In an update to its Windows release health dashboard, Microsoft said affected applications may fail to launch or close without warning. "In some cases the application can fail to launch, or close without warning. In other cases the application will work normally until certain features are used, such as playing music," the company said. "Affected applications may vary and can include games, media players, and certain productivity applications."
Microsoft added that many modern apps do not use Windows for this type of encoding and are not affected. The component that triggers the crashes is most commonly used in legacy applications that rely on Windows' built-in audio decoding, while modern apps that use the legacy AC-3 codec often include their own audio decoding components.
No estimated timeline for a fix was provided. Microsoft said it is working to resolve the issue and will share more information in a future update.
The update follows a string of Windows 11 audio problems. Last month, Microsoft released emergency updates to fix USB audio issues, Remote Desktop Services failures and Hyper-V problems tied to the September 2026 security updates. Last year, it addressed a similar issue that triggered audio playback problems and Code 10 errors on Windows 11 24H2 systems with USB audio device drivers, and lifted a safeguard hold that had caused Bluetooth headsets and speakers to malfunction on systems running Dirac audio improvement software. Two years ago, it confirmed an issue that caused game audio to unexpectedly jump to full volume when using USB DAC sound systems.