Audio drivers get disabled when I plug in the nulea USB wecam.

Question

When I connect nulea webcam in the USB port of my ASUS Windows laptop, the audio drivers get disabled and audio gets muted, which I cannot unmute. If I remove the webcam, the audio issue gets resolved. What can be the issue and how can I address it?

Answer 1

This is usually a driver-selection or USB device detection issue, not a permanent mute problem. When the webcam is connected, Windows may switch audio handling, fail to load the expected audio device correctly, or trigger a USB audio problem.

Try these steps in order:

1. Check whether the main audio device is being disabled
   • Open Device Manager.
   • Expand Sound, video and game controllers.
   • If the laptop audio device appears, right-click it and select Enable device if that option is available.
   • If the device does not appear, select View > Show hidden devices, then Action > Scan for hardware changes.
2. Check sound settings after plugging in the webcam
   • Select Start > Settings > System > Sound.
   • Make sure the output and input devices are not disabled in Device properties.
   • Also check the taskbar Speakers icon > Open Volume mixer and confirm nothing is muted.
3. Set the correct playback device as default
   • Open Control Panel > Hardware and Sound > Sound.
   • On the Playback tab, select the laptop speakers or the intended audio device.
   • Choose Set as Default Device.
   • This is important because USB devices can cause Windows to prefer a different audio endpoint.
4. Reconnect the webcam and test another USB port
   • Disconnect the webcam and reconnect it.
   • If the issue continues, connect it to a different USB port.
   • Microsoft documents that some USB audio/video devices can malfunction depending on the USB connection path, and reconnecting or changing ports can help.
5. Update or reinstall the audio driver
   • Open Device Manager.
   • Expand Sound, video and game controllers.
   • Right-click the laptop audio device and select Update driver > Search automatically for drivers.
   • If that does not help, uninstall the audio device and restart the PC so Windows reinstalls it automatically.
   • Save open work before restarting.
6. Install the latest manufacturer drivers
   • Install the latest audio driver from the ASUS support site for the exact laptop model.
   • If the webcam has its own driver or firmware package, install that before reconnecting it.
   • Microsoft also documents that installing the device-specific driver before connecting a USB audio device can prevent Windows from choosing the wrong default driver.
7. If the laptop is Intel-based, test for the documented USB issue
   • A known issue affects some Intel systems with 500, 600, or 700 series chipsets that use a discrete TPM (dTPM).
   • Symptoms can include USB audio or video devices glitching or stopping.
   • The documented workaround is to unplug and reconnect the device, and if needed restart the PC.

Most likely causes in this scenario:

• Windows is switching the default audio device when the webcam is attached.
• The ASUS audio driver is being disabled or not reloaded correctly when the USB webcam initializes.
• The webcam or USB controller is triggering a USB audio/video device issue on that hardware.

If the problem only happens with this webcam, the most targeted fix is:

• update the ASUS audio/chipset drivers,
• install any webcam-specific driver first,
• then reconnect the webcam on a different USB port,
• and re-check the default playback device.

---

References:

• Fix missing or undetected audio output device in Windows
• Fix sound or audio problems in Windows
• USB-connected audio or video devices malfunction when connected to specific Intel-based devices
• USB audio device not playing
• USB audio device not working after KB5083769 update – detected but no sound - Microsoft Q&A

Answer 2

Most USB webcams have a microphone, and they appear not only as a camera but also as a sound card. In such scenarios, connecting the webcam causes Windows to mute all audio, and the solution is to disable the audio section of the webcam in Device Manager, leaving the webcam enabled. So you need to:

• Open Device Manager and look under Sound, video and game controllers and Audio inputs and outputs for anything related to the webcam.
• If you see a webcam audio device, disable only the audio component first, not the camera itself.
• And In Settings > System > Sound, make sure the laptop speakers are still selected as the output device and not muted

Answer 3

Hi! Let me help you.

Open Device Manager by right-clicking the Start button and choosing it from the list. Expand "Sound, video and game controllers" first, since that's the category causing the conflict. Look for anything mentioning your webcam model, or generic names like "USB Audio Device," "USB Composite Device," or something with "Camera" or "Webcam" in the name, since Nulea webcams often register an audio component here even though the device itself is a camera.

If you're not sure which entry is the webcam, you can plug the webcam in and out while Device Manager is open, then hit refresh (the icon that looks like a circular arrow, or View then Refresh). Whatever entry appears only when the webcam is plugged in is the one you want to disable.

Once you find it, right-click that entry and choose Disable device. Leave any other listing of the same webcam (like under Cameras or Imaging devices) untouched, since you only want to stop it from grabbing the audio, not disable the camera itself.