How to Fix a Sound Driver
- 1). Check for the missing or damaged sound drivers from the Device Manager. To do so, click the Windows "Start" button and click the "Control Panel."
- 2). Double-click "System" (Windows XP users) and click the "Hardware" tab. Click "Device Manager" to open the Device Management console. For Windows Vista users, click "System and Maintenance" and click the "Device Manager" to open the Device Management console.
- 3). Scroll down and locate "Sound, video and game controllers." Click the "+" button next to it. You should see a list of sound drivers installed on your computer. If you see a question or exclamation mark next to one of them, it means the drivers have to be installed.
- 4). Right-click the sound driver with the question or exclamation mark and click "Update driver." If you have a sound drivers disc, place it in the CD-ROM drive and select "Install from certain location." Select the CD-ROM drive with the installation disc and install the drivers. Move to the next step if this does not work.
- 5). Navigate to your computer manufacturer's website and locate the downloads section. Type your computer serial number if prompted to and locate the drivers you need to install on your computer, now that you have verified the ones that are missing from the Device Manager.
- 6). Download and install the sound drivers once you have found the right ones. The drivers are different with different computer models. The installation process also varies; therefore follow the installation wizard carefully to properly install the sound drivers.
- 7). Restart your computer when prompted to and go back to the Device Manager to verify that the question or exclamation marks have disappeared from the sound drivers section.
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