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Dell Inspiron 13 7352 Windows 10 mute button stuck
Help!
Take a look at the screen shot below. Notice the mute button is checked on and I cannot get it to turn off. Notice the volume icon in the top left...this appears on all screens and won't go away.
I have uninstalled and reloaded realtek audio drivers, have also reinstalled keyboard drivers. I have used the dell audio trouble shooter and all it says is that volume is low and mute is on. I have used the msconfig to check that audio etc are turned on. The manual sound button on the right can override the mute for a second, but then the volume just goes down and to mute. The FN buttons seems to work as the increase volume button does override for a second and then volume goes down....this is driving me crazy! Thanks for any suggestions
Jim Coates
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May 12th, 2017 22:00
Hard to answer, because I feel reasonably confident that the cause of the symptoms is the hardware in the area of the power button, but I can't narrow it down any further than that..
As far as time, if you want to invest a half hour or so in it, you could open the laptop and investigate the area. Check that the cable is not pinched and that the buttons can move, and if the case is dented or depressed see if you can straighten it.
The parts-people have a very short video showing how to open the laptop to get to the power/volume board. In addition, you can download the Inspiron 7352 Service Manual which has pictures and step-by-step instructions, starting on page 35.
I'm not sure how to determine if the power board itself needs to be replaced. I doubt that it costs very much but the parts-people are out of them. They only cost a couple of bucks on ebay but it's better to get parts from the parts-people when possible.
Jim Coates
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May 12th, 2017 08:00
Hello. That model has a design issue where a cable gets pinched and results in the exact symptoms you are experiencing. This thread has details of the issue and a picture of the pinched cable. Shifting the cable a bit can fix the issue, or have the motherboard replaced.
DELL-Chris M
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May 12th, 2017 08:00
How long did you have the 7352 before the issue started? Prior to the issue, what audio software did you install? MSCONFIG should be returned to normal state. Uninstall the Dell audio driver. Download/install the 5 chipset drivers, one at a time, rebooting after each one. Then reinstall the Dell Realtek ALC3234 driver.
Jasmine13413
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May 12th, 2017 20:00
Hi, About a year. I did as you indicated and downloaded all the chipset drivers and then reinstalled the audio driver...to no avail. But thanks. I am beginning to think the volume button itself is malfunctioning.
Jasmine13413
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May 12th, 2017 20:00
Hi, Thanks for your answer and I did check the thread. When I looked closely, the power and volume button dd look a little depressed...I loosened the screw and nothing happened. But I did look at the button quite closely and the metal does look a little depressed in that area. I believe my daughter might have dropped/banged the laptop and its the button itself. Do you know if this is a big fix or is the fact that the metal encasement itself is depressed, means that replacing the button is a no go? I don't want to waste the time and money if I don't have to...thanks.
Jasmine13413
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May 18th, 2017 18:00
Jimco - Thanks. I took some needl-nosed pliers and unbent the metal - everything works great! Thanks so much...can't believe I wasted so much time on this - definitely a design flaw.