Solve “Windows 10 Headphone Not Working” – 3 Possible Fix

As popular and reliable as Windows 10 is, this computer is not without its own problems. One of them is when the headphones stop working for no apparent reason.

If you would like to solve the “Windows 10 headphones not working” problem, you have come to the right place.

Here at Error Codes Pro, we do all the necessary research to fix all kinds of errors – from the more current ones to others that may be a lot less well known.

Unfortunately, the problem with Windows 10 headphones is not all that rare. In fact, it happens with certain regularity.

The main reason for how quite relatively common this issue can be is that there are actually many possible causes for it.

Having said that, there is absolutely no need to panic. The fact that there can potentially be several different causes for this error only means that there are also several different ways in which to fix it.

That’s right, this error has a few different fixes. The good news is that because I have done all the necessary research, I am able to go over all the different ways in which this error can be solved.

 

In this tutorial, I will go over each and every one of the methods to fix this error. Because each of these methods relates to a specific cause why you cannot get your headphones to work, I would advise that you skim read the whole tutorial first in order to check whether one or more of the methods particularly speaks to you.

If you have a strong reason to believe that one or more of the methods in this tutorial would address the problem for you then go right ahead and begin by exploring those first.

“I’m the same kid who used to hop the trains with headphones and just go to downtown Manhattan, walk around and listen to music or walk through the city. The fame restricts that. It’s a small complaint in comparison to the benefits I get from it, but the restrictive part is what I don’t like – and the fact it’s not reversible”. – J. Cole

But if you do not really know or even suspect what may be causing the error for you, then you might as well attempt to fix this error by following the fixes on this article.

In any case, it is unlikely that you will need to check every method before you stumble on one that would do the trick for you.

So now, without much further ado, here are all the possible fixes for getting your headphones to work again.

Possible Fix Number 1:

The first thing to do when encountering this error would be to check whether or not you have set up your Windows 10 as the default device for those headphones and, if you have not, do so now.

 

If you do not know how to do that, do not worry. That’s what we are here for. Just follow these simple steps:

1. Grab your Windows 10
2. Press the following two keys at the same time: the Window logo key and the X This action will cause a pop-up menu to display on your screen.
3. Once the pop-up menu displays on your screen, then choose the Control Panel
4. Then, once on the Control Panel select the View by Category option located on the top right-hand side of the Control Panel.
5. Next, click on the Hardware and Sound: View devices and printers. Add a device.
6. Once you are on the Hardware and Sound window, click on the Sound This action will prompt the Sound window to display on your screen.
7. Then, choose Headphones and click on the Set default If you do not see that option, then check for the Speaker / Headphones option and click on the Set default button.
8. Finally, click on OK.

This option is one of the most efficient ways to solve this error but if the problem with your computer is not that the headphones have not been set up as default, then you should move on to the next possible fix in this tutorial.

Possible Fix Number 2: 

Another possible reason why your headphones are not working could be that your audio driver has become out of date. If that is the case, all you would need to do is to update your audio drivers.

You can effectively do this in one or two ways. You could do this manually yourself or you could get a third-party driver updater to do this for you.

 

The advantage of using a third-party driver updater is that it could save you time and effort while also identifying what other drivers may have become out of date and update them all at the same time, as long as that is something that you would want to do (and you should).

If you would like to get a third-party piece of software to do this for you, you should search for one on Google or any other search engine of your choice. You should be able to find several options online.

The good news is that most of the third-party programs that can scan your drivers for updates and update them for you have either a free version or, at least, include a free trial period for new users.

Once you have found one, you will need to download it and install it on your Windows 10 computer. I know that this might sound like a time-consuming activity but, generally, this and what follows would take considerably less time than updating your audio driver manually.

Once the program has been installed, you should run it so that it would highlight what drivers need to be updated. Once all the drivers had been scanned, you should see whether the audio driver needs to be updated (and, indeed, what other drivers need to be updated too).

And that point, you would be presented with a list of drivers that need to updated and a choice on whether you would like to update them all at the same time or one by one. What you do is, of course, totally up to you. It is strongly suggested that you update them all.

But, if you are in a hurry to get your headphones to work, you could always update your audio driver individually first and then update all of the other drivers simultaneously once your headphones are working again.

Having said all of that, if you prefer to update your audio driver (or any other drivers) manually without using any third-party software, you can also do that easily.

But if you do not know how to do that, all you would need to do is to follow these simple steps:

1. Grab your Windows.
2. Press the Start button. This action will prompt a search bar to display on your screen.
3. Then, type in “device manager” (no quotation marks) and locate it in the list of results.
4. Next, click on Device Manager from the list of results.
5. Expand the audio category so you can find the name of your audio device.
6. Once you have located the name of your audio device, then right-click on it and choose the Update Driver
7. Then choose the Search automatically for updated driver software

Once you have updated your audio driver, connect your headphones and see if they now work.

If the first possible method did not work then this one should. But, if neither does the trick for you, there is still one more thing that you could try out.

Possible Fix Number 3: 

The final thing that you could attempt is changing the settings in the Realtek HD Audio manager. Please note that this is the last thing you should attempt once you have exhausted both of the previous methods on this tutorial.

Here are the steps you would need to follow:

1. Grab your Windows 10 computer.
2. Launch the Realtek HD Audio Manager.
3. Then, click on the folder icon located in the upper right-hand corner of your screen.
4. Then check the Disable front panel jack detention
5. Finally, click on the OK

Then, if you have an IDT audio device, you would need to uninstall it:

1. Head over to Device Manager.
2. Choose Control Panel.
3. Then, once on the Control Panel select the View by Large icons option located on the top right-hand side of the Control Panel.
4. Next, click on the Programs and features
5. Select uninstall IDT Audio driver.
6. Finally, restart your computer.2

This has been Solve “Windows 10 Headphones Not Working”. Do you have any feedback about this tutorial? Have you any experience in dealing with this problem and would like to share it with our other readers? If so, please leave us a message in the comments section below.