BIOS setup

These actions apply to those who periodically change the settings of this system.

Turn on the computer and at the time of startup, press the corresponding button on the keyboard (F12, Esc, Del and other combinations). After you enter - go to the "Advanced" tab. Use the arrow buttons to navigate to the High Definition Audio parameter and see its status. If it is installed, then the sound is simply turned off and you will need to turn it on.

Activate this parameter by highlighting it and pressing the Enter key. In the window that opens, select the required parameter and press the "Enter" key again.

BIOS sound options

After the changes have been made, press the "F10" key to exit and save.

No sound from the front of the computer

In order for the front panel to have a working audio output, you need to install the Realtek manager.

If this manager is not available on your computer, install it.

To go to its tab, you need to open the control panel window and select it from the list present.

In the dispatcher window that opens, go to the "Speakers" tab.

Speakers Tab

After that, uncheck the box Disable Front Panel Slot Detection... This should save you the lack of sound on the front panel.

If this does not help, check the BIOS settings for the front panel of your computer.

Front Panel BIOS Settings

Enter the BIOS using the keys for configuring your PC. This could be F2, Del, Esc, and so on.

On the Advanced tab, use the arrow buttons to navigate to the "Onboard Device Configuration".

Then select the "Front Panel Type" line and make sure that this parameter is checked.

If it is written instead, press the "Enter" button and specify the required parameter in the window that opens.

Selecting the AC97 parameter in the BIOS settings

When the connector on the front panel of the computer does not want to output sound in any way, check the hardware just in case.

Checking the "motherboard"

To proceed with this task, you must turn off and completely de-energize the PC.

Entering a search phrase

If you know exactly when there was no sound, roll back the system to get rid of the last unsuccessful changes.

When the exact date of the loss of sound is not known to you, use the item "Choose another restore point".

Choosing a different system restore point

In the last window, specify system disk, on which the previously created checkpoint is located, and click on the "Finish" button. After that, the computer will restart, during which all existing changes will be canceled.

When the system rollback did not bring the desired results, you may need to reinstall yourself. However, this is a last resort and should only be used if other actions failed to restore the sound that was missing on the computer.

Quite often the sound disappears after Windows updates 7 and 8 to the tenth version.

First of all, look for a solution to the problem in the system settings.

Open the volume control located in the system tray and set the slider to the most appropriate position.

In addition, after updating Windows to the tenth version, a prerequisite is the installation of the necessary drivers. Otherwise, you can simply forget about the normal operation of many devices.

To install the most suitable drivers, use the official websites of the manufacturers of certain devices.

For example, to install the drivers for the Realtek sound card, go to the developers' site, where you can download not only drivers, but also additional programs.

Download

After the drivers are downloaded and installed, be sure to restart your computer.

In Windows 7, if there is no sound, you can use the built-in utility that automatically diagnoses the system and eliminates existing faults. The sound problem is no exception.

Most often, this utility starts automatically and does not require special intervention. However, if urgently needed, it can also be started manually. You can do this directly from the problematic device window.

Sound card does not work

Since this card is a sound producer, its absence directly depends on its work.

It can lose its working capacity for several reasons:

• due to breakage;
• due to poor contact or incorrect connection.

In order to check it - unscrew and remove the side cover from system unit... Remove the sound card by disconnecting it from the motherboard socket. To do this, squeeze the special latches on the edges of the PCI slot.

Check contacts for oxidation or contamination. Clean them up and insert the sound card in its original place.

It is necessary to press it into the socket until a kind of click appears. This is due to the locking of the latches.

Sound card appearance

To troubleshoot the card itself at home, remove it from the PCI slot and insert it into another computer. However, not everyone can use this option. The only correct action will be to contact the service center specialists, who will diagnose your sound card in a matter of minutes. In the event of a malfunction, they will explain what is more cost-effective - to repair or purchase a new card.

There may be no sound even if the installed drivers conflict with the drivers of other devices.

For example, if such a problem occurs when exiting, the sound card and modem drivers conflict. In order to verify this, you need to open the Device Manager tab. In such a situation, conflicting devices will be marked with an exclamation mark. To return these devices to working condition, you need to update their drivers.

The computer is very complex multifunction device, who likes to throw out all sorts of tricks at the most inopportune moment: either the video card will fail, then the south bridge will burn out, then the sound on Windows 7 or some other operating system disappears for no reason. Even the average user needs to know everything about how to deal with these troubles. The most common problem is sound failure after the next system update or for some other unknown reason. But in order to competently solve this problem, you must first determine what went wrong, and identify the primary source of all troubles. This is what will be discussed in this material. So how do you get your computer back "voice"? Let's try to figure it out.

Reasons for no sound on the computer

There are several reasons why your computer might lose sound. They are all divided into hardware and software. If the problem is of a hardware nature, then there is a very high probability that an adapter will be required. If the problem has a software nature, then you can get by with "little blood" and on your own. If the sound disappears on Windows 7 or some other version of the OS, then the first step is to check all the connections and the performance of the speakers or headphones. If the problem is not resolved, check for drivers for the sound card. If everything is in order with the drivers, then you need to check the sound adapter for performance. And if this does not help, we check it for hardware damage.

Hardware problems are the hardest. If the user has a full-fledged computer with a system unit, then it will not be difficult to replace the sound card. And if you only have a laptop or PC that uses a built-in sound controller, then you can't do without a visit to a specialist. In any case, you will have to spend a certain amount of finance on professional help or a new sound card. This is the main nuisance of hardware problems with sound. So, the sound in the computer disappeared. How can I restore it? Let's take a closer look at the most popular methods.

How to fix? Method 1: mindfulness test

Often, inexperienced users simply do not notice that the system is at a minimum or the sound is turned off altogether. To eliminate such a problem, just look in the system tray - at the volume icon (speaker). If it is crossed out, then the sound is simply turned off. To enable, click on the icon and click on it again. Then the sound should appear. If the icon is not crossed out, it still makes sense to look into the tray and move the volume control to maximum. This, by the way, is also the answer to the question of how to increase the sound on your computer.

If after carrying out all the above manipulations nothing happened, then the problem may be with the speakers or headphones. Make sure the speaker is plugged in and turn the volume control to maximum. Then play a song on your computer. The sound should appear. If this is not the case, check the connection of the speakers to your computer or laptop. Sometimes someone can swap the plugs without your knowledge. If everything is in place, but there is no sound, then the problem is much more serious than it seemed at first glance. Now we will understand seriously why the sound in the computer disappeared and how to restore it.

How to fix? Method 2: enable audio device

Setting up sound on Windows 7 isn't that hard. However, before proceeding with the manipulation of drivers and other software, you need to make sure that the standard audio device is turned on and in use. This is very easy to do. We go to "Start" - "Control Panel" - "Device Manager". There we are looking for the name of our audio device and see which icon is next to it. If the arrow is gray, the equipment is disabled. To enable it, you need to do the following manipulation: right-click on the device and select "Enable" in the menu that appears. After that, a sound should appear. If you have lost sound in your computer, and you do not know how to restore it, then the following chapters are just for you.

But it happens that this does not help either. So, the sound on the computer disappeared. What if everything is empty at the place of the audio device in the "Device Manager"? This happens after someone has removed the device along with all the drivers. To fix this, you need to restart your computer. The system will automatically detect the new device and try to install the necessary drivers. But! Even if this option works, there is no need to count on the relevance of system drivers, which smoothly pushes us to the next chapter of the material: installing drivers and other software.

How to fix? Method 3: drivers

Often the absence of sound on a PC or laptop is caused by software problems... The most common of these is the absence required drivers in the operating system of the device. It is very simple to check this: go to "Control Panel" - "Device Manager" and look at the section with audio devices. If there are yellow question marks instead of icons, then there are definitely no drivers. Therefore, there is no sound either. What to do? If there is no sound in the computer speakers due to drivers, you need to go to the official website of the device manufacturer and download fresh utilities. You can, of course, try to update them. regular means Windows, but Microsoft's servers are pretty old. So it's better to download it yourself.

Sometimes, instead of a yellow question mark in the place of the desired device in the "Device Manager", an inscription like "Standard audio device" may appear. Don't be in a hurry to rejoice. This also means that required programs no, which means that the device may be unstable. With various tricks and glitches. Therefore, the drivers must be installed in any case. This will have a positive effect on the overall speed of your PC or laptop. Just remember to restart your computer after installing the drivers. If, after installing the necessary software, sound playback on your computer does not start, you need to prepare for the worst.

How to fix? Method 4, hardware

If you have a standard Personal Computer with the system unit, it is highly likely that you are using a separate sound card. What to do if the sound in the computer disappears? How do I restore it? There may be some kind of hardware failure in the sound card itself. You need to remove it, then put it in place and turn on the computer. Chances, of course, are small, but the sound may appear. If it does not appear, then you need to determine exactly what the audio card is to blame. To do this, you need to take a known working card from friends and insert it into the connector of your motherboard. If the sound appears, there is a problem with the card. If not, the problem is with the motherboard. And both of these components will need to be replaced.

If you have a laptop or computer that uses a sound controller that is built into the motherboard, then the situation is much worse. So, the sound on the computer disappeared. What if the problem is hardware in the controller that is built into the motherboard? You can't do anything here yourself. You will have to carry your computer to service center where there are professionals with the most modern equipment... As a rule, you will not be able to determine that the problem is in the 3.5 mm mini-Jack socket (if there is no sound from the headphones on the computer). Therefore, one cannot do without a trip to a specialist, although the nest could be changed by ourselves.

Why is there no sound when watching a video?

Sometimes it happens that there is no sound when watching a video on a computer. The most common reason is a video player that lacks codecs. Usually the standard player from Microsoft suffers from this. Everything is simple here. There are only two options: either install new codecs, or change the player. The latter, by the way, is preferable, because a standard player does not know how much of what modern ones are capable of. free utilities... The best for today is Daum PotPlayer. It plays everything and videos without any problem. It also has an impressive library of built-in codecs. And this is important.

However, it also happens that when watching a video, the sound on the computer disappeared. What if everything is in order with the player and codecs? The player may be using the wrong sound output device. You need to review the settings and make it play sound through a standard device, which should be installed by default. Each player has its own tree of settings, so there is no way to describe the process of changing the output device step by step. Here you need to act by the "scientific poke" method. But finding these settings is easy. Moreover, most video players now support Russian.

Improved sound quality. Method 1, software

It also happens that the sound quality is noticeably reduced after any action in the computer's operating system. Cracking, noise, tunneling, and other interference may occur. This must be due to a recent installation of some program that has managed to somehow affect the sound quality on your PC or laptop. The sound volume on the computer can also be affected. The easiest way to fix the situation is to remember which program you installed and uninstall it. After that, you need to restart your computer. If this method did not work, then you need to use "System Restore" from the "Start" menu and roll back the operating system to the time when everything was fine with the sound.

Some users want to make their computer sound better. There are several products that can help you achieve this idea. The most best program for sound on a computer - SRS Premium Sound. It has a huge number of settings and a bunch of effects that will help improve the sound quality on your computer. And although its interface is completely in English, no one should have any problems with it, because it is simple and intuitive. This utility"lodges" in the system tray and improves the sound of a PC or laptop in real mode. However, there is one drawback: the program is not free. And the trial version is very limited in customization options.

Improved sound quality. Method 2, hardware

No matter how advanced the sound program on your computer is, it is not capable of improving sound beyond the limits of a sound card. And here comes the problem of the hardware capabilities of the audio chip. But she also has a solution, albeit quite expensive. An external DAC can be purchased for superior sound quality. But there are some nuances that can lead to the rejection of this option. First, DACs are quite expensive. Not everyone has the opportunity to purchase it. Secondly, you need a receiver (aka an amplifier), because without it you can't connect a good speaker system (or headphones) to the DAC. And if you listen to it on office "buzzer", then there will be no difference.

The need for acquisition logically follows from the above thesis. By the way, this will also be the answer to the question of how to increase the sound on a computer. For a good amplifier coupled with a high-quality speaker system is quite capable of coping with this task. But that's not all. Ideally, for high-quality sound, you need almost silent computer. The best way- laptop or ultrabook. Standard system blocks are buzzing a lot. But this is no longer necessary. A high-quality DAC and a speaker system or headphones of the appropriate class will be enough. This will help take your sound quality to the next level.

How to increase

Sometimes it is vital to know how to increase the sound on your computer. This is necessary in cases where the built-in laptop speakers are not capable of delivering many decibels or there is a speaker system without a volume control (or it does not work). This can be done using special programs(SRS, Realtek Audio) or by frequency selection. It's no secret that EQ settings can have a great effect on sound volume. So it makes sense to play with the sliders and find the best one for yourself or your PC.

Conclusion

So, now you know what to do if sound disappeared in the computer, and how to restore it. There are two types of reasons for this problem: hardware and software. While software malfunctions can still be dealt with on their own, hardware problems can often be unsolvable. Only a trip to the service center for the repair of PCs and laptops will help here. There are specially trained people with the right tools who will be able to put your car in order in the shortest possible time. Trying to fix the hardware problem yourself is not worth it. Other components of the computer could be damaged. And repairing them can be very costly. Therefore, it is better to trust the professionals. And you can play with drivers and all sorts of programs to improve the sound as much as you like. They cannot cause physical harm to the sound card.

» What to do if sound disappears in Windows XP?

What to do if sound disappears in Windows XP?

Imagine a situation: you turn on the computer, and instead of hearing a sound Windows greetings XP, only the uniform hum of the system unit is heard. Of course, the problem immediately becomes clear: there is no sound on the computer! What can you do if this situation arises? Are there any special methods actions that are aimed at restoring sound? Let's see what you can do in a situation where the sound on your computer has disappeared.

Reasons for no sound

There are only two reasons for the lack of sound on the computer: it is either a software problem or a hardware problem. In other words, either there are faulty components or there are various problems in Windows settings XP or certain software. It should be noted that such problems can occur both in the latest operating systems and in the usual Windows XP (problems with sound occur quite often due to a malfunction of the svhosts.exe file). And even in spite of the latest equipment, a powerful and high-quality sound card, problems have and will continue to arise.

We will not consider the situation in which the sound disappeared due to a hardware malfunction. Problems can be very diverse and a user without special skills and education is unlikely to be able to figure out the reasons for the lack of sound due to a malfunction in the motherboard, sound card or other computer hardware. If all of the following actions do not result in positive outcome then Windows XP is not the problem at all. The problem lies in the hardware of the computer. It is advisable to refer all the equipment for diagnostics to a person who can figure out why the sound on the computer disappeared. We will consider the most common malfunctions that arise with the software.

No sound due to software

If the sound is missing, then first of all you need to check if the Windows Audio service is running:

• Go to the address Start-Settings-Control Panel-Administrative Tools-Device Manager-Services;

• In the dialog box Services need to choose windows service Audio;
• Select a subsection of the menu Action-Properties;
• In a dialogue windows windows Audio checks the status of this service. During normal operation, it should function correctly, while the button Start is inactive;
• In the context menu Launch type should be Auto(if this is not the case, then you must set this value);
• The last step is to click the button OK and closing the window of the special service.

After the steps taken, you need to check the operation of Windows XP audio devices. To do this, follow these steps:

• V Control panels you need to select a section Sounds and audio devices;
• Most likely when opening of this section there will be an inscription “There are no audio devices”;

• Moreover, in Device manager In chapter Sound devices you can see the following picture:

In order for the sound to appear again in Windows XP, you need to install new drivers... This is done as follows:

1. In the CD drive, you need to install the CD containing the motherboard drivers.
2. Do not use autorun. You must cancel the unattended installation and open the contents of the CD through My Computer.
3. Among the contents of the disk you need to find setup file Setup.exe (Install.exe). After starting the file, the Found New Hardware Wizard will open, which will install the drivers on Windows XP.
4. The last step is to reboot the computer, which is necessary for the drivers to work correctly.

After reboot, you can open the tab Volume and customize the sound the way the user wants.

There are several important nuances to consider. First, there is a special Windows Audio service for all audio devices in Windows XP. In the event that this sound has disappeared on the computer, then this may mean the inactivity of this service. Secondly, the above malfunction with Windows Audio service most often occurs during installation or reinstalling Windows XP. This situation arises due to automatic installation driver on the motherboard, so it is recommended to install them manually via Device Manager.

How do I restore sound on my computer?

If the sound on the computer disappears, and reinstalling the motherboard drivers did not bring any visible result, you can follow these steps, which, despite their banality, can be very useful:

1. Initially, it is recommended that you restart your computer. It is possible that there was a temporary system failure of the drivers, and upon repeated Windows startup XP sound will reappear.
2. The most common reason that at least once caused panic even among an experienced user is the lack of a speaker power connection. It's trite, but it happens. Therefore, it is worth checking whether the plug from the speakers is inserted into the outlet and whether the outlet is working properly.
3. On the Windows XP taskbar, you need to find the icon Volume setting and then move the slider up as far as possible.
4. It is recommended to check the functionality of the speakers. If the sound is lost due to the computer, then the speakers will work on other devices. If the speakers do not work in all cases, then the reason for the lack of sound lies in them.
5. Install sound card drivers. Even if there are no drivers available, they can be found on the official website of the company that owns the sound device on your computer.
6. If you understand not only the Windows XP operating system, but also the hardware, then you can try to install a known working sound card on your computer. If at the same time the sound appears, then it is necessary to refer the sound card to the diagnostics. It is possible that the sound was lost precisely because of her.
7. As a last resort, you can try automatic recovery systems. To do this, you need to create a restore point on your computer so that all settings are in working order. In the future, this may come in handy if in Windows XP there will be any problems with the operation of software or individual components.

If the sound disappeared and all the above actions did not bring any visible results, then only an experienced specialist can figure out this problem.

Updated: 07.01. Published: 2016 or earlier

Description

• After Windows installations no sound.
• The sound disappeared suddenly.
• Sound does not work on the Internet (browser) or games.
• Sound does not work when connected to the front of the computer.

The problem is typical for various operating systems and computers (desktops, laptops, all-in-ones).

Cause

Problems can be software:

1. The driver is not installed.
2. Sound service is disabled.
3. Disconnect the playback device.
4. Incorrect system settings or system failure.
5. Disabled by a special button.
6. Incorrect update installation.
7. Virus.

Or hardware:

1. Failure of the sound card.
2. Defective speakers or headphones.
3. Broken cable.

Solution

The solutions to the problem presented below are arranged in order of frequency and ease of implementation. If one method didn't work, move on to the next.

As practice shows, it is not always possible to solve the problem with sound the first time - you can overlook something or not pay attention to an important detail. Go through all the points carefully, and if they did not help, go through them again.

1. Reboot

Before you do anything, just restart your computer - in some cases this will be enough.

2. Device and driver

Very often, the sound may not work due to an uninstalled, disabled or "crashed" driver. For example, this issue can be encountered after installing new system or updating it. In this case, in the lower right corner of the screen, we will see a sound icon with a red cross or a prohibition sign:

In Windows 10, if we hover over the icon, we can see the error "Audio output device is not installed":

To solve the problem, go to the device manager. To do this, in Windows 10 (8), right-click on Start - Device Manager:

* v previous versions Windows, right-click on "Computer" ("My Computer") - "Manage" - go to the "Device Manager" section.

Check that there are no yellow warning signs. The subsection "Sound, video and game controllers" should contain your audio playback device:

If you see that there is a device with an exclamation mark:

Also, you can see a device with a down arrow. This means the device is disabled. To enable, click on it with the right mouse button and click Turn on the device:

You can also try uninstalling the driver and installing it again.

3. Sound service

In the case of a disabled service, we will also see a sound icon with a red cross or a ban sign in the system tray (lower right corner):

But at the same time, everything will be in order in the device manager.

Right-click on "Start" - "Run" (or a combination of win + R) - enter the command services.msc- "OK"

* in Windows 7 (Vista, XP) you need to click on Start - Run.

In the window that opens, find the "Windows Audio" service. Its state should be "Working". If it is not, click on the service twice, set the startup type to "Automatic", click "Apply" and start the service:

If the service does not turn on or the power button is inactive, start the registry editor (command regedit) and follow the branch HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ CurrentControlSet \ Services \ Audiosrv... Find the parameter Start and give it a value 2 :

Then we restart the computer.

4. Muting the keyboard

If your keyboard has a mute key (most often on laptops or gaming keyboards), try pressing it. It is usually located in the area of ​​the F1 - F12 buttons. To press it, sometimes you need to use a combination with the Fn key.

Also, on some keyboards, this may be a separate button - look carefully and find a picture with a picture of a speaker.

5. Default audio device

If there are multiple audio devices in the system, such as an audio device and a video card with HDMI, then the latter can be set as the audio playback device. In this case, the audio stream will not go to the speakers or headphones, but to the monitor / TV connected to the computer.

Go to Control Panel(command control) - Sound... Make sure the correct default audio device is set:

To do this, click on the device with the right mouse button - Use as default.

6. Work of speakers and headphones

Check that the playback device itself is turned on. For the columns, it could be special button, for headphones - also a dedicated button or battery level in the wireless headset.

If the sound suddenly disappears, check the operation of the speakers or headphones, as well as the wiring. Check if the speaker or headphone plug is securely connected. Try connecting other speakers or headphones to your computer. Or you can try them out on another computer.

If the sound is lost after moving the computer or disconnecting the speakers, check that the connections are tight and correct. The playback device should be connected to the green connector, the microphone to the red one:

Try simply pulling the wires out of the connectors and reinserting them. Also try connecting to both the front audio jacks and the rear ones.

In the case of using monitor speakers, you must turn on the sound in the settings of the monitor itself.

7. Codecs and DirectX

In case of problems with software components, the problem may be observed on some sites, applications or games.

Install or update codecs such as K-Lite Codec Pack or VLC media player; reinstall DirectX.

8. Sleep mode

If the sound disappears after the computer wakes up from sleep mode, turn off the headphones or speakers - put it back into sleep mode - connect headphones or speakers - turn it on.

9. System error

Any problem with system settings or files may have an unexpected effect, such as loss of sound.

If the sound worked before, try checking system files for damage:

If the system finds damaged files, restart your computer and check the sound.

10. Rollback updates

If the sound disappears after updating Windows, you can simply roll it back. To do this, go to the control panel (command control) - in the "Programs" settings group, click on Removing a program:

In the menu on the left, click on View installed updates:

We sort the updates by date, so that the last ones are on top:

Delete Latest updates after which the sound stopped working. To do this, right-click on the update - Delete:

11. Proprietary utility

Try playing with the sound utility settings. It is installed with the sound card driver and run from the control panel (command control) or system tray (icon in the lower right corner);

12. Troubleshooter

Use the remedy Windows errors... Click on the sound icon in the lower right corner - Troubleshoot audio problems... Follow the troubleshooting options offered by the system. Windows can automatically find and fix the problem.

13. The front panel does not work

If the sound works when connected to the rear panel, but does not work when connected to the front panel, check the connection of the Audio cable to the motherboard.

To do this, you need to disassemble the computer and find the sound connectors on the motherboard:

And connect to them the Audio cable that comes from the front panel:

* 1) modern cable; 2,3) can be found in older computers.

14. Disconnecting wires from the computer

In some cases, this not quite obvious solution can help.

Disconnect all wires from the computer, including power. Press the power button once - the computer will not turn on, but the rest of the current will be reset. We reconnect all the cables to the computer, start it up and check the sound work.

15. BIOS setup

The integrated audio adapter can be disabled in the BIOS. In this case, we will not see our sound device in the device manager.

To check this setting, go to BIOS. We find the option to turn on the sound card - it can be called differently, for example:

• HD Audio.
• HD Audio Controller.
• High Definition Audio.
• Onboard HD Audio.
• etc...

* you should be guided by words Audio and Sound... The section in which the desired option is most often located is called Advanced or Integrated peripherals.

Having found the desired section, we check that it is enabled - Enabled. If it is enabled, sometimes it helps to first turn off the sound card, then turn it on. Then we boot the computer and check that a sound card appears in the devices.

16. Sound volume

The sound may disappear due to cranking the volume down to the minimum. Check that the speakers are not set to their minimum volume. Also make sure that the volume in the audio settings is not too low:

On a laptop, the volume down button can stick - thus, it will always turn down the volume, preventing it from turning up. In this case, you can knock on the volume down button (among the F1 - F12 buttons, near F7).

Also, due to the incorrect volume level, some applications may have sound, and some will not. Open the volume mixers - for this, right-click on the system icon in the lower right corner - select Open volume mixers:

In the window that opens, check that non-zero volume is set for all programs and devices:

* it so happens that the sound in the headphones works on the laptop, but the built-in speakers do not work. The problem, just, may lie in the set at 0 level for the speakers.

17. Turn on sound in a program or game

Some programs and games also allow you to control the volume and mute setting. In this case, you can accidentally turn it off - there will be no sound in this program, but in other applications they will work with sound.

With everyone's settings software product you need to understand individually.

Let's give an example for a browser Google chrome... In its settings, go to the section Additional - Site settings - Sound- check the position of the switch "Allow sites to play sounds (recommended)":

18. Scanning for viruses

In some cases, scanning your computer for viruses helps. To do this, you can use any anti-virus utility, for example, CureIt.

19. Active monitor

If the computer is additionally connected to the TV via HDMI, make sure that a regular monitor is active, and not a TV - otherwise, the sound may be transmitted to the TV, and not the speakers. You can switch the screen using the Win + P key combination.

20. Startup

If the system reports “The device is in use by another application”, try to disconnect one application from startup and restart the computer one by one. If the sound appears, turn on the programs, except for the one due to which the conflict arises.

21. Sound card

It is possible that the sound malfunction may be associated with a breakdown of the sound card. To check this, you can buy an inexpensive USB sound card (for 300-400 rubles):

And connect it to your computer (don't forget to install the driver for it).

22. Reinstall Windows

If the above methods did not solve the problem, then reinstalling the system remains. This is not the most elegant method, but if all else fails, it remains. After reinstalling the operating system, do not forget to install the sound driver.

If this did not help, then with almost 100% probability we can say that the problem is hardware. Check your speakers, wires, connectors, sound card again.

The reason for this on different operating systems can be completely different things. Let's take a look at the most common causes and options for their elimination point by point.
If you have not bought a separate sound card, then the built-in one will most likely be “realtek” both in the laptop and in a regular PC. On Windows XP, the reason for the lack of sound may be drivers that did not get up or, rather, they got up incorrectly, or, more accurately, got up, but due to the lack of an operating system update, they did not work. Drivers do not work, as a rule, if it is Windows version sp2, since modern drivers are designed for sp3. Let's check point by point all the places where the sound may be muted or incorrectly configured.
1. And the most commonplace. There is a speaker icon in the lower right corner (tray) of the screen next to the clock icon. Click on it with the mouse and see if the "mute sound" checkbox is ticked and whether the volume lever is pushed all the way down. For beginners computer users this can be a serious problem. Uncheck the box and move the lever up.

2. Check if the power cable of the speakers is plugged into the outlet, whether the speakers themselves are on and whether the indicator is on.

3. Check if the audio plug from the speakers is inserted into the correct slot of the sound card on the PC. There will be a drawing on the nest with the designation sound wave and arrows coming from the nest. On motherboards with integrated sound, there are usually 3 slots or 6 in two rows. The outlet socket is usually located in the center of the bottom row. Do you think I'm kidding you? Yes, in no case. 70% of calls for no sound end up checking the first three items.

4. Also in the tray, if the driver is nevertheless correctly installed, there will be a second icon with a speaker belonging to the Realtek sound card itself. We become on the icon of just the speaker with the mouse cursor, press the right key and in the menu that appears, click "Settings". As a result, you have a window in which, by rearranging the point, you can switch between playback and recording devices. Also below you see the check marks on those devices that are turned on. Turn on all devices, raise the volume control levers up and check the "Mixer" item in the playback devices as the main device.

5. Install Windows update up to 3 sp. If you do not know how, then just run on the machine " Automatic update»And wait until it downloads and installs all the add-ons. To do this, go to "Start" - item "Settings" - item "Control Panel". We find the icon "Automatic update", put on "automatically download and install" and we are waiting. After installation, we reboot. If you have a left broom, then you should not do this, because a license check will take place and after that it will not turn on.

6. Check if the sound card driver is installed at all. To do this, go to "Start" - item "Settings" - item "Control Panel". Find the "System" icon and run it. In the window that appears, go to the "Hardware" tab and press the "Device Manager" button. We find in the list "Sound devices", click on the plus sign next to them. Let's see if there is a realtek sound card in the list and if there is a yellow question mark next to it (the wrong driver). There may be nothing in the "Sound Devices" at all, and this means that the driver did not get up at all. If you have a separate sound system, then it is worth trying to reinstall the driver from the disk attached to it. If there is no disk, then you can try to read the name on the card itself and its marking in the form of numbers, and then try to search for drivers on the Internet for your version of the operating system (although if you are an inexperienced user, it is easier to call the wizard). If you have a standard motherboard with an integrated card, then it is quite possible to assume that the supplied drivers did not fit and try to download a more recent version from the Internet. For Realtek it's easy, because the drivers are standardized for different motherboards and card versions, and just download latest version updates. Usually called Realtek High Definition Audio R270 (the version number is constantly growing, so look for the latest). When downloading, try to download drivers from the websites of your equipment manufacturer. Also pay attention to how many bit operating system you have (32 or 64 bit). To do this, go to "Start" - item "Settings" - item "Control Panel". Find the "System" icon and run it. In the window that appears, go to the "General" tab and look at the system version. After installing the drivers, we reboot.