Microphone volume too low

Anonymous
2010-01-27T00:46:44+00:00

I just bought a new Toshiba Satellite L500D, with Windows 7, and I'm having a problem with the microphone volume, in that recorded sound is barely audible.

I followed all the suggested steps on this forum topic: http://social.answers.microsoft.com/Forums/en/w7music/thread/06582922-0014-4dac-9f74-b63f143fbb8e  ...but nothing fixed it.

It's a built-in microphone and the sound driver is Realtek.  I did a driver update check and it has the latest version.  I have all the microphone volume settings set to maximum, and have tried doing test recordings in both Skype and the Windows Sound Recorder.  They record, but it is extremely low volume, even when I lean closer to the mic and speak loudly.  Various Skype call recipients could barely hear me.  The only thing that records loudly is when I run a finger over the matte plastic of the monitor frame -- that records super loud for some reason.

I welcome any suggestions as soon as possible.  I need my microphone to get work done!

I hope the Microsoft people can remedy this situation as soon as possible, because it's crucial to fix!

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Music, photos, and video

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Anonymous
2010-02-06T17:44:07+00:00

I had this problem for a few weeks, i recently read a forum post telling me to untick the :allow applications to take exclusive control of device:

Well, I found that setting and changed a couple of others, and I think it's fixed it

I went via Control Panel > Hardware and Sound > Manage Audio Devices to get to the Sound panel.

I then selected Playback > Speakers > Enhancements and made sure everything was un-checked.

I then selected Playback > Speakers > Advanced and un-checked 'Allow applications to take exclusive control of this device'

I went to Recording > Microphone > Listen and ensured 'Listen to this device' was unchecked.

I went to Levels and ensured the Microphone level was at 100% and the Boost was at +10db

I went into Enhancements and ensured everything was un-checked.

I then into Advanced and un-checked 'Allow applications to take exclusive control of this device'

And finally I went into the Communications tab of the Sound panel, and changed 'When windows detects communications activity' to 'Do nothing'

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  1. Anonymous
    2013-12-05T22:10:14+00:00

    Azeez,

    I have again tried all of the steps listed, and the internal microphone fails to work. All drivers are updated, and I have tried the solutions that others have listed all to no avail. I know it is a software conflict because the microphone works for exactly one second each time, then the sound gets reduced to such a minimal level it is impossible to hear. I know it is a software conflict, as I have slowly narrowed it down (first I thought it was programs like Skype, but it was not).

    Can Microsoft patch this issue? As mediocre as Vista was, I can honestly say I never had microphone issues in it. The microphone is such a simple piece of electronic equipment; can we get a hotfix or patch that takes away all of the volume-leveling, noise-truncating, driver-compatibility nonsense and just lets it do its job?

    Please, this thread is getting old and there are clearly many, many people with the same issue awaiting your response.

    Thanks,

    JSR

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  2. Anonymous
    2013-10-02T17:33:30+00:00

    Hi goingbacktoxp,

    Just an fyi: Crossing the two pins closest to the tip did not work on an Asus Sabertooth 990FX R2.0 motherboard with onboard Sabertooth RealTek ALC892 8-channel high definition audio chip. I have a special little adapter that goes from 3 pin female to 2 pin male that I use to hook up 3 pin speaker/headphone outputs to 2 pin mixing board input. To test my setup: I used a 3 pin male-to-male cable, plugged one end of the cable into may little adapter, then tested for continuity between the 2 pins (not the larger ground pin) on the other end of the cable. I had continuity, so the pins were crossed by my little adapter as desired. Unfortunately, when I plugged my mic (that does still work in a Dell Inspiron 1503 laptop running XP just fine) into the adapter, and then into either the front or rear mic input jacks on the Asus, there was no joy :-(

    Darn! I thought you had the solution for everyone. However, I'm glad that you found it works for the Creative card you're working with.

    Regards,

    Brcobrem

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  3. Anonymous
    2013-08-16T02:10:10+00:00

    Mr. Azeez,

    I am still having troubles as well. The mike is still very quiet. I tried cranking up the gain, modifying settings, and even resinstalling Windows 7. ALl of this to no avail.

    I need some help. Looking forward to your response.

    Bill

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  4. Anonymous
    2013-08-15T19:25:52+00:00

    deadly :)

    been through about 15 mics over the years, all low volume including the top of the line microsoft webcams, tried the two pin plug (or rather a modded 3 pin), ...success.

    give it a try and let us know.

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