Error no longer produces beep

On my PC, any error in the code (either while running a script or in the Command Window) will produce an error message, but no "beep" sound. Notice that MATLAB can correctly output sounds (as verified with the soundsc function, for instance). The beep function does not work either, even with beep on. I have already tried closing and relaunching the computer. I am running MATLAB R2020a on a Windows 10 PC.

Is there any way I can get the error sound back? I prefer it that way.

Thanks in advance to anyone who can help!

[Rik]

What does this line return?

clc,which('beep','-all')

[Giovanni Mottola]

The result is

C:\Program Files\MATLAB\R2020a\toolbox\matlab\general\beep

This is also what I see when I run edit beep (the default, built-in MATLAB beep function).

[Adam Danz]

Here's another test you can perform to see if the beep sound is being processed by your soundcard.

1. Go do https://app.soundgrail.com/audio-music-visualizer/
2. Allow the website to access your microphone or whatever it asks (even if you don't have a mic)
3. Turn off any music or other sound-generation your computer is creating
4. Play the beep sound in Matlab and look at the visualizer to determine if the beep is registered. It may be difficult to see since the beep is short and uses a limited range of frequencies - see the gif below.

If the beep registers but you don't hear it, the problem is less likely to be related to Matlab. Note that the beep sound appears even if my speakers are turned off.

[Giovanni Mottola]

Hi @Adam Danz, thanks for the suggestion, interesting website. Indeed, I have verified that the beep is not registered.

[Adam Danz]

I'd contact tech support and you can point to this thread to show what you've tried so far. If you do, let us know what they say.

Contact Us - MATLAB & Simulink

[Giovanni Mottola]

Hi @Adam Danz, will do. For future reference, I have found other users with similar issues:

https://it.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/answers/94427-why-does-the-beep-function-produce-no-sound

https://it.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/answers/98641-why-do-the-beep-or-error-functions-in-matlab-not-produce-a-beep-sound

https://it.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/answers/787179-beep-error-and-errors-while-running-scripts-produce-no-sound

However, I could not solve my issue, even after reading the suggested methods in the links above.

[Jeremy Hughes]

I looked at https://app.soundgrail.com/audio-music-visualizer/ and I noticed that when I call BEEP in MATLAB with the volume turned down, I don't see any reaction. It was just picking up sounds the computer could hear, like my dog whining, keys clicking on the keyboard, and the diswasher in the next room. The beep sound shows a relatively dramatic two-seconds of sound when it's working. I don't think this is a sufficient diagnostic tool. There coould be other reasons that a microphone device could pick up a signal even when the volume of speakers is turned down, especially if the mic and speaker signals are going through the same physical device. If this tool picks up a BEEP when none makes it to the speaker could show that there's a speaker malfunction of some kind, but the absense of a signal doesn't mean the sound isn't issued. (although for this specific case, I don't think that's what's happening.)

[Adam Danz]

Hmmm, I just tested it again with my speakers on mute, no external microphone, and the beep still appears, though looks different than the GIF I made a month or so ago. They must have updated their visualizations. Even when I play youtube while my speakers are turned off, it registeres iin the website.

A while ago I installed virtual audio-video cables to route audio/vid from Zoom through Discord and they may be the culprit even thought they aren't currently selected in my device manager.

If anyone finds a diagnostic tool that shows evidence of audio output from the sound card (or to the sound card), I'd be happy to learn about it.