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Fixed: ‘Windows 11 Not Detecting Headphones’ Issue: There may be times when Windows 11 is unable to locate your headphones, which will result in their inability to function. Issue with ‘Windows 11 Not Detecting Headphones’ makes it simple to become enraged. There are, however, a variety of solutions to this issue that will help you get your life back on track. The market has been very generous to us over the years, providing us with some excellent headphones and earphones to choose from.
Over the past few years, Bluetooth headphones have seen a meteoric rise in popularity. These headphones are a fantastic option for individuals who are sick of ruining expensive headphones due to the wire’s propensity to break. However, using Bluetooth headphones can make it more difficult to connect to your devices because the device may be unable to locate the pair of headphones.
The solutions to the problem of Windows 11 not detecting headphones are detailed in the following paragraphs. If you have already tried all of these solutions, but you are still having the same problem in your desktop computer, you should go to the official website for Microsoft to find out more information about the issue. Here are the ways how to Fix ‘Windows 11 Not Detecting Headphones’ Issue.
Cause of the ‘Windows 11 Not Detecting Headphones’ Issue
- Driver Problems: Outdated, incompatible, or corrupted audio drivers can prevent Windows 11 from recognizing your headphones. Make sure your audio drivers are up to date.
- Hardware Issues: Faulty headphone jacks, damaged cables, or defective headphones can lead to detection problems. Inspect your hardware for any physical issues.
- Audio Services: Sometimes, Windows audio services can malfunction or be disabled, causing the headphone detection issue. Ensure that Windows Audio and related services are running.
- Sound Settings: Incorrect sound settings, like the default audio playback device, can result in Windows 11 not recognizing your headphones. Verify and configure the sound settings properly.
- Driver Conflicts: Conflicts between audio drivers or third-party software can interfere with headphone detection. Identify and resolve any conflicting drivers or software.
- Operating System Updates: Incompatibility between Windows 11 updates and your existing audio setup may lead to issues. Keep your system and drivers updated.
- BIOS/UEFI Settings: In some cases, BIOS or UEFI settings may need adjustments to enable headphone detection.
Ways To Fix ‘Windows 11 Not Detecting Headphones’ Issue
Run Audio Troubleshooter
- First of all, open up the Windows Settings app by pressing Windows key + I on your keyboard.
- On the System tab of the Settings window, click on the Sound option provided.
- Make sure that your device is selected in case you see it here.
- Otherwise, scroll all the way down to the Advanced section.
- Next to Troubleshoot common sound problems, click on the Output devices option.
- This will start the troubleshooter. Follow the on-screen prompts to get through it. It will scan your computer and look for any reasons that might be causing an issue.
- Once you are done, see if that fixes the problem for you.
Add Device Manually
- First of all, open up the Windows Settings window by pressing Windows key + I.
- Then, once the Settings window is up, stay on the System tab and click on Sound on the right-hand side.
- There, at the top, click on the Choose where to play sound drop down menu to expand it.
- Then, click on the option that says “Add device.” You need to turn on Bluetooth on your computer before you can connect to a device using Bluetooth.
- Once you have done that, go through the on-screen prompts to go through the process of adding your device manually.
Reinstall Sound Drivers
- First of all, open up the Device Manager by searching for it in the Start Menu.
- Once the Device Manager window is open, expand the Sound, video and game controllers list.
- From the list of drivers, right-click on your sound drivers, and from the drop-down menu, click the Uninstall device option.
- Once you’ve done that, you can decide what you want to do next.
- If you want Windows to take care of installing the drivers for you, you can just restart your computer and let Windows do its thing.
- You can also go to the website of the company that made your motherboard and download the latest sound drivers from there. This is what we recommend. Install them once you’ve done that to see if that fixes the problem.
Check Headphones Cables
- Ensure the headphones are plugged into your computer correctly to resolve the issue.
- Device recognition may fail if the connection is improper or unrecognized.
- Over time, usage may accidentally damage the cable, causing it to gradually loosen.
- Check your headphone cable to verify the proper connection. This is a common mistake.
- Many people have similar experiences. Pull the cable out completely, then reconnect it.
- If the issue persists, proceed to the next troubleshooting method.
Enable Playback Device
- First of all, on your taskbar, right-click on the sound icon, and from the menu that appears, click the Sound settings option.
- Now, on the sound settings window that appears, scroll all the way to the bottom and then click on the More sound settings option.
- This will bring up another window called Sound.
- On the Playback tab, look for any devices that are disabled and right-click on them. From the drop-down menu that appears, click on the Enable option.
- Once you have done that, see if that resolves your issue.
Update BIOS
- If updating your audio drivers still doesn’t fix the problem, your last option would be to update the BIOS firmware on your motherboard.
- BIOS is an important part of your computer that turns on all the devices as your PC starts up. So, if your BIOS is out of date, it can cause a number of problems that can only be fixed by updating your BIOS.
- To update the BIOS, you will need to go to the website of the company that made your motherboard and download the most recent version for your board.
- You can also use the utilities that some manufacturers provide to automatically update the BIOS.
- After you’ve done that, check to see if the problem is solved.
Conclusion
You’re using Windows 11 on your computer, laptop, or tablet, but you can’t get your headphones to work, are you? This guide will break down all of the more common causes of headphone bugs in Windows 11, as well as offer a large number of tested solutions and fixes to assist you in connecting your headphones and getting audio to play correctly.
Questions and Answers
After upgrading to Windows 11, it’s possible that you’ll need to grant individual apps permission to make use of your microphone if it’s still not being recognised. How to do it: To enable access to the microphone, go to the Start menu, then select Settings, followed by Privacy and Security, and finally Microphone.
Check the connection between the jack and the headphones, and clean the jack if necessary by using a cotton swab dampened with some rubbing alcohol, or use a can of compressed air. Dust, lint, and dirt are often the culprits, so check the connection between the jack and the headphones. Try re-plugging in the headphones to see if they still function properly.
Make sure the sound settings are correct by: Select “Open Sound Settings” from the context menu that appears when you right-click on the speaker icon in the taskbar. Make sure that your headset microphone is set as the default recording device in the “Input” section of your device’s settings menu. If it is not on the list, try restarting your computer or connecting the headset to a different device and seeing if that helps.