Everything looks right, the volume is up, and there is no sound. Computer audio has more places to go wrong than it should, largely because a modern machine has several audio outputs and Windows will happily send your sound to one you are not listening to.
The short answer
Check the output device first, because sound being sent to a monitor over HDMI, or to a disconnected Bluetooth device, is the single most common cause. Click the volume icon and see which device is selected. Then check the per-application volume mixer, where one app can be muted independently of everything else.
The wrong output device
A typical desktop has the motherboard’s analogue output, possibly a digital output, an HDMI or DisplayPort audio path to each monitor, any USB headset, and any Bluetooth device. Windows picks one, and it changes its mind when devices connect or disconnect.
The classic case: a monitor connected by HDMI presents itself as an audio device. Windows switches to it. The monitor has no speakers, or its volume is at zero, and you get silence with no error at all. Plugging in a monitor is therefore a common trigger for sound disappearing.
Click the volume icon and check the output device
Select your actual speakers or headphones explicitly. If a monitor, a television or a Bluetooth device is listed as the output, that is where your sound is going.
Open the volume mixer
Right-click the volume icon and open the mixer. Applications have individual volume levels and mute states, and it is easy to mute one accidentally. Check the app you are trying to hear as well as the system level.
Check the physical connections and the right socket
On a desktop, the green socket is line out for speakers. Front panel sockets are often not connected internally, so try the rear ones. Make sure the plug is fully seated, which usually takes more force than people expect.
Check the speakers are powered and turned up
Powered speakers have their own volume control and their own power switch, and a speaker set unplugged at the wall looks exactly like a driver problem. Check the power light.
Test with headphones
Plugging in headphones tells you whether the output works and isolates the speakers. If headphones work and speakers do not, the problem is the speakers, their cable or their power.
Run the audio troubleshooter
Windows has a built-in one, and it genuinely resolves a fair share of cases by resetting the default device and restarting the audio service.
Restart the Windows Audio service
Open the services list, find Windows Audio, and restart it. A stuck audio service produces total silence with everything appearing normal.
Reinstall the audio driver
In Device Manager, uninstall the audio device and restart. Windows installs a basic driver. Then install the manufacturer’s driver from your motherboard or laptop support page, which restores features the generic one lacks.
If sound works in some applications but not others, it is not a driver problem. Check the volume mixer for that application, and check whether the application has its own audio output setting, which many communication and media programs do.
Less obvious causes
- Audio enhancements. Spatial audio and enhancement effects can cause silence with some hardware. Turn them off in the device properties.
- Exclusive mode. An application that has taken exclusive control of the audio device blocks everything else. Uncheck exclusive mode in the device’s advanced properties.
- The sample rate. A rate the hardware does not support produces silence. Set it to 24 bit 48000 Hz, which everything handles.
- Front panel detection. Some motherboard software disables the rear output when it thinks something is plugged into the front. Check the manufacturer’s audio control panel.
- A BIOS setting. Onboard audio can be disabled in the BIOS, usually after a firmware reset.
- Bluetooth holding the output. A paired speaker in another room, out of range but still selected, produces silence from everything.
Be careful with third-party audio enhancement software. Several packages install their own virtual audio device and set it as the default, which produces silence if their service is not running. If sound stopped after installing one, uninstall it as a test.
If nothing at all appears as an output device
An empty device list points at the driver or the hardware. Check Device Manager for any device with a warning triangle, and show hidden devices to see whether the audio controller is present but disabled. A BIOS update and a chipset driver install are the next steps.
If the onboard audio controller does not appear at all after a clean driver install and a BIOS check, it may have failed. That is not a disaster: a USB audio adapter costs very little, plugs into any port, and bypasses the onboard hardware entirely. For a desktop it is a far cheaper answer than a new motherboard.
Why did my sound stop after connecting a monitor?
The monitor presented itself as an audio device over HDMI and Windows switched to it. Select your speakers explicitly as the output device.
Why does one app have no sound when others do?
Its volume is muted in the volume mixer, or the app has its own output device setting pointing somewhere else. It is not a driver problem.
Are front panel audio sockets less reliable?
Often, yes, because the internal cable is sometimes not connected or is poorly shielded. Test the rear sockets before concluding anything is broken.
What is exclusive mode?
A setting allowing an application to take sole control of the audio device. When one does, nothing else can make a sound. Turning it off in the device properties resolves it.
What if my audio hardware has failed?
A USB audio adapter costs very little and bypasses the onboard hardware entirely. For a desktop it is far cheaper than replacing a motherboard for the sake of sound.
The bottom line
Check which output device is selected before anything else, because sound being sent to a monitor or a disconnected Bluetooth device explains most cases. Then check the per-application mixer. Reinstall the driver only after those, and remember that a USB audio adapter is a cheap answer if the onboard hardware has genuinely failed.
