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How to check the microphone on headphones: I can't be heard at all ...

User question

Good day.

Please tell me how to check the microphone on computer headphones, is it working, and if so, how to turn it on? The fact is that not so long ago I bought computer "ears" with a microphone. Immediately I checked only the presence of sound in the headphones - everything worked (it was normal), but I wanted to talk on Skype - and I could not be heard at all.

I guess the problem is either with the microphone itself or with the Windows settings ...

Hello.

A fairly typical problem, which is most often associated not with a breakdown (or malfunction) of the headphones themselves, but with incorrect software settings (for example, due to a lack of drivers).

I will also add, on my own behalf, another popular problem - often an extraneous sound can appear in the headphones: hiss, crackling, and so on. If you have a similar problem, check out another article of mine.

So, let's try to check and adjust the microphone for optimal performance ...

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PC / laptop connection

The first thing to start with is to properly connect the headphones to the computer. Firstly, you must have a sound card installed (usually all home PCs have one).

👉 To help!

Do you have a sound card on your computer and what model it is - an easy way to diagnose

Secondlyif you have Windows 10 - pay attention to the privacy settings (by default, the microphone may be blocked for some applications).

Privacy - Windows 10 - Microphone

Thirdly, the headphones have only 1-2 plugs (and, it would seem, what is there to connect? ✌) - but there are a couple more nuances here (many users do not even pay attention to this!).

Now on home computers / laptops, besides the classic jacks (for the microphone and headphones), there is a headset jack (see Fig. 1)! There is usually a small headphone with a microphone icon near the headset jack.

Fig. 1. Classic (left) and headset (right) jack (s)

The bottom line is that you cannot connect ordinary headphones (with two plugs) to the headset jack, just like headset headphones to classic audio jacks. For correct connection, special adapters must be used.

Fig. 2. An adapter for connecting classic headphones with a microphone to the headset jack

Note!

If you do not know what kind of headphones you have, then pay attention to the number of contacts on the plug: if 4 of them are headset headphones, if 3 are classic (an example is shown in Fig. 3 below).

Fig. 3. Headset plug (left) and classic plug (right)

👉 More detailed information on this topic is disclosed in this article: //ocomp.info/odin-vhod-dlya-mikrofona-i-naushnikov.html

I will assume that the headphones and microphone were connected correctly, everything is in order with the wires and with the connectors too. By the way, it will not be superfluous to check your microphone on another PC (to be sure that the microphone works at all ...).

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Is the driver installed on the audio card ?!

Quite often, there is no sound on the computer due to the lack of a driver for the sound card (or a driver conflict). To check if the driver is on the system, open 👉 device Manager .

To do this, you need to open Control Panel Windows, then the " Hardware and Sound ", it will contain a link to the dispatcher (see Fig. 4).

Fig. 4. Hardware and Sound -> Device Manager

Next, see the section "Sound, game and video devices" - if the drivers are installed, you should see a line with the name of your audio card (note: look for the line containing the word "audio").

If there is nothing in this section, check the section "Other devices" - it contains all devices connected to the computer for which no drivers are installed (and which have not been distributed to other thematic sections).

Fig. 5. Is there a driver - device manager

In general, the problem with drivers is a rather extensive topic, and I have not written a single article on it on my blog. Therefore, below I will give a couple of links that will help you solve this problem.

👉 To help!

1) Utilities for auto-updating drivers - //ocomp.info/update-drivers.html

2) How to install drivers on a computer / laptop - //ocomp.info/kak-ustanovit-drayvera-na-kompyuter-noutbuk.html

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👉 ADDITION

Please note that if you have a non-standard microphone, you also need to install a driver on it.

To check if your computer can see the connected microphone, open Device Manager and check the section "Audio outputs and audio inputs" (see fig. 6).

Fig. 6. Audio outputs and audio inputs // device manager

By the way, after installing the audio driver, in the Windows Control Panel, under "Hardware and Sound" 1-2 links to fine-tuning the sound should appear (see Fig. 7, installed with your audio driver).

Fig. 7. Links to fine-tuning the sound ...

In my case, these are Smart Audio (for fine-tuning the sound and microphone operation) and Dolby Digital Plus Advanced Audio (for adjusting the sound in movies, games, when listening to music, etc.). Yours may have a link like "Realtek Audio HD" (just an example ☝).

👉 To help!

No badge from Realtek HD Manager! How to enter the Realtek control panel, otherwise I can not configure the sound in any way.

Fig. 8. Smart Audio (smart sound): setting the microphone and "ears"

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Microphone test in Windows

Before checking, I can't help but remind you that many computer headphones with a microphone have a special small switch - it allows you to turn on / off the microphone (very convenient during a conversation, when you don't want your interlocutor to hear something unnecessary).

There is also an additional volume control on this switch.

👉 Important!

Check that the switch is in the ON position. And then I had to face a couple of times when users sinned on the microphone, and it was a small button, see fig. nine.

Fig. 9. Turn on / off the microphone; increase / decrease the volume. Additional switch on headphones


Getting started with fine tuning

First, open the Windows Control Panel, go to the section "Equipment and Sounds" ... Next, open the link "Sound" (see fig. 10, red arrow).

Fig. 10. Open the sound settings

There will be 4 tabs in the window that opens:

  1. Playback: speakers, headphones, and other devices that reproduce sound will be shown here;
  2. Recording: in this one you can find the connected microphones (which is what we need);
  3. Sounds: customize sounds in Windows (for example, you can make the system mute);
  4. Communication: adjust the sound when talking over the network.

Opening the tab "Record" you should see your microphone: try to say something into it: the green slider should start jumping up / down (see fig. 11).

If you don't see the microphone here: solve the issue with its correct connection to the PC and driver settings (see above).

Fig. 11. Testing the microphone // "Recording" tab

Further open the properties of the microphone to customize its work in detail. To do this, select it and at the bottom of the window click on the button "Properties" .

Then open the tab "Listen" and enable (put a tick) in front of the "Listen from this device" item (see Fig. 12).

Thanks to this, you will be able to listen to what the microphone will transmit (be careful with the volume: there may be a strong squeak, rasp, whistle, etc.).

Fig. 12. Tab listen from microphone

I also recommend opening the tab "Levels" and set the sensitivity level of the microphone, and, if necessary, set the desired gain for the microphone (see Fig. 13).

Fig. 13. Levels - Microphone Gain

In addition, open the tab "Additionally" and set the format (bit depth and frequency of discrediting the operation of the device), enable exclusive mode, as well as additional sound tools (see Fig. 14).

Fig. 14. Additional microphone settings

Thus, with the help of these several tabs, you can very accurately adjust the operation of your microphone, adjust its sensitivity, remove unnecessary whistling and interference.

👉 Supplement!

In the settings in the "Sound" section, I also recommend going to the tab "Communication" : in it you need to set the slider to the mode "Decrease the volume of other sounds by 80%" ... This is necessary so that when you are talking over the network - the volume of other sounds is muffled and you can hear the interlocutor well (and he you).

Fig. 15. Microphone operation in network communication

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Setting up a microphone in Skype / Skype

Most often, problems with the microphone in Skype arise due to the fact that the program incorrectly detects the default microphone (ie it works with the wrong microphone. This happens even if you have one physical microphone).

In the latest versions of Skype for Windows 10 - the settings are hidden ✌ (in my opinion). To find them, you need to click on your profile icon in the upper left part of the window, then select the settings and go to the section "Sound" ... In it, select your microphone and check the sound.

Fig. 16. Sound Settings - Skype on Windows 10

If you have an older version of Skype (I think it is much more convenient for a computer), then there are a little more parameters in the sound settings. I recommend checking the box next to "Allow automatic microphone setup" (so the program will automatically select the volume level).

However, the sensitivity level can also be adjusted manually (for this it is best to talk to someone and move the slider to the desired position).

Fig. 17. Configuring the microphone (older version of Skype)

If you have a problem with a conversation (hard to hear, grinding, stuttering and trembling of the voice, etc.), pay attention to the following:

  1. download and install the latest version of Skype (Official site). Although I do not like the design of the latest versions, however, I admit that the stability and quality of communication is increasing;
  2. check your internet connection and its speed to see if any packets are being lost. How to check your Internet speed, you can find out from this article: //ocomp.info/kak-uznat-skorost-interneta.html (the fact is that if the connection quality is poor and the speed is low - Skype automatically lowers the sound quality to leave the connection active!);
  3. check if your computer is slowing down (whether the processor, hard disk, etc. is loaded). About why the computer slows down, and how to find the reason, I told in this article: //ocomp.info/pochemu-tormozit-pc.html.

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PS

By the way, if your sound is quiet and hard to hear, try using 👉 special utilities for increasing the volume.

And on this I curl up ...

Good luck to all!

👣

First publication: 12.10.2017

Correction: 01/30/2020

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