Realtek Microphone and audio problem Surface Book 3

Question

Hello, I am wondering if anyone has had success fixing an audio issue I'm having with my new Surface Book 3.  The machine is great, but I noticed early on during a Zoom call that my mic input was cutting out sporadically during the call, and I have also been told several times that I sounded too "quiet" during Zoom and Microsoft Teams meetings.  I have worked everything I can think of such as uninstalling the hardware, looking for drivers updates on Windows update, updating the SB3 firmware pack, adjusting the microphone gain to 100%, and disabling the Dolby Atmos audio enhancements.  I have had no luck, and the microphone input is so low that I also can't use Cortana voice recognition.  I also feel that the speakers should be way louder than they are at 100% volume; I don't know if this is connected to the mic issue.  

I suspect either a hardware failure/loose connection/bad manufacturing either in the mic OR a failure in any kind of amplifier internally to the device, but I don't know how to troubleshoot or fix it.  I am also not sure if there is a problem with compatibility with Dolby Atmos causing the system to be ineffective.  Call to Microsoft Support was not helpful.  I like the machine and would rather not return it, but audio is critical in this new era of virtual classrooms and it's not good enough.  Any ideas?  Thanks!  NM

Answer 1

Hi, nm2345678!

Thanks for reaching out to Microsoft Community. We are sorry to learn you have issues with your Surface Book 3's sound and stating the steps you took to troubleshoot the issue. It seems that you've tried most of the steps already.

May we know if you went to https://support.microsoft.com/help/4518493/ and checked the steps suggested there?

If the same issue is still present, kindly try changing the default volume, sound effects, and the speaker configuration on the Realtek Audio App.

If this answers your question, please let our Community know by marking this post as an answer. Otherwise, don't hesitate to respond to this thread if there’s anything else that needs to be addressed. 

Kind regards,

Janette_Z

Answer 2

Hi Janette_Z, 

Thank you for looking into the issue; I have tried going into settings numerous times and adjusting the volume, as well as switching the various inputs just to make sure I haven't missed anything.  I did notice that Dolby Atmos had some troubles loading initially, and I have seen some discussion on other forums that it's best to turn the "audio enhancements" off, but I would rather use my SB3 as designed.  

I've also tried to install RealTek audio Control about 20 times, and each time it gives me this error from Microsoft Store:

Answer 3

In addition, I have attempted to use the Intel Display Audio SE2417HGX as the primary audio source and have never gotten any input (other than it seemed like it beeped one time during a test).  

I attempted to uninstall and reinstall the Intel Display audio (including drivers) but that didn't change anything.

The other question I have is, can anyone please tell me where the microphone(s) are physically located on the Surface Book 3?  And are they possibly in a different location than Surface Book 2?  The reason I ask is that I'm wondering if it's possible that the glass screen protector that I put on the screen is physically blocking the mic(s).  

Regardless though, there is still a software issue with the Realtek Audio Control and Intel Display Audio that may or may not be connected with an issue with the Dolby Atmos--can you please give any insights on how to troubleshoot this specific problem?  

I am going to work to modify the screen protector so as not to cover any of the cameras or sensors on the top center of the SB3 screen.  I have a 13.5.  Thanks!

NM

Answer 4

Is this mainly or only a Zoom issue?  My daughter had the same problem and we found it was setting in Zoom which deals with background noise.  It seemed that Zoom considered her voice to be background noise and squashed the volume right down.

Try disabling Suppress Persistent Background Noise and Suppress Intermittent Background Noise (Zoom | Settings | Advanced). Can't promise you success but worth ruling Zoom out of the equation.

Answer 5

Apologies for the 

The microphones are located near the front camera. You may check https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGOQYX5etG8 and skip to 1:52 to see an image of it.

Have you tried what agsteeleshared by checking the Zoom Advanced Settings?

Regards,

Janette_Z