Is it possible to make laptop speakers louder?

[j1n]

Hi all

I've purchased a Toshiba Qosmio X505 860 not too long ago...pretty nice lappie but I must complain that the sounds coming out of the Harman Kardon speakers are not as loud as I want them to be and Im sure the speakers can handle more than the driver is allowing it to do...It seems to be a common problem cus I've read posts about it on the toshiba forums but no one seems to be able to find a fix for this...So any suggestions would be nice.

Cheers

 

[Tews]

I would replace the speakers with one that has its own amplifier ....

 

[fireberd]

The internal speakers, if that is what you are referring to, are limited by the hardware and cannot be changed. If you want louder sound you will have to add external powered computer speakers (ones that have their own built in power amplfiier).

 

[celldweller1591]

Beside hardware upgrade, try VLC coz it can make your sound goto 400% but this may cause a bit of disturbance in sound but you get amplified sound

 

[j1n]

I am positive the internal speakers can handle more than whats being thrown at it...I was kinda hoping there was a driver or something I can dl to manually be able to override the limit set by the stock driver...for example as stated in VLC you can over-max the speakers to put out 400% sound and also in winamp there is a pre-amp option that lets you boost the volume output which is fine and all...but what I am more concerned is when I play games theres not much I can do in the sense of wanting to boost the volume to what the game driver and sound driver limits it to...Does this make sense or does it sound confusing?

 

[celldweller1591]

You can update your drivers fully to get enhanced output and that really works but you cannot make a machine go beyond what it is designed to be
Even with the use of Klite codec pack in windows media player, you can enhance your sound quality and loudness but only to some extent !

 

[not so gray matter]

You can try a trial of software like this that artificially amplifies your sound regardless of source/output. Be careful though, you're likely to blow your speakers if you aren't careful.

SX Fidelity Amplifier Trial Download

 

[whs]

How about using headphones. I have a set with it's own volume control, and those can be VERY loud.

 

[j1n]

@notsograymatter: Thanks I will give that prog a shot and i'll be sure to be careful, I have external speakers but I'm just thinking about when I take the laptop for travel i'll be using the internal speakers

@whs: I dont wanna be constantly jacked into headphones, already do it for my ipod and i dont really feel like doing it for my laptop when it already has some decent speakers built in

 

[whs]

@notsograymatter: Thanks I will give that prog a shot and i'll be sure to be careful, I have external speakers but I'm just thinking about when I take the laptop for travel i'll be using the internal speakers

@whs: I dont wanna be constantly jacked into headphones, already do it for my ipod and i dont really feel like doing it for my laptop when it already has some decent speakers built in

I know what you mean - one can get hot ears, LOL.

 

[Thorsen]

Check to see if there is an Audio Equalizer in the icon in the taskbar usually like Audio control panel, but its not windows audio panel it is specific for your audio software.

 

[Aphelion]

I am positive the internal speakers can handle more than whats being thrown at it...I was kinda hoping there was a driver or something I can dl to manually be able to override the limit set by the stock driver...for example as stated in VLC you can over-max the speakers to put out 400% sound and also in winamp there is a pre-amp option that lets you boost the volume output which is fine and all...but what I am more concerned is when I play games theres not much I can do in the sense of wanting to boost the volume to what the game driver and sound driver limits it to...Does this make sense or does it sound confusing?

Win-7 does have lower overall output than WinXP, I have a tri-boot system and XP audio has approx 50% more volume. My guess...? It's overhead for Win-7's licensed DSP effects. If the volume was as high as XP using the effects would cause distortion.


Try this.

In the System Tray, right click on the Microsoft speaker icon.
Select "playback devices".
Select your default output, (speakers).
Select the properties button at the lower right.
Select the Enhancements tab.
Select the check box that says "Immediate Mode"

If you have an EQ setting, raise all sliders by 20-30%, this will cause a system wide volume increase.

Also, scroll down the effects and find Loudness Equalization (this is actually a compressor) If it's selected, deselect it, if it's not selected, select it, see which setting gives you the most volume.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
sidenote:

Microsoft has licensed "MaxxAudio Copyright (c)" from Waves Audio Ltd, a highly respected company that's provided DSP plugins for pro audio use.

You can find this info in the registry, search on AudioProcessingEngine
the second or third one you come to has listings in the "classes" strings.

Ap

 

[j1n]

You can try a trial of software like this that artificially amplifies your sound regardless of source/output. Be careful though, you're likely to blow your speakers if you aren't careful.

SX Fidelity Amplifier Trial Download

How about using headphones. I have a set with it's own volume control, and those can be VERY loud.

I am positive the internal speakers can handle more than whats being thrown at it...I was kinda hoping there was a driver or something I can dl to manually be able to override the limit set by the stock driver...for example as stated in VLC you can over-max the speakers to put out 400% sound and also in winamp there is a pre-amp option that lets you boost the volume output which is fine and all...but what I am more concerned is when I play games theres not much I can do in the sense of wanting to boost the volume to what the game driver and sound driver limits it to...Does this make sense or does it sound confusing?

Win-7 does have lower overall output than WinXP, I have a tri-boot system and XP audio has approx 50% more volume. My guess...? It's overhead for Win-7's licensed DSP effects. If the volume was as high as XP using the effects would cause distortion.


Try this.

In the System Tray, right click on the Microsoft speaker icon.
Select "playback devices".
Select your default output, (speakers).
Select the properties button at the lower right.
Select the Enhancements tab.
Select the check box that says "Immediate Mode"

If you have an EQ setting, raise all sliders by 20-30%, this will cause a system wide volume increase.

Also, scroll down the effects and find Loudness Equalization (this is actually a compressor) If it's selected, deselect it, if it's not selected, select it, see which setting gives you the most volume.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
sidenote:

Microsoft has licensed "MaxxAudio Copyright (c)" from Waves Audio Ltd, a highly respected company that's provided DSP plugins for pro audio use.

You can find this info in the registry, search on AudioProcessingEngine
the second or third one you come to has listings in the "classes" strings.

Ap

Will give this a shot...definitely need to get this fixed up cause I just installed Guitar Hero on my lappie and even with my external speakers plugged in the output is still way to low...hope your method works...Thanks!

 

[Aphelion]

Will give this a shot...definitely need to get this fixed up cause I just installed Guitar Hero on my lappie and even with my external speakers plugged in the output is still way to low...hope your method works...Thanks!

May have to update to the latest audio drivers to get some of the enhancements.

Ap