Left speaker not working, right does - not hardware

Hi there,

I noticed the other day that my left hand headphone was not working. I think this is a recent devlopment. I have had this PC for a couple of months now so I'm pretty sure I'd have noticed if it had been like this from day 1, though not 100% (I've not got the best of hearing!).

I assumed it was the headphones being broken but I tried them on my laptop and they worked fine. I tried speakers on my desktop (the one on which the problem is) and again the left one does not work.

I am running Windows Vista 64. My motherboard is an ABIT IP35 Pro. I do not have a soundcard. I have installed the latest Realtek High Definition Audio Drivers and rebooted and the problem persists.

Can anyone help?

 

You say it's not hardware but it could be a bad output jack. That would yield the same results regardless of what you plugged into it.



But first, check the audio mixer settings to confirm that you have greater than zero volume on the dead channel.

 

As far as I can see the only volumes in Vista's mixer settings are the 'device - speakers' one and those of any sound-utilising programs running e.g. MSN Messenger. All are full volume. Is there some other screen that shows volumes for left and right separately?



Would installing a soundcard be likely to solve the problem? To be quite honest I'd rather spend £50 on a soundcard than have to RMA my motherboard.

 

Ok, this gets stranger by the minute. I remembered that when I built this machine I never hooked up the front audio jacks. So I opened up the case and plugged them in and switched my headphones to the front audio jacks. Yet I still only get audio out of one speaker! Surely if it was a broken port, switching to the front port would have fixed it?

 

A friend of mine has an Abit motherboard and he only had mono sound. Make sure you have the latest drivers for your onboard audio.

 

Yeah -- changing to the front panel jacks rules out a hardware (jack) problem.



So, the problem is most likely onboard sound drivers. Jason already beat me to the punch suggesting checking your drivers. If you use realtek audio, suggest checking the MajorGeeks website. They've posted several driver updates in the last few days.

 

I have a similar problem on an Acer computer running Realtek High Definition Audio. (Acer Aspire iDea 511).

The problem is really odd... On my computer I think it was there from the start (the computer is brand new)

The left speaker is totally silent.

If I change cable, or switch cable the problem persists. Switching left-right cable switches the problem (proves that the cable is not the problem)

The machine has eight analog outputs - for a 7.1 setup (built in dolby digital decoder). All other speakers work.

Then for the amazing part.

I moved this living room computer to my home theatre room where I have a dollby digital receiver - and I switch output to the S/PDIF output

-> The problem is the same!

So - the problem is not the wires or ports - its somewhere inside the system. In the control panel the two outputs can be configured and enabled/disabled independently, it's like having two different sound cards in the machine (it's the same driver in Device Manager though).

I found completely new drivers (february 1.) on the realtek website - new drivers, new software - the problem persists.

Anyone have any hints?

Regards,

Harald

 

Since you apparently have the latest drivers, it's either hardware or settings. Go into Control Panel --> Sound -> Speakers tab. Press the Configure button and experiment with the options and tests. Also confirm that the volume settings are greater than zero -- for both channels.



If all of those check out OK, then it's hardware.

 

Thanks for your reply - but there is an important question ->

Which of the control panel units is to be configured?

The problem is exactly the same with the Microsoft supplied "High Definition Audio" and with the 1.86-version driver from Realtek.

I ask for apology for being inaccurate when I referr to terms in the dialogs, since I am translating from my Norwegian version of Windows Vista Home Premium.

Both drivers behaves similarly, both creates several devices in the "Playback"-list. One of the entries is "Speakers" referring to the analog outputs. The other is "Digital output (SPDIF)".

-> so on which of the control panel devices am I to check the settings, remember that the problem is the same in both cases.

When using the microsoft supplied driver (which I currently use, because I am waiting for Acer support to contact me, and I want my system to be somewhat "vanilla"), I get 8 level-controls on the "Balance"-dialog under levels in "Properties" on the device "Speakers". On the SPDIF-device the "Balance"-dialog only shows two volume controls.

So, I am afraid there must be something wrong with the hardware.

I was puzzled to find this thread, with another one having problems with the left front channel/speaker with the same on board sound chipset. (Realtek HD Audio).

This is a dead end, I suppose - I take it I will have to ship the machine back to replace it get it fixed somehow. This is a stereo unit pc to which I can not add a third party audio card (same form factor as a DVD-player).

I have installed the Windows Vista Service Pack 1 in hope that would change something, but no luck.

Thanks again,

Harald

 

I'll admit up front to not being an expert on S/PDIF -- but from what I've read on audio forums, the analog channels allow you to "upmix", that is, transform an 2-channel input into a multi-channel (e.g. 7.1) output. However, the S/PDIF channels don't do upmixing; instead, they pass a 2-channel digital signal out because they are intended to be used to supply audio input to more sophisticated audio devices, which would then do any upmixing.



So, what you're experiencing in different number of channels is to be expected.



What I suggested applies to the analog channels, the multi-channels capabilities, not the S/PDIF channels.

 

Ok - that might explain why the problem is present with both output types - the spdif "inherits" the problem of the analog channel so to speak.

What I now believe, is that the chipset somehow has eigth DSP's - one for each channel, and the one which is to generate sound for the front left channel is defective.

So, unless I can somehow fool the driver to use say the "side" speakers's DSP's for the front - I have to replace the motherboard of the computer. Since the computer is exactly one week old today,I of course want to replace it (or get it fixed).

A hint is also that when I push the mute button, there is a static noise in the speaker - only the right one - so there is no electric signal at all at the left side.

Regards,

Harald.

 

Given it's only a week old, if it can be replaced under warranty, that's what I would do. I had an HP desktop that went bad, sent it back to HP, they fixed it under warranty and have had no problems now in over a year.

 

Since this topic is the most helpful i've found under google, i decided to register and tell you all that i have the same problem. Using the onboard sound (Realtek HD ALC889A) produces no sound in the front left speaker. All the others seem fine. I am using the 2.07 drivers. Problem persists with just headphones plugged in. Other than taking up an offer of a free PCI-E (1x) soundcard, i'm stumped.



I have tried everything. Literally.

 

chk your cable and jack.... i think its a hardware problem or try to connect your speaker with iPod or any portable music device...

 

Have you checked all your sound settings? If you have it setup for multiple channels, change it to two-channel to see if that makes a difference. I presume that your sound app has a means to "test" the sound and you've already tried that?

 

Just installed R2.17 and still same problem. Yes, same problem with settings set as 2 (stereo) and quadphonic speakers. No, works fine with my YP-P2 connected. Works fine with Audigy 2ZS, M-Audio and Terratec cards.. just onboard sound.