How to change the volume and sound output device on your PC
When your music plays through the wrong speakers, or your headphones stay silent, the fix is a few clicks. Here is how to switch the sound output device and set the volume, by hand and with Key.
You plug in headphones, start a video, and the sound still comes out of the laptop speakers. Or a video call goes quiet because your computer is sending sound to a monitor with no speakers. It is a common problem, and it is easy to fix once you know where to look.
Your computer keeps a list of every place sound can go: built-in speakers, headphones, a monitor, a Bluetooth speaker. At any moment, one of them is chosen. Changing that choice is all it takes.
Check these first. Make sure cables are plugged in all the way, the speakers or headphones are switched on, and nothing is muted. A muted device sounds just like a wrong one.
Change the sound output device on Windows 11
This is the quickest way, and it works while your music or video is playing.
- Select the speaker icon on the taskbar, near the clock.
- Select the arrow to the right of the volume slider. If you hover over it, it says “Select a sound output”.
- In the list of audio devices, choose the speakers or headphones you want.
- Play something to check that the sound comes from the right place.
To change the volume in the same panel, drag the slider left for quieter and right for louder.
The longer way, through Settings
If the device is not in the quick list, or you want to see everything in one place, use Settings.
- Press Win + I to open Settings.
- Go to Settings › System › Sound.
- Under the output section, pick the device you want to hear.
- Use the volume slider there to set how loud it is.
Change the sound output device on Windows 10
- Select the speaker icon on the taskbar. If you do not see it, select “Show hidden icons” first.
- Select the arrow to open the list of audio devices connected to your computer.
- Choose your speakers or headphones.
- Play something to make sure the sound is coming from the right place.
Change the sound output device on a Mac
On a Mac, the choice lives in System Settings.
- Choose the Apple menu, then System Settings › Sound.
- Click Output.
- Select the device you want from the list. It can include the built-in speakers, your display's speakers, headphones or speakers plugged in, USB speakers and AirPlay devices.
- Drag the Output volume slider to set how loud it is.
To silence everything at once, tick the Mute box in the same place. If Sound is added to your menu bar, you can also turn the volume up or down from anywhere without opening System Settings.
Good to know: apps like Music can be set quieter than your Mac's main volume, but never louder. If one app sounds too quiet, check the main Output volume first.
If your device is not in the list
- Plug it in again, or turn it off and on if it is a Bluetooth device.
- Check that it is paired and connected. A Bluetooth speaker that is paired but not connected will not appear.
- Try another port or cable. A loose plug is the most common cause.
- Restart the app that is playing sound. Some apps only notice a new device when they start.
Ask Key to do it for you
If you would rather not hunt through menus, you can ask Key. Key is a free assistant that lives on your Windows PC or Mac. You can speak to it or type to it, and the result is the same either way.
Key opens your settings, changes them and tells you what it did. A few words are enough, such as “Mute everything”, or something like the request below.
KeyVoicePlay my sound through the headphones
Your sound now plays through the headphones.
While it works, a small panel shows what it is doing, and you can stop it at any point. When it finishes, it reads the result back before it tells you, and if it could not check, it says so.
If you like asking for settings this way, our guide on changing brightness, dark mode and other settings by voice shows more of what you can say.
A quick recap
- On Windows, select the speaker icon, then the arrow beside the slider, then pick your device.
- On a Mac, open System Settings, choose Sound, then pick a device under Output.
- Check cables, power and mute before anything else.
- Or just tell Key which speakers or headphones you want.
Once you have switched a couple of times, it takes only a few seconds, and you never have to put up with sound from the wrong place again.
Try Key free
Speak to it or type to it. It opens your apps, finds your files and changes your settings, then tells you what it did.
Free, no card. Windows 10 or 11, macOS 11 or newer.