After updating to Windows 10, version 1703, my Scarlett Focusrite 2i4 1st generation stopped outputting sound. When I attempted to play the test sound, a Device In Use error message was displayed with the text, “The device is being used by another application. Please close any devices that are playing audio to this device and try again”. As far as I was aware, there were no other devices playing audio to the Focusrite 2i4, so /I ignored the message and did a little troubleshooting.
I first tried to fix the issue by disabling and re-enabling to device and then to uninstalling and re-installing the drivers – both were unsuccessful. In the end I got the card working again by changing the Default Format in the advanced settings for the Scarlett 2i4 USB playback device. It seems that the Windows update had managed to change the default format from CD Quality to DVD Quality which confuses the PC and blocks the sound output.
Here are the steps to fix this issue…
- Left click the speaker icon on the task bar and select Playback devices
- Select “Line Out Scarlett 2i4 USB” and click Properties button at the bottom of the window
- Click the “Advanced” tab
- From the “Default Format” list, select “2 channel, 16 bit, 44100 Hz (CD Quality)
- Click OK
If the Default Format is DVD Quality, Windows will not be able to output sounds through the soundcard. Changing the setting to CD Quality can resolve this issue.
7 replies on “Scarlett Focusrite 2i4 No Sound After Windows 10 Update (Solved)”
In my Windows 10 (Home, “Feature Update 1909”) the procedure does not work as described. I can Right-click, Open Sound Settings, Choose output device “Focusrite USB”, click “Device properties”, click “Additional device properties” and choose the Advanced tab. The drop-down list does not give me any 44100 Hz options; there are only one and two-channel 48000 Hz options in 16 and 24-bit. So does this mean that my 2i4 is now no longer compatible with Windows 10?
Hi Rober,
Do you have the latest drivers installed? You can get them here
https://customer.focusrite.com/en/support/downloads?brand=Focusrite&product_by_range=493&download_type=software
Sorry. spelled my name wrong before.
Thanks, Grover Parmer for itfinesse.com
Just had this issue with my 4i4. Common problem, usually an easier fix. This time I changed the cables from input 1+2 to 2+3 and now they work. Tried uninstalling and updating every driver, installed ASIOfAll, updated everything including my display, graphics software… Strange issue
Mine was set to Studio Quality. I changed it to DVD quality, tested the tone – worked – and then set it back to Studio Quality and it still works. Strange. Hopefully it will still work after restarting my PC.
Found a strange fix that seemed to work. Unplug the usb of the scarlet 2i2 and plug into a different port. ex. 3.0 to the 2.0 usb port.