Audio Redirect

Changing the default playback device is easy enough, especially after the Windows 10 Anniversary Update. However, some games don’t react too well to this switch, causing all audio to stop working.

Audio Redirect is a relatively straightforward program that can help you out if you have come across this issue yourself. It captures all sound from the default device and redirects it to a different one, thus getting around the problem without actually changing the default playback device.

Obviously, this application is only going to be useful if you have encountered this audio issue yourself. If, for instance, you wish to switch between your speakers and headphones, some games may need to be restarted for the audio to start working again.

With Audio Redirect, the sound is simply moved to another device without disabling the original one, so you should be able to make this switch without restarting your game every single time.

Once you have selected a playback device from the system tray menu, the icon will change to one that depicts a set of headphones, while the system volume will appear as muted.

You should avoid changing the system volume once you have begun redirecting audio, as this will cause sound to be played from both the original and the redirected device.

The application can be configured to run at startup automatically, and you also have the option of customizing the latency. If you are experiencing dropouts, it may be a good idea to increase the latency.

Overall, Audio Redirect is a program that can come in handy if you frequently switch between playback devices while playing some problematic PC games. It works quite well, and it can save you the trouble of restarting your game whenever you want to change between speakers and headphones.