Windows 10: Why don’t my headphones work in both sides

Discus and support Why don’t my headphones work in both sides in Windows 10 Software and Apps to solve the problem; I have the a10 Astro headphones and they only output audio from one side I had this problem before with previous headphones I think to fix it that time... Discussion in 'Windows 10 Software and Apps' started by M_Fletcher, Sep 8, 2024.

  1. Why don’t my headphones work in both sides


    I have the a10 Astro headphones and they only output audio from one side I had this problem before with previous headphones I think to fix it that time I used a splitter for mic and audio. This has failed to work this timeI have windows 11 and A10 Astro headphones.

    :)
     
    M_Fletcher, Sep 8, 2024
    #1
  2. Mala_S Win User

    Move audio to one side for speakers but not headphones

    Hello J1mmyth3F1sh,

    Thank you for writing to Microsoft Community Forums.

    • Is your headphones getting detected in the Playback settings?
    • Are you trying to play the audio on both Speakers and Headphones at the same time?

    Ideally, if you have configured Sound settings to play on your left speakers, the same goes with the headphones. The sound starts playing only on the left side of your headphones according to the settings changed.

    Meanwhile, we can try configuring the headphones and change the balance level in the sound settings and see if it works. Kindly check with the steps listed below and see if it helps.

    Method : Run audio test for your headphones.

    • Open Control Panel from the Start menu and click on
      Sound.
    • In the Sound window, click on your
      Headphones and select Configure option at the bottom left.
    • By running the test, check if both sides of your headphones are working fine.

    If that doesn’t help, I would suggest you to check with the audio balance by following the steps listed below:

    • Open Sound settings from
      Control Panel,
      and right click on the Headphones to open its
      Properties.
    • Click on Levels tab and select
      Balance
      button. In the Balance window, you can use the slider to balance both left and right headphones equally.

    However, I commend and appreciate you for recognizing this behavior. This is a valuable suggestion as there may be other users with a similar requirement. Hence, I suggest you to leave a
    Feedback for this product so
    that our developer team can look into this and check if it can be implemented in the future updates.

    Regards,

    Mala S

    Microsoft Community - Moderator
     
    Mala_S, Sep 8, 2024
    #2
  3. Audio issues with only the left side of headphones/earphones work.

    Hi Charlie,

    The port of the device could be the culprit why only the left side of your headphones works. A hardware or software changes could also be the reason for this kind of issue. However, let's not assume anything yet until we isolated your concern. We suggest
    that you run the Hardware and Devices troubleshooter in Windows Settings. Simply search for
    Troubleshoot in the start menu. Under Find and fix other problems, click on
    Hardware and Devices. We also suggest that you run the audio test for your headphones in Hardware and Sound. Here are the steps on how to do so:

    • Go to Control Panel, then click on Hardware and Sound.
    • Under Sound, click on Manage audio devices.
    • Click on Headphones, then Configure at the bottom right.
    • Run the test, and see if both sides of your headphones are working there.

    If you think this was useful, feel free to "mark it as an answer" to help those who are facing the same problem.
     
    Carlos Tin, Sep 8, 2024
    #3
  4. Why don’t my headphones work in both sides

    Iogear GBU521 Bluetooth Don. - Not Headphone Compatible on Windows 10?

    Windows 10 version 1903


    Short story: Our Iogear GBU521 Bluetooth Dongle was used on a different PC running Windows 7 to connect headphones with good-quality sound. Now, on a Dell Inspiron 580 with Windows 10, we can't get the headphones to work with the same quality anymore.

    Depth: All Windows drivers are downloadable on this page of Iogear's website: Product Drivers, Firmware & Software - IOGEAR
    However, it appears as though the Windows 8/8.1/10 driver is really designed for 8 and 8.1 and not 10. That I conclude because the file name, "GBU521_GBU421_Win8_Win8.1_BT_v12.0.0.9980.zip", does not mention Windows 10, thus suggesting my bluetooth audio problems to be originating from a driver compatibility issue.

    I've fiddled my life away with the following:
    • WinKey+R / "control panel" / Devices and Printer / (Insert Headphone Name) Properties / Services
    • Start / Settings / Devices / Audio
    • Start / Settings / System / Sound / Output / Troubleshoot
    • Settings within the Iogear bluetooth devices program, which comes with the driver on the aforementioned driver page.
    And have gone through many settings that branch off this list, restarting the computer after each change made. Sometimes it connect with good sound quality, but does not retain this quality after breaking the bluetooth connection (turning the headphones off, restarting PC).

    Quick side note: I have a new Microsoft Bluetooth 3600 Mouse connected to this dongle that works completely fine, unlike the headphones.

    A solution requires the following results, which goes along the lines of how the bluetooth headphones were connected to this same Iogear dongle on the different PC that had Windows 7:
    • The bluetooth headphones play with decent quality
    • The volume retains it's setting whenever the bluetooth connection is broken by a PC restart, or powering off/on the headphones (I've encountered configurations where the headphones always resets to maximum volume).
    • The bluetooth mouse works fine. This shouldn't be much of a concern at all.
    If we find no solutions, I will simply buy a dongle that works with Windows 10.

    I can provide screenshots if needed.
    Thank-you.
     
    ivangoabby, Sep 8, 2024
    #4
Thema:

Why don’t my headphones work in both sides

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