Microphone settings in Windows View

Learn how to check if your microphone is configured correctly, and how to fix the settings if it isn't.

If your microphone doesn't seem to be working, or if you used our microphone test and the line doesn't move, your microphone settings must be incorrect.

Step 1Click the Windows symbol in the lower left corner, and then click Control Panel, as shown in the image below:

Step 2:In Control Panel, click Devices and Sound.

Step 3: Under Sound, click Manage Audio Devices.

Step 4Click the Recording tab.

Step 5: The list of recording devices will appear. Try speaking into your microphone, and see if the green bars increase as you speak (see screenshot).

Step 6: If the green bars increase while talking, it means your microphone is set up correctly (What to do if my microphone is not working even though it is set up correctly?)

Step 7:If the green bars do not go up when you speak into the microphone, continue following the instructions.

Step 8Check if you can recognize which of the devices in the list is your microphone, click the corresponding device to highlight it, and then click Set Default.

Step 9Double-click the device in the list. The Microphone Properties window will appear. Click on the Levels tab.

Step 10:Drag the slider all the way to the right, until the number 100 is displayed next to it.

Step 11: Click OK.

Step 12: Now check if the green bars go up when you talk into the microphone, if yes, your microphone is now configured correctly. If you tried this process for all devices but still don't see the green bars, click here.

What to do if you see the green bars moving but your microphone still doesn't work in some program?

If you see the green bars moving, it means that your microphone is definitely working and Windows recognizes it. To verify this, you can test your microphone on our main page. The problem now is in the settings of that specific program – you could be listening to the wrong microphone, or perhaps the input volume is too low.

Try to modify with the program settings, contact the support team of the program developers if you cannot find a solution.

What to do if the green bars do not increase on any device?

Right click on the Recording tab (steps 1-4). A menu will appear. Click the Show disabled devices option.

This should add additional devices to the list. Apply steps 5-12 on those devices as well, until you see the green bars move when you speak into the microphone.

This is the end of this guide.