Virtual Audio Cable (VAC) is a program for Windows that allows you to internally route the audio from one software to another one. Instead of sending the audio signal out to a pair of speakers or headphones, VAC will establish some virtual audio channels that mimic the behavior of actual cables inside your computer. One application can output its audio signal to a virtual cable while another one can take that exact signal instantly from the same cable.
Since most of the time various programs on Windows simply don’t have any option to share the audio source with each other directly, the use of VAC in Windows is very handy. A Virtual Audio Cable gets rid of that issue between applications without the need of external hardware. The great fans of this software are streamers, podcasters, programmers, and any advanced users who want a very detailed control of the audio flow in their system.
Because VAC is a driver-based tool the latency involved is very low and it will provide you with a consistent performance. After you have it installed, your operating system will recognize every single virtual cable as an ordinary output and input device. So, just like with your speakers or mics, you can pick the virtual output as an audio source or use the virtual input as a mic. Consequently, the whole process of setting up becomes quite flexible and familiar even if you are a newbie.
Common Uses of Virtual Audio Cable on Windows
Virtual Audio Cable is capable of facilitating numerous real-life Windows workflows. One of the most common ways to use it is for streaming. With VAC you can send the audio of your gameplay, music tracks, and voice chat in separate applications without doing any on-the-spot mixing. Most of the time streamers combine VAC with OBS to have absolute control of the live audio.
One more frequent application is audio recording. VAC enables you to capture the sound on the system level so you can record the audio of the browser or any other software. This is the neatest solution for tutorial videos, online webinars, or demonstrations of software. You are completely free from the need for any extra mics or loopback hardware.
Virtual Audio Cable finds its way to the use of not only the developers and testers but also the musicians. For them, it acts as a bridge between the different pieces of music software and the respective plugins. Since VAC is purely a software, it will allow you to maintain a clean and portable setup.
Benefits, Setup Tips, and Performance Considerations
Once properly configured, Virtual Audio Cable delivers plenty of perks on Windows. The key one is that you get precise control over the routing of the audio signals. You become able to pick out and isolate the sound source(s), do noise reduction, and even prevent feedback loops from occurring. Besides this, it can be also a great money-saving option since it can stand in for a physical audio mixer and the cables.
You do not find the procedure of the setup getting too complicated if you have a reasonable plan. First is to install the driver, then restart the machine, and finally add as many virtual cables as it is needed. One by one, they go to the appropriate application, and each time a cable is assigned, it is named in such a way that it is self-explanatory. Do a test of the audio paths prior to going live, and you will be safe in that regard.
The quality of the performance will be chiefly governed by the size of buffers that is chosen as well as the system that it is running on. Decreasing the buffers, on the one hand, would result in a drop of latency, yet on the other hand, the demand for CPU will be higher. If you choose bigger buffers you will have more stable performance but there will also be a slight delay. As a rule, a majority of Windows machines will be able to run VAC without any problems if a good balance is achieved. Keep your drivers updated and do not run any unnecessary background applications.