Windows 10: Windows 11 is testing a way to connect multiple audio devices

Windows 11 users will soon be able to connect two audio output devices simultaneously. Users have been requesting this feature for a long time.

The feature was spotted by Phantomofearth, who shared a couple of screenshots to highlight the new settings. Users will be able to select "Shared Audio" from the quick settings panel, which will prompt you to select two output devices to connect to. All you have to do is pick the devices from the list, and click on the Share button, it should work.



It's not just about connecting 2 audio devices and switching between them as needed. We are talking about simultaneous playback here, in theory you should be able to use it to play audio out of 2 different sets of speakers, right? I guess it would even be possible to mix and match a wired speaker, and add a Bluetooth soundbar to the mix. That could boost the volume up, and offer a nice to watch movies. Or, as Windows Central notes, two people could use it for connecting 2 pairs of headphones and listen to music at the same time.



That sounds cool, but Windows is quite a bit late to the party. Both macOS and Linux have allowed users to connect multiple sound output devices since over a decade or longer. You can also do the same on smartphones.

Windows does have a way to aggregate sound devices, via the Stereo Mix settings. You have to configure it from the Sound settings. It's not a particularly convenient way to set it up. There are some third party tools that one can use to connect multiple audio output devices at the same time. Having a native option is better than to depend on apps, it would be user-friendlier, and more importantly reliable.

Do you use multiple audio output devices with your PC?

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Re-enable audio device

Hi,

I would be happy to assist you.

Before we proceed with troubleshooting, I would need little information on the issue.

• Are using speakers / head phones to listen to audio?

If you have disabled the audio device, then you might not see it under the list of playback devices. I would suggest you to follow these steps to make sure you see the disabled devices:

• • 
    Open
    Control panel.
    
  • 
    Click Hardware and Sound and then Click on
    Sounds.
    
  • 
    Under Playback tab, right click on the empty area and make sure
    “Show Disabled Devices” has a check mark on it. If headphones/Speakers are disabled, it will now show up in the list.
    
  • 
    Right click on the device and
    Enable it. Click OK.
    

If the issue still persists, try enabling speakers automatically using steps below.

• 
  Go to Settings> Click on themes> Advance sound settings> right click on the speakers or the audio device youo have connected > click on
  Configure device.
  
• 
  Test the sound level you want, click Next.
  
• 
  And configure the audio devices.
  

Hope this helps you. Do reply if you need further assistance on Windows 10.

Thank you.

 

Fail to play test tone on any audio device.

My computer is a windows 10 alienware laptop that has failed to play a test tone with my speakers, tv or bluetooth headphones. I believe my bluetooth headphones were connected when I walked out of range and disconnected which started the issue. I have tried
the following things to try and fix it.

Disabling and enabling the audio speakers

• Updating the drivers
• Uninstalling the drivers and restarting so that it automatically puts in the audio driver
• Restarting the Windows Audio Services
  
  sfc scannow to repair corrupted files
  
  Change the sample rate of the audio
  
  Disable audio enhancements
• Enable applications to take exclusive control of the device.
• Disable applications to take exclusive control of the device.
• I checked and no updates have been installed since it was working.
  
  Install High Definition Audio Device
• Run the troubleshooter
• Set audio speakers as the Default
• Try other speaker options such as BT headphones and a TV through HDMI
• Change local and user group settings

Any help and suggestion would be greatly appreciated.

 

Audio stuttering after wake

Hi, ShimmyW

Welcome to the Microsoft Community.



Knowing that you have problems with your audio after waking up from sleep, you can try the following suggestions:



1. Check for Hardware Conflicts:

• Open Device Manager.
  
• Expand the “System devices” category.
  
• Look for any devices with yellow exclamation marks or error messages.
  
• If you find any conflicts, try disabling or uninstalling the conflicting devices.
  

2. Test with External Audio Device:

• Connect an external audio device, such as headphones or speakers, to the computer.
  
• If the audio stuttering persists, it suggests a problem with the Realtek audio device or its drivers.
  

3. Disable Audio Enhancements:

• Go to Control Panel > Sound.
  
• Select the Realtek audio device as the playback device.
  
• Click on the “Properties” button.
  
• Go to the “Enhancements” tab.
  
• Uncheck all the enhancement options.
  

If the above steps do not resolve the issue, contact Gigabyte support for further assistance. They may be able to provide additional troubleshooting steps or replace the audio device if necessary.

Best Regards

Martin | Microsoft Community Support Specialist