realtek microphone is muffled

[itsskavii]

My microphone was working but i wanted to record my sound in sound recorder and as I was doing that theere were two options and when i select the realtek microphone it would sound muffled unless i shout directly into my headset but when i chose microphonearray it sounded well but i wanted to use realtek since it was the one i usually used so i deleted the drivers to try and see if it would work... did a whole windows reinstall via an iso file, did a factory reset and the issue still persists and i know its not a hardware issue since even if i disconnect my headset and use the laptop microphone it is still the same issue... NEED HELP #help

[VikramTheGreat]

Hi @itsskavii,

Welcome to the HP Support Community.
 

Thank you for posting your query. I will be glad to help you.

We understand how concerning this issue is, especially after reinstalling Windows and resetting the system. Based on your description, this is a known Windows 11 + Realtek audio behavior on HP notebooks, and it is correctable through proper recommended audio configuration. This is not a hardware fault.
 

Please follow the steps below exactly.

Step 1: Set the correct microphone as the default

1. Right‑click the Speaker icon in the taskbar
2. Select Sound settings
3. Under Input, select Realtek Microphone
4. Click Set as default

Step 2: Adjust Realtek microphone levels

1. In Sound settings, click More sound settings
2. Open the Recording tab
3. Select Realtek Microphone
4. Click Properties
5. Go to the Levels tab: 
   • Set the microphone to 90–100
   • Set Microphone Boost to +20 dB (or highest available)
6. Click Apply → OK

Step 3: Disable audio enhancements

1. In Microphone Properties
2. Open the Enhancements tab
3. Check ✅ Disable all enhancements
4. Go to the Advanced tab
5. Uncheck: 
   • ✅ Allow applications to take exclusive control
6. Click Apply → OK

These enhancements are the primary cause of muffled input on Realtek microphones.

Step 4: Set the correct audio format

In the Advanced tab:

• Select 16‑bit, 48000 Hz (DVD Quality)
  (If unavailable, use 16‑bit, 44100 Hz)

Click Apply → OK.

Step 5: Disable Realtek power management

1. Open Device Manager
2. Expand Sound, video and game controllers
3. Right‑click Realtek Audio
4. Select Properties
5. Go to the Power Management tab
6. Uncheck: 
   • ❌ Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power
7. Click OK
8. Restart the notebook

I hope this helps.

Take care and have an amazing day!