Audio signals have always been a problematic part of live streaming and screen sharing. In order to successfully transmit sound from Discord to others, there are many steps involved, from Discord permissions and audio-related settings to computer audio settings. If any of these settings are incorrect, it may result in no sound. This article provides troubleshooting methods that can be tried when encountering audio problems.
Troubleshooting microphone with no sound – Discord settings check
Sometimes when live streaming, video conferencing, or screen sharing, there is no sound from the microphone. This is often due to incorrect Discord settings. Let’s check from the basic to the most complex settings one by one.
Checkpoint 1: Have you unmuted yourself?
Check whether the microphone icon in the lower left corner of the interface is turned on. If it is in a muted state, you cannot make any sound.
Unmute the microphone
If you find that the microphone icon in the lower left corner of your interface is red and cannot be turned on no matter what, it means that you do not have the role to speak in this voice channel. You can only ask the administrator or moderator to give you the role to speak.
No speaking permission
Checkpoint 2: Have you been muted by an administrator or moderator?
If you see a red microphone icon next to your name in the voice channel list, it means that you have been muted by an administrator or moderator on the server side, and only the administrator or moderator can unmute you.
Server-side mute
Checkpoint 3: Is the input mode set to push-to-talk?
Open “User Settings” and go to the “Voice & Video” section to check whether the “Input Mode” setting for voice is set to “Voice Activity” or “Push to Talk (Limited)”. If it is set to “Push to Talk”, you must press the designated push-to-talk key while speaking in order to send sound. If you don’t press the push-to-talk key, no one can hear you.
Voice Input Mode
Checkpoint 4: Check if the voice settings are normal
Continuing from the previous checkpoint, check the “Voice & Video” settings to see if the “Input Device” for the voice setting is the microphone you are currently using. Also, check if the “Input Volume” is loud enough, and after adjusting it, you can click “Let’s Check” to test if your microphone is working properly.
If you still can’t hear your microphone’s sound, try moving the white slider of “Input Sensitivity” to the left to reduce sensitivity, and then test again.
Adjust Voice Settings
Checkpoint 5: Microphone access is denied.
If you see the message “Microphone access is denied” when you click on the “Voice & Video” settings, it means that your browser has blocked Discord’s microphone, and you need to adjust the settings in your browser.
Microphone access is denied
Using the Chrome browser as an example, first click on the three dots in the upper right corner of the window and select “Settings”.
Open Chrome settings
Then select “Privacy and security” and find “Site settings”.
“Privacy and security” –> “Site settings”
Then select Discord.com and change the microphone status from “Blocked” to “Allowed”. This way, the microphone for the web version of Discord can be used normally.
Change the microphone status from “Blocked” to “Allowed”
Checkpoint 6: Adjust advanced settings for voice settings
If the above steps are still ineffective, try scrolling down to the advanced settings section under “Voice & Video”, and try toggling “Echo Cancellation” and “Automatic Gain Control” to see if they can improve the microphone’s sound. If none of them work, try clicking “Reset Voice Settings” at the bottom and try again.
Adjust Advanced Voice Settings
Checkpoint 7: Check if Discord is up to date
If using the desktop version, click on the application icon in the lower right corner of the desktop, right-click on the Discord icon, and then select “Check for Updates” to see if there is a new version of Discord available to update.
Check for Latest Version
Troubleshooting Microphone Sound – Computer Settings Check
If all Discord settings have been tried and are still ineffective, try checking the computer’s settings.
Checkpoint 1: Check “Sound Settings”
Search for “Sound Settings” in Win 11, go to “Choose a device for speaking or recording” to see if the correct device is selected.
Sound Settings
and then select “Start test” below to test the sound.
test your microphone
Checkpoint 2: Update Drivers in Device Manager
Search for “Device Manager” in Win 11, go to “Audio inputs and outputs” find your input device, right-click and select “Update Driver,” check for any new versions and try your microphone again to see if it works properly.
Update drivers
Troubleshooting No Sound When Sharing Screen in Discord
Some people may be able to use their microphone normally but cannot share sound when sharing their screen. Try the following methods.
Checkpoint 1: Note the Type of Screen Share (applicable to Discord desktop version)
When sharing the screen, Discord has two types of screen sharing options: “Applications” and “Screens”. Note that if you share your “Screens”, you cannot share the audio from the applications in the screen. Only by selecting “Applications” can you share the audio with your screen share.
Types of screen sharing
If there is still no sound when selecting “Applications”, continue to try the following checkpoints.
Checkpoint 2: Enable the “Voice & Video” option (applicable to Discord desktop version)
Open “User Settings,” go to the “Voice & Video” menu, turn on the “Use an experimental method to capture audio from applications” option. After turning on this option, reopen Discord and try sharing “Applications” again. If there is still no sound, continue to try the following checkpoints.
Enable “Use an experimental method to capture audio from applications”
Checkpoint 3: Set up “Registered Games” (applicable to Discord desktop version)
Open “User Settings,” go to the “Registered Games” menu. If you don’t see the application you are using, select the blue “Add It!” button. Here, we take Google Chrome as an example and add it to the “Registered Games.” Reopen Discord and try sharing “Applications” again.
Set up “Registered Games”
Checkpoint 4: Check if Discord is up to date
If you are using the desktop version, click on the running applications in the lower right corner of the desktop, right-click on the Discord icon, and select “Check for Updates” to see if there is a newer version of Discord available.
Check for Latest Version
