If audio isn’t functioning, for most of us, our computer would be rendered useless as we rely on audio for most of our computer uses. Whether it is watching a movie, streaming media online or for Skype, audio is required. Your audio maybe malfunctioning for several reasons, lets look at some of the ways to trouble-shoot your audio functionality.
If your audio fails to function after you just formatted your computer, the most likely case is your audio driver is not installed, your audio driver will usually be provided with the bundle of CD’s you get when you purchase your computer.
Sometimes, however certain applications can clash with the audio drivers requiring you to reinstall the driver again, moreover malware can deliberately cripple your computer by uninstalling your drivers.
You can verify your installation status of your drivers by visiting your device manager (Right click My Computer > Properties > Hardware > Device Manager for XP or Vista or Seven). This lists your hardware installed and visual cues would be appended for hardware that need your attention and in your case, the audio drivers will probably have an indication that drivers haven’t been installed.
This page can also give you details regarding the audio hardware so that the driver can be downloaded online (for free) if you cannot find the installation CD.
Certain codec packs can conflict with your audio as well, since Microsoft has put no thought in to the different media codec used for media files today, the default decoders installed to play media files is barely sufficient and almost always results in additional third party codec packs to be installed for playback of downloaded media files.
This can result in clashes with your audio, to fix this issue, you need to perform the following steps:
- Uninstall the audio drivers.
- Uninstall the codec pack.
- Install the audio drivers.
-Install the codec pack.
In that order.
If there still seems to be an issue try a different codec pack, personally I’d recommend the K-lite Codec pack to be the perfect solution.
If none of the above solutions solve the problem and the audio issue is apparently after you made a change to your computer system (or not), your best bet would be to perform system restore to the point where your audio was functioning normally. If this is caused by a software issue, system restore is almost certain to get your audio working again.
Go to Start > Accessories > System Tools > System Restore (for XP or Vista and 7) and restore your computer to an appropriate point.
If none of the above solutions work, your issue is probably hardware related. The best way to confirm this would be to remove the sound card and try it on a friend’s computer, if it doesn’t work you have your answer.
If it works on your friend’s computer, it could be due to incompatible hardware or software (doesn’t apply if your sound stopped working abruptly) or stubborn malware continually hijacking your audio drivers, which could be fixed by running a virus scan using a reputed antivirus like Kaspersky.
If you have any queries, feel free to leave a comment.
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