The reasons why there is no sound on the computer or it is bad are often very simple and easily eliminated. But there are many possible reasons, and this is the difficulty of fixing the sound. Do not be surprised that further you will be asked to check very simple things, but it also happens for experienced users that it takes a lot of time to fix a problem just because they are looking in the wrong place.
Instructions
Step 1
Check if the speakers (headphones) are properly connected to the line-out of the sound card. The cable must be plugged into the green slot. Check the serviceability of the sound-reproducing device by replacing it with another one. If they are active speakers, make sure they are turned on.
Step 2
The next step is to check the system settings. Let's take a look at Windows XP as an example. Open Control Panel and launch Sounds and Audio Devices. Open the "Audio" tab. Click on the Volume button and make sure the General and Sound sliders are turned up high enough and the balance controls above them are in the middle. Click on the "Configure" button and select the type of device that best suits your needs.
Step 3
Click the Volume tab and make sure the Mixer Volume slider is pushed far enough to the right. Make sure there is no check mark next to "Mute Sound". Click on the Speaker Volume button and see that both sliders are pushed far enough to the right.
Step 4
Return to the control panel. Select "Administration" => "Computer Management" => "Device Manager". Click to expand the Sound, Video and Game Controllers branch and make sure your sound card is listed. If not, go to step 6.
Step 5
Select your sound card and right-click to bring up a menu. Click on "Properties". The device status should be "The device is working normally". If it is not, go to step 6. Make sure that "This device is in use" is selected at the bottom where "Device usage" is displayed.
Step 6
If you have reached this point, most likely, you do not have or incorrectly installed the sound card driver. In the case of a sound card built into the motherboard, insert the installation disc from your motherboard into the computer and reinstall the sound card driver. If there is a suspicion that no one has installed anything from this disk at all, and this happens, install all the drivers. If the sound card is external, reinstall its driver from the disk that came with it.
Step 7
In the case of an external sound card, the contacts may become dirty. To check, turn off the computer, remove the cover from it, pull out the external plugs (from the speakers and microphone) from the sound card, unscrew the fastening screw, remove the card from the slot, clean the contacts with a soft eraser. Reverse the steps to connect the card.
