How to Fix When Red X Volume Icon Appear in Windows 10
To be very specific, there are multiple reasons behind the volume not working or red cross icon issue such as either the audio driver isn’t installed or become outdated. In some cases, the audio device compatibility issue or even improperly configured audio device settings can also conflict with the audio input/output.
Alternatively, checking physical connectivity with the audio device or speaker and adjusting the volume controls can also fix this particular issue. So, let’s dive into it.
1. Check Connected Audio Device Compatibility
- Press Windows + X keys on the keyboard to open up the Quick Link Menu.
- Click on Device Manager.
- Click on the arrow icon of the Audio inputs and outputs to expand the list.
- Now, right-click on the connected audio device (headphone/speaker).
- Then go to Properties > Click on the General tab.
- Here you’ll be able to see the Device Status “This device is working properly.”
- It means that your connected audio device is working well with the computer and its system.
- Sometimes, restarting your computer or boot into the safe mode can also fix the Red X Volume Icon Windows 10 problem.
Now, let’s follow the next step.
2. Connect Audio Device Properly (Physically)
Check whether the speaker and the audio system is properly connected or not. Make sure to unplug the audio device wire/cable from the computer and re-insert it properly.
Also, check whether the audio device wire/cable is damaged or not. If your sound system or speaker has an aux cable and a USB cable to power in, then plug all of them to their respective ports properly. Finally, restart your computer to check whether the Red X Volume Icon Windows 10 issue is solved or not.
3. Adjust Volume Control
After following the second method properly, you have to check and adjust the system volume control from the audio settings.
- First of all, check whether the system audio volume level is low/disabled or not. If in case, the volume level is quite low to hear clearly or completely disabled, then increase the volume level up to 50-60% for checkup purpose.
- Now, move your mouse cursor to the right side of the taskbar > Click once on the audio/speaker icon > Then click on the speaker icon again to toggle the mute option.
Alternatively, you can do the following steps:
- Click on Start > Type Adjust Volume on the search bar.
- Click on it from the search result > Under the Audio section from the left pane, go to the Sound settings (Related settings).
- Here you can choose the output device from the list.
- Then click on Troubleshoot to detect and automatically fix the issue.
- Additionally, you can also manage sound devices, choose input devices, test your microphone, and go through the Advanced sound options, etc.
- Once done all changes, restart your computer to fix the Red X Volume Icon Windows 10 issue.
4. Check Audio Drivers
Finally, if none of the above methods worked for you, then you should consider checking the installed audio driver on your computer as well.
- Press Windows + X keys on the keyboard to open up the Quick Link Menu.
- Click on Device Manager.
- Click on the arrow icon of the Audio inputs and outputs to expand the list.
- Now, right-click on the connected audio device (headphone/speaker).
- Click on Update driver > Select Search automatically for drivers.
- If there is a new update available, the system will automatically download and install the update.
- Once done, restart your computer to apply changes.
Otherwise, you can also directly go to the official website of the computer manufacturer to download the latest audio driver for your particular model number. Once downloaded, simply install the audio driver and reboot the PC to fix the issue. Finally, you can check out that the Red X Volume Icon Windows 10 issue has been solved now.
That’s it, guys. We hope you’ve found this guide pretty helpful. For further queries, let us know in the comments below.
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