My laptop internal microphone is not working.

Question

I am using a Dell Inspiron 14 and my laptops internal microphone does not work. I have tried troubleshooting, checking for updates, and even going to control panel to look for the problem but it just says on the device status is "This device is working properly". And that my updates are up to date. When run test my microphone does not pick up any sound. It only works when I am using headphones. It says that it uses real realtek. Divers version is 10.0.26100.1 and the diver date is 3/31/2024. I made sure to check that all of the microphone properties are on the right setting. I'm not sure why it doesn't work. And hope you can tell me in a simple answer on what I can do to fix it.

Answer 1

Hi, thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Q&A forum. I’m happy to help.

What is the exact model of your Dell device?

In the search bar, type MSINFO32 and hit Enter.

Please share a screenshot of that window.

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Press the Windows key + R, type mmsys.cpl, and click OK.

Go to the Recording tab.

Right-click the microphone and select Enable(If enabled, disable and then re-enable it.)

Right-click it again and choose Set as Default Device.

Right-click the microphone once more and select Properties.

In the Levels tab, adjust the volume slider to the maximum value, then click OK.

Next, go to the Advanced tab and uncheck the box that says 'Allow applications to take exclusive control of this device.'

Restart your computer and check.

Note: Before performing these steps, make sure to disconnect any externally connected audio devices, e.g., headphones.