Audio
Settings → Audio is where you trade latency against stability. The defaults are right for most setups — read this page when you want lower latency, or when crackling tells you the current trade is too aggressive.
Driver mode and buffer changes apply on the next engine start. With the engine running, a banner reminds you: ⏹ then ▶ in the monitor bar.
Driver Mode
How Aura Mixer talks to your audio devices:
- WASAPI Shared (default) — plays nice: Windows keeps mixing other apps' sound into the same devices alongside Aura Mixer. The cost is a Windows-enforced floor of about 10 ms of buffer.
- WASAPI Exclusive — Aura Mixer takes the device for itself; other apps can't play to it directly. In exchange, the OS floor disappears and small buffers (lower latency) become possible.
- ASIO / WDM — listed but unavailable in this version.
Stay on Shared unless you specifically need sub-10 ms monitoring (e.g. live vocal performance). For streaming, calls and everyday mixing, 10 ms is already imperceptible — Exclusive buys you nothing but stricter hardware demands.
Buffer Size
The engine processes audio in chunks; the chunk size sets the latency and how tight the CPU's deadline is (why):
| Buffer | Latency | Available in | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 128 samp | 2.7 ms | Exclusive | Premium PCIe/USB interfaces; ordinary USB gear may click |
| 256 samp | 5.3 ms | Exclusive | Recommended minimum for USB mics; loopback channels need 256+ |
| 480 samp | 10.0 ms | both | Default — the sweet spot |
| 512 samp | 10.7 ms | both | |
| 1024 samp | 21.3 ms | both | Maximum headroom for busy systems |
(In Shared mode, values below 480 would be absorbed by the Windows floor anyway, so they're not offered.)
Tuning recipe: chasing latency — step down one size, restart, then watch Ovr/Und in the status bar under a real workload; if they climb or you hear crackles, step back up. Chasing stability — go straight to 1024 and enjoy the calm; 21 ms is still fine for everything except monitoring your own live performance.
Sample Rate
Fixed at 48,000 Hz — the engine's native format, no decision to make. Devices at other rates are converted automatically.
Active Engine Settings
Read-only dashboard: the buffer actually in force and the engine's running/stopped state — useful for confirming a restart picked up your changes.