CABLE Input and CABLE Output finally make sense
VB-Cable is a software wire between two applications. The playback device called CABLE Input is where a sending app puts audio into the wire. The recording device called CABLE Output is where a receiving app records what came through. The labels describe the cable’s direction, not the role of the menu you are looking at.
BordQ’s installer can add VB-Cable automatically and select the sending side from one Audio Setup screen. This guide still explains the underlying Windows devices, because understanding the route is the fastest way to fix a missing endpoint, silence, sample-rate crackle, or an old driver that needs a clean reinstall.
“Input” means input to the cable, not input to Discord.
Windows separates playback devices from recording devices. CABLE Input appears with speakers because applications play into it. CABLE Output appears with microphones because applications record from it. In old Sound Control Panel terms, one lives on the Playback tab and the other on the Recording tab.
A practical sentence resolves almost every setup: the sender chooses CABLE Input; the listener chooses CABLE Output. In BordQ, Virtual Cable (Output) is the sender. In Discord, OBS, Zoom, a game, or a recorder, the microphone/input source is the listener.
- Sender chooses: CABLE Input (VB-Audio Virtual Cable)
- Receiver chooses: CABLE Output (VB-Audio Virtual Cable)
Dedicated route or whole-system route?
VB-Cable can be one application’s output or the Windows default. Those are very different workflows.
- Select the cable inside BordQ
Sending only the BordQ mix into calls, games, and OBS.
Each receiving app must select CABLE Output.
This is the predictable route: notifications and unrelated desktop audio stay out.
- Make CABLE Input the Windows default
Sending the complete system playback mix through the cable.
Speakers may seem silent and every app or notification can leak into the destination.
Use only when the entire desktop really is the intended source, with a deliberate listening path.
- Per-application Windows output
Routing one music app or game into the cable without a mixer.
Assignments can reset after app or device updates, and some audio processes do not expose cleanly.
Useful for isolation; BordQ remains simpler for reusable clips, hotkeys, mic mixing, and browser audio.
Set up VB-Cable in five checks
Treat the driver, the sender, and the receiver as separate layers. Confirm each one before moving on.
- Install with administrator rights, then restart Windows
Use BordQ’s installer path or the official VB-Audio package. Driver installation needs elevation. Close audio applications first, complete the install, and restart Windows—especially after the first install, an update, or an uninstall/reinstall cycle.
A restart lets Windows rebuild the audio device graph and lets apps enumerate the new endpoints from a clean session.
- Confirm both endpoints in Windows
Open Settings → System → Sound, then More sound settings if needed. Under Playback, find CABLE Input. Under Recording, find CABLE Output. Enable disabled devices and show disconnected devices in the classic panel if an endpoint appears to be missing.
Seeing only one side usually means you are looking at only Playback or only Recording, not that half the cable failed.
- Choose CABLE Input in the sending application
In BordQ, open Audio Setup and set Virtual Cable (Output) to VB-Cable Input. In another sender, choose CABLE Input as its speaker/output. Play a known test sound and look for level activity on the CABLE Output recording meter in Windows.
Do not choose CABLE Output as a speaker. It belongs to the recording/input list.
- Choose CABLE Output in the receiving application
In Discord, Zoom, a game, recorder, or OBS Audio Input Capture source, select CABLE Output (VB-Audio Virtual Cable) as the microphone or input. Reopen the app if its device list was created before the driver installation.
A receiver may cache old devices. Restarting only the app is often enough after Windows itself has already restarted.
- Align the working sample rate and make a recording
VB-Cable supports format conversion, but mixed clocks and applications forcing different formats can still expose crackle, drift, or resampling trouble elsewhere in the chain. For streaming and calls, set the cable endpoints, OBS, and relevant hardware to 48,000 Hz when possible; use 44,100 Hz consistently for a music-only chain if that is the required standard.
Consistency matters more than blindly changing one dropdown. Close apps before changing a device’s Default Format so they reopen with the new rate.
What healthy VB-Cable endpoints look like
Use the Windows device lists and meters as the neutral checkpoint between applications.
- Playback device — CABLE Input
Selected by the sender. A level meter may not be shown in every Windows view.
- Recording device — CABLE Output
Selected by Discord, OBS, Zoom, games, or recorders. Its meter should move when the sender plays.
- Shared format — 48,000 Hz typical
Common for video, streaming, and calls. Keep the full chain consistent when diagnosing crackle.
- After driver changes — Restart required
Installed or removed endpoints may remain cached until Windows and open audio apps restart.
VB-Cable supports a range of formats and automatic conversion, but a consistent chain removes needless resampling and simplifies diagnosis.
When VB-Audio Virtual Cable does not show up
Start in Windows, not inside the destination app. If the operating system cannot see both endpoints, application settings cannot fix them.
- CABLE Input or Output is missing — Check both Playback and Recording lists, enable Show Disabled Devices, restart Windows, and rerun the installer as administrator. If only the app is missing it, close and reopen that app after Windows recognizes the device.
- The meter moves but the receiver is silent — Make sure the receiver selected CABLE Output, not CABLE Input. Check its mute, Push to Talk, input threshold, assigned OBS track, or meeting audio mode. The Windows meter proves the driver carried the signal.
- Audio crackles, drifts, or changes pitch — Match the cable’s Playback and Recording Default Format with OBS and important hardware—usually 48 kHz for video. Close apps that may hold exclusive access, disable exclusive mode temporarily, and test one sender plus one receiver.
- Everything went silent after making it default — CABLE Input is now receiving system audio instead of your speakers. Restore headphones/speakers as the Windows default, or create a deliberate monitor path. For BordQ, selecting the cable inside the app is usually safer.
The questions hidden behind the device names
Is CABLE Input the microphone?
No. CABLE Input is a playback device: the sending app plays into it. CABLE Output is the recording device that behaves like a software microphone for the receiving app.
Why is VB-Audio Virtual Cable not showing up?
The driver may need a Windows restart, the device may be disabled, you may be viewing only one device tab, or the application may have cached its list before installation. Confirm both endpoints in Windows first, then reopen the application.
Should VB-Cable use 44.1 kHz or 48 kHz?
Either can work. Use 48 kHz for the most common OBS, video, and voice-call workflow; use 44.1 kHz when the whole music chain requires it. Matching the important endpoints is the diagnostic goal.
Can I hear the cable while another app records it?
Yes, through BordQ monitoring, the Windows “Listen to this device” option, OBS monitoring, or another mixer. Choose only one monitoring route or you can create latency, feedback, or a duplicated capture.
How do I uninstall VB-Cable cleanly?
Close audio apps, run the same official setup package as administrator, choose Remove Driver/Uninstall, and restart Windows. If you are reinstalling, restart after removal before installing again, then restart once more so stale endpoints are not kept in the device graph.
Official cable documentation
The VB-Audio reference manual describes the two endpoints, supported formats, and automatic conversion. OBS also documents the same cable route for Windows capture.
Let BordQ handle the sending side.
Install BordQ, select your real microphone and virtual output in one screen, and route clips with global hotkeys. The installer includes the VB-Cable path; the guide stays here whenever Windows device names stop making sense.
Connect a real destination next
- Route into Discord — Choose CABLE Output and tune Voice Activity, Push to Talk, and processing.
- Add a source to OBS — Capture CABLE Output once and choose the correct audio-monitoring mode.
- Play audio in Zoom — Use a persistent microphone route or Zoom’s native computer-sound share.
- Play music through your mic — Build the general route and understand why voice codecs change music.