Change start-up sound

My issue is more an annoyance than anything else: I’ve successfully installed Windows 11 on both desktop and laptop, and on the whole, I’m happy with it. However, I frequently shut down my PC, and rely on being able to hear the Windows logon sound to know it’s ready for me to use.

This wasn’t a problem in Windows 10, but the Windows 11 start-up sound is too wimpy. Unfortunately, I’m struggling to find a way to change this sound to something better – an online tip suggesting a Registry tweak failed to work. Can you tell me how to change the sound associated with Windows 11 starting up?

Gerry Exstein

TechLife responds: The Registry tweak Gerry refers to, namely to navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_ USER\AppEvents\EventLabels\ WindowsLogon and change the ‘ExcludeFromCPL’ value to 0, allows users to change the Windows Logon sound via the Sounds tab of the old Sound Control Panel (access this via ‘Settings > System > Sound > More sound settings).

However, the reason the option is hidden is that the sound in question is now redundant – it’s not the source of the sound you’ll hear when you log into Windows.

The actual fix for Gerry’s problem lies elsewhere and would normally involve patching a system file (C:\Windows\System32\ imageres.dll). Thankfully, the excellent portable (and free!) Winaero Tweaker ( https:// winaerotweaker.com) tool does the heavy lifting for you.

First, you need to source a WAV file of the start-up sound you wish to use – you can download the sounds from earlier versions of Windows from WinHistory.De ( www.winhistory.de/more/ winstart/winstart_en.htm), for example.

Once downloaded, open Winaero Tweaker and navigate to Appearance > Startup Sound. Clicking ‘Play current sound’ will confirm the wimpy sound you’re hoping to change, then click ‘Replace startup sound’ to select the replacement WAV file. You’ll be prompted to reboot your system, but simply opt to do it later, then click ‘Play current sound’ to confirm the sound has been changed. Should you later want to switch back, simply click ‘Restore default sound’.