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Unable to connect WH-1000XM3 headset to Windows 10 PC.

Anonymous
2021-11-17T13:12:25+00:00

I have spent way too many hours now trying to reconnect my bluetooth headset to my stationary PC. I need help.

I've reached the conclusion so far, that the issue might be with the microsoft bluetooth drivers.

The issue:

After recently disconnecting my bluetooth headset from my PC, I was unable to reconnect. When I put the headset in pairing-mode, and search for available bluetooth devices, the avaiable bluetooth device I see is "LE_WH-1000XM3". This device is not recognized as a headset, and adding it brings me no closer to connecting. It adds the device as "Unrecognized", Shows: "Connected", and shortly after "Paired".

I've tried most tricks in the book. From SFC scans, updating windows, installing the most recent drivers (see below), removing and reconnecting the devices, removing and reinstalling all bluetooth-dongle related drivers, removing and reinstalling realtek audio drivers. I've unsuccessfully tried to manually delete the driver files.

The odd things I've noticed:

ODDITY 1: I cannot completely remove the drivers identified as relating to WH-1000XM3. They show up in devices and drivers every time new hardware changes are identified (even though headset is turned off):

--- Other devices > AudioWear

--- Other devices > AudioWear Voice

--- Other devices > CSR GAIA(TM)

--- Bluetooth > LE_WH-1000XM3

--- Bluetooth > WH-1000XM3

--- Bluetooth > WH-1000XM3 Avrcp Transport

--- Sound - Video and game controllers > WH-1000XM3 Stereo

If I go through the process of deleting the devices (headset is turned off):

  1. Settings > Bluetooth and other devices
  2. Select WH-1000XM3 and/or LE_WH-1000XM3 and choose remove.
  3. Go to Device Manager, and see that all the driver entries above are gone.
  4. Search for hardware changes
  5. The device drivers mentioned above appear again. I do not know how or why or from where they are recovered, because the PC should not still store data on that headset. And it's turned off, so not discoverable via bluetooth.

ODDITY 2:

This goes for most of the bluetooth devices. If I go to Device manager > Events, I see every time I reconnect a device, I receive the following error or similar:

Device BTHENUM\Dev_94DB5618E6D6\8&1f614739&0&BluetoothDevice_94DB5618E6D6 was not migrated due to partial or ambiguous match.

Last Device Instance Id: BTHENUM\Dev_000C8A98862B\8&2c67b990&0&BluetoothDevice_000C8A98862B

Class Guid: {e0cbf06c-cd8b-4647-bb8a-263b43f0f974}

Location Path:

Migration Rank: 0xF000FFFF0000F120

Present: false

Status: 0xC0000719

ODDITY 3:

  1. When I go through the steps described in "The issue", I can add the LE_WH1000XM3 device. If I do so, it shows up under "Other devices".
  2. I then go into device manager, update the driver of "Bluetooth > WH-1000XM3" using the steps "Select driver on this computer" and "Select from a list of drivers" -> Only one driver displays: "Bluetooth-device"
  3. I can now go back to settings > Bluetooth and other devices, and the headset shows up as WH-1000XM3. It is now recognized as a headset. But if I turn on my headset and try to connect, it skips briefly to "Connected" and then returns to "Paired". I can still not connect to the headset.

Systems and drivers involved (17-11-2021):

* gigabyte b450m ds3h - (BIOS v. F62d [most recent as per gigabyte])

* ASUS BT-400 Bluetooth dongle (Driver version Broadcom 12.0.1.658 [most recent per manufacturer])

* Sony WH-1000XM3 headset (Drivers seem to be Microsoft standard bluetooth drivers. No drivers from supplier)

* Windows 10 build 19044 [all recommended updates installed]

* (Realtek Audio driver: 6.0.9225.1 [most recent as per gigabyte])

The background info:

I have for some time struggled with the fact that I had to enter pairing mode every time I started the headset to connect to my PC. I decided to remove and re-add the device. I was unable to re-add the device.

The headset works flawlessly with my laptop (also Win10 19043) and my mobile phone (android).

The bluetooth dongle works flawlessly with other bluetooth headsets and devices.

This leads me to think that there is an issue with the microsoft driver.

Ps. If your name is Greg, and you want me to step through a 500-line list of standard mitigating steps, save yourself the hazzle and don't respond. Your response is the equivalent of going to the doctor and having a medical textbook shoved in your face with a message of "follow this guide and you will be cured". It might be well wished, but it's of no help.

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Devices and drivers

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

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  1. Anonymous
    2021-11-23T15:07:37+00:00

    Hi Sun,

    Thank you for getting back to me. No, I've not reached out to Sony. Here is why:

    The headset does not come with drivers. It employs Microsoft standard drivers.

    The headset works without issue on my Windows laptop. The headset works without issue on any other device I use it with. The bluetooth dongle (ASUS) works without issue with any other bluetooth headset I test it with.

    This leads me to think that it is an issue specific to this specific device (PC) with this specific OS (Windows) and this specific history (backup data, cached data, etc.), and that the issue is related to either the Microsoft Drivers or the way Windows handles the device. As I mentioned in a previous comment, the PC seem to remember and reinstall the driver software for this headset by itself (some kind of faulty backup information or cached device information seem to be re-loaded automatically, which prevent me from installing it "fresh", even when the headset is removed, turned off and factory reset. I cannot seem to figure out how the PC manage to recover these information once they've been deleted. It does not do so for other headsets. But again, none of the information it recovers is under the control of Sony, the headset provider. It's all Microsoft provided.

    If I knew how to clear my computer of any information pertaining to previously linked bluetooth devices and "start fresh", I would do so. However, the ways I've tried have not yet worked (Oddity 1 above).

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  2. Anonymous
    2021-12-06T16:06:40+00:00

    @Sun Khou,

    Thank you.

    Can you point me to a guide re. the "Sync" tab? I'm on a different language option, and can't seem to find something that resembles that setting.

    For info, the issue was resolved as I purchased a new Bluetooth dongle (BT-500 from ASUS). I do however think that the issue was related to configuration on the OS as mentioned earlier, and clearing synchronization history could be useful. So for anyone in the future having this issue, perhaps see if it is possible to clear sync settings (Hopefully Sun Khou can guide on how), and alternatively buying a new dongle may be the solution.

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  3. Anonymous
    2021-11-20T17:17:33+00:00

    Thank you for your input. It is greatly appreciated.

    You're saying the dongle looks old - what do you based that on? (just so I understand you completely)

    Yes. The thing about uninstalling has been an issue for me. I've identified the drivers I know about in Device Manager, but when I remove them, and "check for hardware changes" they show up again. So obviously somewhere there's a history or backup of the headset driver details hidden, since it automatically adds them back. How would you recommend to do a complete removal (and verification) of the headset drivers? Or do you have a suggestion on where - aside from settings and/or device manager - these details may need to be deleted from?

    I don't have a bluetooth radio, and do not have a wifi card. It's wired to the router at the moment, and I have a wifi (only wifi) dongle lying around somewhere, but not in use.

    Any more ideas? I appreciate your help.

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  4. Anonymous
    2021-11-24T15:55:00+00:00

    Hi MrSpence,

    Oh, I'm sorry to hear that this has happened on your end.

    So even after uninstalling and reinstalling the drivers the issue still persist.

    Anyway, here are some pointers on how to remove your Bluetooth sync history that I can provide.

    How to clear your Bluetooth sync history?

    • Right-click on the Bluetooth tray icon > Settings.
    • Go to the "Sync" tab.
    • Click on the "Clear Sync History" button.

    If the issue still persist after clearing the Bluetooth sync history, you may try to upgrade/update to an earlier version of windows or just basically reinstall Windows on your spare time.

    Could you also tell me what version of Windows you are using?

    We look forward to your response. If you have other clarifications about this matter, you can get back to us by replying to this post.

    Sincerely,

    Sun Khou

    Consumer M365 Forum Moderator

    Microsoft Community

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  5. Anonymous
    2021-11-21T17:49:20+00:00

    Hi Sun,

    No luck with the local user unfortunately. I still find it curious how it seems impossible to completely delete the PC's "memory" of that headset (Oddity 1 above).

    This behavior only happens with the WH-1000XM3 headset, and not with other bluetooth headsets. If I delete other bluetooth headsets, they remain "gone" even though I search for hardware changes.

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