Whenever I start my Windows 11 PC and sign in, the system has no audio. Pressing Fn + F1 to mute it and then pressing the same shortcut again immediately restores sound for the rest of the session. I've installed and removed recent Windows updates, and I've also reinstalled or updated the audio drivers, but nothing changed. The computer is an MSI laptop. Could a BIOS setting, fast startup, Windows audio service, or MSI hotkey utility be causing the audio to initialize in a muted state?
4 Answers
This kind of behavior can happen when the laptop’s keyboard or function-key service initializes incorrectly. Other laptops have shown similar issues with their manufacturer hotkey utilities, so I’d focus on MSI’s hotkey and audio software rather than repeatedly reinstalling the generic driver.
Try restarting Windows Audio and Windows Audio Endpoint Builder through services.msc. Also disable Fast Startup and perform a full shutdown rather than a hybrid shutdown. If the issue continues, check the BIOS/UEFI for any audio or boot-time mute setting.
Since toggling the mute key twice fixes everything for the rest of the session, the speakers and main audio driver are probably fine. Check MSI’s hotkey or system-control software and make sure it is updated. You can also temporarily disable the related utility in Task Manager under Startup apps to see whether Windows starts with sound normally afterward.
There have been Windows audio glitches where sound stays muted or media playback fails until another control resets the audio state. If the service and hotkey utility checks don’t help, try updating the MSI firmware and system-event utilities, then compare the behavior after a full power-off boot.
It’s an MSI laptop, so I’ll check the MSI utilities and try disabling Fast Startup first.