Oculus Quest, but no sound? It can be frustrating when you want to immerse yourself in the world of VR only to have audio issues ruin your experience.
It completely breaks the sense of being in the game, especially when you have no idea what’s causing it.
Oculus Quest can have no sound due to issues with the driver, hardware, or software, or incorrect device selection. To fix it, you will need to update your headset’s drivers or software and fix any conflicting settings. If there’s hardware damage, you may need to replace your headset’s speakers.
An Oculus Quest with no sound can make your heart sink, especially when your precious gaming time is spent trying to fix this.
Read on for some tips to get back to maximum immersion. The VR experience is incomplete without audio, after all.
Why Your Oculus Quest Has No Sound
As of this article’s publication, Oculus Quest and other headsets compete for a relatively small market.
They have not enjoyed colossal mainstream success, limiting the amount of data and community involvement around fixing bugs like your Oculus Quest not having any sound.
In most online communities, experiencing bugs with VR is more of a rule than an exception.
For example, “oculus quest no sound” is a common complaint.
You can also experience other issues like the device shutting off for no apparent reason.
As I’ve mentioned earlier, possible causes of your Oculus Quest headset not having any sound include software issues.
You may also not have configured your headset correctly.
In the worst-case scenario, the headset itself may be damaged, meaning you may have to buy a new one.
4 Actionable Steps To Fix Oculus Quest With No Sound
I’ve briefly touched on the possible reasons your Oculus Quest headset may not have any sound. Now, let’s dive into how to fix them!
Restart Your Oculus
Restarting your Oculus Quest with no sound can resolve the problem. Sometimes, errors occur when your device boots up, causing issues that prevent the sound from being played.
Specifically, here’s how to restart your Oculus Quest headset:
- Turn on Oculus Quest.
- Plug in your headphones via mini-jack.
- Check if the sound works via the headphones.
- If yes, turn off Oculus Quest and turn it back on (don’t restart).
- Unplug the mini-jack.
This method can work if the device has somehow mixed up which devices it should be playing out of.
If you get to step 3 and don’t have sound, you should probably stop right there.
The problem might not be with your headset at all.
Check for Updates
Sometimes, updates to the Oculus Quest or applications you use with it will cause no sound.
This is likely the issue if your headset works in some cases but not others.
For example, the sound will work in the menus, but you won’t hear anything in-game.
To check for updates for your Oculus Quest, do the following:
- Open the Universal Menu.
- Hover over the clock on the left side of the menu and select “Quick Settings.”
- Select “Settings.”
- Select “System.”
- Select “Software Update.”
This process will display your current software version and tell you whether there are any updates available.
It’s best to keep your Oculus Quest updated, so you don’t have problems like no sound.
On the other hand, it’s also possible to experience problems because of a new update.
Either way, if you want to enable or disable automatic updates, you can do so by navigating to the “Software Update” menu (as described above) and checking or unchecking the box.
Although a recent update may be the cause of your issue, I still recommend that you keep automatic updates on.
Nine times out of 10, updates ensure that bugs with your software are kept to a minimum.
Keep in mind that if you turn off your Oculus Quest or put it in Sleep Mode, it will not update.
For more information on getting automatic updates, have a look at this official article from Meta.
3. Check if You Have the Right Sound Device Selected
When you’re dealing with a lot of fiddly bits (like your Oculus Quest headset, your computer, and all the other wires in-between), you’re bound to get a few things mixed up.
It’s possible that all you need to do to solve the “Oculus Quest not having any sound” issue is to double-check your device selection.
To check whether your sound device is the right one:
- Select “Start.”
- Type “Sound Settings.”
- Select “Sound Settings.”
- Select “Manage Sound Devices.”
- Check if “Headphones (Oculus Virtual Audio Device)” is selected
You can also check if the device has somehow been disabled.
(If you’ve used computers for any amount of time, you’re likely no stranger to weird things happening on occasion.)
It may also be that you inadvertently disabled the device by disallowing some or other permission – it happens!
4. Reset Your Device
Over time, data accumulated on the device between updates can conflict with newer updates.
If you’re brave enough, you can just manually remove all that accumulated data.
However, resetting your Oculus Quest headset will be a much faster way to solve your no sound issue.
Before resetting your headset, be aware that this will permanently delete all data from your Oculus Quest.
If there’s anything you want to salvage, make sure you back up what can be backed up first.
You’ll also want to keep all those download links handy just in case.
Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, here’s to factory reset your Oculus Quest headset:
- Turn off your Oculus.
- Hold “Power” and “Volume (-).”
- Release the buttons when the boot screen appears.
- Highlight “Factory Reset” using the volume buttons. Select using the “Power” button.
- Highlight “Yes” using the volume buttons, then select using the “Power” button.
Why Does My Oculus Quest Have No Sound? Conclusion
Oculus Quest with no sound can be caused by a number of issues, but if you’ve followed the steps above and still cannot hear anything, you may be experiencing other software or hardware issues not covered here.
If that’s the case, the Meta Quest Help Center and Oculus Forums are the best place to contact the representatives and ask for assistance