Solved! Can't use built in mic with headphones

[stinkal]

I have a pair of Bose headphones that I use with my laptop. They don't have a microphone. My built-in microphone works perfectly when the headphones are not connected, but as soon as I plug them in, I get absolutely no input from my mic. The recording device is set to "Realtek audio," which is no different than when the headphones are not connected.

 

[AlHuneke]

My laptop does the same thing. Even when I pick the internal mic, it is not active. When you plug in headphones, there is a contact that is opened inside the laptop. Many laptops these days have a single headphone/mic jack which uses four contacts (your headphones have three). Plugging something in tells the computer to expect an external mic as well as headphones. Why it won't switch to the internal mic is a mystery to me. One solution is to get a headphone/mic splitter like this: https://www.amazon.com/Kingtop-Adap...=headphone+mic+splitter&qid=1603248990&sr=8-2. You could then plug in an external mic. Hopefully someone has a better suggestion.