Head-Fi.org › Forums › Equipment Forums › Computer Audio › Quickest way to switch between using headphones and USB speakers?
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Quickest way to switch between using headphones and USB speakers?

post #1 of 17
2/11/09 at 1:42am
Thread Starter 
Just bought a pair of USB Logitech speakers.

How does the computer decide which device to send sound to when both headphones and USB speakers are connected?

How does one toggle the sound output between the two without having to pull the USB or headphones jack out?
Reply

Head-Fi's Best Sellers

post #2 of 17
2/11/09 at 3:33am
If you go to Control Panel->Sounds and Audio Devices, in the 3rd tab (in WinXP) you can choose which sound device to use for playback. You can also create a shortcut to this control panel item on your desktop to make it quicker to get to it. This is what I do and it's pretty easy to switch between onboard (speakers) and my sound card (headphones).
Reply
post #3 of 17
2/11/09 at 5:58am
SoundSource maybe?
Rogue Amoeba | Freebies

Reply
post #4 of 17
2/11/09 at 4:31pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zenja View Post
If you go to Control Panel->Sounds and Audio Devices, in the 3rd tab (in WinXP) you can choose which sound device to use for playback. You can also create a shortcut to this control panel item on your desktop to make it quicker to get to it. This is what I do and it's pretty easy to switch between onboard (speakers) and my sound card (headphones).
Thanks.

Quote:
Originally Posted by krmathis View Post
SoundSource maybe?
Rogue Amoeba | Freebies
I know you are an Apple guy; does this work with a PC?
Reply
post #5 of 17
2/11/09 at 4:36pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by kwitel View Post
Thanks.



I know you are an Apple guy; does this work with a PC?
See here for pc solution
Reply
post #6 of 17
2/11/09 at 5:00pm
Tip: You may want to put a shortcut for your audio control panel on your desktop so you can change outputs quickly, Laptop Speakers, SPDIF, USB, etc. You can do this by going to the control panel and right click the speaker and then click "Create Shortcut". Then you will have a speaker on your desktop.



That will take you to these settings.



Then you will be able to choose the default output device on the fly without hunting through the control panel.
Reply
post #7 of 17
2/11/09 at 5:38pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by kwitel View Post
I know you are an Apple guy; does this work with a PC?
Sure, but only if the PC run Mac OS X...
Reply
post #8 of 17
2/11/09 at 10:25pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by olblueyez View Post
Tip: You may want to put a shortcut for your audio control panel on your desktop so you can change outputs quickly, Laptop Speakers, SPDIF, USB, etc. You can do this by going to the control panel and right click the speaker and then click "Create Shortcut". Then you will have a speaker on your desktop.



That will take you to these settings.



Then you will be able to choose the default output device on the fly without hunting through the control panel.
This appears to be the easiest option but its not allowing me to toggle between sources.
How exactly do you choose which source to use?
I am clicking on the icon but its not changing the source...
Reply
post #9 of 17
2/11/09 at 11:45pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by kwitel View Post
This appears to be the easiest option but its not allowing me to toggle between sources.
How exactly do you choose which source to use?
I am clicking on the icon but its not changing the source...
Right click the desired device and then choose "Use As Default"
Reply
post #10 of 17
2/11/09 at 11:51pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Quaddy View Post
See here for pc solution
Hey-thanx for the recommendation but it aint working for me.
No matter what I try, the music will only come from my headphones.
Am I missing something here?
Reply
post #11 of 17
2/11/09 at 11:52pm
Scratch that im thinking vista

Im gonna turn my XP machine on here a a bit and figure it for you
Reply
post #12 of 17
2/12/09 at 12:12am
-Click the speaker
-Click the audio tab
-Use the drop down menu to choose your default playback device.
Reply
post #13 of 17
2/12/09 at 2:49am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by olblueyez View Post
-Click the speaker
-Click the audio tab
-Use the drop down menu to choose your default playback device.
Im using Vista and I tried right clicking and setting as default-I get the green check but no matter what I do the music still only comes out of my headphones.
Reply
post #14 of 17
2/12/09 at 3:24am
Quote:
Originally Posted by kwitel View Post
Im using Vista and I tried right clicking and setting as default-I get the green check but no matter what I do the music still only comes out of my headphones.
Notebook?
Reply
post #15 of 17
2/12/09 at 1:13pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by olblueyez View Post
Notebook?
yes:

A Dell Latitude e6400 in a docking station.
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Computer Audio

Head-Fi's Best Sellers

Head-Fi.org › Forums › Equipment Forums › Computer Audio › Quickest way to switch between using headphones and USB speakers?