This post is more than 5 years old
6 Posts
0
449243
Only one speaker working (for both) (after checking faqs)
Hello,
I have an inspiron R15 N5110 for 3 years now, a couple of days ago one of the speakers stopped working. when I do a stereo sound check, the left speaker (the one that still works) sound the Left AND the RIGHT sample tones. so I figure it's on some kind of mono mode maybe?
- when I plug headphone I have sound on both sides.
So far I've tried
1. reboot
2. tried updating driver though Device manager
3. disable\enable device
4. Ran the audio troubleshooter (win 7, 64bit)
5. Looked around the faqs here
* I did not uninstall the driver and downloaded a fresh one because it would seem odd to be the issue, after working for 3 years and all of a sudden it stops. but you're the experts so I'll do that gladly if you say so.
current driver is manufactor's ( IDT High Definition ... )
Thank's in advance.
Jim Coates
4 Operator
4 Operator
•
13.6K Posts
0
August 6th, 2014 06:00
Another test you can run is the ePSA Quick Audio Check. Note that not all models have ePSA and not all ePSA have Quick Audio check. If you don't have it then just fail the color bar test as described in the FAQ. If you hear tones through both speakers during the tests then the speaker itself is all right and some other part is the cause of the problem, probably the headphone jack since you know the audio is working correctly up to that point.
If you only hear tones through one speaker then the other speaker is confirmed to have failed or has a loose connection.
The final test you can do is to perform a system recovery. If it is a software issue then the recovery will fix the problem, and if it is hardware then it won't and hardware will be confirmed as the source of the problem. But no point in doing that if only one speaker is heard in the previous test..
You don't need to do it because you tried the native driver which served the same purpose. The point of a simple re-installation of the audio driver (no downloading) is that your settings will be lost -- in other words the default configuration is restored thereby ruling out a configuration issue, such as being set to mono in the Sound properties.
If you want to double check that, open the Playback tab of the Sound properties, right click on Speaker/Headphones, select Properties, select the Levels tab, click the Balance button. It does not matter how the sliders are set as long as they are both the same dB level.
The purpose of downloading a fresh copy of the driver is to rule out corruption of the existing driver. Sometimes they just stop working right.
Jim Coates
4 Operator
4 Operator
•
13.6K Posts
0
August 7th, 2014 09:00
Depends on if you do the work yourself. You can get the Service Manual with instructions for dis-assembly from your documents page, and the speakers from the parts-people for $19.95 plus a couple of bucks shipping. You might not even need the part -- it could be a bad connection.
If you get someone else to do the dis-assembly/re-assembly, the parts-people for example charge a $100 flat rate that I think includes shipping. The part itself is not included in the flat rate.
You could do it yourself in a couple of hours if you are an organized person with common sense who can & will follow written directions. I have not looked at your Service Manual but usually getting to the speakers requires removing everything else first. Usually just need a small Phillips screwdriver.
Jim Coates
4 Operator
4 Operator
•
13.6K Posts
1
August 5th, 2014 13:00
Hi. Test using the Windows native audio driver. If it still does it with that driver, plus the fact that it does not do it when using headphones, then probably a hardware fault. At least it would rule out a configuration or driver issue.
1. Open the Device Manager (type devmgmt.msc in the search box and hit Enter) and right click on IDT High Definition Audio Codec.
2. Select to "Update Driver Software".
3. Click on "Browse my computer for driver software".
4. Click "Let me pick from a list of drivers on my computer".
5. Put a check in the box "Show compatible hardware" if not already checked.
6. In the list of devices, click "High Definition Audio" (the native driver).
7. Click "Next".
8. On the Update Driver Warning box, click "Yes" (install the driver).
9. Restart the laptop if prompted. If not prompted, then no need to restart.
You can get back to the IDT driver by reversing names in steps 1 and 6.
icecoldnine
6 Posts
0
August 6th, 2014 02:00
I've done the above, didn't fix the problem, so I guess it's hardware like you say, but isn't it odd that the one speaker that works is working for both? like I said when I test the right speaker, the left speaker gives the tone (at save volume as if I test the left one).
icecoldnine
6 Posts
0
August 7th, 2014 08:00
Thank you.
Confirmed via color test. Hardware malfunction I guess... bummer. is it costly to repair?
icecoldnine
6 Posts
0
August 8th, 2014 05:00
Thanks for the help and answers.
BUT- I discovered something weird. Like I said, with a headset (inears actually) there is sound from both sides, but I've just plugged in an external speaker, and it too does not play from the right speaker... so maybe it's software?
Jim Coates
4 Operator
4 Operator
•
13.6K Posts
0
August 8th, 2014 05:00
No, if you heard the audio playing correctly through the headphones that means that your IDT audio system is working okay up to that point. If you plug speakers into the same jack and only one plays, either there is a bad connection or faulty speaker.
When you wrote "Confirmed via color test. Hardware malfunction I guess.", you did not describe the results of the test. Did you hear the tones through only the "good" speaker? If so, that confirms that the other one is faulty. The PSA tests are in BIOS and do not use any Windows software or drivers, so it is a direct test of the speaker hardware.
icecoldnine
6 Posts
0
August 8th, 2014 05:00
Or maybe it's the sound card? I'm lost....
Jim Coates
4 Operator
4 Operator
•
13.6K Posts
0
August 8th, 2014 07:00
I happened to be online when you posted this a.m. I just answer questions on this board as a sort of hobby. I'm glad I could help you diagnose the issue but sorry that it is in the hardware.
icecoldnine
6 Posts
0
August 8th, 2014 07:00
Yes in BIOS I heard only one speaker , so I understand the other one is probably bad now. About the external speaker, I didn't think I could chalk it up to coincidence - when it's the same side of speaker not working, but you're right, it's the connection.
Thank you very much again, you give an excellent service here, I never hoped to get answers this fast.