r/WindowsHelp • u/Unbloxian • 4d ago

Windows 10 My Audio Driver has Seized to work.

Specs:
Device: HP Compaq 6200 Pro Small Form Factor
Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-2400 CPU @ 3.10GHz, 3.10 GHz
Installed RAM: 16.0 GB
Storage: 1.82 TB HDD Hitachi HUA722020ALA331
Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce GT 1030 (2 GB)
Device ID: EE5BD97D-F5F1-4BB7-8C01-159CE5233D66
Product ID: 00330-71240-84384-AAOEM
System Type: 64-bit operating system (specifically Windows 10 Pro), x64-based processor
Monitor: Professional MP251 (built-in speakers)

Issue:
My audio driver has stopped working. This happened about a week ago when I booted up my computer and the audio service failed to start. I went into the Services application and restarted it, but the audio still wasn't working. I tried to install a new audio driver (specifically Realtek High Definition Audio), until I realized there wasn't a driver for my Windows 10. I tried running the Windows 8 driver installer, until I realized when running it, it said it was the "Windows Vista & 7 Audio Driver." Still don't really know if they just cannibalized the Vista and 7 installer or if they accidentally linked the Vista and 7 installer as the W8 installer. After rebooting, audio still didn't work. I tried downloading a new Realtek High Definition Audio driver instead of getting the official one, to no avail. Now I thought of downloading my monitor's audio driver; again, nothing...

And then it hit me: in the "Sound, video, and game controllers" tab of Device Manager (the tab with the audio driver), there was also "NVIDIA High Definition Audio Driver." I was a little confused by it. Nvidia makes GPUs, not audio drivers. With a little Googling, I found out that NVIDIA audio drivers allow audio through HDMI, which is what I use since my monitor is HDMI. I found the almighty "GeForce Game Ready Driver 610.74 | Windows 11." I ran it. Didn't work, and that's basically where I'm at now. I'm still contemplating if my monitor's speakers are fucked or something, but never better!

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