HDMI connected to a TV or monitor, and Windows 11 shows the display working perfectly — but no sound. Audio is playing from the laptop’s built-in speakers instead of the TV, or from the PC’s onboard audio instead of the HDMI device. In most cases this is a default audio device selection issue and takes about 30 seconds to fix. We go deeper on the whole subject in our Complete Guide to Fixing Windows, Browser, and Software Errors.
Click the speaker icon in the taskbar → click the device name below the volume slider (it shows the current output device) → a list of all audio outputs appears → select the HDMI or TV option. If you see something like “Digital Audio (HDMI)” or “[TV Brand] Audio” in the list: click it. Sound should immediately switch to the TV. Done.
When the HDMI audio device doesn’t appear in the list
If the HDMI audio device isn’t visible in the output list at all: Windows hasn’t detected it as an audio endpoint. Several causes:
Check if it’s disabled: right-click the speaker icon → Sound settings → scroll down → “More sound settings” → a classic Control Panel dialog opens → Playback tab → right-click anywhere in the blank area → “Show Disabled Devices” and “Show Disconnected Devices.” If an HDMI audio device appears (greyed out): right-click it → Enable.
Display driver issue: HDMI audio is bundled with the GPU driver, not the motherboard audio driver. If you recently updated or reinstalled GPU drivers: the HDMI audio component may not have installed correctly. Device Manager → Sound, video and game controllers → if you see “NVIDIA High Definition Audio” or “AMD High Definition Audio” or “Intel Display Audio” with a yellow warning triangle: that’s the cause. Right-click → Update driver or Uninstall device → restart. A clean GPU driver installation usually resolves this.
Display not set as audio-capable: some HDMI connections don’t signal audio capability if the GPU thinks the connected device is a display-only monitor. In the GPU’s audio settings: NVIDIA Sound / AMD Display Audio settings (accessible in the audio control panel or GPU software) → ensure the HDMI output port is mapped to the audio device correctly.
TV audio settings
This is overlooked more often than it should be. TVs have their own input-specific audio settings. If the HDMI port receives audio but the TV’s speakers aren’t producing sound: check the TV’s settings menu → Audio → select the correct audio output or ensure the HDMI-connected input isn’t set to a separate audio receiver/soundbar as the destination. Some TVs default new HDMI inputs to ARC output, which sends audio to an external soundbar instead of the built-in speakers.
Also: some TVs need to receive a signal on the HDMI port before enabling HDMI audio. If the PC was connected with a display-only cable previously and the TV “remembers” it as no-audio: turn the TV off, change the HDMI cable to one that supports both video and audio (standard HDMI cables do), reconnect, and turn the TV on. The fresh handshake re-negotiates capabilities.
HDMI vs DisplayPort audio behaviour differences
A small but relevant distinction: DisplayPort connections also carry audio, but the audio handling differs from HDMI. With DisplayPort: audio appears as “High Definition Audio Device” in the playback list, often without a specific device name. With HDMI: audio usually appears with the TV or monitor’s brand name if the connection fully negotiated.
If using a DisplayPort-to-HDMI adapter: audio only passes through if the adapter is active (has a chip) and the GPU’s DisplayPort output supports audio over DP. Passive DP-to-HDMI adapters often don’t carry audio. Check the adapter specs. If you need audio through this adapter: replace with a confirmed audio-compatible active adapter.
Our guide on Windows audio troubleshooting covers the broader audio device selection issues, and our display detection covers the visual side of HDMI connection problems that often coexist. For HDMI audio device specifications and capability negotiation, the HDMI Forum covers which cable and version specifications support audio alongside which video formats.
Reinstalling the HDMI audio driver
When Device Manager shows the HDMI audio device exists but with a yellow warning, or when the device exists but audio quality is wrong: a clean driver reinstall often fixes it.
- Device Manager → Sound, video and game controllers
- Find the HDMI audio device (NVIDIA HD Audio, AMD HD Audio, Intel Display Audio)
- Right-click → Uninstall device → check “Delete the driver software for this device” → confirm
- Restart Windows
- On boot, Windows reinstalls a basic driver. Check if HDMI audio now works
- For NVIDIA/AMD: reinstalling the full GPU driver package from the manufacturer’s site includes the HDMI audio component and gives the complete driver
The full GPU driver reinstall is the most thorough approach: it wipes and reinstalls both the display driver and the HDMI audio component together, which handles cases where one is installed correctly but the other isn’t.
Setting HDMI audio as default permanently
Windows remembers which audio device you last used but may switch back to the laptop speakers or headphones when they’re plugged in. To make HDMI the permanent default:
Right-click speaker icon → Sound settings → Output → select the HDMI device → done for the current session. For it to persist: right-click the HDMI device in the classic Playback tab (Control Panel → Sound → Playback) → “Set as Default Device.” Also right-click → “Set as Default Communication Device” if you want video calls to use the TV’s audio.
If Windows keeps switching back to laptop speakers when headphones are plugged in: this is expected default behaviour. Windows prioritises newly-connected devices. Workaround: after plugging in headphones for a call, click the taskbar speaker icon and switch back to HDMI when the call is over.
App-specific audio routing
Some apps have their own audio output selection that overrides the Windows default. If HDMI audio is set as the default but a specific application (YouTube in Chrome, a game, a media player) still plays through speakers: check within the app for its own audio settings.
Windows 11 App Volume settings: right-click speaker → Sound settings → scroll to “Volume mixer” section → look at each app’s assigned audio device. If an app shows “System default” it uses the Windows default; if it shows a specific device (speakers, headphones): that app was configured separately. Click the app → change its output to “System default” or directly to the HDMI device.
HDMI audio format and quality settings
HDMI audio supports multiple formats: PCM stereo, PCM 5.1/7.1, Dolby Digital, DTS, and (on HDMI 2.1 with eARC) Dolby Atmos and DTS:X. Windows needs to be configured to send the format your TV or receiver can decode.
For simple stereo from a TV: PCM 2.0 is correct. For a home theater receiver that handles surround: PCM 5.1 or Dolby Digital (if the content is available in that format). To configure: Control Panel → Sound → Playback → double-click the HDMI audio device → Advanced tab → Default Format dropdown → select the appropriate format.
If audio is distorted or cutting out: the selected format is likely too high for what the HDMI cable or TV supports. Drop to stereo PCM and test. Bitstream formats (Dolby Digital, DTS) also need the “Allow applications to take exclusive control” option to work properly — that checkbox in the same Advanced tab is required for exclusive mode apps (media players that want full surround output control) to work correctly.
| Symptom | Cause | Fix |
| Sound coming from PC, not TV | Wrong default audio device | Click taskbar speaker → select HDMI device |
| HDMI audio device not in list | Device disabled or driver missing | Show disabled devices; check Device Manager |
| HDMI audio disappeared after GPU update | HDMI audio component not installed | Reinstall full GPU driver package |
| Audio on HDMI but TV speakers silent | TV routing to ARC/soundbar output | Check TV audio settings for this HDMI input |
| DisplayPort-to-HDMI adapter, no audio | Passive adapter doesn’t carry audio | Use active audio-capable adapter |
| Distorted audio through HDMI | Format too high for cable/TV | Drop to PCM stereo in Advanced tab |
HDMI audio issues are almost always either a device selection issue (easiest fix) or a GPU driver issue (slightly more involved). The “show disabled devices” check in the Playback tab catches the hidden-device scenario that otherwise makes HDMI audio seem completely absent. Between these four checks — device selection, show disabled, GPU driver reinstall, TV audio settings — the problem almost always reveals itself and resolves without needing anything more complex.
HDMI ARC and eARC for soundbars
HDMI ARC (Audio Return Channel) is specifically for sending TV audio back to a soundbar or receiver through the same cable that brings video in. eARC is the enhanced version supporting lossless audio formats.
If you’re connecting a PC to a TV and the TV is also connected to a soundbar via HDMI ARC: the PC audio goes PC → TV → soundbar. Windows needs to output to the TV’s HDMI audio device, and the TV then routes it to the soundbar. If the TV’s ARC settings are misconfigured, audio might reach the TV but not continue to the soundbar.
Configure from the TV settings: go to the audio/sound menu → look for “Sound output” → select “ARC” or “Soundbar” as the destination. The exact menu varies by TV brand (LG calls it “HDMI ARC,” Samsung calls it “Sound Output,” Sony calls it “ARC”). After setting the TV correctly: PC audio should flow through the soundbar automatically.
Multiple monitors and audio routing
On multi-monitor setups where each monitor is connected via HDMI: Windows lists each as a separate audio device. If you have three monitors but only want audio from one: select that specific monitor’s audio device in the taskbar speaker list. The monitor names usually appear (e.g., “DELL UltraSharp Audio” or “LG ULTRAFINE Audio”) making it identifiable.
For users with a mixed setup (one HDMI monitor, one DisplayPort monitor): only the HDMI one carries audio. The DisplayPort monitor’s “audio device” entry (if it has speakers) appears separately if it has audio capability. Select the correct one for your intended audio output.
HDMI audio for gaming setups
When gaming on a TV via HDMI: audio latency through HDMI can be notable on TVs with audio processing enabled. Most TVs have a “Game Mode” that disables post-processing including audio processing, reducing latency. Enable Game Mode on the TV’s input settings for the connected game source — audio latency drops significantly alongside the video latency reduction that Game Mode is primarily designed for.
For competitive gaming where audio timing matters: a dedicated USB audio interface or a wired headset connected directly to the PC gives lower and more consistent latency than HDMI TV speakers. HDMI audio is great for casual gaming and media consumption, less ideal for competitive play where audio cues are timing-critical.
Spatial audio and Dolby Atmos for HDMI
Windows 11 supports spatial audio processing (Windows Sonic for Headphones, Dolby Atmos for Headphones) which is primarily for headphones — it creates a 3D audio effect in stereo headphones. These settings don’t apply to HDMI output in the same way and can sometimes interfere with HDMI audio if accidentally set on the HDMI audio device.
Check: Control Panel → Sound → Playback → double-click the HDMI audio device → Spatial sound tab → set to “Off” for HDMI devices unless you have an actual Dolby Atmos-capable TV and a Dolby Atmos license. Leaving spatial audio enabled on an HDMI device that doesn’t support it can cause audio format mismatches that produce silence or distortion.
For the common scenario of a PC connected to a regular TV for casual video watching: stereo PCM output, spatial audio Off, HDMI audio device set as default — this configuration gives stable, clean audio with no compatibility issues across any content type.
One quick pattern recognition tip: if HDMI audio worked before and stopped suddenly without any configuration change on the PC: check whether the TV firmware updated itself overnight. Some smart TV firmware updates reset HDMI input configurations to defaults, including audio routing settings. Checking the TV’s audio settings (rather than the PC’s) first often saves time in these “it stopped working on its own” situations.
The other common sudden-stop scenario: a monitor or TV was powered off or disconnected and Windows switched the default audio device to speakers as a result. Windows actively switches audio output when it detects a device disconnecting. When the TV is turned back on or reconnected, Windows doesn’t automatically switch back — you need to manually reselect the HDMI device. This is by design, not a bug, and the taskbar volume control one-click switch makes it fast to flip back each time. Related: Windows 11 Audio Not Working.
