Use a Lethal Company soundboard without confusing local voice and the walkie-talkie
Lethal Company is built around crew communication: nearby voices are local to the space, while an equipped and active walkie-talkie carries communication across distance to another crew member. BordQ combines your physical microphone and selected clips before the signal reaches the game, so nearby players hear one intentional voice-chat feed instead of audio leaking from speakers into an open mic.
A ship operator, an explorer deep inside, and a teammate standing beside you do not share the same listening context, so the right clip in the wrong channel becomes noise instead of coordination. This guide keeps the route useful and predictable: headphones stay on the real playback device, CABLE Output becomes the game microphone, and every effect is triggered deliberately.
Proximity is part of Lethal Company gameplay—not just a call channel.
Lethal Company is built around crew communication: nearby voices are local to the space, while an equipped and active walkie-talkie carries communication across distance to another crew member. That makes distance, channel choice, and microphone mode part of the setup. A clip that works in a private lobby can reach the wrong people—or no one—when the selected voice channel changes.
A ship operator, an explorer deep inside, and a teammate standing beside you do not share the same listening context, so the right clip in the wrong channel becomes noise instead of coordination. Keep incoming game sound out of VB-Cable. Only the mic-and-clip mix should enter CABLE Input; otherwise teammates, strangers, or the game itself may hear an echoing copy of their own audio.
Lethal Company reads CABLE Output from its own Current input device setting. The choice is scoped to the game, so your physical microphone can remain the Windows default and other apps are not redirected to the cable.
- Virtual Cable (Output): VB-Cable Input
- Lethal Company voice input: CABLE Output · Current input device · local or radio context
Three ways to use audio in Lethal Company
These routes solve different needs. The dedicated cable is the only one that mixes live speech and triggered clips without relying on acoustic speaker pickup.
- BordQ → local voice
Nearby warnings, roleplay, and quick crew cues inside the same area.
Distant crew members and the ship operator may not hear it.
Use this for sounds meant to belong to your current physical position. Use this route when that behavior matches the lobby and the people in it.
- BordQ with an active walkie-talkie
A concise status cue that a remote crew member needs to hear.
It depends on the in-game tool and can occupy attention during a dangerous moment.
Keep radio clips shorter than normal speech and leave room for replies. Use this route when that behavior matches the lobby and the people in it.
- Boombox or world audio
In-world entertainment and game-authored sound rather than microphone routing.
It is not the same as sending your own clips through voice chat.
Do not diagnose a boombox as though it were the CABLE Output mic path. Use this route when that behavior matches the lobby and the people in it.
Route BordQ into Lethal Company in five steps
Configure the devices from source to destination, then test with one short clip before joining a live session.
- Install BordQ and expose VB-Cable
Install BordQ on Windows and allow its audio-driver setup to finish. Restart Windows if CABLE Input and CABLE Output do not appear immediately.
CABLE Input is a playback device; CABLE Output is the recording device the game must listen to.
- Build the BordQ mix
In BordQ Audio Setup, select your physical microphone and set Virtual Cable (Output) to VB-Cable Input. Play a short, normalized clip and confirm the output meter moves.
Keep your headset or speakers as the Windows playback device. Do not send incoming game audio into the cable.
- Point Lethal Company at CABLE Output
Open Settings. Set Current input device to CABLE Output (VB-Audio Virtual Cable), then make sure voice chat is enabled. This game has its own input picker, so you do not need to replace the Windows default microphone.
If CABLE Output is missing, finish the VB-Cable install, restart Windows, relaunch the game, and reopen the device list.
- Choose the correct channel and mic mode
Choose CABLE Output as the detected microphone and decide between the game’s open-mic and push-to-talk behavior. Ordinary transmission follows local voice; an equipped walkie-talkie is the long-distance tool. Test the control state instead of assuming one clip reaches the entire crew.
Use push-to-talk for precise timing when possible. Open mic can broadcast accidental clips, keyboard noise, or a feedback path.
- Test at real distance with another player
Host a private crew lobby. Have one teammate stand nearby and another remain by the ship with a walkie-talkie. Test speech first, then one short cue locally and through the radio context. Confirm that neither person hears two copies.
A moving Windows meter proves the cable works; another player hearing the clip through the intended channel proves the complete route works.
Local voice, walkie-talkies, and the boombox solve different jobs
Lethal Company applies its own channel, distance, and gameplay rules after Windows delivers the signal.
- Local voice — Crew near your position
Best for spatial callouts and effects that should come from your character.
- Walkie-talkie — Remote equipped teammate
A tool-mediated link for separated crew, not an always-on global channel.
- Boombox — In-world game audio
A separate item and sound source; it does not prove your microphone route works.
Treat a soundboard like speech: short, readable, and appropriate for the current lobby. A working audio route does not override mute, privacy, distance, server, or moderation rules.
Fix a Lethal Company soundboard that is silent, doubled, or in the wrong channel
Follow the meters in order. Change one device or voice setting at a time so the actual break remains visible.
- CABLE Output has no meter activity — Return to BordQ and confirm Virtual Cable (Output) is VB-Cable Input. Check Windows microphone privacy and restart after installing the driver.
- The meter moves, but nobody hears the clip — Return to Settings, set Current input device to CABLE Output, and confirm voice chat, channel, push-to-talk, distance, mute, and lobby permissions. Relaunch the game if the device list is stale.
- Other players hear themselves or a delayed echo — Incoming game audio is entering the cable or speaker sound is reaching an open physical mic. Keep game playback on headphones, remove loopback routes, and monitor only once.
- Nearby crew hears the clip, but the ship operator does not — Your local microphone route works. Test with powered, equipped walkie-talkies on both ends and use the game’s intended radio control. Do not change VB-Cable when the missing link is the in-game tool.
The questions worth checking before a live lobby
Where exactly do I select CABLE Output?
Use Settings → Current input device and choose CABLE Output. BordQ sends your physical microphone and clips into CABLE Input; the game records the other end, CABLE Output. No Windows-default change is required.
Can I keep talking while using the soundboard?
Yes. Select your physical microphone inside BordQ, then BordQ mixes speech and clips into CABLE Output. Set levels so speech remains understandable when an effect plays.
Why can I hear the clip but other players cannot?
Local monitoring only proves your listening path. Check the CABLE Output recording meter, the game input device, the selected voice channel, microphone mode, distance, and mute state with another player.
Should I use open mic or push-to-talk?
Push-to-talk gives the cleanest control for clips and reduces accidental noise. Open mic can work, but it makes feedback, repeated effects, and unintended broadcasts easier.
Is using a soundboard allowed?
Use a soundboard with crews who welcome it. Keep warnings distinct from real emergency callouts, avoid ear-splitting or repeated clips, and never use audio to harass public lobbies. The best profile adds timing and character without covering teammate speech.
Official Lethal Company references
Game settings and voice behavior can change with patches. These first-party pages support the mechanics described here.
Give Lethal Company one clean mic-and-clip feed.
Download BordQ, send its mic-and-clip mix to VB-Cable Input, choose CABLE Output under Settings → Current input device, and test one short clip with someone you trust. Pro unlocks the full soundboard workspace without a subscription.
Use the same clean route without repeating the same mistakes
- Understand VB-Cable — Learn why Input is the sending end, Output is the recording end, and how to fix missing devices.
- R.E.P.O. soundboard — See how R.E.P.O. changes the same virtual-microphone route with its own proximity rules.
- Phasmophobia soundboard — See how Phasmophobia changes the same virtual-microphone route with its own proximity rules.
- Build the BordQ soundboard — Import clips, normalize levels, assign global hotkeys, and organize game-specific profiles.