{"id":19345,"date":"2020-11-11T06:26:20","date_gmt":"2020-11-11T06:26:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.auslogics.com\/en\/articles\/?p=19345"},"modified":"2025-03-28T08:54:15","modified_gmt":"2025-03-28T08:54:15","slug":"fix-generic-audio-driver-detected","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.auslogics.com\/en\/articles\/fix-generic-audio-driver-detected\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Fix Generic Audio Driver ‘Detected’ in Windows 10?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sound is an integral part of any PC. Whether your computer doubles as a media device or you primarily use it for work, you still need your speakers to function. Since errors and glitches are inevitable, it isn’t out of the ordinary for your system to experience sound problems once in a while.<\/p>\n

Audio problems raise their ugly heads on Windows PCs when you least expect them, although the activities that happened prior to a sound problem might explain why it occurred. Audio issues can happen after a major Windows update or upgrade. They could be the results of audio driver glitches, audio device issues, software conflicts, or malfunctioning Windows services.<\/p>\n

When your system\u2019s sound becomes faulty, one of the first steps to take is running the audio troubleshooter. The troubleshooter looks for common bugs that are known to affect audio output. Once it finds these glitches, it will attempt to fix them.<\/p>\n

That said, the tool doesn\u2019t have a fix for every problem. One of those untreated issues is the Generic Audio Driver problem, which the tool reports to be \u201cdetected\u201d after running its scan.<\/p>\n

The troubleshooter will only report the problem in this case. You won\u2019t find any option to resolve it in the dialog window. The only options available are \u201cGive feedback on this troubleshooter\u201d, \u201cClose the troubleshooter\u201d, and \u201cView detailed information\u201d.<\/p>\n

In this article, we\u2019ll show you how to get rid of the problem and get your audio device to work again.<\/p>\n

What Does \u2018Generic Audio Driver Detected\u2019 Mean?<\/h2>\n

The error message is an indication that something has gone wrong with the audio driver. The present driver may be corrupt or missing, or some of the services required for the driver to work properly aren\u2019t running.<\/p>\n

How to Resolve the \u2018Generic Audio Driver Detected\u2019 Issue<\/h2>\n

We\u2019ll be walking you through the main troubleshooting techniques that are known to resolve this particular problem. Make sure you apply the fixes in this article in the order that they are arranged.<\/p>\n

First solution: Make sure audio services are enabled<\/h3>\n

There are different audio services that manage audio output on your system. They make sure the audio device responds to the commands that your computer executes. If these services are turned off, the audio device won\u2019t work.<\/p>\n

The troubleshooter may be reporting the error because your audio services have been disabled. Head over to the Services application and make sure the services are running as they should.<\/p>\n

The following steps will guide you:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Launch the Run<\/em> dialog box by right-clicking the Windows logo in the taskbar and selecting Run<\/em> once the Power User<\/em> menu appears.<\/li>\n
  2. Pressing the Win keyboard button and R<\/code> together is another way to launch the Run<\/em> dialog box.<\/li>\n
  3. After Run<\/em> opens, type services.msc<\/code>\u00a0into the text box, and then press the Enter<\/code> keyboard button.<\/li>\n
  4. When the Services application<\/em> opens, head to the Windows Audio<\/em> service and click on it. If it\u2019s running, go to the left side of the screen and click on Stop<\/em>. Once the service is stopped, click on Start<\/em>.<\/li>\n
  5. Repeat Step 4 for the Windows Audio Endpoint Builder<\/em> and the Multimedia Class Scheduler<\/em> services.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Second solution: Disable and enable the audio device<\/h3>\n

    Restarting the audio device may fix any glitch that\u2019s caused by application conflicts. As you know, the audio device can be used by different applications. If more than one program requests audio output at the same time, the driver may suffer a malfunction. When you disable and enable the audio device, the backlog of problems will be cleared.<\/p>\n

    Follow these steps:<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Launch the Run<\/em> dialog box by right-clicking the Windows logo in the taskbar and selecting Run<\/em> once the Power User<\/em> menu appears. Pressing the Win keyboard button and R<\/code> together is another way to launch the Run<\/em> dialog box.<\/li>\n
    2. After Run<\/em> appears, type devmgmt.msc<\/code>, and then press the Enter<\/code> keyboard button.<\/li>\n
    3. Once the Device Manager<\/em> opens, locate \u201cSound, video and game controllers<\/em>\u201d and click on the arrow beside it.<\/li>\n
    4. Your audio device(s) will now appear.<\/li>\n
    5. Right-click your active audio device and click on Disable Device<\/em> in the context menu. Do the same if you have other audio device entries in the menu.<\/li>\n
    6. Now, right-click on the device again and, this time, select Enable Device<\/em> from the context menu. Remember to do the same for the other audio devices.<\/li>\n
    7. Once you\u2019ve done that, reboot your PC, then check if the problem has been resolved.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Third solution: Roll back the audio driver if you started experiencing the problem after an update<\/h3>\n

      If the issue started occurring after you updated your system, a driver update may be the cause. With the Device Manager, you can easily reverse the damage by removing the problematic driver and installing the previous driver.<\/p>\n

      The steps below will show you what to do:<\/p>\n

        \n
      1. Launch the Run<\/em> dialog box by right-clicking the Windows logo in the taskbar and selecting Run<\/em> once the Power User<\/em> menu appears. Pressing the Win and R<\/code> keyboard buttons together is another way to launch the Run<\/em> dialog box.<\/li>\n
      2. After Run<\/em> appears, type devmgmt.msc<\/code>\u00a0and then press the Enter<\/code> keyboard button.<\/li>\n
      3. Once the Device Manager<\/em> opens, locate \u201cSound, video and game controllers<\/em>\u201d and click on the arrow beside it.<\/li>\n
      4. Your audio devices will now appear.<\/li>\n
      5. Right-click on your main speaker and click on Properties<\/em>.<\/li>\n
      6. After the Properties<\/em> dialog window opens, head to the Driver<\/em> tab.<\/li>\n
      7. Under the Driver<\/em> tab, click on the Roll Back Driver<\/em> button.<\/li>\n
      8. Carefully follow the subsequent instructions that pop up, and then click on the Yes<\/em> button.<\/li>\n
      9. Once the process is complete, reboot your computer.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Sometimes, the Roll Back Driver button under the Driver tab won\u2019t be active. This could be because the previous driver has been deleted. If that\u2019s the case or if rolling back the driver doesn\u2019t work, you can restore your system to a previous state when the issue wasn\u2019t present.<\/p>\n

        Follow these steps:<\/p>\n

          \n
        1. Right-click on the Windows logo in the taskbar and click on File Explorer<\/em> when you see the Power User<\/em> menu. You can also tap the Windows and E<\/code> keyboard buttons together to launch the program.<\/li>\n
        2. After the File Explorer<\/em> opens, go to the left side of the window and right-click This PC<\/em>.<\/li>\n
        3. Click on Properties<\/em> in the context menu.<\/li>\n
        4. Once the System<\/em> window opens, go to the left pane and click on the System Protection<\/em> link.<\/li>\n
        5. The System Protection<\/em> tab of the System Properties<\/em> dialog window will now appear.<\/li>\n
        6. Click on the System Restore<\/em> button.<\/li>\n
        7. On the first page of the System Restore wizard<\/em> (where you see \u201cRestore system files and settings<\/em>\u201d), click on Next<\/em>.<\/li>\n
        8. Choose a restore point on the next page, and then click on \u201cScan for affected programs<\/em>\u201d to find out what applications will no longer be available once you restore the system.<\/li>\n
        9. Once you\u2019ve perused the list of affected programs, click on Close<\/em>.<\/li>\n
        10. After that, click on the Next<\/em> button.<\/li>\n
        11. Click on Finish<\/em>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          Fourth solution: Update the audio driver<\/h3>\n

          The audio driver is one of the main reasons you\u2019re seeing the error. As you know, the driver is the program that transfers instructions from the operating system to the audio device. This means the device will malfunction or not respond properly if the driver has an issue.<\/p>\n

          To get rid of the error, in this case, you have to make sure the program is running properly. Your first step should be to make sure it\u2019s up to date.<\/p>\n

          You can use different methods to update your audio driver. Going to the manufacturer\u2019s website is one way to go about it; however, you can use the Windows Update troubleshooter, the Device Manager, or a third-party program to get things done.<\/p>\n

          Use Windows Update<\/h4>\n

          Windows Update downloads and installs different types of updates when they\u2019re available for your PC. These updates include driver updates for devices, such as the audio adapter and speaker.<\/p>\n

          Normally, the utility only downloads and installs driver updates for devices that are supported by Microsoft. Your system\u2019s main audio device should be able to run on Microsoft\u2019s driver.<\/p>\n

          Also, other software updates that are critical to audio-related services can be downloaded via Windows Update.<\/p>\n

          These steps will show you how to manually start the update process:<\/p>\n

            \n
          1. Go to the taskbar and right-click on the Start<\/em> button.<\/li>\n
          2. Once you see the Power User<\/em> menu above the Start<\/em> button, select Settings<\/em>.<\/li>\n
          3. This should open the Settings<\/em> application. You can also use the Windows + I<\/code> keyboard shortcut to summon Settings<\/em>.<\/li>\n
          4. After the home page of Settings<\/em> is displayed on your screen, click on the icon for Update & Security<\/em>.<\/li>\n
          5. On the Update & Security<\/em> page, click on the Check for Updates<\/em> button.<\/li>\n
          6. Allow the utility to check for any available updates and download them.<\/li>\n
          7. Once the updates have been downloaded, click on the Restart Now<\/em> button.<\/li>\n
          8. Your PC will reboot and install the updates.<\/li>\n
          9. After the process completes, check for the audio problem.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

            Use the Device Manager<\/h4>\n

            Using the Device Manager is another way to download and install a compatible audio driver for your audio device. You can use the program to specifically search for the device\u2019s driver update.<\/p>\n

            These steps will show you how to use the program:<\/p>\n

              \n
            1. Launch the Run<\/em> dialog box by right-clicking the Windows logo in the taskbar and selecting Run<\/em> once the Power User<\/em> menu appears. Pressing the Win and R<\/code> keyboard buttons together is another way to launch the Run<\/em> dialog box.<\/li>\n
            2. After Run<\/em> appears, type devmgmt.msc<\/code>, and then press the Enter<\/code> keyboard button.<\/li>\n
            3. Once the Device Manager<\/em> opens, locate \u201cSound, video and game controllers<\/em>\u201d and click on the arrow beside it.<\/li>\n
            4. Your audio devices will now appear.<\/li>\n
            5. Right-click on your main speaker and click on Update Driver<\/em> in the context menu.<\/li>\n
            6. After the Update Driver<\/em> window opens, click on \u201cSearch automatically for updated driver software<\/em>\u201d.<\/li>\n
            7. Allow the Device Manager<\/em> to search the internet for the right driver update and install it.<\/li>\n
            8. If the process is successful, the issue should be resolved.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

              Update your audio driver automatically<\/h4>\n

              There are different third-party programs designed to find and install driver updates. One of the best out there is Auslogics Driver Updater. With this tool, you won\u2019t have to check for the right driver yourself and future updates will be handled with ease.<\/p>\n

              The program performs routine checks to flush out driver-related issues. It finds device drivers that are out of date, missing, or corrupt and then installs their manufacturer-approved updates. It can also save backup copies of previous driver versions, which will be used whenever updates act up.<\/p>\n

              These steps will show you how to use the tool:<\/h4>\n