How to find out Sound Card Details in Your Computer

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Want to find out sound card in your computer? There are lot  many ways to identify which kind of sound card your computer uses. Many people find this as a big issue and keeping that in mind we have made a step by step guide considering very minute details at granular levels.

Finding Sound Cards Easily

Listing down some steps you need to follow in order you to find out sound card installed in the computer. Go through them one by one. In case you want to see video guide, here it is.

Computer Manufacturer

If you have OEM computer, visit your computer's manufacturer's website and look for your correct computer's model number. The model details would be available of that page and then you can check them to determine which exact sound card has been installed on your motherboard. In case you need find out correct audio drivers for your computer, we have a complete guide on it.

Use Windows keyboard shortcuts

1. Press the Windows key + pause button.
2. In the window that appears, select Device Manager.
3. Click the arrow next to Voice controller, video and game.
4. You should find the sound card in the list.

Using Contara Search

1. Click Start in the lower left corner of your screen or go to the start screen in Windows 8. Windows 10 users can continue with step 2.
2. Look for the search box in the lower left corner of the window that appears. Windows 8 users can touch the home screen. Windows 10 users can use the search box on the task bar next to Start.
3. Type dxdiag and press Enter.
4. Your sound card appears under the Sound tab (usually the last) at the top of the window.

Finding FCC Serial Number

Another easy way to find out sound card product number or model is to open your computer box and physically verify the sound card. In general, the manufacturer name and model number of the sound card are printed on the card. If the data you seek is not available on the sound card, you can anytime use the FCC serial number to fetch right details of the product. You can check complete tutorial on audio drivers installation.

System Components

In the Windows search box, type Information System and press Enter. Click the + sign next to Component and then click Sound Device.

Find the control panel

In order to find out sound card details on Windows, first open the "Control Panel" window, which is located in the "Start" menu. If your computer is configured to display category views, select the "Sound, sound and audio" icon and click the "Sound and audio devices" link. If your computer displays a classic display, select the "Sound and audio devices" icon. One of these steps will display the "Sound and audio device properties" window.

Look for Device Properties

In the "Audio and audio device properties" window, click the "Hardware" tab. Sound cards are registered in "Peripherals" and will be identified by name or type. This section also includes audio codecs, drivers, and DVD and CD players. By double clicking on the sound card entry, the "Properties" window will open and you will be given more information about your device.

Find the sound card output.

To find out sound card you can check where the sound card is placed inside CPU or laptop. Most sound cards have inbuilt headphone input port to connect headphones and speaker. Based on sound card model and type of computer, your motherboard can have more than one sound output ports. Desktop PC usually have one sound card output, you can easily identify it by a green circular ring around the output jack. The newer version of PC can have audio jack on monitor itself for ease of access. Laptops has audio port on side with headphone icon printed on it. Many people get no audio output device installed and you know it is very to fix.

Sound cards are audio devices used to produce sound from your laptop/computer. If you ever ought to verify what variety of sound card you've got in your laptop, you'll do thus through number of totally different strategies, depending on the resources are accessible / available to you. If your sound card has drivers put in on the PC, you'll use the Device Manager to search out what variety of card it's. If you don't have drivers installed, you can look at the card itself to find out what type it is.

Checking a Sound card with the Dxdiag Command

1. Click on the "Start" menu and then click "Run."
2. Type "dxdiag" in the run box, then click "Ok."
3. Click on the "Sound" tab or tabs on the diagnostic pop-up window for detailed information about your sound devices. Dxdiag also help in Graphics drivers installations.

Checking a Sound Card with the Device Manager

1. Click "Start," then click "Control Panel".
2. Double click on "Device Manager".
3. Locate "Sound, Video and Game Controllers" in the list of devices, and click the plus sign to expand the list.
4. Right-click on the audio device listed and select "Properties". The various property tabs will have information about the sound card, its driver and whether it is working properly.

Physical Identification of a Sound Card

1. Turn off the computer and unplug the power cable.
2. Use a screwdriver to take out the screws holding the left side panel of the case, and set the panel aside.
3. Locate the sound card inside the laptop / computer by noting which device your speakers are plugged into. If your speakers are plugged into the motherboard, you have an integrated sound card. If they are plugged into a card in a PCI slot (small, light-colored slots along the back of the case), it is a dedicated sound card.
4. Take a look at the sound card for more information. An integrated sound card may not have any identifying information available, but a PCI sound card may have a sticker citing its constructor / manufacturer, the card type or other information.
5. Close the case when finished inspecting the card.

Identifying an Audio Device on a Mac (OSX)

1. Click on the "Apple" menu.
2. Click on "About thisMac".
3. Click "More Info"
4. Click "Audio" in the list of devices on the left-hand side of the window. This should produce a list your audio devices.

Using the Windows Key shortcut

1. Press the Windows key + Pause key.
2. In the window that appears, select Device Manager.
3. Click the Arrow next to Sound, video and game controllers.
4. Your sound card is in the list that appears.

So this is how you can find out sound card details so easily and with ease. We will try to cover more about sound cards and audio drivers in coming articles. Here you can know more what is sound card on wikipedia.