Discord, for the most part, is a great app that allows you to chat and audio with your friends while playing games. Many gamers who are looking for gaming-focused chat apps to replace Skype and TeamSpeak will find this app to be a blessing.
Discord’s subscribers are increasing, and so do the problems. Discord doesn’t pick up the mic when one player isn’t hearing the other. This is the most common problem.
Discord may not be picking up the microphone due to a recent privacy update in Windows. This requires users to manually authorize applications to use their microphones or cameras.
It’s easy to fix, as you will see in the guide. Discord may also not detect your mic if you have a slow program or use the wrong voice settings.
Let’s now get to the work. You should have tried the basic steps like restarting the computer or closing the app.
You might be surprised at how simple these solutions can solve such a difficult problem if you don’t have them. If your mic still isn’t working, please follow these steps.
How to fix a Discord microphone that isn’t working
This list contains detailed solutions to help you fix Discord if it won’t pick up your mic.
1. Update Windows Privacy settings
Recent Windows OS updates require that you grant permission to apps that use your microphone or camera.
This fix is necessary to stop hackers and other unauthorized programs spying on your computer, but it could also be the cause of your dissatisfaction with Discord.
These steps will allow you to add an exception in Windows Privacy Settings and fix Discord’s mic.
- Click the Windows Start Button, and then click Settings. (gear icon).
- On the window that opens, click Privacy
- Scroll down to App Access
- Click Camera to toggle Allow applications to access your camera to
Close the Settings app, and then return to Discord. For the settings to be applied, you might need to close the Settings app and unplug your headphones.
These settings are for Windows users. These steps will allow Discord to access and detect your microphone if you’re on Mac.
- On your Mac, go to Menu > Systems Preferences
- Privacy and Open Security
- Select Microphone from the Privacy menu.
- Discord can be found and checked
You are telling your Mac to allow Discord access to your mic by checking Discord. The app should now start to work. It should be working.
If it doesn’t work, you can try the next solution.
2. Change Automatically Determine Input Sensitivity settings
You might have accidentally changed your voice settings. This could cause the microphone to stop working. These steps will allow you to reverse the settings.
- Open Discord, click User Options (gear icon to the bottom left).
- Scroll down to App Settings, and choose Voice & video
- Scroll down to Input Sensitivity, and then set the toggle OFF right next to Automatically Determine input sensitivity.
- Move the manual slider towards the middle, and make sure it’s moving when you speak.
These steps should have fixed your voice settings and the microphone should work if you followed them. If you don’t, move on to the next step.
3. Reset Voice Settings
When voice stops working, Discord can help you reset Voice Settings. These settings help detect headphones or mics connected to your computer.
To reset voice settings:
- Open Discord and click on the Settings gear button at the bottom right next to your profile name
- Select Voice & Video from the left sidebar of the Application Settings screen.
- Scroll down and click Voice Settings
If the microphone isn’t working, you might need to restart the app. This option is useful if the Discord mobile app on Android or iPhone doesn’t detect voice.
4. Toggle Input Volume
If Discord fails to pick up the microphone after these settings have been applied, it could be an issue with the Input volume.
Your voice activity won’t be heard if it is too low or if no device is connected.
These steps will help you fix Discord mic settings on input devices.
- Close Discord and then right-click its icon on your desktop screen
- Select Run As Administrator, and then click Yes in the popup.
- Select Voice and Video from the App Settings menu.
- Select the correct Output and Input Device
- Set the Input Volum to its highest setting
- You can test your mic on Discord by clicking Mic Test
You can resume using the app if your voice is working. If the problem persists, you can scroll down to Input Mode, and make sure Voice Activity is checked.
5. Check that your audio device works
If voice chat does not work on Discord after you reach this point, it could be a hardware issue.
Test your headphones or microphone on another device or computer. Switch to the working headphones and test them on another phone or computer.
If they’re working well, continue with the steps below.
You can also troubleshoot your audio device by clicking the Start button, and then navigating to settings > Sound > Input.
Click here to test your microphone. If it fails, click Troubleshoot.
Solution 6: Change your voice server channel location
Discord allows you to route audio channels to the voice server of your choice.
Discord will recognize your microphone if you change your audio channels to the same place.
These steps will help you fix the problem.
- Select Server Settings by clicking the icon
- Select Overview in the new window.
- Select Server Region, and then click Edit
- Choose the closest location from the list.
After you have applied the settings, wait for your audio channel’s migration to the new server.
I hope you find the above fixes helpful.
After each fix, make sure you test the microphone on Discord and then stop when you have reached a working fix.
If none of these solutions work, you can contact Discord support.