Jun. 24, 2022 / Updated by Daphne to Windows 10
When you run into the no sound on Windows 10 issue, you’ll notice that there’s a red X on the sound icon in the task bar. It will display the error No Audio Output Device is installed or No Playback Devices when you move your cursor pointer on the sound icon. Here are 6 top methods to help you fix the “No Audio Output Device is installed” problem in Windows 10.
There is likelihood that your defective sound card results in the “No Audio Output Device is installed” in Windows 10. You could try to use a new sound card to replace the old one to solve the problem.
To fix the “No Audio Output Device is installed” error in Windows 10, you could also run the built-in Windows Audio Troubleshooter. To access the troubleshooter, here’s what you need to do.
Step 1. Press Windows key + X to open the search box.
Step 2. Type Troubleshooter in the search box and then press Enter.
Step 3. Click View all.
Step 4. Select Playing audio.
Step 5. Follow the instructions to complete the audio troubleshooting process.
Note: The Audio Troubleshooter will detect the audio issues. When the search is finished, the audio issues will display. If you encounter the "Audio services not responding" error here, this post is for your reference: Top 4 Fixes for Audio Services Not Responding on Windows 10.
In most cases, the “No Audio Output Device is installed” error in Windows 10 is due to outdated, corrupt, broken or missing sound drivers. The solution is to download and install the most updated sound card driver for Windows 10.
To easily and quickly update the sound driver, you could adopt a professional driver update utility tool like Driver Talent, which is reviewd as the safest and fastest way to update drivers. It enables you to download and install the most compatible sound driver for your computer in 2 minutes. All the drives are safe and well tested.
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With Driver Talent, you could download all kinds of audio drivers for Windows 10. Here is the 3-step guide for you to follow.
Click the “Scan” button to make Driver Talent start a full scan of your PC. All the incompatible drivers (including your problematic sound driver) will show up in a list.
Once there are faulty audio drivers, you could click “Repair” to automatically fix the problem. You are also able to update your sound drivers to the newest version. But it is recommended that don’t update what ain’t broken for stability purpose.
Reboot your PC to allow changes to come into effect.
Note: It’s wise to use Driver Talent to backup your drivers before proceeding the sound driver update.
In addition to drivers update and drivers backup, Drive Talent offers other premium features, for example, drivers restore, drivers uninstall, system restore, drivers pre-download for another PC, Audio Repair, hardware detection, Game Repair, etc..
The new version of Driver Talent comes with a useful tool called Audio Repair, which is specially designed for audio issues. To get rid of the “No Audio Output Device is installed” error in Windows 10, you can also have a try on it. Take these steps.
Step 1. Launch Driver Talent and get to the Tools section. Find Audio Repair on the right and click on Try Now.
Step 2. Wait a moment for the Audio Repair tool to detect sound issues.
Step 3. After the detection, select the Playback device you are using and click on Fix It Now.
Step 4. The Audio Repair tool will automatically repair the issue for you. Please wait for a while.
Step 5. When the repair is done, play music to check if it works.
Device Manager is another troubleshooter which could help to fix many common computer issues, including "no audio output device is installed" error on Windows 10. Refer to below instructions to get the sound or audio card back into normal function.
Step 1. Press Windows + R , type devmgmt.mcs in the Run dialog to open Device Manager.
Step 2. Scroll down to find the catagory "Sound, video and game controllers", expand it to locate your audio device.
Note: If you can't see the "Sound, video and game controllers" catagory, follow the steps below to find it.
• Select “Action” on the top of the panel. (If there is no “Action” tab, click on the blank place and then click on “Action”)
• Select “Add Legacy hardware”.
• Click Next on the popping up Add Hardware Wizard window.
• Choose “Search for and install hardware automatically” and then hit “Next”. (If the Wizard message reads “the wizard did not find any new hardware on your computer”, click Next)
• Scroll down to locate the “Sound, video and game controllers” option.
• Select it and then click Next.
• Choose your exact sound card and then click Next. (If you are not sure about your sound card model, please refer Method 1 to fix the sound issues)
• Click Next to install the audio driver and then click Finish.
Step 3. Right-click on the audio device. Select Enable.
Step 4. Now check whether the audio issue is solved. If persists, choose Uninstall to remove the audio driver.
Step 5. Reboot your computer to save the changes and Windows will load you the audio driver automatically.
Some users have reported that this method works. If you are also troubled by the “No Audio Output Device is installed” error, just give it a shot.
Step 1. Disable "HD Audio Controller" in BIOS. Save the change and reboot your computer.
Step 2. Reenable "HD Audio Controller" in BIOS to see whether the sound is back to normal.
Read Also:
How to Fix Conexant Audio Device Issues after Windows 10 Update
3 Ways to Fix Realtek HD Audio Manager Missing from Windows 10 Taskbar
Top 2 Ways to Fix HP Beats Audio Not Working after Windows 10 Creators Update
If you discover other fixes for the “No Audio Output Device is installed” in Windows 10 error, welcome to share with us in the comments below. Any other PC issues, like no WiFi, PC slow, no sound, USB not working, Bluetooth not available, mouse and keyboard not working, please check for solutions in the Windows 10 Fix section.
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