How to fix mircrophone

Question

My microphone is not working on my Teams chats. It appears to be grayed out when and says microphone array. What does this mean

Answer 1

Hello @Amy Jaime,

Thank you for your message, I understand how frustrating it can be when the microphone is not working and appears grayed out in Teams.

To help narrow this down, could you please try the following steps:

1/ First, please check your Windows microphone privacy settings by pressing Windows + I, then going to Privacy & Security > Microphone, and make sure microphone access is turned on. Also ensure that desktop apps (including Microsoft Teams) are allowed to access the microphone.

2/ Next, please check your microphone settings in the system. Press Windows + R, type mmsys.cpl, and press Enter. Go to the "Recording" tab and look for “Microphone Array.” If it is disabled, please enable it.

If it is already enabled, go to Properties > "Levels" tab, make sure the volume is not muted and set appropriately.

3/ After that, please open Teams and go to Settings > Devices > Make a test call to check if any specific error or issue is detected during the test.

In addition, could you please help confirm a few more things:

• If you connect an external headset or microphone, does the issue still occur?
• Are you using the Teams desktop app or the web version? If you are using the app, could you try Teams on the web (https://teams.microsoft.com) and see if the same issue happens there?

These details will help me better understand the root cause and assist you more effectively.

Thank you very much for your cooperation, and I look forward to your update.

Warm regards,

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Answer 2

In Teams, “Microphone array” is the built‑in (internal) microphone device on the PC. If it is grayed out in Teams, either Teams or Windows is blocking access to the mic, or the device is disabled.

Try these steps in order:

1. Check Windows microphone privacy settings (Teams desktop app)
   1. Open Start > Settings > Privacy & security.
   2. Select Microphone under App permissions.
   3. Turn on Microphone access.
   4. Turn on Let apps access your microphone.
   5. Turn on Microsoft Teams (work or school).
   6. Turn on Let desktop apps access your microphone.
   7. Close all apps and restart the device.
2. Check Windows sound input settings
   1. From Start, open Settings.
   2. Go to System > Sound.
   3. Under Input, select the Microphone array in Choose a device for speaking or recording.
   4. Make sure the Volume for the mic is not muted and is turned up.
   5. If the mic does not appear, select Add device to pair it, or go to Advanced > More sound settings, open the Recording tab, right‑click the mic, and select Enable.
3. Confirm Teams is using the correct mic
   1. In Teams, select Settings and more (… menu) > Settings.
   2. Select Devices.
   3. Under Audio settings, choose Microphone array from the Microphone dropdown.
   4. Select Make a test call and follow the Test Call Bot instructions to confirm audio input.
4. If using Teams on the web (browser)
   • In Microsoft Edge:
     1. Select Settings and more > Settings.
     2. Go to Cookies and site permissions > Microphone.
     3. Turn on Ask before accessing (recommended) so Teams can request mic access.
   • In Google Chrome:
     1. Open Settings.
     2. Go to Privacy and security > Site settings > Permissions > Microphone.
     3. At the top, select the correct device from the dropdown.
     4. Under Default behavior, select Sites can ask to use your microphone.
5. If Windows still does not detect the mic at all
   1. Right‑click Start and select Device Manager.
   2. Expand Sound, video and game controllers.
   3. Right‑click the audio device and select Uninstall device, checking Attempt to remove the driver for this device (or Delete the driver software for this device if shown).
   4. Restart the PC so Windows reinstalls the audio drivers.
   5. If needed, return to Device Manager, right‑click the audio driver, and select Update driver.

If the microphone array remains grayed out after these steps, it may indicate a hardware or OEM driver issue with the internal mic, and device support from the PC manufacturer may be required.

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