What to do if the sound on the laptop does not work

So, if the sound on the laptop does not work , you first need to diagnose the problem, determine what caused this and fix it.

First, take a look at the icon in the tray (bottom right, about hours). It will be in the form of a speaker. When you open it, you will see the sound settings panel. In it, all the channels of the device must be turned on, and the sliders are not exposed to the minimum (or better to the maximum) value. If this is all right, then proceed to the next item.

If there are several sound cards on the PC, check whether the device to which your speakers are connected is active right now. To do this, go to the "Control Panel" via the "Start" button. Select the item "Sound, speech and audio devices", then "Sounds and audio devices". In the "Audio" tab, in the "Default device" list, find the sound card you need.

Sometimes it happens that the sound does not work on the laptop due to the lack of codecs. Most often, for this reason, it appears only in video files. In this case, the system sounds (and audio too) will function normally. To fix the trouble, install the codecs. They can be found in free access on the Internet. They are installed by simply running the file and clicking on the "Next" button.

When the sound on the laptop does not work, you should also check if the drivers for the sound card are installed. To do this, go to the "Properties" of the "My Computer", in the "Hardware" tab, click "Device Manager". And in the list of installed equipment you need to find your audio card (section "Sound, video and game devices"). If it does not, then the driver is not installed.

To install the software for a sound card, you need to visit the site of its manufacturer. There you should download the driver for your version of the device. Installing it is similar to installing codecs.

When the sound card software and other device conflicts, also the sound on the laptop does not work. To check this, go to "Device Manager" (how to do this, described above). If the sound card conflicts with another device, it will be marked with a red exclamation mark. If this is noticed, then you need to update its driver (as it's done, also described above).

And the last reason, because of which the sound does not work on a laptop or computer, can be a physically inoperable sound card or speakers. Try connecting headphones or other speakers to your PC. Make sure that they are in good order. If there is sound in the connected speakers or headphones, then the speakers on the laptop (those that are built into its case) do not work, and the sound card is OK. In this case it is necessary to replace them in the service center. If there is no sound, it is most likely that the sound card is faulty. Its replacement will cost more.

Since headphones have been mentioned, it is necessary to describe one more "malfunction" associated with them. This word is quoted because its cause is the user's inattention. When headphones do not work on the laptop, and the speakers function normally, the most common problem is in a small volume control located on the wire, which is simply set to minimum.

All the diagnostic and troubleshooting methods described above are suitable for both a laptop and a desktop computer. If they could not return the sound to your computer, then it's best not to take unnecessary actions to not aggravate the situation, and contact a specialist.