Realtek HD Audio is an audio driver for system sound that supports DTS, Dolby, and Surround Sound. It is not mandatory to install Realtek HD Audio, but it is very helpful. The application used for managing audio settings on the PC is called RealTek HD Audio Manager. This application allows you to configure your microphone/speaker settings and try out different sound effects as well. In this article we have compiled several methods that will serve as a complete guide to download, install or reinstall Realtek HD Audio Manager on your computer.
Reinstall Realtek HD Audio using the Device Manager
Download the Realtek HD Audio Manager and driver
If the above method does not work for you, you have nothing to worry about. Hopefully you will be able to manually download and install the application on your computer. Let’s look at how you can download and install this audio manager manually. This will install RealTek Audio Driver 2.82 on your system. It will install the driver as well as RealTek Audio Manager. If you are running Windows 10, you should get an updated Realtek audio driver from Windows Update. Otherwise, you can download the latest update patch from Microsoft from the following link: Download RealTek Audio Driver update Version 6.0.9098.1 (For Windows 10 Version 1903 or later) Download RealTek Audio Driver update Version 6.0.9098.1 (For Windows 10 Version 1809 or later) Download RealTek Audio Driver update Version 6.0.9098.1 (For Windows 10 Version 1803 or later) The installation of this update will update the driver to the latest version (up to January 2021).
Troubleshooting Realtek HD Audio Manager
There are times when simply installing or reinstalling the audio driver will not work. Generally, we can troubleshoot the problem of the driver not getting installed correctly in a few common situations. Let’s discuss the fixes here.
Fixing driver conflicts
Realtek audio drivers can conflict with existing audio drivers (even if they are from Microsoft). For generic sound, Microsoft installs UAA Bus Driver for High Definition Audio. It should be disabled or removed before we can install Realtek audio drivers.
Enable RealTek Audio on system startup
Error: Install Realtek HD Audio Driver Failure [Error OxC0000374]
Some users have reported that they are facing the error code OxC0000374 while trying to install the Realtek HD Audio Driver. However, you should know that the error code can be different for different users and cases. This problem can happen due to different reasons. Different causes can create an error like this. However, sometimes, these issues appear when you have a dead sound card. Keep in mind that you will not be able to apply a software fix to clear this issue if you are having problems with your physical sound card. The only solution to a dead sound card is replacing it with a brand new one. In case of a dead sound card, Windows will show you a yellow exclamation mark with an “Unknown device” label. You won’t be able to install the drivers for your sound card because the hardware is not responding to the system. Hence, none of the solutions that we have mentioned here will work for you if your sound card needs to be replaced.
Find malfunctioning sound drivers and update them
If you are unable to install the sound card drivers, consider updating them directly through the Device Manager through the following procedure:
Search for Device Manager in the Windows Search option next to the Start icon in the TaskbarOnce the Device Manager opens up, start looking for the Sound driver optionAfter finding the Sound options, consider inspecting them for a bit and see whether any of them have a question mark or an exclamation mark in front of themIf any of the drivers on that list have an exclamation or a question mark, right-click on that driver.By right-clicking on the driver, a list of options will appear. Select the Update Driver option from this listOnce you select this option, you may have to provide a confirmation.
Once the driver is updated, consider restarting your system to see if the problem has been resolved. If the error is not resolved, consider continuing with this second method.
Adding legacy hardware through Device Manager
Another method that is applicable to tackle this situation is adding legacy hardware. However, this method is only considered when you are trying to fix the missing Sound, video, and game controllers from the Device Manager.
Open up the device manager by pressing Windows Key + X and then pressing the M key from the keyboard when the list of options appears on the lower-left corner of your pc screen.Once the Device Manager opens up, click on select the Action tab from the toolbar and choose the Add legacy hardware option from the drop-down menu.A window will appear. Click Next and choose the option you want to go with from the menu that appears in the Add Hardware window.Once the list of hardware is displayed, select the driver you want to install and proceed.
Once the driver is installed, reboot your system and test it to confirm whether it works or not. If it does not, you can consider disabling the UAA Bus Driver and reinstalling the Realtek HD Audio Driver. These drivers usually conflict with each other and once the UAA driver is removed, Realtek HD Audio Driver works normally.
The Last Resort
If none of the above solutions work for you, you can consider rolling back to a previous system restore point where the Realtek HD Audio Manager and its driver were working properly on your computer system. If there is no system restore point on your computer, your System Restore utility will not be able to do anything to resolve the issues you are facing with either your Realtek HD Audio Manager or your Realtek HD Audio Driver. However, if you use this option with a previously saved point, your data won’t be affected. Understand that this solution is the last option and do it only if none of the methods that we mentioned in this article are working for you.
To restore your system to a previous state, start by pressing opening up the Run utility with Windows Key + X and then R later on when the menu appears.Now, type “rstrui” in the run “Open” box and hit the Enter key.Once the System Restore Window appears in front of you, click the “Next” button.If you have created any System Restore points in the past, you will be able to see them in the list that appears in the System Restore utility window.Check the “Show more restore points” option to display all of the system restore points that you have created.Now, select the restore point that is most suitable for you depending upon the time when it was created and click on the Next button option.However, make sure not to select a restore point where the audio drivers were not working correctly or were missing from the system. There’s no use reverting to this kind of state.Once you have confirmed your restore point, click the Next button.Once you click the Next button, Windows will start to restore your system to a point that is discussed in the “Description” field. Click the “finish” button and wait for the process to complete.
The above were some methods that you can implement if you are unable to find the Realtek HD Audio Manager on your PC or if it is not working correctly. If any of the above procedures are not working for you, maybe it’s time to replace your sound card to continue experiencing sounds from your computer system. Remember, applying software fixes to a hardware problem is never going to work and is a waste of time as well. Hence, make sure that you have confirmed that the sound card is working perfectly fine before applying the above methods.
Conclusion
Realtek HD Audio Manager is an important utility and often comes pre-installed in the latest version of Windows like Windows 10 and and most probably Windows 11. However, there might be some problems that are forcing the audio manager to not function properly on your system. In such situations, you need to follow the simple step-by-step guide mentioned in the article. Just implement any of the above strategies, and hopefully, your Realtek HD Audio Driver will come to life again by integrating with the Realtek HD Audio Manager. If it does not, maybe replacing the whole sound card might be a better option that could save you a lot of time. Anyone can follow the above steps to install the Realtek HD Audio Manager and fix these minor issues themselves.
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