Sound issues while in Group chats

Question

Im currently on a Nitro V15 Gaming laptop and i often play games / watch videos while in Discord Group calls , but lately ive been having issues with my group members being able to clearly hear my computer audio ( game/ video audio ) even while my mic is muted.. ive tried resetting / changing audio selections but nothing is seeming to fix anything.

Answer 1

Hi Jason Holbrook,

Thank you for sharing the details of the audio issue you’re experiencing.

Based on the symptoms described, this behavior typically occurs when Windows audio routing treats system sound as an input source, which can cause game or video audio to be heard by others even when the microphone appears muted in an app like Discord.

In addition to Q&A Assist's answer, please try the recommended steps below in order to resolve the issue:

1, Disable system audio input

• Right‑click the speaker icon > Sound settings
• Select More sound settings > Recording tab
• Right‑click Stereo Mix / What U Hear (if present) > Disable

2, Confirm the correct microphone in Discord

• Open Discord > User Settings > Voice & Video
• Set Input Device to your actual microphone (not Stereo Mix or Default)
• Turn off Automatically determine input sensitivity and adjust manually

3, Turn off audio enhancements

• In Sound settings > select your microphone
• Disable any audio enhancements, noise suppression, or AI voice features (such as Realtek or Acer voice processing tools)

4, Update the audio driver

• Open Device Manager
• Expand Sound, video and game controllers
• Update the Realtek Audio driver using the manufacturer’s support page

After completing the steps above, mute the microphone in Discord and play a video. If the input level no longer moves, the audio routing has been corrected.

Let me know if you need further assistance, feel free to ask me by clicking "Add Comment" or "Add Answer" if you cannot add comment so your response will be visible. Thanks for your effort.

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Answer 2

This behavior usually means Windows is routing system sound into the same input device Discord is using (stereo mix/loopback or wrong device). Fix it by checking devices, drivers, and enhancements in Windows 11.

1. Confirm the correct input and output devices

• Right-click the speaker icon on the taskbar → Sound settings.
• Under Output, make sure the laptop speakers or the headset in use are selected (not a virtual device).
• Under Input, make sure the physical microphone (headset mic or laptop mic) is selected, not “Stereo Mix,” “What U Hear,” or any virtual audio device.

2. Check physical connections and volume

• Verify the headset/mic is fully plugged in and in the correct jack/USB port.
• Ensure the headset’s own mute/volume controls are set correctly.
• If speakers and a headset are both connected, unplug one and test again to rule out crosstalk.

3. Turn off audio enhancements Sometimes enhancements can cause odd routing or echo.
4. Open Control Panel (search for control panel from Start).
5. Select Hardware and Sound → Sound.
6. On the Playback tab, select the default device (speakers/headset) → Properties.
7. Go to the Enhancements tab and check Disable all enhancements or Disable all sound effects → OK.
8. Repeat for other default playback devices if present.
9. Update or reinstall audio drivers If the driver is misbehaving, it can leak output into input.
10. In the search box on the taskbar, type device manager and open it.
11. Expand Sound, video and game controllers.
12. Right-click the audio device (for example, Realtek, Intel Smart Sound, or similar) → Update driver → Search automatically for drivers and follow the prompts.
13. If the issue persists, right-click the same device → Uninstall device → check Attempt to remove the driver for this device (or Delete the driver software for this device on some systems) → Uninstall.
14. Restart the PC so Windows reinstalls the driver automatically.
15. If still problematic, in Device Manager right-click the device → Update driver → Browse my computer for drivers → Let me pick from a list of available drivers on my computer and choose the generic High Definition Audio driver if available, then test again.
16. Run the Windows audio troubleshooter

• Open Settings → System → Troubleshoot → Other troubleshooters.
• Run Playing Audio and follow the recommendations.

6. Check Discord’s own settings (after fixing Windows) Once Windows is using the correct mic and playback device, open Discord and ensure:

• Input Device is set to the actual microphone.
• Output Device is set to the correct speakers/headset.
• Disable any “stereo mix” or virtual devices if they appear as input.

If after these steps the group can still hear system audio while the mic is muted, focus on step 4 (driver reinstall or switching to the generic High Definition Audio driver), as several similar Windows 11 audio issues were resolved by rolling back or replacing the vendor driver with the generic one.

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References:

• Fix sound or audio problems in Windows
• No audio with Windows 11 - Microsoft Q&A
• Audio issues after win11 25h2 update - Microsoft Q&A
• My audio inputs and outputs suddenly disappeared, how do i fix this? - Microsoft Q&A
• cannot increase volume even if trouble shooter updates it - Microsoft Q&A
• How to fix this. no audio device is installed - Microsoft Q&A