My Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro is starting to get old but it is still a very good laptop. The only problem I started having with it is that the Lenovo laptop speakers are not working but the headphones are. The sound would come and go so after a lot of testing I worked out that it is a hardware issue so I decided to repair them.
In this post, I will show you the steps needed to repair your Lenovo Yoga 2 and other laptops if the sound is not working. I will cover the software and hardware issues that may cause you problems.
Make sure to go through all the steps below as hopefully, it will just be a simple software update. Otherwise, jump down to where I open up my Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro to resolder some headphone jack terminals.
Table of Contents
Work out if it is a hardware or software sound issue.
Step 1. Before pulling your expensive laptop apart try these steps to see if it is a software driver issue causing the Lenovo yoga sound not working. In my case, it was a hardware fault which I will show you how to repair further down in the article. But before taking apart your laptop why not see if there is a simple software fix for your no sound in the laptop issue.
Right-click the sound icon at the bottom right-hand position on the taskbar and select TROUBLESHOOT SOUND PROBLEMS.
This will run through a troubleshooting guide and will fix driver and software problems. It will automatically repair driver and device configuration, windows services, and connectivity issues.
Step 2. Check all of your audio cables that they are plugged in and that the cables are not damaged. If you have a set of powered speakers check that it is turned on at the wall.
Make sure you are plugged into the correct audio port and that the headphones or speakers selection is selected in the control panel.
Step 3. Check that the volume mixer is not muted or turned down the audio level for the application that you are using.
Right-click the sound icon again on the right-hand side of the take bar and select VOLUME MIXER.
You will be able to see the current application that is active and the sound levels that are set. Un-mute any that have been accidentally muted.
Some web browsers also have muting functions set for each tab page. Right-click on the open web browser tab and check if the page has been muted. Unmute if required.
Step 4. Select the correct output audio device.
Some laptops and computers may have more than one audio device. There may be inbuilt audio input and outputs, internal sound cards, or USB sound cards. Make sure you have the correct one selected.
Select START – SYSTEMS – SETTINGS – SOUND and select the output device that you want to use. Windows 10 is often good at working out which device you are plugged into but sometimes it may need an extra hand.
Step 5. Make sure you have updated your Windows 10 to the latest patched version. Including all security updates, drivers, and optional updates. Once installed restart your PC to see if your audio is working again.
Step 6. Install Lenovo Vantage. This is a one-stop free shop to update drivers within your PC, Laptop, or notebook.
- Lenovo Vantage will personalize your Lenovo PC with custom settings such as:
- Power: Help manage and prolong notebook battery life
- Audio, Visual: Camera settings, brightness control, microphone settings, Dolby settings
- Smart Settings: Automatically adjusts your audio and display based on what apps are being used
- Input: Touchpad, Function Key (Fn), Keyboard Backlight, mouse/pen/touch settings
You can get more information about Lenovo Vantage here
If you have gone through all of the above steps and your Lenovo Yoga sound not working then you most probably will have a hardware issue. Luckily this can be an easy fix with some simple tools and a soldering iron.
Lenovo laptop speakers not working but headphones are fix
In my case, the Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro laptop speakers were not working but the headphones are working. If I press down on the headphone jack I could get the sound to work intermittently. Windows 10 would also show a headphone jack connected and disconnected popup notice even though there was no headphone jack in the port.
This was pointing to either a faulty solder joint or contamination inside the headphone jack.
I tried everything such as:
- Blowing compressed air down the headphone jack port.
- Using a wooden toothpick to see if the internal headphone jack contacts are touching.
- Testing the jack with another set of headphones and powered speakers.
- Updating drivers, firmware, and software. This actually fixed another problem I had which was no display with graphics card plugged in on a desktop PC.
Removing the Lenovo Yoga 2 back cover.
The first step is to turn off the laptop, remove the power cord, and close the screen. We can now turn it over and use a T6 Torx bit to remove the 11 screws on the back cover.
Use a pick or small dull blade to work around the back cover housing to pop it out of its recessed mold. You can use your fingernails as it is not a tight fit. Be careful as you can break off the small grey internal tabs. From here you will have access to the battery and the headphone jack port.
The video below shows how to Disassemble the Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro.
How to fix Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro no sound from speakers
Once the back cover is off, locate the headphone jack and use a magnifying glass to inspect the solder joints. In my case, there were two solder joints that looked dry and suspect.
I used a cheap digital WEP 926 LED solder station which has a very small solder tip to redo some of the joints. These connections are very small and that is why you must use the smallest tip possible.
I set the temperature on my solder iron station to 250 deg Celsius due to using a thin solder wire and a small tip. If using thinker solder and a larger tip you may need to go up to 300 deg Celsius or more. Most solder melts around 180 to 190 degrees Celsius, which is around 360 to 370 degrees Fahrenheit.
The top two solder joints are the ones I had to resolder. Don’t apply heat too long onto the PCB as you could melt the plastic headphone jack.
Make sure that after you have soldered the joints they are not touching each other.
Now that you have finished soldering up the sound port jack you can replace the back cover and turn on the Laptop. This should have fixed Lenovo laptop speakers not working but the headphones are problem.
Lenovo Yoga Pro 2 Battery Replacement
Now that you have the back cover off and repaired your Lenovo Yoga sound not working you should replace the lithium battery. These batteries only last around 500-800 charge cycles before they begin to degrade. Quicker if they are left plugged into the power all day long.
If you get less than 3 hours run time out of your battery you should replace it. Lenovo claims a battery life of up to nine hours on a new battery.
I swapped out my battery with this one from Amazon Replacement Laptop Battery Compatible with Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro 13 Series L13S4P21, 54Wh.
- Voltage :7.4V Capacity:7400mAh/54Wh Model: L12M4P21
- Compatible Models: Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 2 Pro 13 Series Y50-70AS-ISE, L12M4P21 2ICP5/57/128-2, L13M4P0 Y50-70AM-IF Y50-70AS-IS 121500156
- Fit for: Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro 13 Series
- Compatible Part Number: L12M4P21 121500156 21CP5/57/128-2 L13S4P21
Lenovo microphone not working
If your Lenovo microphone is not working then you most probably have the same issue as I have with a bad solder joint or dust in the headphones jack port.
Another issue is some PC manufacturers have separate microphone and headphone jack ports.
So if you try to plug all in one 3.5mm phone jack into a headphone port only you will only hear sound and you won’t have any microphone.
The opposite will happen if you plug the same 3.5mm TRRRS plug into the microphone port you won’t have any headphone sound coming out of the speakers. Basically, you will need a 3.5mm splitter to microphone, headphone cable. That’s an easy cheap fix.
A phone connector, also known as phone jack, audio jack, headphone jack, or jack plug is a 3.5mm connector used to transmit analog audio signals.
An audio jack has two, three, four, or, occasionally, five contacts. This gives you stereo sound through your headphone speakers as well as incorporating a microphone signal.
The two-, three, four, and five-contact versions are called TS, TRS, TRRS, and TRRRS connectors respectively.
Conclusion.
I’m glad I finally got around to fixing my Lenovo Yoga sound not working. It was starting to get frustrating when I wanted to watch a clip without having to plug in some headphones or use Bluetooth speakers. Now, this procedure will work for any Lenovo laptop speakers not working but headphones are.
It looked like a dry solder joint on one of the 7 headphone jack pins. Obviously, a defect from the manufacturer as many other people online have had similar issues online.
There are so many reasons why your Laptop sound is not working from the speakers. It can be a frustrating process to troubleshoot but hopefully, the steps in this article have helped you fix your sound problem. My Lenovo Yoga now has sound from the speakers and the headphones. Yay.
I am a qualified Industrial Electrician for the past 20 years and I love to share my knowledge on home repair and maintenance jobs.
I love fast toys like Motorcycles, Cars, Jetskis, Boats, and Computers so writing about them is easy. Working on them is fun.
To keeps costs down I do all my own mods, repairs, and servicing. These skills I want to share with everyone. DIY is a skill everyone can learn.
In reference to Matthew S’s article
“How to fix Leveno laptop speakers not working but headphones are DIY”,
This is the closest to the information I have been searching for. However, I need to know if this would apply to a laptop that was Mistakenly placed to charge on the wrong charger and also in the headset Port?
This was an Ideapad 700 151SK mod 80RU i5 with GeForce. If this was fried due to incorrect polarization, can the external speaker sounds still be repaired?