HP8540w Integrated microphone array not working

[hpuseruk1]

At Christmas I tried to Skype some of my relatives but discovered that my integrated microphone array was not working and that they could not hear me.

I am currently on Windows 10 Professional version 1809 and bought my machine about 2009.

I started by reinstalling my original IDT HD Audio drivers but found that they would not work even after an update. I tried to configure  the microphone but the wizard could not pick up any sound. I tried using Voice recorder and Sound recorder (SndRec32) but neither picked up any sound.

I researched the net looking for solutions and tried several sets of recommended drivers but to no avail. Some posters said that there was a sound chip bug, others said that there was a bug in the Windows 10 driver. Someone said that HP had used three versions of the sound chip which were all slightly different. A number of computers had a stereo mix feature but others like mine had a rec.playback feature. Someone said they were actually the same feature but under a different name. Another poster had their machine returned to HP for diagnosis and was told there was a sound chip problem, which resulted in them getting anew laptop.

I tried lots of IDT drivers suggested but some were blocked and others said that the drivers could not support my audio hardware,

I have tried the audio troubleshooters but they can't find a problem and all the IDT drivers installed said the device was working properly  in the Device manager.

I tried the HP hardware diagnostics utility expecting to find hardware failure on my audio equipment but that was OK though my battery failed a check and no ID Failure code was given.

One thing I did notice was that the integrated microphone boost was not functioning properly. Instead of creeping gradually up the decibel scale by degrees  it jumped directly to +10 decibels at the top of the scale which was unusual as other users reported setting it at +20 and +30 decibels.

I have tried an external microphone from my desktop which works great but am still left wondering why the integrated microphone won't work.

Hopefully someone on the community will have solution or have information about the sound chips and the necessary settings to get the integrated microphone working .

Any information wouild be greatly appreciated please. T.I.A. Have a good day. 

[hpuseruk1]

Further to my original post, the following info may be of use:-

Notebook model : HP Elitebook 8540w

Product Number : WD927#ABU

System ID: 1521

BIOS Re.  68CVD Ver. F.22

On the casing of the laptop it does say "Mobile Workstation"

When I access the F1 System information page there is a mass of information but it can't be copied or printed.

Hope this helps

.HPUSERUK1

[hpuseruk1]

Hi Krazy Toad,

Not sure if it is significant but in the device manager under sound, video & game controller section there are 4 entries for Nviia High Definition Audio and a separate entry for Nvidia High Definition Audio Device (Wave Extensible)(WDM).Just wondered if there might be some conflict with the IDT drivers which blocks the integrated microphone in some way.

It would be great to discover which IDT driver I should be using to get the integrated microphone to work and what settings I should have so that I can get sound recorded via the integrated microphone and  recordings played back via the speakers.

Just wondered too if my antivirus or firewall could block use of the integrated microphone.

Thanks for your interest. Look forward to hearing what progress you are making. Have a good day.

Best wishes

HPUSERUK1

[hpuseruk1]

Hi Krazy Toad,

I am currently using IDT High Definition Audio Codec version 6.10.6300 with speakers as default playback device and in the recording section with the integrated microphone as the default device and the external microphone as the the default communications device. Line in and Record Playback are enabled but currently unavailable.

When I run the Audio Check, found as part of the HP Support Assistant, it  does not report any errors in the feedback but when diagnosing the  microphone and the speakers the blue graphic changes to an orange brown colour in the last quarter of the disgnosing cycle. Not sure if this means there is a hardware fault or if maybe the setting in the Sound box are wrong. 

Thanks again for your interest. Have a good day.

Best wishes, HPUSERUK1

[hpuseruk1]

Hi Krazy Toad,

Not sure if it helps but here are the hardware IDs for my current IDT High Definition Audio Codec:-

HDAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_111D&DEV_7603&SUBSYS_103C1521&REV_1002

HDAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_111D&DEV_7603&SUBSYS_103C1521

The sound chip comes in many versions and seems to be numbered 92HD??? where the question marks represent numbers.

I do not know which version is contained within my HP8540w mobile workstation and there does not appear to be a piece of software which will identify the sound chip in a specific machine.Unless you know something different.

Hope that you find this information useful. Have a good day.

Best wishes, HPUSERUK1

[hpuseruk1]

Hi,

Just noticed that the HP Support Assistant says that my Product number is   WD927ET#ABU. and not WD927#ABU reported earlier.Sorry about that. Hope that the differencedid not inconvenienve you.Have a good day.

Best wishes, HPUSERUK1

[hpuseruk1]

Hi Krazy Toad,

In tha absence of a solution I have been experimenting.

One suggestion put forward was to update the IDT High Definition Driver with a non IDT high definition driver.

I tried this and discovered that the integrated microphone disappeared from the Sound box as did the Record Playback Feature.

Still not able to record but on the ordinary microphone that appeared it was possible to set the microphone boost to 30+. Just wondered if there was some code in the non IDT drivers which is missing or corrupted in the IDT version . Hope that helps.

Best wishes HPUSERUK1 

[hpuseruk1]

 Hi Krazy Toad,

Do you happen to know if HP has any software that can identify the IDT Sound Chip in an HP laptop? 

It also may be the case that Dell used the same IDT Sound  chips in their machines and that there might be a Dell driver which would  also work on HP laptops too.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. TIA.

[hpuseruk1 · Accepted solution]

Problem solved

.It appears that the cable that links the motherboard to the integrated microphone comes in 2 parts with a connector in the middle. If the cable from the motherboard is separated from the cable from the integrated microphone the result is that the integrated microphone does not work. Unfortunately the only way to solve this is for someone to open the laptop and reconnect the two cables.It's a pity that HP could not find a way to keep the two ends permanently attached. 

Hope this helps.