Windows 7 does not recognize HDMI audio output

I recently upgraded to Windows 7 on a Dell 545 MT with audio/video output via an NVIDIA 9800 GTX+ to a flat screen television.

I have installed/uninstalled/reinstalled all the recent drivers from NVIDIA and Realtek, but the machine will not recognize the HDMI output as a sound device (as it had previously in Vista). I troubleshooted the problem with Dell for over an hour and was then directed to their software specialists who want $130 to fix the issue!

Can anyone offer some insight into this? I've searched NVIDIA and Windows 7 forums without success and would really like to get sound coming back through my TV speakers.

Solution 1:

I ran into this issue as well.

You have to right click on the Sound in the tray. Go to Playback Devices and disable the onboard audio before the HDMI audio will turn on.

After you are done watching the TV you will need to re-enable the onboard sound.

You might need to right click in the playback devices and have it show disabled devices in order to see the onboard speakers after having disabled them.

Solution 2:

Im not sure about your specific card, but on my Nvidia 9600GT, I had to run a cable from the sound card (on the mobo) to the video card. This allowed the sound to pass through the HDMI cable.