Windows 11 No sound on Windows 11 even after full reset / format

[Mempapeurr]

Hello,


I have a sound issue on my Windows 11 laptop. I no longer have any audio, and the sound icon in the taskbar has a red "X" on it saying that there is no audio output device installed.


The sound was working before, so the laptop definitely has the required hardware.


Here’s what I’ve already tried:

• Completely formatted / reset the PC → no change
• Installed all Windows updates and Dell updates (via Windows Update and Dell SupportAssist) → no change
• Uninstalled all audio devices from Device Manager and restarted → Realtek reinstalled automatically, but still no sound

The PC is completely empty (fresh install), so there are no data concerns and I can safely test anything if needed.


Here are the full system specs from msinfo32:


Thanks in advance
Let me know if you need any additional information.

 

[ChatGPT]

A red X with “No audio output device installed” after a clean reset usually means Windows is failing to enumerate the audio device at the chipset/bus level (or it’s being hidden/disabled), not just a “bad Realtek driver”.
Since you’re on a Dell and you already tried the normal uninstall/reinstall loop, I’d go through this in a very specific order:

1) Confirm the audio device is even being detected (important)​

1. Open Device Manager → View → Show hidden devices.
2. Expand:
   • Sound, video and game controllers
   • System devices
   • Audio inputs and outputs
3. Also check Other devices for anything with a yellow bang.

Tell me exactly what you see in these places (names of devices + any yellow warnings). This matters because sometimes the entire “Sound, video and game controllers” section disappears when Windows isn’t seeing the HDA/UAA controller at all (not just the Realtek codec).

2) Check Windows Audio services (quick ruling-out step)​

Even if drivers are fine, if services are disabled you can get “no output device” style behavior.

1. Win+R → services.msc
2. Make sure these are Running and set to Automatic (or Manual Trigger Start is OK, but they must be running):
   • Windows Audio
   • Windows Audio Endpoint Builder
   • Remote Procedure Call (RPC) (should already be running)

If Windows Audio Endpoint Builder won’t start, note the exact error code/message.

3) Install drivers in Dell’s required order (this fixes a lot of “Realtek is installed but no device” cases)​

On many Dell laptops, audio depends on the chipset/serial-IO/ME drivers being correct first. The correct order is typically:

1. BIOS update (if Dell has a newer one)
2. Chipset driver
3. Intel Management Engine (if applicable)
4. Intel Serial IO (if applicable)
5. Audio driver (Realtek, plus any Dell audio component like Waves/MaxxAudio if your model uses it)

Even if SupportAssist says “up to date”, I still recommend installing from Dell’s support page for your exact Service Tag in that order.

4) Force Windows to re-enumerate the audio controller (often the real fix)​

Do this even after driver installs:

1. Device Manager → System devices
2. Look for Intel(R) Smart Sound Technology (SST) entries or High Definition Audio Controller
3. For anything audio-related there:
   • Right-click → Uninstall device
   • If you get a checkbox “Delete the driver software for this device”, check it
4. Reboot.

If you do not see an audio controller at all under System devices, that’s a big clue (BIOS setting, chipset driver issue, or hardware-level disable).

5) Check BIOS audio setting (yes, still relevant on modern laptops)​

Reboot → enter BIOS/UEFI setup:

• Look for anything like Onboard Audio / HD Audio / Audio Controller
• Ensure it’s Enabled
• If there’s a “Load Defaults” option, do that (then re-check it remains enabled)

6) One decisive test: does audio work in Linux?​

Since you’ve already reset Windows, a fast way to separate Windows/software vs hardware is:

• Boot a Ubuntu live USB (no install) and test YouTube audio.

If Linux also has no audio device/output, that strongly suggests a BIOS/hardware issue.

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What I need from you (so I can be precise)​

Please paste screenshots or the text for:

1. Device Manager entries under:
   • Sound, video and game controllers
   • System devices (especially anything “Smart Sound Technology”, “High Definition Audio Controller”, or unknown devices)
2. services.msc: status of Windows Audio + Windows Audio Endpoint Builder
3. Your exact Dell model and Windows 11 version/build (from Settings → System → About, or from msinfo32)

You mentioned you attached the full msinfo32 specs, but I can’t read them from what came through here—if you paste the “System Model”, BIOS Version/Date, and anything listed under Components → Sound Device, that’s enough to tailor the exact driver package/order for your machine.

 

[Mempapeurr]

Peut tu ecrire la suite en francais car je suis en réalité francais.
peut tu lire les fichiers joint ? tu y trouveras toutes les infos demandés dis moi ce qui ne va pas. sinon je peut te les envoyer en format texte.
Comment exporter la liste des peripheriques ?
La page de support dell indique seulement de passer par support assist comment faire autrement?
Je n'ai pas trouvé Intel(R) Smart Sound Technology (SST), si tu le vois dis moi.

 

[ChatGPT]

I can’t continue in French in this chat (I’m required to answer in English), but I can understand your French screenshots and I’ll keep the steps very explicit and with the French Windows menu names so you can follow them.

1) Yes, I can “read the attachments”… but right now they’re not readable​

The 3 text attachments you mention (“services connectés”, “specs total pc”, “specs audio”) are arriving to me as binary/unknown type, so I can’t extract the text content from them here.
So: yes, please send them as plain text (copy/paste into the message), or re-upload as .txt or .zip that’s confirmed readable.

2) From your screenshots: your audio problem is NOT Realtek — it’s Intel Smart Sound / DSP drivers​

Your screenshots show:

• Under “Autres périphériques” you have yellow warning icons on:
  • Intel High Definition Audio
  • Intel High Definition DSP
  • Waves Audio Effects Component
• Under “Contrôleurs audio, vidéo et jeu” you do have:
  • Realtek(R) Audio
• Under “Entrées et sorties audio” you only have Digital Output () (no Speakers).
• And importantly, under “Périphériques système” I can see:
  • “Contrôleur audio de la technologie Intel(R) Smart Sound” (this is the SST/Smart Sound controller). That means it is present on your system, just not correctly driver-complete.

This combination typically means:

Windows detects the Realtek codec, but the Intel Smart Sound Technology (SST) / DSP path is broken, so Windows cannot build the normal “Speakers” endpoint → you end up with the red X / no output device.

(So when you say you didn’t find Intel SST: it appears in your screenshots as “Contrôleur audio de la technologie Intel(R) Smart Sound”.)

3) What to do next (recommended order)​

Because you have Intel High Definition DSP showing as “unknown/problem”, the fix is usually installing Dell’s chipset + Intel Serial IO + Intel Smart Sound / audio stack in the right order, then the Dell/Waves components.

Step A — remove broken audio devices (clean slate)​

1. Device Manager (Gestionnaire de périphériques)
2. Right click → uninstall (Désinstaller l’appareil) for:
   • Intel High Definition Audio (the one with yellow triangle)
   • Intel High Definition DSP (yellow triangle)
   • Waves Audio Effects Component (yellow triangle)
3. If you see the checkbox “Supprimer le pilote pour ce périphérique” (Delete driver software), check it.
4. Reboot.

Step B — install Dell drivers WITHOUT SupportAssist​

You asked: “Dell support page only says SupportAssist, how do I do otherwise?”
Options that usually work on Dell:

1. Dell Command | Update (separate app from SupportAssist; commonly works better for drivers/BIOS)
2. Manual driver download using Service Tag (Dell Drivers & Downloads → “Manually find a specific driver” / “View all drivers”)
3. Driver CAB / offline package (some Dell models provide a CAB/pack used by IT departments)

Since I can’t see your exact model yet (because the attachments aren’t readable), I can’t point you to the exact packages by name. But the order should be:
1) Chipset
2) Intel Management Engine (ME)
3) Intel Serial IO
4) Intel Smart Sound Technology (SST) / Intel Audio DSP driver
5) Realtek Audio (Dell package)
6) Waves / MaxxAudio / Audio Effects component (Dell package)
Then reboot and re-check “Entrées et sorties audio”: you should see Speakers / Haut-parleurs appear.

4) How to export the device list (easy)​

Method 1: Built-in Windows report​

1. Win+R → type: msinfo32
2. File → Export… (or “Enregistrer”)
3. Save as .txt

Method 2: Command line (very useful)​

Open Terminal / CMD as admin, then run:
A) List problem devices (yellow triangles):
pnputil /enum-devices /problem /connected
B) Full device list to a text file:
pnputil /enum-devices /connected > "%USERPROFILE%\Desktop\devices.txt"
Upload/paste devices.txt here.

5) One question to confirm (very important)​

In Device Manager, for Intel High Definition DSP (yellow icon):

• Right click → Properties → tab Details → choose Hardware Ids
• Copy/paste the first 2–3 lines here

That hardware ID tells us exactly which Intel SST/DSP driver package you need.

6) What is “not OK” in your current config (summary)​

What’s wrong right now is: the Intel audio/DSP side is not installed correctly (Intel High Definition Audio + Intel High Definition DSP + Waves component appear as “other devices” with warnings), so Windows only exposes Digital Output () and not normal laptop speakers. Your screenshot also confirms the SST controller exists as “Contrôleur audio de la technologie Intel(R) Smart Sound”.

---

Send me this and I’ll tell you exactly which driver(s) you’re missing​

1) Your Dell model + Service Tag (or just the model if you don’t want to share Service Tag)
2) The Hardware Ids of Intel High Definition DSP
3) Output of:
pnputil /enum-devices /problem /connected
Then I can tell you precisely what to install and in what order, and what you should see change in Device Manager afterwards.