Quiet sound in headphones Windows 10: how to increase the volume and 3 utilities for amplification

Adjusting the sound in the system itself or on speakers/headphones

When using headphones with speakers, volume adjustment will be performed in two different places. The first volume control is located on the speakers themselves, where the sound level is adjusted manually.

The second setting is done on the computer. In the lower right corner of the panel there is an icon in the form of a speaker. The user who clicks on it will see a pop-up window showing the volume level. Using the mouse cursor or keys on the keyboard, the user can raise the control to 100%, setting the maximum sound power.

If the adjustment was made only on the speakers, but the level in the computer remained the same, the sound will remain weak. And vice versa, if the control was only on the PC and not on the speakers, the result will remain the same.

If the speakers begin to reproduce sound normally, but the headphones do not, most likely the problem lies in the gadget itself. The problem may also be in the connection socket. If noise appears at the connection point when moving the wire, it means there is a problem with it.

Increase the volume of headphones using the remote control

If the headphones are wired, then they may have a remote control

. In this case, there may or may not be volume control. If the remote control is one-button, then it’s unlikely. If there are several buttons, naturally, we use “+/-“. In addition, for example, gaming headphones may have a wheel for adjusting the volume.

Bose QuietComfort Earbuds - volume control in wireless headphones

All wireless headphones have some kind of button (remote control). Volume control can be displayed on separate buttons, or it can be implemented differently: long press, double click on buttons, or various gestures if the control is touch-sensitive. But it may not be possible to adjust the volume on Bluetooth headphones; you should look at the instructions for all the details.

Checking and setting up the audio driver (using the example of Dell Audio, Realtek)

The quiet sound of the headphones may be due to incorrect operation of the audio driver. If there is no speaker icon next to the clock on the panel, you need to configure:

Go to the Control Panel.

Enter the “Hardware and Sound” section.
Click the link to settings.

Go to the tabs to configure the sound.

The sound quality is affected by the preset acoustic settings on your PC or laptop. For example, if the “in the hall” parameter is set, the user will hear an echo.

Realtek Manager supports 8-channel audio and has many functions. The audio manager supports motherboards that work with the Realtek audio processor. In versions of Windows, the manager independently finds devices connected to the ports. The type of tabs with settings will depend on them. Also, the interface may differ depending on the driver version or sound card model installed on the PC.

To adjust the volume of a connected device you will need:

Open dispatcher.

Go to the “Speakers” menu.
In the “Main Volume” line, move the slider to the right.

In the same menu, you can adjust the sound effect, specify the speaker configuration, surround sound and select equalizer modes.

Software methods for adjusting sound

There are several ways to increase the volume in headphones on a computer in Windows 7, 8, 10. Let's start with the simplest.

Setting the volume in the operating system

The first thing to do is make sure that the slider located in the lower right corner of the Quick Access Toolbar is at its maximum position. To do this, click on the speaker icon and drag the slider up.

Here below, select the “Mixer” parameter with the left mouse button and set all the sliders to the maximum value.

You should make sure that the required volume is also set in the player file.

Standard settings didn't help? This means you need to remove software volume restrictions.

Incorrect volume setting

We have already talked about the easiest way to control system sound, but there are other ways to check and solve the problem of quiet headphones on Windows 10 through system settings.

Instructions:

Right-click on the speaker icon on the taskbar.
Select the volume control (mixer).
New window. You will see sliders for system sounds and speakers, move them up.

Instruction No. 2:

We repeat point 1 from the previous list.
Select “sounds”, “sound devices” or “playback devices”.
The first window, select the desired device, i.e. speakers/headset. Double-click with the left button.
We check for the presence of “use this device”, section “use of device”.
In the same window, click on the levels tab.
Here we also check the position of the volume sliders.
By pressing the "balance" button, you can test each speaker separately.
Click on the “levels” tab.
Here you can activate various sound effects, which may slightly affect the problem of quiet sound of headphones. Select, activate and check the result. To enable it, you need to check the box next to “surround”, “surround sound in headphones”, or others and press “ok”.
Now go to the “advanced” tab.
Select the default format. The higher the values, the higher the sound quality should be (although this is not always the case). Try changing it and hear the difference.
Also make sure below that exclusive mode is enabled by checking the boxes.
Don't forget to click "apply".
The last tab is “spatial sound”, here you can activate a special mode for headphones, which will have a beneficial effect on sound quality and volume.

Instruction No. 3:

Find Realtek Manager in the Control Panel. Or right-click on the speaker icon in the tray and select sound manager.
At the top you will see a balance slider between the right and left speakers. If there is only one speaker, it will help to make the device louder by moving the slider completely to one side (either).
Nearby is a general sound control, which can also be adjusted.
Below there is “surround sound in headphones”, check the box if it is not there.
In the “sound effect” tab, check the box next to “loudness compensation”.
Select the environment from the list (author's note: the most convenient mode for universal use is a room upholstered with felt).
Below you can choose one of the ready-made equalizer modes or set your own. For maximum volume, you can raise all the sliders up. To do this, click on the equalizer icon, adjust the sliders and save your mode.
In the “standard format” tab, set the highest sound quality, usually 24 bit, 192000 Hz.
Click "ok" to save the changes.

Setting the Loudness parameter

There is another way to boost the sound on your computer, after which the volume in your headphones will be doubled.

Right-click the speaker icon and click on the “Sounds” option. You can also access this tab through “Start” → “Control Panel” → “Hardware and Sound” → “Sound”.
Select the “Playback” tab. Usually the first line of the list is “Speakers” or “Headphones”. Click with one press of the left key.
Below we set this action as “default”. Then click the “Properties” button.
In the window that appears, select the “Improvements” (in Windows 7) or “Advanced Features” (in Windows 10) section.
Check the box next to the “Loudness” parameter. Next, click on the “Apply” or “Ok” button.

Typically, these actions help increase the sound in headphones on a computer at least twice . Some Windows 10 users recommend setting the Volume Leveling option. You can try this option too.

Reinstalling drivers

Poor sound from headphones can also be due to outdated sound card drivers , or they don't match your computer's software. To resolve this issue, you need to update these drivers.

From the Start menu, type “Device Manager” into the search bar.
In the dialog box, find the "Sound, video and game devices" option. By left-clicking on it, you can see the installed sound cards; there may be one or more of them. This is usually “NVIDIA High Definition Audio” or “Realtek High Definition Audio” and others.
Now you need to update each device. To do this, right-click on the selected option and select “Update drivers”. Then click on the “Automatic search” sub-item.
All that remains is to wait for the system to reinstall the drivers. You may need to restart your computer after this.

If you wish, you can use your own search for the necessary drivers by going to the official Realtek website.

Sound control software

To improve the sound on a laptop or computer running Windows OS, you can use a special utility. There are many of them and the tasks may be different:

Sound control in one place - volume control, balance, equalizer;
Create keyboard shortcuts to quickly increase or decrease volume;
Volume boost;
Improved sound in headphones.

Below we will look at the best utilities that are suitable for Windows 10. They can be downloaded from official websites.

Author's note! Some laptops already have hotkey shortcuts for audio controls. Look at the F10, F11, F12 buttons. Do they have a speaker icon on them? And at the bottom, next to the space bar, there is the Fn key. Combination:

Fn+F10 - mute sound;
Fn+F11 - volume down;
Fn+F12 - increase.

Another option is more common:

Fn+F8 - shutdown;
Fn+up arrow - increase;
Fn+down arrow - decrease.

Sometimes the cause of quiet headphones is accidentally pressing hot keys.

Utilities to increase volume

System tools do not always help achieve the desired result, so developers suggest using third-party resources. Downloaded utilities will help you fix the sound quality.

Sound Booster

Paid software from the developer Letasoft. Allows you to increase the speaker volume up to 500% for working with instant messengers, players, and video browsers.

Among the positive qualities are:

Simple and intuitive interface - the application is available in Russian, just set the autorun mode and the volume slider to the maximum value.
Mobility – you can control the mode using hot keys.
Ability to customize sound quality using filters.

You can download the program from the official source. The file takes up minimal memory space, installation occurs in a short time.

Audio Amplifier

A tool for adjusting the sound level of low volume audio files. With the utility, you can reduce or enhance the tone of the audio track on the player.

The program has a simple and intuitive interface and is absolutely free. The maximum volume limit is up to 1000%. To increase the sound parameter of the file being played, just move the slider to the right. The application has a function to normalize the sound of all files so that the list of tracks sounds in the same range.

Audacity

Free application with easy operation for computers and laptops. Using a sound editor, you can cut and merge audio tracks, remove noise, and adjust speaker volume.

The installation package is available on the developer's official website and in the Linux repositories. To install the software, just download and install it on your PC. The classic design features recording control buttons. The sound on the entire track can be adjusted using a special “multi-tool”.

The most common causes of low volume in headphones

The reasons for weak phonation in headphones are both software and hardware in nature. In the first option, the sound may be reduced due to:

faulty USB connector;
a loose “nest”;
cable break;
clogging of the metal mesh;
presence of moisture inside, etc.

A software failure is:

errors in the operating system;
problems with drivers;
sound card malfunction;
low volume level on a PC, smartphone, etc.

You can figure out most of the reasons yourself.

Enhancing sound using codecs

The method is used if the K-lite codec pack is installed on the device. If it is not there, then you can download the utility from the Internet. The application is capable of playing DVDs on Windows 10.

To make the settings, you will need to launch any movie on the device and follow the instructions:

Open the codec icon by double-clicking LMB.
Go to the “Volume” tab, put markers next to “Normal”, “Regin Volume”, “Show Current Volume”.

Pull the slider all the way to the right.
Confirm the action by clicking “Ok”.

Making the sound louder in headphones in this way is easy even for a novice user.

Checking the overall level or volume limits if the sound is quiet

If the headphones are still playing quietly

, you need to check the system volume settings on the source. There may be restrictions on the overall level or volume of a specific application. Also, in the case of a computer, you can try reinstalling the drivers.

Android phones often have a system volume limit to protect hearing. Usually the system warns about this. To be sure, go to the settings and check this point.

Dust and dirt as the cause of a quiet sound

Over time, the speakers become dirty and clogged with dust. This negatively affects the sound quality of the speakers. The user needs to clean the devices to improve the sound quality level. Cleaning should be carried out by a technically savvy user or a specialist. During an event, you can accidentally touch the wires, disrupting the connection system.

Step by step steps:

Disconnect the speakers from the device or the power supply.
Unscrew the bolts on the rear panel and remove the cover.
Check the wires for integrity.
Carefully clean the inside of the case from dirt and dust.

When cleaning the gadget, it is convenient to use a brush; under no circumstances should you use wet wipes or rags.

Cleaning the protective grilles of sound guides for vacuum headphones

If you use vacuum headphones (and optionally don't clean your ears often)