The PlayStation series has been a huge hit since its launch in the mid-nineties. The longest-running PlayStation has been the ps4 which was launched in 2013 and was the latest PlayStation for the next 7 years until the launch of ps5 in 2020. This means that a lot of gamers still own and use the ps4 regularly. Budget gamers are still purchasing brand new ps4 because of the lack of availability of ps5 and its high price.

Over 7 years, ps4 has faced many minute issues like blinking indicators, damaged HDMI port, damaged dual shock 4 analog sticks, and so on. One of the latest issues that are being reported by console gamers all around the world is a faulty microphone. Many people reported that the issue remained unsolved even after trying basic remedies like power off and on, re-plugging the output device, changing the output device, and so on.

Understanding the scale to which this problem is causing inconvenience to gamers, we decided to dig deep and provide some working solutions to this problem in this article. Following are the most common fixes to a faulty microphone.

Make sure that your headset is plugged in and recognized by the ps4

This is an important fix that you should perform before proceeding to any other solution. More often than not, your headsets are plugged in and you can hear your teammates but the ps4 still doesn’t recognize the headset fully. This is because either the audio jack is not fully inserted or because the connection is being hindered by dust or anything else. To identify this:

  • Open the settings in your ps4 and go to “sound and screen”.
  • under “sound and screen”, navigate for audio output settings.
  • look for the “chat audio” option and if it is not available(grayed out) then the ps4 has not fully recognized your headset.
  • You have to re-insert the audio jack after cleaning it.
  • If it still does not recognize your headset, it is most likely because your headset is not compatible with ps4
  • In rare cases, the audio port may be faulty.

Faulty converter

If you are not using official ps4 headphones, and you are using a pair of headphones that come with separate jacks for microphone and audio, you must be using a 2 in 1 converter to plug in your headset.

Ps4 controllers are known to be incompatible with a lot of converters and thus your only fix is either to change your headset or buy a converter that is compatible with ps4. The optimal solution to this problem is to use a compatible headset that does not require a converter. Some of our favorite picks are listed in best microphones for PS4.

Resetting the controller and restarting the ps4

Many users have reported that a classic off and on solved their issue of a faulty microphone.

You need to reset your controller first as your headphones are directly attached to it and if it doesn’t help, try restarting the ps4 a couple of times.

Many users have also reported that you can fix your ps4 mic not working by repeatedly putting it on mute and unmute.

Changing Sidetone volume and mic gain settings

If none of the above-mentioned solutions are helpful for you, maybe everything is alright and the microphone is even detecting your voice, just at a much lower level.

This is because the sidetone volume and mic gain settings are both set at a very low level.

To fix this, follow the given steps:

  • Go to “audio devices” in the settings menu
  • click on the device you are facing this issue on
  • fill find “adjust microphone level screen” option under that device, click on it.
  • Now increase the level if it is set too low and stop when you are satisfied with the voice input.
  • save and exit.

FAQs

Why has my microphone suddenly stopped working?

Either the audio jack has been suddenly pulled out/torn or you have pressed the mute button.

Why can I hear through my headphones but not talk?

This is because the ps4 has not fully recognized your headsets because they are incompatible or connected improperly. This can also happen when the mic gain level is set very low.

None of the above-mentioned solutions are working. What should I do?

If none of the mentioned tricks are working, you need to update the firmware of ps4. If no firmware updates are available, you need to update the audio drivers manually.

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