internal speaker quit working on Windows 10 Dell Inspiron 15

Question

No audio on my Dell Inspiron 15. Used to work, Speaker icon shows x. I cant get it to turn on. Perhaps an audio driver issue? How do I locate driver to restart, if that is the problem?

Answer 1

Hi @Linda Thompson,  

Welcome to Microsoft Q&A forum. 

Based on your information, a red X on the speaker icon in Windows usually indicates that Windows can’t detect (or use) an audio output device, which is often related to the audio driver, disabled settings, or Windows audio services. 

Please try these steps in order:

1. Confirm the correct output device
   • Select the Speakers icon on the taskbar and use the arrow to make sure the correct output (internal speakers / headphones) is selected. Also confirm volume isn’t muted. 
2. Run the built-in audio troubleshooter (Windows 10) 
   • Go to Settings > Update & Security > Troubleshoot > Playing Audio and run the troubleshooter. 
3. Update / reinstall the audio driver (Device Manager) 
   • Open Device Manager > expand Sound, video and game controllers > right‑click your audio device > Update driver.
   • If that doesn’t help, choose Uninstall device, restart the PC, and let Windows reinstall the driver automatically.  
   • If needed, you can also try the generic “High-Definition Audio Device” driver via Update driver > Browse > Let me pick from a list. 
4. Restart Windows Audio services
   • Open services.msc, then restart: Windows Audio, Windows Audio Endpoint Builder, and Remote Procedure Call (RPC).  
   • If you see Error 1079, set those services to run under NT AUTHORITY\LocalService and restart them. 
5. Install Dell’s audio driver for your exact Inspiron model
   • If Windows drivers don’t restore sound, uninstall the existing audio driver/software and install the latest audio driver from Dell Support for your specific Inspiron 15 model (Service Tag). 

It's greatly appreciated if you can share: (1) your Windows 10 version/build (Win+R > winver), (2) your exact Inspiron 15 model, and (3) whether the audio device appears in Device Manager (and if it shows any warning icon). 

Hope this helps, happy to guide you based on what you find.

Answer 2

To resolve the audio issue on your Dell Inspiron 15, you can follow these steps:

1. Check Device Manager: Open Device Manager by right-clicking on the Start button and selecting "Device Manager." Look for "Sound, video and game controllers" and see if your audio device is listed. If there is a yellow exclamation mark next to it, there may be a driver issue.
2. Update Audio Drivers: Right-click on your audio device in Device Manager and select "Update driver." Choose the option to search automatically for updated driver software. This may help if the driver is outdated or corrupted.
3. Roll Back Drivers: If you recently updated your audio drivers and the issue started afterward, you can try rolling back to a previous version. Right-click on the audio device in Device Manager, select "Properties," go to the "Driver" tab, and click on "Roll Back Driver" if the option is available.
4. Run the Audio Troubleshooter: Go to Settings > Update & Security > Troubleshoot > Additional troubleshooters and run the "Playing Audio" troubleshooter. This tool can help identify and fix common audio problems.
5. Check Windows Audio Services: Ensure that the Windows Audio and Windows Audio Endpoint Builder services are running. You can check this by typing "services.msc" in the Run dialog (Win + R) and looking for these services in the list.

If these steps do not resolve the issue, you may need to visit the Dell support website to download the latest audio drivers specific to your model.

---

References:

• How to fix this. no audio device is installed - Microsoft Q&A
• Windows 10 doesn't install specific drivers for USB audio devices on the first connection