Microsoft's January security patch is wrecking audio on Windows PCs

If you’re an audiophile and you haven’t installed the January Windows security patch yet, it may be in your best interest to avoid it. The update has a bug that’s knocking out audio on PCs, particularly for those who use USB audio DACs (digital-to-analog converters).

On January 14, 2025, Microsoft released its latest security patch to Windows PCs. While the patch doesn’t offer any new features, it does include a bug that Microsoft has officially confirmed in a support document.

The bug in question causes audio to malfunction, which is much more likely to happen if you’re using a USB audio DAC. As the support document states:

After installing this security update, you might experience issues with USB audio devices. You are more likely to experience this issue if you are using a USB 1.0 audio driver based DAC (Digital to Analog converter) in your audio setup. This issue might cause USB audio devices to stop working, preventing audio playback.

 

DACs (Digital-to-Analog Converters) are commonly used in scenarios where users need to improve the quality of their audio systems. A few scenarios where they are used are home audio systems, professional music studios and portable music players.

 

Resulting from this issue, the Device Manager might display the error ‘This device cannot start. (Code 10) Insufficient system resources exist to complete the API’.

According to Windows Latest, this issue has been seen across several OS versions, including 24H2, 23H2, and 22H2 on Windows 11, as well as Windows 10. There are currently no fixes for the error, other than uninstalling Windows 11 KB5050009. However, the tech giant told the outlet “We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release.”

As we wait for Microsoft to release a fix, a future update could add an interesting feature. It was recently spotted that the company is currently working on a “Drag Tray” feature to simplify file sharing.