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Can't change volume in youtube

  • 21 replies
  • 170 have this problem
  • 169 views
  • Last reply by anon_0

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Hi everyone,

I have FF for some time now and until recently i have had no issues with it.

My problem goes like this.


When watching a youtube video you press the play button. But when i do that i cant change the volume anymore using the buttons on my keyboard.

But whenever the video is playing and i minimize the window i can change the volume again.

I dont have this problem in IE, so the keyboard is not to blame.

I also cant press F5 when playing a video in youtube. In order to be able to do that i have to minimize and then maximize again and then i can just refresh as long as i dont click the video.

For some reason whenever the video gets clicked i lose some functionality of my keyboard. Until i minimize the window and then reopen it again :S


All my addons like flash, quicktime, java,...... are all up to date.


Hope you guys can help

Hi everyone, I have FF for some time now and until recently i have had no issues with it. My problem goes like this. When watching a youtube video you press the play button. But when i do that i cant change the volume anymore using the buttons on my keyboard. But whenever the video is playing and i minimize the window i can change the volume again. I dont have this problem in IE, so the keyboard is not to blame. I also cant press F5 when playing a video in youtube. In order to be able to do that i have to minimize and then maximize again and then i can just refresh as long as i dont click the video. For some reason whenever the video gets clicked i lose some functionality of my keyboard. Until i minimize the window and then reopen it again :S All my addons like flash, quicktime, java,...... are all up to date. Hope you guys can help

Modified by caparzo2142

Chosen solution

I have a similar problem, I'm on a laptop so I use the buttons designated for volume control instead. After the 11.3 update clicking on anything that uses flash, like youtube videos causes the volume control to stop working. Yet manually adjusting it from the taskbar fixes it until you click on something using the flash plugin. The plugin crashed on me once while I used a different site. Also I have not tried to test this again using Firefox 13.0.1. (I tried it in 13.0). For the time being I uninstalled 11.3 and went back to 11.2, works fine.

I think it's useful to note that you have to uninstall 11.3 first, (I just used Adobe's uninstall utility, not sure if uninstalling from Windows Programs and Features would get rid of all data.) to be able to reinstall 11.2. I found the older version on FileHippo.

http://filehippo.com/download_flashplayer_firefox_64/12262/ (It's the 64-bit version, the 32-bit version is available on their site as well.

Read this answer in context 👍 11

All Replies (20)

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this could be a bug. for now, you may want to go to manual volume tuning while you troubleshoot. i am not a youtube technition, i do not know how it works. sorry!

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Does it help if you click the mouse anywhere in the user interface or any part of the web page that doesn't show the Flash plugin if you right-click to move the focus away from the Flash plugin?

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Chosen Solution

I have a similar problem, I'm on a laptop so I use the buttons designated for volume control instead. After the 11.3 update clicking on anything that uses flash, like youtube videos causes the volume control to stop working. Yet manually adjusting it from the taskbar fixes it until you click on something using the flash plugin. The plugin crashed on me once while I used a different site. Also I have not tried to test this again using Firefox 13.0.1. (I tried it in 13.0). For the time being I uninstalled 11.3 and went back to 11.2, works fine.

I think it's useful to note that you have to uninstall 11.3 first, (I just used Adobe's uninstall utility, not sure if uninstalling from Windows Programs and Features would get rid of all data.) to be able to reinstall 11.2. I found the older version on FileHippo.

http://filehippo.com/download_flashplayer_firefox_64/12262/ (It's the 64-bit version, the 32-bit version is available on their site as well.

Modified by user355307

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I've tried tl101spam's solution and it fixes the problem.

Just uninstall the Flash player software in add/remove programs in control panel and then you can install the older software

Many thanks

Modified by caparzo2142

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Yep, same problem here... looks like the new update of flash hooks the multimedia buttons... also what's interesting is that clicking on the html part of page doesn't release the hook... you need to switch to other tab or click on the taskbar. But now developers can change volume of flash with multimedia buttons... I think this is a bad idea to do this...

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Same problem. Anything with Flash and my dedicated hard keys for Volume +, -, and Mute no longer work. In order to get them to work I have to click outside the browser or on the Taskbar and it will re-activate the function until I start the next video.

It's highly frustrating, especially when you run across a video whose volume is set too high or you simply want to quickly mute to answer a call.

Coincidentally, I'm also have the same non-responsive issue from my dedicated Home and End key which I use to quickly advance to the top or bottom of a webpage.

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If anyone needs the 32-Bit version of 11.2.xxx I found a copy here: http://www.3support.com/adobe-flash-player-11-2-202-235-non-ie-32-bit-64-bit/

Thus far all appears to be back to normal.

Now if only Mozilla could find a way to not make FF chew through memory when running Flash and then actually release the memory(!) after you close the tab.

Modified by Heist

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I have the same exact problem too. Keyboard media keys not working when watching Youtube. "manually" adjusting volume from system tray brings things back to normal for a while. I installed older version of Flash, volume bug is now gone but the older version tends to crash and freeze Firefox quite often. I really hope this will be fixed soon.

Win7 64bit i5-2500K

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Same problem here. When watching Youtube I cannot change the audio with my keyboard volume up / down and mute keys anymore. They don't work until I change the tab or minimize Firefox, or click the volume icon in the Windows tray bar.

Downgrading to Flash 11.2 is not a good solution from a security standpoint, if you look at the changelog (http://www.softpedia.com/progChangelog/Macromedia-Flash-Player-Changelog-24146.html) for Flash 11.3 you will see that they introduced protected mode for Firefox. This is a terrible dilema: usable volume control or the latest security updates.

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This problem has not been solved in any way,and why do you make it so difficult to ask a question,especially one that is a major headache and has not been solved?We have been fighting with this Flash-Firefox boondoggle for years now which has caused everything from full on devastating blue screen crashes to maddening ,untold time installing and uninstalling one version after another only to find they didn't work so we now must try a convoluted list of slap dash fixes/directions that most ordinary users would have trouble even finding on their computers?

Modified by urlnts

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STILL NOT SOLVED!!!Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love Firefox, defend it against all others and could never imagine switching to another browser but this Flash Player problem is just ridiculous?It's been over two months and still no confirmation of the problem or a real,safe fix from Adobe or FF???

Modified by urlnts

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Still not working for me either. I just bought a pair of speakers with a volume knob so it doesn't bother me that much personally. Strange that the bug haven't been fixed yet, though.

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Bdoss,I can live with it also but my father is older now and the poor guy turns on a video and his computer's video volume is blaring so loud that he quickly hits every link and button he can find(never the correct one though), then I get the call to once again come over and straighten everything out!Something's wrong!

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I found out a better solution some time ago and I'm sorry to have not posted it here (I've posted in a few threads about this same issue). This fix allows you upgrade as you would normally, with all the security fixes included (recommended).

Upgrade to the latest version, then follow the steps on this page: Some people might have their problem resolved by disabling the RealPlayer plugin as shown on the page. For me, the fix was turning off the "Protected Mode" that was implemented in version 11.3.

Both possible solutions are here: http://forums.adobe.com/thread/1018071

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What if you do not have Real Player?

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The newest update( 11.4.402.278) still hasn't fixed the problem?Anybody,is this thing ooonnn?

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Go to this website and scroll down to the bottom. Please follow the instructions that were given starting with "Last Resort".

http://forums.adobe.com/thread/1018071

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I'd rather not use the "last resort", I wish they fix this.

Modified by Bdoss

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Adobe Flash have not come up with a fix that helps everyone despite working on it for many weeks, that may leave one to wonder whether FlashPlayer will ever work in protected mode with some sites.

If you do not try the "last resort" fix of disabling protected mode you may have a long wait for a fix.

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I am testing Waterfox, a 64-bit build of FF and volume works in it correctly. Problem is though, that several add-ons have not been built for a 64-bit browser. I am waiting on Penango and Roboform before I make the switch permanently. Divx and Skype add-ons do not work either.

I was beginning to think that this volume bug was by design. They are always looking for ways to make ads more intrusive. I use noscript, so sometimes the pre-roll ads do not play either. I do not trust advertisers to run scripting, so I skip the video completely at that point.

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