Stereo Mix is a virtual tool that records the sound from the computer’s speakers. It can be anything, including audio, videos or even system sound. This feature is turned off by default in Windows 10 for a majority of users, and needs to be turned on manually. If you cannot locate the missing option ‘Stereo Mix’ on Windows 10, the fixes provided below can help you fix the problem.
Also, read How to play Audio from multiple speakers on Windows 10
Table of Contents
1. Enable Stereo Mix in Sounds
As mentioned previously the stereo mix feature is turned off by default for the majority of users of Windows 10. There is a specific setting that doesn’t display the disabled devices in the ‘Sounds’ menu, so you must disable that setting and then turn it on for the ‘Stereo Mix’ option..
To access and enable the ‘Stereo Mix’ feature, click on the icon ‘Speaker’ within the ‘System Tray’ in the lower-right corner and then choose “Sounds” from the menu that opens.
The “Sound” window will open and will have the tab ‘Sounds’ open by default. Go to the tab ‘Recording’ from the top. Right-click anywhere on the blank white space, then select the option to show disabled devices in the drop-down menu.
The option ‘Stereo Mix’ will now be available in the section for recording devices. If you want to enable this feature, click right-click on the option, and then choose “Enable” in the contextual menu.
2. Update the Driver
If you’re still not able to access”Stereo Mix”,, it could be because the driver for ‘Sound’ is out of date, and upgrading it could solve the issue. Windows generally search for and update the drivers automatically, however in certain cases it is possible the drivers installed manually.
The first step is to check the website of the manufacturer to find the most recent versions of their driver, and then install it on your personal computer. To find the driver, you can use Computer Model’, ‘Operating System”, and “Driver Name as keywords in Google or another search engine. Once you have installed the driver continue by following the steps below.
To upgrade the driver, search for the term “Device Manager” in the Start Menu and after that, click the result of your search to start it.
In the “Device Manager In the ‘Device Manager’, look for the ‘Sound, Video, as well as game controllers’ tab Double-click it to expand it.
Then, right-click the audio driver in the options list and select “Update driver” in the contextual menu.
The “Update Drivers window will open with two options: either let Windows search your computer for the most appropriate driver, or install it manually. It is recommended to allow Windows complete the task. If you want to install the driver manually choose the second option. Locate the driver on your system, and follow the instructions on screen to finish the installation.
Once the driver has been upgraded, reboot the computer , and follow the steps in the previous section to enable the option ‘Stereo Mix.
3. Download and Install the Driver
If the driver update did not work or there were no updates, you can try installing and downloading it manually. But there’s a problem in that, since the latest version did not work it’s possible that the driver doesn’t support”Stereo Mix” software for the version installed of Windows. So, you should attempt downloading it for an earlier version, for instance Windows 8.
Since I’m running an HP laptop The screenshots will be in line with it. If you’re using a different brand, you will need to make the modifications to the keywords as well as download the drivers from the appropriate website.
It is recommended to make a backup point on your computer prior to beginning the installation, in case something should happen to go wrong after or during the installation.
For downloading the driver for sound you must look it up using an online search engine. Make use of the Computer Model as well as ‘Operating System’ and the driver’s Name as keywords. First, test the driver that was installed on the older version of Windows before moving to the next step in the event that it fails.
Select the appropriate results of a search to download the driver. It is recommended to download the driver on the website that is owned by the company. If you are unable to locate the driver on the official website, which is the case for some manufacturer, you can find alternative websites (third-party websites) which it is possible to download the driver.
Be aware that there is a risk when download drivers downloaded from third-party source. so make sure you do a thorough investigation prior to proceeding.
Once you’ve download the driver file, it’s now time to install it.
For the installation of this driver search and find it on your computer then double-click it to start the installer.
Once the installer is launched Follow the instructions on screen to finish the installation. After the installation is completed restart your computer and then follow the steps in the previous section to activate the driver.
The option ‘Stereo Mix’ is now available and is easily accessible in the ‘Sounds’ tab. You can record the output of your sound or play audio from various audio devices with the ‘Stereo Mix’ option..