Microphone does not work Windows 10, what to do

Initially, the microphone was used to amplify the human voice so that it could be heard in front of the audience. The earliest speakers were called megaphones, but today microphones are used to record voice, provide speech recognition capabilities, and to talk to friends, family and colleagues using a variety of apps and devices. Most modern computers and laptops have built-in microphones, so there’s no need to connect additional devices to the computer. Despite the popularity of microphones, many users have problems with them, especially when the microphone does not work Windows 10. There can be many reasons that cause problems with the microphone (internal or external): a wrong driver, problems with the operating system Windows, hardware problems, etc. By reading this article you will understand what to do when the microphone is not working Windows 10, let’s get started.

6 things to do when the Microphone is not working Windows 10

Also Read: Windows 10 Safe Mode, Complete Guide

1. Efollow the Windows troubleshooter. Windows includes a troubleshooting feature designed to quickly diagnose and automatically fix various computer problems. The troubleshooter isn’t designed to fix all problems, but it can provide a report on the cause of the problem, so it’s a good place to start if you’re having problems with your computer or operating system, including problems with the microphone . To start the Windows troubleshooteryou go Settings and type “Troubleshooting Setting” and select “Additional troubleshooting tools” from the list. Find “Audio Recording” under “Find and solve problems with sound recording” and select it. Click “Run Troubleshooter” and follow the instructions. See if the Windows Update Troubleshooter can fix the PC microphone not working issue.

2. Make sure the microphone is enabled. Make sure the microphone is on the Windows 10 operating system is enabled. It might just be off – this is why it doesn’t work. To see if it’s enabled in Windows, go to Settings, find and click “Privacy”. In the Privacy Settings window, find and select the section “Microphone” in the left pane. Make sure the switch in “Allow apps to use my microphone” o “Allow apps to access yours microphone” is in place “Activate “. If you are using the microphone with a particular application, check if you are granting that application access to the microphone. Find the application in the list and check if the switch is set to “On”. See if this solves the problem with when the microphone is not working.

3. Set the microphone as the default device. If an external microphone is plugged into your computer, that doesn’t mean it’s set as the default device – you may need to do it manually. The first step is to physically connect the headset to the PC with SmartSDR for Windows. Now to turn it into the default Windows playback and recording device do this. The easiest and fastest way to change the microphone device is the same for Windows 7 and Windows 8. Find the sound icon in the notification area (lower right corner of the screen) and right click or hold held down.

You will see a menu that offers several options: Open Volume Mixer, Playback Devices, Recording Devices, Sounds and Volume Control Options. Select Playback devices to open the Sound control panel. Open the Sound control panelas described above, and click the tab Registration. Here you will see all the audio devices you keep connected that can be used as a microphone. Again, your current default device is marked with a green check mark. Select your microphone and click Set default.

4. Make sure the microphone is not muted. Another reason when the microphone on your pc is not working is that it is simply turned off or the volume is set to minimum. To check, right-click the speaker icon on the taskbar and select “Recording devices”. Select the microphone (your recording device) and click “Property”. In the window of microphone properties, click the tab “Level” and make sure that the speaker icon does not have a red mark next to it and that the volume is set to 100. Check the changes if necessary and click “Applica”. See if the problem with the microphone persists.

Also read: How to find Windows 10 Product Key

5. Reinstall or update the microphone driver. A device driver is software that provides information to the Windows operating system and other software about how to interact with certain hardware on your computer. Drivers act as translators between software and hardware because they are often made by various manufacturers, companies, or individuals. Drivers allow software and hardware to communicate seamlessly. In most cases, the computer cannot send and receive data correctly without drivers. If the appropriate driver is not installed, the device may not function properly. You can try removing the driver and then letting Windows reinstall it automatically, or you can try updating the driver manually (or try both methods).

To reinstall the microphone driver, press the logo Windows + X on the keyboard and select Device management. In the Device Manager window, double-click “Audio in and out” (or click the arrow) to open that section. Right-click on the recording device (your microphone) and select “Uninstall device” from the context menu. Restart your computer and Windows will reinstall the missing drivers. If for some reason Windows fails to reinstall the drivers, you can force the system reinstall by going back to Device management and right-clicking on the computer name (it should be first in the list). Select “Look for hardware changes” and Windows will install the missing drivers.

If you want to update your driver manually or automatically, right click on the recording device in Device management and select “Update Driver” from the context menu. You will be asked if you want to search for automatically updated driver software or search for driver software on your computer. If you choose the first option, Windows will search your computer and the Internet to find the latest software for your microphone. If you choose the second option, you will need to manually locate and install the driver. To use this option, you must have previously downloaded the drivers to your computer or USB flash drive.

Another way to update or install a new microphone driver is to do it using third party software like Snappy Driver Installer. You will need a computer with a working internet connection to download it. Snappy Driver Installer (SDI) is a powerful free driver update tool for Windows that can save your entire driver collection offline. Having drivers offline gives Snappy Driver Installer the ability to have access to fast driver updates, even if there is no active internet connection on your computer. Snappy Driver supports Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows Vista, 32-bit and 64-bit and also works with Windows XP. The drivers will be downloaded via Snappy Driver Installer in “driverpacks”, which is a collection (package) of drivers for various hardware devices such as audio devices, video cards, network adapters, etc. It can also display duplicate drivers and invalid drivers.

6. Restart the Windows Audio Service. Windows services (also known as services.MSC) are used to change the way Windows services run on the system. This service is responsible for running available programs and managing many system settings and resources. You can change the service settings for security, troubleshooting, and performance reasons. The Windows Audio Service handles audio for Windows-based programs. If this service is stopped, the audio and effects devices will not function properly. If disabled, all services that depend on it will fail to start.

To restart the Windows Audio service, press the key Windows + R on the keyboard or type Run in Search and click on the “Run” result to open the Run dialog box. Once open, type services.MSC and press Enter on the keyboard or click Ok. In the window Services, you will see a list of Windows services. Find the “Windows Audio” service and right-click. You choose “Restart” from the context menu. Alternatively, you can select “Stop” and then right-click again and select “Start”. Check if this solves the microphone problem.

If that doesn’t work, right-click the “Windows Audio” service and select “Property” from the context menu. In the Windows Audio Service Properties window, check if “Startup type” is set to “Automatic”. If not, set it to Automatic and click “Applica” to save the changes. Restart your computer and see if this solves the problem.