Firestick No Sound: How to Fix It

The picture is fine, but your Fire TV Stick is silent, either everywhere, only through your soundbar, or only in one app. The cause is usually one of four things: something is muted or switched to another output, a Bluetooth device has grabbed the audio, the soundbar link (HDMI ARC) has dropped, or the stick is sending a surround format your TV or soundbar cannot play. Here is how to find which.

Which no-sound problem do you have?

Fix 1: Check mute and volume on every device

Press the volume and mute buttons on the Fire TV remote, then check the TV and soundbar remotes too. Each device has its own volume, and any one of them can be muted. Try another app to rule out a silent video.

Fix 2: Restart everything in the right order

Turn off the soundbar or receiver and the TV, unplug the Firestick's power for 60 seconds, then switch on the soundbar, then the TV, then plug the stick back in. Powering up in that order lets the HDMI devices agree on the audio format again.

Fix 3: Disconnect Bluetooth audio

If you have ever paired headphones or a speaker, the stick may be sending sound to it. Go to Settings › Controllers & Bluetooth Devices › Other Bluetooth Devices and unpair anything you are not using.

Fix 4: Fix the soundbar connection (HDMI ARC / eARC)

• Make sure the soundbar is plugged into the TV's port labelled ARC or eARC, and that the soundbar is set to its TV / ARC input.
• Turn on HDMI-CEC on the TV (brand names include Anynet+, Bravia Sync and SimpLink) and on the Firestick under Settings › Display & Sounds › HDMI CEC Device Control. Turning it off and on again often restores a dropped link.
• In the TV's sound settings, set the output to the soundbar or HDMI ARC, not TV speakers.
• If the TV speakers work but the soundbar does not, the problem is between the TV and the soundbar, not the Firestick.

Fix 5: Turn off Dolby Digital Plus

Some TVs, older soundbars and projectors cannot decode Dolby Digital Plus, so apps that use it play silently. Go to Settings › Display & Sounds › Audio › Dolby Digital Output and choose Dolby Digital Plus OFF. Menu names vary slightly between models and software versions.

Fix 6: Switch the audio format to PCM

If Dolby Digital Plus off does not help, set the same Dolby Digital Output option to Best Available, test, and then to PCM (stereo) if the problem continues. PCM is the format every TV and soundbar can play, at the cost of surround sound.

Fix 7: If only one app has no sound

Open Settings › Applications › Manage Installed Applications, select the app, then Force Stop and Clear Cache. Check the app's own audio or language settings, since some apps let you pick a different audio track. Reinstall the app from the Appstore if it still has no sound.

Fix 8: Update or reset the Firestick

Check Settings › My Fire TV › About › Check for Updates. If sound still does not work in any app or on a different TV, a factory reset is the last step; see how to factory reset a Firestick.

Frequently asked questions