Audio Issues

[polsc]

I have the following issues with audio on my Spectre x360:

1. the B&O audio manager does not allow bass/treble control of headphones when plugged in; bass/treble controls seem to only apply to the internal speakers; as a result, audio through headphones or connected equipment is decidedly mediocre for a high end laptop; even when headphones are unplugged, there is no equalizer, just basic bass/treble control; is this an intentional limitation of the B&O/HP audio manager? Can an alternative audio manager, and standard driver, be used as an alternative? If so, what procedure should be followed?
2. Also, when I install version 6.0.1.8437 of the Realtek driver, the process Windows Audio Device Graph Isolation consumes over 30% of the CPU; version 6.0.1.8351 does not; uninstalling skype resolves the high CPU load, but this is clearly not a fix; none of my other laptops exhibit this symptom, so for now, I'm sticking to the previous driver version; is there a known procedure to address this?

[Jeet_singh]

@polsc,

Thank you for posting your query on HP Community,

I would suggest you could try to run the test on the audio from F2 (Please remember to capture the failure ID for further assistance).

• Hold the power button for at least five seconds to turn off the computer.

• Turn on the computer and immediately press the F2 key repeatedly, about once every second.

• The HP PC Hardware Diagnostics (UEFI) main menu is displayed.

• Select Component tests.

• Please initiate a test on the Audio - The Audio Playback Test checks your system to make sure the audio device is functioning properly. During the test, a few music notes are played in sequence and then repeated. This test takes 1 minute to complete. Click Audio, then click Run once. Choose either the speakers or the headphones. When asked, enter the number of notes you heard.

If the test passes, as mentioned this could be a software or driver related issue. Let's try these steps here: 

I would suggest here is to Run Windows Updates troubleshooter -

Download and install the troubleshooter from this link.

Now try to perform a Windows update:

1) In the search box, type and open Windows Updates. 

2) Check for updates. 

3) If the updates are available, click on install and restart the computer.

If the issue persists, I would suggest here is to uninstall the audio drivers from device manager: 

Right-Click on start button> click device manager> expand sound video and game controllers>then select the sound drivers and right-click on it and uninstall the audio drivers.

Then check the box delete the software for this device.

Now restart the computer and then update the Bios, Chipset and Audio drivers on your PC from our HP support website, using this link.

Also, download and install HP support assistant on your PC. It should automatically download and install the latest updates and drivers for your PC.

Refer this link to know how to use HP support assistant.

Let me know how it goes for further assistance!

Please click “Accept as Solution” if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution.

Click the “Kudos, Thumbs Up" on the bottom right to say “Thanks” for helping!

[polsc]

Regarding the issue of high CPU usage, I have resolved this by uninstalling the driver, deleting directory, installing factory version, then updating to latest. Thanks.

Regarding my query on the lack of equalizer, and lack of tone controls when headphones are plugged in, is this a function of the B&O software? Are there any plans to introduce this capability, or is it present in earlier versions? If not, is it possible to install different third party software which does provide this capability? 

[Jeet_singh]

Let's try these steps here: 

Open windows file explorer, select This PC, double click Local Disk C, open Program Files, open the folder Realtek, open Audio, and open HDA - near the bottom of the list, do you see an entry titled RtkNGUI64 ?  If you do have this entry, try double clicking it - does this launch the B&o gui?

Please try the steps recommended below.

Try updating the BIOS and audio drivers to the latest version from the links and check if it helps.

Go to Windows Device Manager > Sound, video and game controllers section.
In the list of audio device drivers, look for Realtek High-Definition (HD) Audio. This is the device driver for BeatsAudio (a little bit sneaky, wouldn’t you say?).
Right-click and select Disable. The downward arrow displays on this driver, indicating it is disabled. (NOTE: At this point, you won’t be able to play any music files.)
Right-click and select Update Driver Software.
Select Browse my computer for driver software.
Select Let me pick from a list of device drivers on my computer.
You should see a window that says Select the device driver you want to install for this hardware. NOTE: If you see a window that says something like This is the best driver for this device, exit the window and repeat steps 4, 5, and 6.
In the Model box, highlight High Definition Audio Device (this is the substitute audio device driver) and click Next.
At the Update Driver Warning window, click Yes. You should see a confirmation window with High Definition Audio Device displayed. Click Close.
In the list of audio device drivers in the Sound, video and game controllers section, you’ll notice that the High Definition Audio Device now displays instead of Realtek High-Definition (HD) Audio.
At the prompt to reboot, click Yes.

Let me know if this works!

Have a great day!