Sound broken

[Craig234]

Setup: Windows 10 PC, using an amp that connects to both the PC and an Amazon Echo Dot, with headphones.

Problem: I was playing a game. The system sort of beeped and froze - a new behavior. At first it reminded me of when it forces an update screen,but it didn't.

Alt-tab didn't work, but control-alt-delete gave a black screen with a mouse cursor that moved.

I power cycled the PC - and it now has no sound.

I tested the headphone side by selecting the echo input and that works fine.

When I unplug the USB cable for the amp, the sound does play over the monitor speaker, so it's basically playing sound.

In the control panel I try clicking around on the audio devices like 'testing' it, and no sound.

I've tried re-plugging both ends of the USB cable. When I click test the graph shows it's playing.

I tried a different USB port - still no sound. I have another pair of headphones that use a USB port, and they are working.

So it's quite unclear to me what's broken. The PC basically plays sound, except not through the USB connection to the amp, which plays sound fine as well from another source.

Ideas?

 

[VirtualLarry]

Fried?

Edit: If you actually read this, I guess I should actually try to figure it out.

So, I don't quite get what you mean by "an amp that connects to both the PC and an Amazon Echo Dot, with headphones".

Does the amp have a speaker on it? (I'm not all that familiar with HiFi and "Headphone amps" and stuff.)

How does this amp actually connect to the PC? And how does it connect to the echo dot? And it has a headphone connected to it, and not a speaker?

You mentioned USB at the end, does the amp plug into the PC, using a USB cable? For just power, or power and signal? IOW, is the amp, itself a USB audio device on the USB bus, or just a power amp for a 3.5mm jack input signal, and has a 3.5mm output jack (amplified) to plug speakers or headphones into?

 

[Ketchup]

I know that aftet my son uses his headphones sometimes I have to right-click and actually set my speakers as default to get sound back to the speakers. Sometimes he has to do the opposite to get sound to his headphones, even though they are "recignized" when he plugs them in. I blame it on Windows not giving full control to the sound chip's software, even in Windows 10.

 

[Craig234]

I know that aftet my son uses his headphones sometimes I have to right-click and actually set my speakers as default to get sound back to the speakers. Sometimes he has to do the opposite to get sound to his headphones, even though they are "recignized" when he plugs them in. I blame it on Windows not giving full control to the sound chip's software, even in Windows 10.

Thanks - but moving the 'default device' around isn't fixing it.