Inspiron 13 5368 2-in-1 High Definition Audio Device in Device Manager - no available driver

I isolated my problem and maybe you guys can try it and see if it helps. My solution is NOT a fix and shouldn't happen but it works.

I found that when I mute my sound and close the lid, sound still works if I reopen it within say....an hour. But if I mute and close lid for an hour or more, I have no sound. So my fix is to un mute the sound then close lid. So far this has worked 100% of the time.

I also noticed that within Dell's support app, I have an exclamation point in red on every day this has happened stating the cause was an "app crash" referring to Realtek drivers and Maxxaudio. Not sure if it's some sort of conflict but it needs addressed.

Something else you might check is to open the Voice Recorder to see if it effects the sound.  

I was having another situation with a loud buzz coming from powered external speakers and opening the voice recorder stopped the noise while it was open.  Possibly related to a combined audio port..

@Saltgrass

I had the same loss of audio in the Mixer Speaker/Headphones graphic.

The Dell "SupportAssist" program is downloadable from the Dell Support site. It asks one to register and has model and warranty information. A large number of system diagnostics are available and whilst no issues were identified the audio mysteriously started working again.  

I'll try your suggestion of keeping the Volume Level less than 35% and see how it goes...

The Dell SupportAssist program lists this driver as Urgent.

www.dell.com/.../DriversDetails

Intel Management Engine Interface Driver

This package provides Intel Management Engine Interface Driver and is supported on Inspiron 5368/5568/7368/7569/7778 and Latitude 3379 runni...

Will see if it makes any difference and get back...

@Saltgrass, No Voice Recorder app installed.

Fading issue has appeared again, I right clicked the taskbar speaker icon, fiddled with "Playback device" settings and after "Restore Defaults" the audio is now working properly again...

Windows 10 or drivers, whose bug is it?

So, it exhibits the problem at the lower volumes?  I have only seen mine do it once and that was with the latest Dell driver for my system..

The Voice Recorder is a default app in Win 10.  It should be in the App listing.

If you ever get it pinned down, let us know since I can test if my system isn't doing it now.

I haven't seen the fading issue now for about 3 days but another 'bug' has appeared.

The slider control (on the task bar) has no effect, thankfully the video clip sliders are still working.

This just highlights how flaky the entire audio system is: (hardware, windows and drivers).

Sound gone again! Had to uninstall sound device (and delete driver), reboot and reboot again.

The Sound is still an issue and I was having difficulty getting it to work again so I decided to call Dell Technical Support on the UK freephone number +44 0800-028-2660.

This took me to Hardware Support where I was informed that the standard warranty does NOT cover software, it only covers hardware. Software support has to be paid for and can be set up by taking out a 'Premium' support package starting at around £60 for one year.

Note this:

The support staff had asked if the problem only occurred with on-line videos. I played a downloaded video and the sound worked perfectly. When I went back to an on-line video the sound worked there too!

If you check the properties for the device in Device Manager, there is an Events tab.  It may give you a clue if or when the prior driver is experiencing a problem.  

Make sure and check the scroll bar to see all the entries.  If you find one you can highlight it and read a description.

Is there a consistent method to get the sound working again after each time it falls over?

Uninstalling devices, reinstalling drivers etc does not always initiate the (temporary) fix.

@Saltgrass

I didn't find anything unusual in the events log.

Realtek recommend  running the Compatibility Trouble Shooter on the audio driver. (DELLMUP.exe). This is contained in the self extracting Dell file (Audio_Driver_VR8Y0_WN32_6.0.1.7908_A03.exe).

The trouble shooter determined that the correct compatibility setting is Windows 8. This is not surprising because the product I have was is a Windows 8 computer with a Windows 10 update.

Will see how this goes (fingers crossed).

PS Does anyone from Dell ever look at this forum?

It's a moderated forum, so yes, there are a very small handful of moderators looking at it, plus their Rockstar helpers. But if you mean do Dell technical personnel sift through the posts for nuggets of wisdom, or to compile a census of product failure, then no.

Thanks jimco, trying this driver

www.techspot.com/.../