What to do if audio devices are not installed on Windows. Why doesn't Windows find a sound device? The computer doesn't see the speakers, what should I do?

When your computer does not see the Windows 7 speakers when you connect them, the question arises - what to do? Today I will tell you how to deal with this problem.

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Indeed, it is sometimes so difficult for beginners to understand the settings that they give up. But not everything is as bad as it might seem at first glance.

Despite the apparent complexity of computer technology, some problems that arise when connecting external gadgets are quite simple to deal with.

For example, in a situation where the computer does not see the speakers. There are several reasons why your laptop or PC “does not notice” them and cannot establish a connection with them.

The computer does not see the Windows 7 speakers

System failure

Reboot the system, if the reason turns out to be a failure of its operation, this step will eliminate the cause.

It can be useful to do a quick (not soft) reboot - by disconnecting the computer from the power supply.

In this case, all data is unloaded from the device’s RAM; perhaps it was they that caused the failure.

Connection error

If this is the first time you have connected the speaker system to your computer, it may not have been done correctly. Different equipment configurations may require different plugs and may change their assignments.

Before connecting, understand the purpose of the sound card connectors. If you mix up the alignment of the plug with its corresponding connector, your speaker system will not be recognized.

Typically, the required speaker connector is highlighted in green.

USB port

Some speakers have USB connectivity. However, some versions of ports differ in data transfer speed.

Therefore, equipment with a USB3.0 connector on port 1.1 will not connect. Do a control check through another USB port.

Motherboard

It is possible that the standard used by the speaker system is not supported by the motherboard.

It is quite possible that your audio system is disabled by software. To reconnect, you will need to launch the “device manager” using the devmgmt.msc command.

On the command line (call Win+R). Find the line “Sound, video and gaming devices” and expand it. If there is an arrow next to the device icon, it means it is not activated.

To fix it, call up the menu using the right button and find the device we need in the “Engage” list. After restarting the computer, the speakers will be connected.

Playback devices

Also, check if the speakers are disabled in “Playback Devices”. This bookmark is easy to find and open through the speaker icon, on the taskbar, next to the “date and time”.

Can also be called via the context menu. Make checkmarks on the items that make all audio systems visible, including disconnected and not connected ones. Find the circle with the arrow and right-click “Enable”.

Drivers

For full interaction, drivers are used between the operating system and devices. If they are damaged or have a software failure, standard drivers may require a reboot or reinstallation.

First of all, check if the device is turned on, if not, then right-click to turn it on.

This can be done through the “Device Manager”; driver damage is indicated by a yellow triangle or red circle.

On the damaged device, open the context menu and find it in the “Delete” list. We confirm our decision. Then, on any other device from the list, select “Update hardware configuration”.

Also, in the list line, near the device, a triangle icon with an exclamation mark may be placed - then it requires “Update drivers”. This is best done through automatic search.

Installing drivers using the utility

There is an easier solution to update all drivers for your device.

You need to download the Driver Hub utility, which will scan your computer in a few seconds, find the missing components, download and install them itself.

All actions will take less than one minute. If the reason was the lack of necessary drivers, then after installing them the computer will see the speakers.

Software

When the speaker system comes with proprietary software, you can look for the reason for displaying the speakers in it.

To fix it, you just need to uninstall the program and install it again.

Equipment malfunction

More serious reasons will be equipment malfunctions for you: from connectors (ports) to the speaker system or sound card itself.

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Among other sound problems in Windows 10, 8 and Windows 7, you may encounter a red X on the speaker icon in the notification area and the message “No audio output device installed” or “No headphones or speakers connected”, but sometimes you can fix this problem by I have to suffer.

This guide details the most common causes of the “Audio output device is not installed” and “Headphones or speakers are not connected” errors in Windows and how to correct the situation and return normal sound playback. If the problem occurs after updating Windows 10 to a new version, I recommend trying the methods in the instructions first, and then returning to the current guide.

Perhaps this item could have been put first in the topic about “Audio output device not installed”

Sound card drivers

The next step to try is to make sure that the necessary sound card drivers are installed and working, while a novice user should consider the following points:

  • If in the device manager in the “Sound, gaming and video devices” section you only see items like NVIDIA High Definition Audio, AMD HD Audio, Intel Audio for Displays - most likely, the sound card is either disabled in the BIOS (on some motherboards and laptops this is perhaps) or the necessary drivers are not installed on it, and what you see are devices for audio output via HDMI or Display Port, i.e. working with video card outputs.
  • If you right-clicked your sound card in Device Manager, selected "Update Driver" and after automatically searching for updated drivers, you were told that "The best drivers for this device are already installed" - this does not provide useful information that the correct ones are installed drivers: there were simply no other suitable ones in Windows Update.
  • Standard Realtek and other audio drivers can be successfully installed from various driver packs, but they do not always work adequately - you should use drivers from the manufacturer of specific equipment (laptop or motherboard).

In general, if your sound card shows up in Device Manager, the best steps to install the correct driver for it would be as follows:

Once the installation is complete, check if the problem has been resolved.

An additional method that sometimes works (provided that everything worked “just yesterday”) is to look into the properties of the sound card on the “Driver” tab and, if the “Roll Back” button is active there, click it (sometimes Windows can automatically update drivers to the wrong ones , what do you need).

Note: If there is no sound card or unknown devices in the device manager, there is a possibility that the sound card is disabled in the BIOS of the computer or laptop. Look in the BIOS (UEFI) in the Advanced/Peripherals/Onboard Devices sections for something related to Onboard Audio and make sure it is Enabled.

Setting up playback devices

Setting up playback devices can also help, especially often if you have a monitor (or TV) connected to your computer via HDMI or Display Port, especially if through some kind of adapter.

Update: In Windows 10 versions 1903, 1809 and 1803, in order to open recording and playback devices (the first step in the instructions below), go to the Control Panel (can be opened through a search on the taskbar) in the viewing field, set “Icons” and open "Sound" item. The second method is to right-click on the speaker icon - “Open sound settings”, and then select “Sound Control Panel” in the upper right corner (or at the bottom of the list of settings when changing the width of the window) of the sound settings.


Additional ways to fix the "Audio output device not installed" problem

In conclusion, here are a few additional, sometimes effective, methods to correct the sound situation if the previous methods did not help.


Note: the instructions do not describe a method for automatically troubleshooting Windows audio problems, since most likely you have already tried it (if not, try it, it may work).


Troubleshooting is automatically launched by double-clicking on the speaker icon with a red cross through it, you can also launch it manually, see, for example,.

A sound device is responsible for playing audio on a computer, but it does not always work properly. The source of the problem may be a failure in the OS or hardware, which is accompanied by the error “Sound devices are not installed.” What to do on Windows 7/8/10 to fix the problem is described in this article.

Why are sound devices not installed?

The following factors can cause a malfunction:

  • The driver did not load when the OS started due to a failure or absence;
  • Audio device is disabled in Device Manager;
  • motherboard chipset software failure;
  • physical malfunction of the sound unit.

You can solve the problem yourself. If it turns out that the problem is with the built-in audio adapter, you should contact a service center.

Solution options

With such a malfunction, the speaker icon in the tray, which displays the sound status, will have a red cross. Click on it. If a window appears asking you to enable your audio device, do so by clicking "Apply this fix."

Note! Possibly a one-time error. Restart your computer to fix it. Otherwise, you need to install drivers for chipsets and sound cards from the manufacturers' official websites.

Virus check

Some viruses can affect the performance of the audio adapter. To find and remove them, use an antivirus with the latest virus signatures like “Dr. Web CureIt!


Chipset software update

To install drivers for motherboard chips, use the AIDA64 program to obtain the necessary information.


Installing the sound card driver

The operation of the audio adapter is ensured by the appropriate software. Sometimes it crashes or needs to be updated. To install it, use the built-in device management tool.

Note! These instructions apply to Windows 7. In other versions of the OS, the appearance of some items may differ.

  1. Open “Start” → right-click on “My Computer” → “Properties”.
  2. Select Device Manager.
  3. Go to “Sound, video and game devices” → right-click on the desired item → “Update drivers”.
  4. Specify automatic (via the Internet) or manual (selecting files on PC) installation method.

conclusions

The message that audio devices are not installed in Windows appears due to a software or hardware failure. The first case can be fixed by yourself by installing or updating the sound node drivers. If there is a problem with the hardware, you must contact a service center.

The computer is one of the most multifunctional inventions of mankind. If it once existed in the form of computers (electronic computers) and was intended only for carrying out calculations, now it has evolved very much.

Now a computer can be anything - even a TV, even a slot machine, even a music player. All these capabilities are provided by devices connected to the system unit. Therefore, it is necessary for the computer system to be able to recognize them and begin to interact. If, for example, the computer does not see the speakers, then this is a rather unpleasant situation - because then you will not be able to listen to music. We will consider this situation in the article, and also give recommendations for solving this problem.

First, let's look at the reasons that lead to the computer's inability to recognize connected speakers. Difficulties may arise here, since there are many reasons, and it is not always possible to recognize the true cause. But we will try to help you with small tips and tricks so that you can identify the cause of the problem and immediately move on to the method of eliminating it. So, the reasons that the computer does not see the speakers may be the following:


If you were able to determine the cause of the malfunction, then you can immediately proceed to reading the relevant part of the article, guided by the headings. If not, then read the entire article in order and follow all the step-by-step instructions given in it sequentially. Do this until the speakers start working.

Correct connection

If you connect the device incorrectly, then it is logical that it will not work. And this applies not only to speakers, but to all devices in general. But specifically with speakers the situation is more complicated. The fact is that connecting a device incorrectly is quite problematic, since each connector in the system unit is designed for the plug of the corresponding device, and if you try to connect the plug to the wrong connector, it simply will not fit there.

That is, theoretically, even the most inexperienced user can plug the plug into each connector one by one and finish doing it when he fits in there - and he won’t make a mistake. The speakers are a completely different story - the speaker jack and microphone jack have the same shape, but if you plug the speaker plug into the headphone jack, nothing will work.

To properly connect your speakers to your computer, follow these steps:

  1. First and most importantly, find the right connector and do not confuse it with another. The speaker jack is round and green in color, while the headphone jack is pink. Sometimes (mainly in more modern computers) the connectors are marked with corresponding logos, the meaning of which is intuitive. The connector you need, like all the others, is located on the back side of the system unit, but some computer models have additional connectors on the front bottom side of the system unit. This should also be taken into account.

  2. When you have found the connector you need, insert the plug from your speakers into it.

  3. Check if the computer has detected the speakers. Right-click on the icon "Speakers" on the taskbar.

  4. Then click on "Playback Devices". If the devices display your speakers, then you have connected everything correctly.

  5. Once you are sure that the computer has recognized the new connected device, check its functionality. Open any file on your computer that contains audio (music, video or game) and check whether the sound is played through the speakers. If there is no sound, then the problem was not a faulty connection.

Installing drivers

Any connected device will not work correctly if the necessary drivers for it are not installed on the computer. To avoid this problem, you need to check for the presence of drivers, and then install them if there are none.

Automatic installation

For automatic installation, follow the following step-by-step instructions:

  1. Right-click on the shortcut "Computer" on the desktop, then click on menu "Properties".

  2. Go to the menu "Device Manager".

  3. Open the list "Sound, video and gaming devices" and find your audio device in this list.

    On a note! Pay attention to the icon next to the device icon. If there is a yellow triangle with an exclamation mark next to it, this means that a problem has been detected with the device. Most likely, the reason is that either the drivers are not installed, or an outdated version is installed.

  4. Right-click on your device and click on "Update drivers...".

    Right-click on the device and click on “Update drivers...”

  5. The system will prompt you to perform an automatic search, or select drivers from a directory on your computer. Choose the first option.

  6. Wait for the drivers to be automatically searched and installed.

Manual installation

Automatic installation does not always work. If it doesn't work for you, then you will have to install the drivers manually.

To do this, follow these steps:

  1. Download the AIDA64 program. The program is paid, but you can download a free 30-day version on the website https://www.aida64russia.com/%D0%A1%D0%BA%D0%B0%D1%87%D0%B0%D1%82%D1%8C. Any version will do.

  2. Run the file and wait for the automatic installation.

  3. Launch the program and go to the tab "Multimedia", then click on "HD Audio". After this, information about the manufacturer of your sound card will appear on the right.

  4. Now you need to go to the official website of the manufacturer. In this case, this is Realtek, whose official website is located at www.realtek.com. If you don’t know how to find the official website of your manufacturer, then enter “Official website %manufacturer name%” into the search engine. Go to the official website and click on "Downloads".

  5. Select an item "High Definition Audio Codecs (Software)".

  6. Accept the terms of the agreement, click "Next".

  7. Select the version that matches your OS and its .

  8. Select the region from whose server the download will be made. Select the region that is closer to you geographically (in our case, it is China).

  9. Run the downloaded installer file.

  10. Click "Further" and wait for the download to finish.

If the drivers are installed, but the speakers still do not work, then the drivers have nothing to do with it. Perhaps it's all about the virus.

Treating your computer for viruses

It is very easy to pick up a virus, especially if you download dubious files from dubious sites. Therefore, install an antivirus on your computer from the official website. You can easily find the official website from which you can download the installation file in any search engine. The antivirus installation process occurs automatically after running the downloaded file, so it does not require separate instructions.

You can download any virus, but you should pay special attention to the following:

  • Kaspersky;
  • Avast;
  • DrWeb;
  • McAfee.

All antiviruses work according to the same algorithm: first scan, then remove viruses. Scanning can be fast and detailed, but it is better to choose detailed. The screenshot below shows an example with Kaspersky antivirus.

Virus scanning and removal occurs automatically, which does not require the user to have any deep knowledge of computer technology.

If you managed to solve your speaker problem, then that's good, but there is no guarantee that it won't happen again. To minimize this likelihood, you should follow a few simple rules:


If none of the methods helped you, then the problem is not in your computer, but in the speakers themselves. In this case, contact your nearest service center where they will repair them for you.

Video - What to do if the PC does not see speakers or headphones?

In Windows 7, sound may disappear for several reasons:

  • adjusting or disabling volume controls;
  • the device is not connected or is not set as the “Default Device”;
  • settings failure in BIOS;
  • problems with the audio card;
  • driver problems;
  • problems with cables.

Volume controls

The first thing to check is the regulators. They are located on the taskbar, usually in the lower right corner of the screen, next to the date and time. When active, the sound icon looks like a speaker with sound waves emanating from it.

There are 2 options possible:

To solve the problem:

Playback devices

Often several devices are connected to the computer that can reproduce sound. For example, speakers and headphones. And if the output is configured through headphones, then the speakers will be silent. Or for some reason all audio devices were disabled.

Step-by-step instruction:


BIOS settings

The sound may disappear because The factory BIOS settings are lost and the default audio card is disabled. To correct the situation, you need to enter the BIOS:

Audio card

Confirming that your audio card is installed correctly is one of the important troubleshooting steps:


For your information! It doesn’t hurt to check the dustiness and cleanliness of the contacts.

Cables

If the computer writes a message that “Speakers are not connected,” then you need to check all the cables. Make sure they are connected correctly and the speakers are receiving power:

  1. Try turning on the speakers on another computer and check their functionality. Perhaps the problem is in the cable connecting the PC and the peripheral audio output device (this could also be the connection between the computer and the TV via hdmi).
  2. If there is also no sound, then replace/repair the cable.

What to do if there is no sound

On the front panel

Algorithm of actions:


After updating drivers

Go to the audio card settings, “Driver” section, click on “Roll Back”. The system will restore the previous working version. This method will help restore the sound.

On headphones/speakers

This problem may be due to several reasons:

  • Playback settings. You need to set the desired output source (default device) in “Playback Devices”.
  • Selecting the Audio Output Panel(front or back). Above we gave the answer to how to choose the front panel. This problem usually does not occur on a laptop, since there is only one panel.
  • Faulty headphone/speaker cable. Check if the device is really connected. If everything is in order from a software point of view, it is most likely the cords that are damaged.

The computer says: speakers are not connected

You need to make sure that the speakers are properly connected to the PC and the wall outlet (power source). Playback devices are completely disabled. The sound icon when hovered will say “Headphones or speakers are not connected.” You must enable them by following the instructions in the “Playback Devices” section.

After reinstalling Windows

The user may experience no audio playback after reinstalling Windows 7 Ultimate. You need to do the following:

Why did the sound icon disappear?

It may have been accidentally moved to hidden icons on the taskbar. Check this by clicking on the small triangle in the lower right corner.

Another option is that the icon was hidden. To put it back in place, do the following: