Interactive Troubleshooter

Published: Oct 24, 2026

How to Fix HDMI Audio Not Working After Connecting TV

Time: 15 mins Level: Beginner

By StepDiag Engineering Team

Reviewed by Ibraheem Taofeeq Opeyemi

Comprehensive diagnostic guide to resolve missing HDMI audio signals when connecting PCs or laptops to external TVs. Covers digital audio playback routing, High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP) handshake failures, EDID audio block mismatches, and GPU High Definition Audio driver corruptions.

Full Diagnostic Tree & Step-by-Step Overview

What exact HDMI audio symptom are you experiencing after connecting your computer to the TV?

HDMI Audio endpoint does not appear in Windows Sound Settings (Missing Device)
HDMI Audio endpoint is selected, but no sound plays or audio meter shows no signal movement
Audio cuts out intermittently, produces crackling noise, or drops during high-res playback
Audio plays through laptop/PC speakers despite TV being selected, or throws playback device error

Select the condition that best describes your Device Manager or System State:

High Definition Audio Controller has a yellow exclamation mark (Code 10, Code 28, or Code 43) in Device Manager
TV is detected under Displays, but 'Intel Display Audio', 'NVIDIA High Definition Audio', or 'AMD HD Audio' is completely missing
HDMI output is routed through a USB-C/Thunderbolt adapter or DisplayPort to HDMI dongle
TV EDID is corrupt or extended audio block is not reported via HDMI I2C Bus

Fixing High Definition Audio Controller Bus Driver Error (Code 10/28/43)

Solution:

Root Cause: High Definition Audio Controller PCI Bus State Failure

When Windows flags a High Definition Audio Controller with Code 10 (Device Cannot Start), Code 28 (Drivers Not Installed), or Code 43 (Device Stopped), the PCI express root complex has failed to initialize the audio engine integrated into the GPU. This occurs during state transitions (e.g., waking from sleep) or when PCI bus power management (D3hot to D0 state switch) desynchronizes with the vendor audio bus driver (nvhda64v.sys, AtihdWT6.sys, or IntcDAud.sys).

Diagnostic Verification:

Open Event Viewer (eventvwr.msc) and navigate to Windows Logs > System.

Look for Event ID 411 or Event ID 219 with source Kernel-PnP flagging hardware instance IDs starting with PCI\VEN_10DE (NVIDIA), PCI\VEN_1002 (AMD), or PCI\VEN_8086 (Intel).

Execute the following command in PowerShell (Admin) to verify hardware status:

powershell
Get-PnpDevice -Class 'Media' | Where-Object {$_.Status -ne 'OK'}

Step-by-Step Fix:

1Open Device Manager (devmgmt.msc) and expand System devices.

2Locate High Definition Audio Controller (or PCI bus device linked to graphics).

3Right-click the controller and select Properties > Driver tab > Update Driver.

4Select Browse my computer for drivers > Let me pick from a list of available drivers on my computer.

5Uncheck Show compatible hardware if needed, select High Definition Audio Controller (Microsoft standard driver), and click Next to force driver overwrite.

6Run Display Driver Uninstaller (DDU) in Windows Safe Mode if the vendor-specific HD audio bus fails to bind. Download DDU directly from the official Wagnardsoft Official DDU Download page.

7Execute DDU, choose Audio > NVIDIA/AMD/Realtek, click Clean and restart, and reinstall the latest standalone GPU display package containing the bundled High Definition Audio Driver driver executable.

Prevention & Long-Term Monitoring:

Disable Fast Startup in Windows Power Options (powercfg.cpl) to prevent PCI state desynchronization on shutdown.

Ensure PCI Express Link State Power Management is set to Off inside active Power Plans.

Restoring Missing GPU Audio Devices via Driver Enumeration

Solution:

Root Cause: Disabled Audio Endpoint Enumeration or Missing GPU Audio Driver Component

When the HDMI display renders video correctly but no audio adapter appears in Device Manager under 'Sound, video and game controllers', the operating system has suppressed hidden audio endpoints, or the display driver installation omitted the bundled audio subsystem component (e.g., custom minimal driver installs using NVCleaner or custom driver packages).

Diagnostic Verification:

Open PowerShell as Administrator and run:

powershell
Get-WmiObject Win32_SoundDevice | Select-Object Name, Status, DeviceID

Verify if NVIDIA High Definition Audio, AMD HD Audio Device, or Intel(R) Display Audio is listed among reported hardware instances.

Step-by-Step Fix:

1Open Device Manager (devmgmt.msc).

2Click View in the top menu and select Show hidden devices.

3Expand Sound, video and game controllers.

4If your HDMI Audio device appears greyed out, right-click it and select Enable device.

5If the device remains missing, expand Sound, video and game controllers, right-click any device, and select Scan for hardware changes.

6Open the GPU driver setup package (NVIDIA GeForce Experience/AMD Software) and choose Custom/Advanced Installation.

7Verify that HD Audio Driver is explicitly checked, and check Perform a clean installation before proceeding with setup.

Prevention & Long-Term Monitoring:

Avoid using third-party driver strip tools that automatically purge HD Audio components unless operating in a headless server environment.

Periodically audit device status in Device Manager after major Windows Feature Updates.

Resolving USB-C/Thunderbolt/DisplayPort DP++ Alt-Mode Pass-Through Audio Failures

Solution:

Root Cause: DisplayPort Dual-Mode (DP++) Aux Channel Routing and Protocol Conversion Errors

When outputting HDMI audio from a laptop using a USB-C/Thunderbolt hub or DisplayPort-to-HDMI adapter, the passive/active dongle must translate DP Aux Channel packets (including Audio Clock Regeneration - ACR packets) into HDMI I2C/Audio Sample packets. Generic or passive adapters often fail DP++ pin assignment handshake, passing video signals via DisplayPort Alt-Mode while dropping the digital audio packet stream.

Diagnostic Verification:

Check if video displays correctly while audio remains bound to onboard Realtek/Intel integrated audio.

Run Windows System Information (msinfo32.exe) and check Components > Display to see if the adapter is recognized as a direct HDMI display or a converted DP bridge.

Step-by-Step Fix:

1Disconnect the USB-C hub or DP-to-HDMI adapter from the computer.

2Power off the external TV and unplug its power cord for 30 seconds to flush the TV mainboard's HDMI processing chip cache.

3Connect the adapter directly to a native Thunderbolt/USB-C port on the motherboard/laptop chassis rather than an unpowered USB expansion dock.

4Reconnect the HDMI cable firmly to the adapter and then power on the TV.

5Verify that your adapter supports Active Protocol Conversion (DP1.4 to HDMI 2.0/2.1 with audio passthrough) rather than passive pass-through.

6Open Device Manager, expand Universal Serial Bus controllers, right-click USB Root Hub, select Properties > Power Management, and uncheck Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.

Prevention & Long-Term Monitoring:

Use high-quality, VESA-certified active DisplayPort to HDMI or Thunderbolt-to-HDMI cables rated for at least 18Gbps (HDMI 2.0) or 48Gbps (HDMI 2.1).

Fixing EDID Audio Block Miscommunication and Extension Overrides

Solution:

Root Cause: Corrupted or Missing CEA-861 EDID Extension Block

Extended Display Identification Data (EDID) is transmitted from the TV to the GPU over the I2C Display Data Channel (DDC). If the CEA-861 extension block inside the TV's EDID is corrupted, truncated by an HDMI switcher/AVR, or unreadable, the GPU driver fails to parse supported audio formats (LPCM, Dolby Digital, DTS) and disables the digital audio transmitter output entirely.

Diagnostic Verification:

Install and launch a hardware diagnostic utility like MonInfo (Monitor Asset Manager).

Inspect the CEA-861 Extension Block section. If the Audio Data Block is absent or reports 0 channels, the GPU is not receiving audio capability profiles from the TV.

Step-by-Step Fix:

1Open NVIDIA Control Panel (or AMD Radeon Software).

2Navigate to Display > View HDCP Status to confirm DDC communication is active.

3Open NVIDIA Control Panel > Display > Change resolution and ensure the resolution selected is under Ultra HD, HD, SD rather than PC resolution lists if applicable.

4Force EDID override via Custom Resolution Utility (CRU):

Download and run CRU as Administrator.

Select the connected TV display from the top dropdown list.

Look at the Extension Blocks box at the bottom. If no CTA-861 block exists, click Add, select CTA-861, and add an Audio data block specifying PCM 2-channel 44.1/48kHz support.

Click OK and run restart64.exe from the CRU directory to restart the graphics driver.

5Verify that the TV audio device now enumerates in Windows Playback Devices.

Prevention & Long-Term Monitoring:

Avoid cheap HDMI pass-through splitters that strip CEA extension blocks.

Export a clean EDID .bin file in CRU as a backup to restore configuration after driver updates.

Select the exact behavior of the HDMI audio output in Windows Sound Settings:

TV is set as default, but Windows Sound Control Panel shows 'Not plugged in' or 'Disabled'
TV is active as Default Device, but testing throws 'Failed to play test tone' error
Audio meter bounces green in Windows, but zero sound comes out of TV speakers
Exclusive mode app (e.g., Netflix, VLC, games) silences system audio or output fails completely

Enabling Disabled or 'Not Plugged In' HDMI Playback Endpoints

Solution:

Root Cause: Windows Sound Subsystem Endpoint Disabling & HPD Pin Timeout

When an HDMI audio device shows as 'Not plugged in' despite an active video signal, the Windows Audio Endpoint Builder service (AudioEndpointBuilder) failed to process the Hot Plug Detect (HPD) signal sent over HDMI Pin 19. Alternatively, the user or OS disabled the specific endpoint node in the registry.

Diagnostic Verification:

Press Win + R, type mmsys.cpl, and press Enter.

Right-click inside the empty space of the Playback tab.

Ensure both Show Disabled Devices and Show Disconnected Devices are checked.

Step-by-Step Fix:

1Open Sound Control Panel (mmsys.cpl).

2Locate the greyed-out HDMI/TV audio endpoint.

3Right-click the endpoint and click Enable.

4Right-click it again and select Set as Default Device and Set as Default Communication Device.

5If the status remains 'Not plugged in', unplug the HDMI cable from the computer.

6Restart the Windows Audio services via PowerShell (Admin):

powershell
Restart-Service AudioEndpointBuilder, AudioSrv -Force

7Reinsert the HDMI cable securely into the primary GPU port to trigger hardware re-detection.

Prevention & Long-Term Monitoring:

Do not use aggressive registry cleaners that wipe disconnected media endpoint registry keys under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\MMDevices\Audio\Render.

Resolving 'Failed to Play Test Tone' HDMI Sample Rate Mismatches

Solution:

Root Cause: Audio Format Sample Rate Mismatches & Audio Service Lock

The 'Failed to play test tone' error occurs when the Windows Audio Engine sends a PCM audio stream configured at a bit-depth or sampling rate (e.g., 24-bit, 192000 Hz) that exceeds the TV DAC (Digital-to-Analog Converter) or HDMI receiver capability, causing the driver buffer thread to fault.

Diagnostic Verification:

Open Sound Control Panel (mmsys.cpl), select the HDMI device, click Properties, and go to the Advanced tab.

Click Test. If the dialog throws 'Failed to play test tone', a sample rate conflict is confirmed.

Step-by-Step Fix:

1In the Advanced tab under Default Format, click the dropdown menu.

2Lower the default format to 16-bit, 44100 Hz (CD Quality) or 16-bit, 48000 Hz (DVD Quality).

3Click Apply and then click Test.

4Switch to the Spatial sound tab and turn Spatial Sound Off.

5Switch to the Enhancements tab (if available) and check Disable all enhancements / Disable all sound effects.

6Restart the Windows Audio Service via Command Prompt:

cmd
net stop Audiosrv && net start Audiosrv

7Test audio playback again in Windows Media Player or web browser.

Prevention & Long-Term Monitoring:

Keep TV digital audio input format set to standard stereo 16-bit/48kHz unless routing through an eARC-capable AV Receiver.

Fixing TV Audio Routing, eARC/ARC Pass-Through, and Physical Channel Mappings

Solution:

Root Cause: Hardware Audio Stream Muting and ARC/eARC Format Misrouting

When the green volume meter fluctuates in Windows, digital audio packets are leaving the PC successfully. Silence at the TV indicates that the TV's internal audio processor is set to an incorrect input source, receiving multi-channel bitstream (Dolby/DTS) it cannot decode, or routing audio to an inactive eARC/ARC soundbar.

Diagnostic Verification:

Connect headphones or external speakers directly to the TV's 3.5mm audio output or monitor the TV's internal speakers.

Check if audio plays when forcing 2-channel stereo mode in Windows.

Step-by-Step Fix:

1Open Sound Control Panel (mmsys.cpl), select your TV, and click Configure at the bottom left.

2Select Stereo mode instead of 5.1/7.1 Surround, click Next through the wizard, and click Finish.

3Grab your TV remote, open TV Settings > Sound / Audio Output.

4Change the TV Audio Output setting from Optical / HDMI eARC back to Internal TV Speakers (or vice versa if using an external soundbar).

5Navigate to TV Settings > Sound > Expert / Advanced Settings and change Digital Output Audio Format from *Auto / Bitstream* to PCM.

6Ensure the TV is not muted and the volume level is above 20.

Prevention & Long-Term Monitoring:

When connecting a PC directly to a TV without an AV Receiver, always default the source OS output mode to uncompressed 2-channel LPCM.

Resolving Exclusive Mode Locks and WASAPI Hardware Conflicts

Solution:

Root Cause: WASAPI / ASIO Exclusive Mode Lockup

Applications using Windows Audio Session API (WASAPI) in Exclusive Mode allow programs (like media players, DAWs, or games) to gain direct, low-latency control of the HDMI audio hardware. If the application crashes or exits improperly without releasing the hardware interface, all subsequent system audio streams are blocked.

Diagnostic Verification:

Observe if system audio works initially after boot, but breaks immediately after launching a specific game, video player, or conferencing app.

Step-by-Step Fix:

1Open Sound Control Panel (mmsys.cpl).

2Right-click your HDMI TV device and select Properties.

3Navigate to the Advanced tab.

4Under Exclusive Mode, uncheck Allow applications to take exclusive control of this device.

5Uncheck Give exclusive mode applications priority.

6Click Apply and then OK.

7Restart your web browser or application to verify sound functionality.

Prevention & Long-Term Monitoring:

Disable Exclusive Mode on shared home theater PCs (HTPCs) where multi-app background audio streaming is required.

Identify the nature of the HDMI audio distortion or dropouts:

Audio drops out every few seconds or when high-refresh-rate/4K video is rendered
Audio plays with crackling, popping, or distorted robotic sound
Audio drops after PC wakes from sleep or monitor display turns back on
Audio desynchronizes (lip-sync delay) with video stream over time

Fixing HDMI Bandwidth Saturation and HDCP Handshake Dropouts

Solution:

Root Cause: HDMI Cable Bandwidth Saturation & TMDS/FRL Packet Loss

HDMI carries audio embedded inside the video blanking intervals (Data Island periods). Running high resolutions (4K @ 120Hz/144Hz, HDR, 10-bit color) saturates Transition-Minimized Differential Signaling (TMDS) or Fixed Rate Link (FRL) bandwidth. Inferior cables suffer electromagnetic interference (EMI), leading to corrupted Data Island packets and dropping audio frames while video barely maintains sync.

Diagnostic Verification:

Lower the display refresh rate from 120Hz/60Hz down to 30Hz or resolution from 4K to 1080p in Windows Display Settings.

If audio dropouts stop completely, physical HDMI cable bandwidth degradation is verified.

Step-by-Step Fix:

1Lower resolution and refresh rate temporarily to confirm signal recovery.

2Replace existing cable with an Ultra High Speed HDMI Certified Cable (48Gbps) for HDMI 2.1 features (4K@120Hz / 8K@60Hz) or a Premium High Speed Cable (18Gbps) for HDMI 2.0.

3Avoid HDMI cable runs longer than 5 meters (15 feet) without using active optical HDMI (AOC) cables.

4Inspect HDMI physical ports on GPU and TV for pin corrosion or mechanical strain.

5Ensure HDMI cable is routed away from high-voltage AC power strips and power bricks to eliminate EMI.

Prevention & Long-Term Monitoring:

Look for official HDMI Licensing Administrator QR code authentication stickers on cable packaging to ensure verified bandwidth throughput.

Resolving Audio Crackling, DPC Latency Spikes, and Buffer Underruns

Solution:

Root Cause: Deferred Procedure Call (DPC) Latency and ISR Buffer Underruns

Crackling and popping in digital HDMI audio stem from high system DPC latency. When real-time kernel threads serviced by drivers (such as nvlddmkm.sys, ndis.sys, or ACPI drivers) hog CPU cores, the Windows Audio Engine fails to fill the HDMI audio buffer within required time windows, resulting in buffer underruns.

Diagnostic Verification:

Download and run official Resplendence LatencyMon.

Click Start Monitor and play HDMI audio.

Check the Drivers tab sorted by Highest execution (ms) to identify offending kernel driver modules exceeding 1.0 ms.

Step-by-Step Fix:

1If GPU driver (nvlddmkm.sys or amdkmdag.sys) causes latency spikes, open NVIDIA Control Panel > Manage 3D Settings.

2Set Power management mode to Prefer maximum performance.

3Open Device Manager, expand Network adapters, right-click your Wi-Fi/Ethernet adapter > Properties > Advanced.

4Disable Energy Efficient Ethernet, Green Ethernet, and Interrupt Moderation.

5Update motherboard BIOS and chipset drivers to fix PCIe power state latency bugs.

6Disable CPU C-States and Intel SpeedStep/AMD Cool'n'Quiet in System BIOS if severe DPC latency persists.

Prevention & Long-Term Monitoring:

Perform periodic LatencyMon checks after major GPU or Windows updates to ensure kernel execution times stay under 500 microseconds.

Fixing Sleep State Wake-up HDMI Audio Disconnections (Power Management)

Solution:

Root Cause: PCI Express ASPM and HDMI Hot Plug Detect (HPD) Sleep Disconnect

When Windows enters S3/S4 sleep mode, power is cut to the display controller. Upon waking, the TV fails to re-assert the Hot Plug Detect signal fast enough, causing the OS to permanently teardown the HDMI audio endpoint stream until manual reboot.

Diagnostic Verification:

Confirm that HDMI audio works flawlessly on fresh boot, but breaks consistently after system sleep or display timeout.

Step-by-Step Fix:

1Open Control Panel > Power Options.

2Click Change plan settings next to your active power plan, then click Change advanced power settings.

3Expand PCI Express > Link State Power Management and set both On battery and Plugged in to Off.

4Expand USB settings > USB selective suspend setting and set to Disabled.

5Open Device Manager, expand Sound, video and game controllers.

6Select your HDMI Audio device (e.g., NVIDIA High Definition Audio), select Properties > Power Management tab (if available), and uncheck Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.

7Restart Windows.

Prevention & Long-Term Monitoring:

Disable Fast Startup via Command Prompt (powercfg /h off) to ensure cold boots reset hardware bus state properly.

Correcting Audio/Video Lip-Sync Delay and TV Signal Processing Latency

Solution:

Root Cause: TV Picture Processing Latency and Bitstream Decoding Lag

Lip-sync lag occurs when the TV applies heavy video post-processing (motion smoothing, noise reduction, dynamic contrast) that delays image rendering by 100ms–200ms, while raw digital audio plays instantly—or when the TV takes excessive time to decode compressed bitstream audio formats.

Diagnostic Verification:

Check if audio leads or lags video when watching media files or playing games.

Switch TV to Game Mode to eliminate video processing delay.

Step-by-Step Fix:

1Using TV Remote, open TV Settings > Picture Settings.

2Change Picture Mode to Game Mode or PC Mode (which disables input processing and aligns video delay with audio).

3Turn off features like TruMotion, Motion Plus, Noise Reduction, and Up-scaling.

4Navigate to TV Settings > Sound > Audio Delay / AV Sync.

5Adjust the delay slider (plus or minus milliseconds) until lip-sync alignment is exact.

6In Windows media players (e.g., VLC), adjust audio desync hotkeys (K and J) to fine-tune playback offset if the problem is file-specific.

Prevention & Long-Term Monitoring:

Set TV input label explicitly to 'PC' or 'Computer' in the TV Input Manager to force low-latency bypass modes automatically.

Select the application or OS level audio routing error scenario:

Sound continues playing through built-in Laptop speakers when TV is connected
Specific web browser (Chrome/Edge) or app plays on laptop while system sound plays on TV
Audio drops completely when launching full-screen DirectX / OpenGL games
Windows Audio Service fails to launch or crashes with Error 1067 / 1068

Fixing Automatic Default Audio Device Switching Failure

Solution:

Root Cause: Windows Default Audio Endpoint Arbitration Failure

Windows relies on the Shell Hardware Detection and Audio Endpoint Builder services to dynamically switch default sound output when an HDMI connection event occurs. If a background application has bound to the Realtek HD Audio output endpoint hardware directly, Windows refuses to migrate active streams to the newly attached HDMI device.

Diagnostic Verification:

Press Win + G or click the volume icon in the system tray to verify which playback device is designated as active.

Step-by-Step Fix:

1Click the Volume Icon in the Windows Taskbar system tray (bottom right).

2Click the Select a sound output icon (chevron next to the volume slider).

3Explicitly select your TV / HDMI Display from the output list.

4Open Settings > System > Sound.

5Under More sound settings, open the Playback tab.

6Right-click your internal speakers and click Set as Default Communication Device while leaving the TV set as Default Device.

7Unplug and re-plug the HDMI cable to verify auto-switching operational behavior.

Prevention & Long-Term Monitoring:

Close real-time audio apps (Voicemeeter, Discord, DAWs) before hot-plugging HDMI displays to allow standard endpoint arbitration.

Configuring Windows App Volume and Device Preferences per Application

Solution:

Root Cause: Per-App Windows Audio Routing Overrides

Starting in Windows 10/11, the operating system maintains individual output device associations per application. If a browser or software application was previously configured to output specifically to 'Realtek High Definition Audio', it will bypass global system default changes and continue forcing sound through laptop speakers.

Diagnostic Verification:

Open Settings > System > Sound > Volume mixer while the problematic application is actively playing audio.

Step-by-Step Fix:

1Open Settings > System > Sound > Volume mixer.

2Scroll down to the Apps list.

3Expand the specific application (e.g., Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Spotify).

4Change the Output device dropdown from its forced assignment back to Default (or explicitly select your TV HDMI device).

5Scroll to the bottom of the Volume mixer page and click Reset under 'Reset sound devices and volumes for all apps to the recommended defaults'.

6Restart the application.

Prevention & Long-Term Monitoring:

Keep App Volume settings set to 'Default' unless running complex multi-monitor setup routing.

Resolving Full-Screen Game HDMI Audio Disconnections

Solution:

Root Cause: Graphics Driver Mode-Switch HDCP / EDID Loss in Exclusive Fullscreen Mode

When games launch in Exclusive Fullscreen mode, the GPU changes display resolutions, color depths, and refresh rates. This display mode shift forces an HDMI link renegotiation. If HDCP verification fails during the display reset, audio transmitter streams are killed by the driver for DRM compliance.

Diagnostic Verification:

Launch the game in Borderless Windowed mode instead of Exclusive Fullscreen. If audio works, HDCP re-handshake failure is confirmed.

Step-by-Step Fix:

1Open the graphics settings within the problematic game.

2Change Display Mode from Fullscreen to Borderless Windowed or Windowed Fullscreen.

3Open NVIDIA Control Panel > Display > Adjust desktop size and position.

4Set Scaling mode to Aspect ratio and set Perform scaling on: to GPU.

5Check the box Override the scaling mode set by games and programs and click Apply.

6Open NVIDIA Control Panel > Display > View HDCP Status and ensure it reads 'HDCP is capable and active'.

Prevention & Long-Term Monitoring:

Prefer Borderless Windowed mode for modern multi-monitor and HTPC gaming setups to prevent hardware link re-synchronization drops.

Repairing Corrupted Windows Audio Service Dependencies and Driver Repositories

Solution:

Root Cause: Windows Audio Service System Component Corruption

If the Audiosrv or AudioEndpointBuilder services fail to start, or crash with error code 1067 / 1068, corrupted system DLL dependencies or invalid registry key permissions under MMDevices prevent Windows from initializing any audio endpoints.

Diagnostic Verification:

Open Services (services.msc), locate Windows Audio, right-click and select Start.

Note any error messages thrown by Windows Service Manager.

Step-by-Step Fix:

1Open Command Prompt as Administrator.

2Run System File Checker to repair corrupted Windows system files:

cmd
sfc /scannow

3Run DISM image cleanup repair:

cmd
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

4Reset Windows Audio Service logon dependencies via Command Prompt:

cmd
sc config Audiosrv start= auto
sc config AudioEndpointBuilder start= auto
net start Audiosrv

5Reboot the computer.

6Re-test HDMI audio connection.

Prevention & Long-Term Monitoring:

Run regular SFC and DISM system health checks after severe OS crashes or unexpected power failures.

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