Enjoying background music while working hard on your latest project can be a great way to stay motivated. But if you’re not the only one in the office, you might not want to disturb your coworkers by playing music out loud. Or maybe you’re gaming with friends and want to chat with them while also hearing the game audio through your headphones. For this reason, Windows 10 makes it easy to play audio through multiple devices simultaneously. So, are you asking yourself, “how do I check this headphones for audio monitoring GP?” or “how do I connect my speakers to this Windows 10 laptop?” If so, this article has you covered.
When Is It Necessary To Activate Headphones Or Speakers On Your Laptop?
There are several reasons you might want to activate headphones or speakers on your Windows 10 laptop. Here are a couple of examples:
- Someone wants to watch tv connected to your laptop, but you still need to work, so you need headphones.
- Play music on a Bluetooth speaker in another room connected to your laptop while still using the machine.
These are some of the most common reasons for wanting to set up multiple audio devices on your Windows 10 laptop, but there are many other potential uses as well.
Before getting into the specific steps of setting up speakers, let’s first understand how sound devices function in Windows 10.
How Do Sound Devices Work In Windows 10?
A sound device generates the sound that you hear on your computer. Windows 10 registers all devices that output sound from your laptop. Each device is registered as a unique audio endpoint, from USB headphones to external speakers and sound cards. You can view all available audio endpoints by opening the Sound settings.
To open the Sound settings, follow these steps:
1. Click the Start button and then select the Settings gear icon.
2. In the Settings window, click on the System icon.
3. From the System settings page, select Sound from the left-hand menu.
4. On the Sound settings page, you’ll see a list of all available audio endpoints under the “Output” section.
If you don’t see your desired audio device listed, ensure it’s properly connected to your laptop and powered on.
Whenever a new audio device is connected to your laptop, Windows 10 automatically detects, registers, and adds it to the list of available endpoints.
Now that we understand how Windows 10 registers sound devices let’s look at how to activate headphones or speakers on your laptop.
Activating Headphones Or Speakers on a Windows 10 Laptop
1. Connect your speakers or headphones to the proper audio port on your laptop. Most laptops will have a 3.5mm headphone jack and a separate port for line-in or microphone input.
If you are using a USB headset, plug it into one of the USB ports on your laptop. Usually, the appropriate sound drivers will install automatically, but if they don’t, you can find them on the manufacturer’s website.
2. Once your speakers or headphones are correctly connected, right-click on the speaker icon in the taskbar to open the dialog box.
3. In the “Speakers” menu, select the sound menu and the playback tab.
4. From the “Playback” tab, double-click on your speakers or headphones to open the properties window.
5. Click on the “levels” menu in the properties window.
6. If your headphones or speakers aren’t loud enough, turn up or down the volume with the slider. You can also use the “mute” checkbox to silence the audio output.
7. Once you’ve adjusted the volume to your liking, click on the “apply” button and then “OK.”
8. Your speakers or headphones should now be ready to use.
You can also change the default audio device in Windows 10 by going to the “Sound” settings and selecting your preferred device from the “Output” drop-down menu.
You might need or want to activate headphones or speakers on your Windows 10 laptop for several reasons. You might need to use headphones so that someone else can watch tv while you work, or you might want to play music on a Bluetooth speaker in another room while still using the machine. Whatever your reason, by following the simple steps outlined above, you can easily add multiple audio devices and change the default sound output on your machine. Be sure to experiment with the different settings and options to find the configuration that works best for you.
