- Microsoft has confirmed a bug is taking out audio on some PCs
- It’s affecting all versions of Windows 11, and also Windows 10, mainly hitting those who use a DAC with their PC setup
- A fix is in the pipeline, we’re told
Microsoft has confirmed that Windows 11 has an audio bug (that we reported on yesterday), a glitch which can take out the PC’s sound completely, and it’s now clear that this affects multiple Windows versions.
That means not just those on Windows 11 24H2 (an update that’s still rolling out), but people running 23H2 and 22H2, and also Windows 10.
And that makes this an unusually widespread bug, to say the least.
This problem was first noticed by Windows Latest and is lurking within the January 2025 cumulative updates for these OS versions.
The tech site ran into the issue after they installed the January update for Windows 11 (24H2), whereupon the audio on their PC immediately stopped working.
Apparently, this bug mainly affects those who use an audio DAC (a digital-to-analog converter, like the one in the pic below) hooked up via USB.
However, it can happen to any unlucky Windows 11 (or 10) user who grabs the latest patch.
As Windows Latest spotted, Microsoft has confirmed the issue, stating that: “After installing this security update, you might experience issues with USB audio devices. You are more likely to experience this issue if you are using a USB 1.0 audio driver-based DAC in your audio setup.”
Sadly, there isn’t a fix, and the only way to avoid your audio being torpedoed is to remove the external DAC (assuming you’re using one, and this is what’s causing the problem).
In other words, just plug the audio device directly into your PC, instead of via the DAC.
Microsoft further notes: “We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release.”
Analysis: An update oddity indeed
This is an odd one for a couple of reasons.
Firstly, it’s unusual to see a bug disrupting every available version of Windows 11, and Windows 10 as well – that represents an alarming across-the-board clattering of dominoes.
Secondly, the January update doesn’t bring anything in the way of new features (to any of these OS versions). It’s a very straightforward patch applying some security fixes, and that’s all.
So, it really shouldn’t be causing any issues, but clearly, it is.
Why is that? Well, your guess is as good as mine, but if you want to hear my stab-in-the-dark, it’s that someone has been tweaking something deep inside of Windows as part of those security measures.
Why do I say that? Given that the bug is present across all versions, going back to Windows 10, it surely must have been an old, core part of the operating system codebase that was tweaked (and broke something).
Whatever the case, this is yet another hassle for Windows 11 users, particularly those on 24H2, some of who’ve been experiencing a very hard time of it lately, with a seemingly relentless stream of bugs crawling in the general direction of those users.
That includes some nasty affairs, like a glitch which triggered crashes with certain SSDs, for example, and more recently, there was another audio bug causing havoc. So Microsoft has not been faring well on the sound front lately.
Are some of those 24H2 users getting very fed up? I’d say that’s likely, particularly PC gamers, who have been suffering even more than others with the big update for Windows 11 last year. They’ve had a whole bunch of nastiness visited on them in one form or another.
At any rate, I’m hopeful that the raft of teething troubles caused by what I presume is the transition to the Germanium platform will soon start to settle down.
Germanium is the underlying nuts and bolts of Microsoft’s operating system, and it was introduced as an all-new bedrock with Windows 11 24H2 (it’s also a key element for Copilot+ PCs).
However, in the case of this audio bug, clearly it has nothing to do with Germanium seeing its widespread presence outside of 24H2.
With any luck, the promised fix from Microsoft won’t take long.
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