Question Sound broken after Windows update.

[ShadowArcher]

Every single Windows update in the last few years has wrecked something about my laptop, and this time it's the sound. It is tinny and quiet through the speakers (but fine with headphones), and no amount of troubleshooting either with Windows' own or with HP's troubleshooter, has fixed it. I've also turned off enhancements and tried updating the audio drivers that are there (a generic MS High Definition Audio Device).

I do see that the IDT High Definition Audio CODEC is entirely missing from device manager, but the only suggestions I can find to get that back is to roll back the 5-hour update. That surely can't be the only way, can it? I'm sure I installed it through HP one of these times, but it looks like HP no longer support my laptop, which seems to in turn mean I can't look for it myself. I am on a Pavilion G6-2293sa.

...help?

 

[hang-the-9]

Did you download the drivers from the laptop from the laptop support site? If not, try that. Past that, you may need to roll back Windows to a time before the issue started.

 

[ShadowArcher]

Thanks for the reply. Unfortunately, as I said, it seems HP has stopped support for my laptop, which also means I can't view drivers, because you have to go through the device identification gatekeeper. And also, the issue seems to be that the IDT HD Audio CODEC isn't in need of updating, but is gone altogether.

Seems insane that the only thing that can be done is to roll back Windows to a version that Microsoft is telling me won't be supported soon. I don't understand how MS are this incompetent that their 'updates' significantly break something every single time.

 

[ShadowArcher]

Ok, so I'm an idiot. The reason HP was telling me that it wasn't supported was that my HP Manager thing was telling it that it's Windows 10. I just changed it manually to 8.1, which is what came with it, and it showed me the drivers and I was able to reinstall IDT.