Microphone Boost Explained: What It Does and How to Enable It

What does microphone boost actually do, and when should you use it?

If you’ve ever struggled to make out what the person on the other end of a call is saying, odds are your hardware isn’t at fault. The problem usually comes down to a single setting buried in Windows.

Before your next Skype, Teams, or Zoom meeting, it’s worth taking a few minutes to check your microphone boost settings. A quick tweak can save you from an entire call’s worth of headaches and “can you hear me now?” moments.

That said, microphone boost works a bit differently depending on which Windows version you’re running. And sometimes the option disappears entirely, which is its own frustrating puzzle to solve.

What Does Microphone Boost Do And How To Use It

To help you know more about the question, “what does microphone boost do?”, and to enhance your microphone performance, we’ve got you our complete guide.

Microphone Boost: What Does the Feature Do?

Microphone boost is Windows’ way of giving your mic extra gain when the base volume isn’t loud enough on its own. Think of it as a software amplifier sitting between the hardware and the applications that use it.

Before diving into fixes, there are a few simple checks that can save a ton of time. Start with the basics: is the mic actually plugged in, is it active as the default input, and does the OS even recognize it?

Plug your mic into your PC or laptop, then adjust its input and output volume settings to make sure everything is picking up properly. Combined with a decent microphone, the right settings will deliver clean sound on both ends of the call.

So to put it plainly, microphone boost is just enhanced amplification on top of your normal volume. It makes sure whoever’s listening can actually hear you.

To use it properly, you’ll want to set up your mic first and then run a quick test using the steps below.

Set up your microphone

The microphone boost is available to use in Windows only when you finish setting up your microphone.

As soon as you connect your microphone with your PC or laptop, Windows detects and arranges for the setup.

However, the process doesn’t start automatically.

To set up your microphone, you need to do the following.

• Connect your efficient microphone with your PC
• Select “Start”
• Go to “Settings”
• In settings, you need to select “System”
• Here, click on “Sound”
• The clicking will lead to “Sound Settings”
• In sound settings, go to “Input” and choose your Input device
• Now select the “Recording device” and then, “Microphone.”

Test the installed microphone

To run a test for the workability of your microphone, follow the steps as given below:

• Once you’ve set up your microphone, now select start
• In “Start”, click on “Settings.”
• In settings, go to “System”
• Click on “Sound in System”
• As the Sound settings open, click on “Input”
• Here, select “Test your microphone”
• You’ll see a blue bar
• If the bar rises /falls when you speak into your microphone, it means that your microphone is working
• If you don’t see the rise and fall of the bar, know that there’s a problem
• You need to select Troubleshoot to figure out what’s wrong with your microphone

What’s a Microphone Boost in Windows 10?

Windows 10 handles microphone boost a bit differently, and in most cases the feature is even more useful than in older versions. It’s still there, just tucked into a slightly different corner of the sound settings.

You can use the boost option to resolve both input and output issues with your mic. It’s usually the first thing I check when a friend tells me their voice is too quiet on calls.

Worth knowing: Microphone Sensitivity and Microphone Boost are two names for the same feature. Don’t let the terminology trip you up.

Our guide on how to adjust microphone sensitivity walks through the finer details if you want more granular control over the signal.

You can boost the microphone in Windows 10

In Windows 10 operating system, you can follow the steps to boost your microphone’s performance as we’ve listed below.

• At the bottom right-hand side of your taskbar at the desktop, you see the “Speaker” icon
• Here, right-click on the “speaker” icon
• As the menu opens, you need to select/click “Recording devices”
• The clicking will open the “Sound” dialog box on your main screen
• Under the tab of “Recording devices” You can see the list of the devices you’ve installed or plugged
• The active devices will appear with a green tick
• Right-click your active device (microphone) and the menu will open
• Here, right-click on the option of “Properties”
• Clicking on Properties will open another window
• In this new window, click on the “Level” tab
• You’ll find two options: “Microphone”, and “Microphone Boost”
• Move the slider available against “Microphone” in case you want to increase the volume
• Move the slider available against the “Microphone Boost” option in case you want to increase or decrease the volume sensitivity

The sliders against the “Microphone” option give you an enhancement level up to 100 while the slider against “Microphone Boost” allows you to level up the sensitivity up to +30.0 dB.

Using the options, you can also minimize sound and sound sensitivity.

For this purpose, you just need to drag the sliders to the left side, and you’re all done.

Microphone Boost in Windows 8

A friend once walked me through a microphone boost issue while we were on a call and she couldn’t hear me clearly. She’d used Windows 8 for years and knew exactly where to point me.

If you’re still running Windows 8, there’s a reasonable chance your mic will eventually need a performance nudge at some point. The good news is the process is basically the same as Windows 10.

You can boost the microphone in Windows 8

It’s almost the same instructions as before:

• Find the “Speaker” icon at the bottom right-hand side of your taskbar on the desktop
• Right-click on the “Speaker” icon
• Select/click “Recording devices” from the menu
• It’ll open the “Sound” dialog box on your primary screen
• Locate the list of your installed or plugged in devices under the tab “Recording devices”
• You’ll see the active devices with a green tick
• Right-click on your active device (microphone) to open the menu
• Move your arrow on the “Properties” option and click it
• You’ll get a new window opened on the screen
• Here, click on the “Level” tab
• The pan will show two options: “Microphone”, and “Microphone Boost”
• Move the slider available against “Microphone” towards the right side to increase the volume
• Or move the slider towards the left side to decrease the volume

Note that you’ll get an enhancement level up to 100 in sliders against the “Microphone” option.

While “Microphone Boost” will allow you to level up the sound sensitivity up to +30.0 dB.

Thus, you can either increase or decrease the sound and sound sensitivity.

Microphone boost in Windows 7

You can encounter the problem of your microphone not working in Windows 7 and you can solve this sound delivery problem by using Microsoft Boost.

However, unlike Microsoft Boost in Windows 8 and 10, the feature is quite simple in Windows 7.

So, here is how you can use the feature to get rid of low audibility issues.

Follow these simple steps:

• On the taskbar, select “Recording devices” by right-clicking the speaker icon
• Select the “Microphone”
• Select Properties
• You’ll find the option of boosting by +20.0 dB under the “Custom” tab
• Select and enjoy a good sound experience on Windows 7

Can the Microphone Boost Feature Get Missing in Windows 10?

Yes, it can happen!

You might want to fix the microphone audibility problem by using the microphone boost option, and you’ll find it missing.

This may be caused by several issues.

Let’s have a look at these reasons and their solutions:

The microphone headset button is on mute.

Plenty of troubleshooting sessions fail over something embarrassingly small, and this is one of them.

If the hardware mute button on your headset is flipped to the on position, Windows will grey out the Microphone Boost option entirely.

The fix is almost too easy. Flip the switch back, and everything should light back up.

A connection in the wrong port

A wrong configuration of the microphone port might make the Microphone Boost option unavailable.

The solution is to rectify your configuration manually and change the port.

Since users report that the priorly unavailable option of microphone boost, appeared active because of port configuration, hence we consider it an excellent solution for your microphone enhancement.

Several affected users have reported that the Microphone Boost option started appearing under the Levels tab after physically unplugging the mic from the connected port and plugging it into another.

As a user of Realtek driver, you’ll get a proactive notification that tells you to identify your plugged-in device.

If it’s so, check the box related to Mic In and click Ok.

You will start seeing the Microphone Boost option.

Outdated drivers for sound recording

The third cause in our list is outdated drivers for sound recording.

Many a time, you keep on ignoring the Windows Update notification, or you’ve already disabled that.

The result of not doing that is that the Microphone Boost feature keeps being unavailable.

As told by many users, the unavailability of the Microphone Boost features was resolved when they installed Windows updates.

So, you can try the option of installing all your pending updates for windows by updating your MS Window.

So, here is the method to update your Microsoft Window:

• Open up a Run dialog box by pressing “Windows key + R.”
• Type “ms-settings: Windows Update”
• Press “Enter.”
• You’ll see the “Windows Update” tab of the Update & Security Settings menu
• Now click on “Check for updates”
• Follow the on-screen prompts to install every pending Windows update
• If the system asks to restart before the installation is complete, follow the instructions

Update the driver of microphone drivers.

If Windows updates installation cannot resolve the issue, the time is now to update your microphone drivers.

You can do so by using the Device Manager and follow the method given here:

• Open up a Run dialog box by pressing the Windows key + R
• The “Run” dialogue box will appear
• To open up the Device Manager, type “devmgmt.msc” in the dialogue box and press “Enter”
• Here, click and expand the drop-down menu related to Audio inputs and outputs
• Now, choose “Properties” by right-clicking on your microphone device
• As the Properties screen appears, click on the “Driver” tab
• Now, click on “Update driver”
• Click on “Search automatically for “Update Driver” on the new screen that appears on your desktop

Note that when you follow the process to install the drivers of your microphone, the system installs the drivers online.

Hence, to complete the installation of microphone drivers, make sure that you’ve got a good and stable internet connection.

To stay successful with your installation process whether it’s Windows Updates or microphone drivers, we’ll advise you to check your internet connection first.

Any midway disturbance can result in more harm to your system.

Similarly, when you’ve got a dedicated sound card, we’ll advise you to be on the safer side.

How?

In case you’ve got a dedicated sound card, downloading and installing the latest driver form from your manufacturer’s website is better.

When you install drivers from your sound card, sometimes the systems show you the option to install the latest drivers.

So, if during the process you get the option that allows the installation of the latest drivers, follow the installation of the updated version of microphone drivers.

Restarting your PC is the most important step at the end of any installation process whether it’s software or updates.

Therefore, we advise you to not forget to restart your PC after the installation is complete.

If you delay the restart and rush for work, the result can be your system up-gradation will not be functioning properly.

Hardware not supporting the microphone boost

What if you come across the message of no support for the hardware?

The problem behind that is the soundcard.

Here you have to get a dedicated PCI sound card.

Getting a dedicated PCI sound card may be expensive, yet it may be the only reason behind your microphone output failure.

A sound card can boost your microphone output levels.

Only your sound card drivers will determine whether you’ll see the Microphone Boost option under the Levels tab or not.

Windows 10 can, now, differentiate between sound drivers.

So, Windows 10 eliminates the specific options if the sound card drivers don’t qualify to meet the requirements.

Hence, you can fix the issue in no time by investing in a sound card.

Having a new sound card with the installation of drivers will upgrade your microphone performance.

Other Reasons for No Microphone Boost Option in Windows

Although we’ve looked at some reasons why the microphone boost option doesn’t appear in some versions of Windows. We’ll be looking at some reasons common to all Windows version

Apps have no access to your microphone

It’s possible that your apps have no access to the microphone.

To solve the problem, you must follow the steps as given here:

• Select “Start”
• Select “Settings”
• Click on “Privacy”
• Here, click on “Change” to allow all apps access to your microphone

Once you’ve allowed the apps to access your microphone, you can also choose the apps which can access your microphone:

• Choose the apps you’ll like to allow access to your microphone
• To enable your non-Microsoft apps to access your microphone, switch on under the option of “Allow desktop apps to access your microphone”

Extremely low microphone volume

Yes, another reason you cannot find Microphone Boost in your Windows can be just a low volume problem.

To solve the issue, we’ve got you the following solutions.

Ensure that you have connected the microphone or headset correctly to your computer.

Ensure your microphone is well-positioned. You’d be surprised how much microphone placement alone can fix before you even touch the boost setting.

Sometimes the simple reason can be that your microphone doesn’t have the correct option, which makes it unable to share the sound.

You might need to up-level the volume of your microphone.

You can do so by following these simple steps:

• Select “Settings” by clicking “Start”
• Select “System”, and then “Sound”
• Now click on “Input”
• See whether you’ve selected your microphone under “Choose your input device”
• Now select Device Properties and set the volume sensitivity and Microphone by moving the sliders right or left, just as you read earlier
• Finally, click “OK”
• Run a microphone test by speaking into your microphone and see the bars moving to know that everything is alright

Microphone Boosting might not solve the sound problem

Lots of solutions have been given to make your excellent audio input device work.

Despite all of this, the Microphone Boost option might not work still.

Though it’s rare, you can solve the problem by utilizing the “Advanced” option.

For this purpose, follow the steps listed below:

• Right-click on the “Speaker” icon
• Select/click “Recording devices” by right-clicking the speaker icon at your taskbar
• As it’ll open the “Sound” dialog box on your primary screen
• At the list of your installed devices under the tab of “Recording Devices,” in the Sound dialogue box, right-click your active microphone
• Click the Properties option
• In the new window, click on the “advanced” tab
• Now check the boxes for, “Allow applications to take exclusive control of this device”
• Also, check the “Give exclusive mode application priority”

So you can work on improving the quality of the sound volume by trying the Advanced Setting method.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between microphone volume and microphone boost in Windows?

Microphone volume controls the base output level of your mic and goes up to 100. Microphone boost is an additional amplification setting that can add up to +30 dB on top of that volume.

Boost is useful when your mic is still too quiet at maximum volume, but it can also amplify background noise.

Why is the microphone boost option missing from my Windows sound settings?

The boost option depends on your audio drivers and sound card hardware. Common causes include outdated drivers, the mic being plugged into the wrong port, or a sound card that simply does not support the feature.

Try updating your audio drivers, switching USB ports, or installing a dedicated sound card.

Will enabling microphone boost make my audio sound worse?

It can. Microphone boost amplifies everything your mic picks up, including background noise, fan hum, and room echo.

If you only need a small volume increase, try moving closer to the mic or adjusting the regular microphone volume slider first. Use boost as a last resort and keep it at the lowest effective level.

Final Thoughts

When you’re speaking into a mic, the whole point is to be heard clearly on the other end. It’s endlessly frustrating when you’ve invested in decent gear and people still struggle to hear you.

The most reliable fix is usually built right into Windows itself. Checking the software-level settings before you blame the hardware will save you a lot of troubleshooting time.

If you came into this article wondering what microphone boost actually does, hopefully you’ve got a clearer picture now. Whether it’s a personal call, a work meeting, or a Discord gaming session, boost can be the difference between being heard and being ignored.

You don’t need to call a tech support specialist to sort out your audio issues. Work through the steps above and you’ll almost certainly land on a fix.

One thing to keep in mind: boost isn’t a magic bullet. It amplifies everything your mic picks up, including background noise, so dial it up just enough to be clearly audible, not to max out the meter.

Understanding what gain does on a microphone can help you decide between boost and gain adjustments.