It's probably me, but why are sound settings such a mess...?

[katie279]

I bought a Creative Sound Blaster ZxR as I figured a simple physical hardware button and a dedicated sound card would make it easier to switch between headphones and speakers and turn volume up and down.... But no!

Why is sound such a mess, I have windows sound settings, which are separate to creative app sound settings, then I have three monitors, each of which has a speaker built in, so I have technically six speakers with few extra guff outputs I never use - eg spdif output etc.

Sorry for the moan, but it just seems daft how hard it is!

Question: how do you configure your sound? Can I switch off the monitor and other speakers permanently in settings? Do you use Windows sound or do you both installing sound card software on top of it?

Am sure it's partly me, but it's a bit of a muddle!

 

[Semple]

If you never use the monitor speakers then disable them as a sound device and they won't show up under volume.

 

[Haze]

I got a usb DAC for my headphones, has its own volume controler, so i dont have this problem

 

[KompuKare]

As well as disabling the unwanted monitor sound sources in Device Manager, another thing you can do is use AutoHotkey to create a shortcuts directly specific tabs of sound.cpl. Chose default playback source is tab zero.

Actually you don't have to used AHK and instead just run sound.cpl from Run and by default it should keep a Run history so you only to hit Win-R & Enter to get there.

 

[d_brennen]

Can't speak for 11 but 10 has it nearly perfect. Click above the volume, choose device.

As mentioned, disable what you don't actually use then surely it's a case of choosing between headphone and speakers?

Having media keys on the keyboard helps with volume and mute etc.

 

[BUDFORCE]

If you never use the monitor speakers then disable them as a sound device and they won't show up under volume.

Ahah you see, you would think so, but every now and then for no good reason it comes back for me.

I agree with the OP, considering how simplied everything has become, sound settings are not straightforward and seem very temperamental.

Throw Bluetooth headphones, and a seperate mic into the mix and you have all sorts going on in the settings.

 

[EsaT]

Ahah you see, you would think so, but every now and then for no good reason it comes back for me.

Did you update graphics card drivers before that?
Make sure you do custom install without any HDMI sound drivers.
Also disable automatic driver messing of Wintoys, because it no doubt wants to force those HDMI audio drivers.

 

[EsaT]

I bought a Creative Sound Blaster ZxR as I figured a simple physical hardware button and a dedicated sound card would make it easier to switch between headphones and speakers and turn volume up and down.... But no!

Hope you didn't pay full normal price.
ZxR was never that good for its price unless really needing those extra connectors and especially now its mediocre in more thna one area.

SBZ Switcher is tool for automating headphones/speakers switching behind hotkey.
https://sourceforge.net/projects/sbzswitcher/

 

[Digit]

I'd have to agree with the OP.

Windows sound is a mess.

Obviously if you have any monitors connected by HDMI/DP, sound will try switching to these as default output at times... (Disabled in sound management)
Then I play around with a bit music production equipment. Launchpad MK2, M-Audio Oxygen Pro 61 and a Boss RC-505 Loopstation. Now the rest of the equipment isn't to bad but the Loopstation due to it basically being it's own sound card will also try and take control at times.
On top of all this Discord is a pain in the rear for trying to change sound settings at random times. What I mean is I have been on Discord one night without issue's. Come back the next night and all my defaults have changed for no reason...

I personally find Windows sound to be intrusive. It's never been a case of set and forget.
And in regards to sound cards I used to be a creative X-fi user until I'd had enough of driver issue's and getting the old snap/crackle/pop BS. Or the hardware just disappearing from Device manager randomly.
These day's I'm a Xonar user and have had a better overall experience. But still Windows is trying to be to clever and thinks it is doing the right thing in changing MY sound settings.

 

[ODuffer]

....SBZ Switcher is tool for automating headphones/speakers switching behind hotkey.
https://sourceforge.net/projects/sbzswitcher/

Looks good, I've been using something similar Audio Switcher for a while now.

 

[BUDFORCE]

Bluetooth headphones every now and then try to connect as a headset not headphones, even though I've disabled them as a headset....

That's another thing I'll occasionally get aside from my monitor speakers

 

[bazzabear]

I had a ZX, and eventually replaced it because switching between speakers and a headset was such a massive faff. Half the time, even when you did it, the game wouldn't recognise the change and you'd have to restart it.

I switched to a Sennheiser GSX 1000, which switches seamlessly and easily. But someone will no doubt tell you it's not up to scratch for sound quality (although it's seemed fine to me - certainly no worse than the ZX it replaced).

I noticed recently that Creative now have a few external solutions which also seem to offer the seamless switching, and look pretty good. It does seem that going external is the secret here - it makes the whole process hardware related and independent of windows.

 

[Marcins94]

It annoyed me to switch audio outputs manually, so I found solution to this problem
- USB hub with power switches, but it only works with USB headphones and sometimes it didn’t work as quickly as expected.

I have been working for the past one year to build better solution on this problem. I liked the effect and I am planning to deliver it to the market and I am nearly to finish it as a product. If You want to see how it works I have video of the first prototype created year ago:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2XXURaxKAfg