Windows is powered by hundreds of background processes behind the scenes, and seeing some of those processes eat up all your resources isn’t a new thing.
While the high resource usage generally happens in spikes, continued usage can cause you unwanted troubles. In this article, we’re talking about the audiodg.exe process and ways to stop it from consuming all your CPU.
What is the audiodg.exe process?
As you can probably guess, audiodg or Windows Audio Device Graph Isolation process is responsible for the operating system’s audio engine. The file is used for any audio processing and Digital Signal Processing (DSP).
Third-party vendors can also install their own DSP and audio effects in the pipeline, which are processed by the audiodg file.
Also read: How to change icon sizes in Windows 10?
How to fix audiodg’s high CPU usage?
As mentioned above, audiodg might temporarily use up a lot of your CPU, but if the behaviour is sustained, it can cause problems. Here are a few steps you can take to prevent this from happening.
Update the game or concerned program
If the issue only arises when you’re playing a certain game or using a particular program, the issue might be in the game or program and not with audiodg. In such cases, chances are the developer has identified the issue and has released a patch. Try and update the game or program and try again.
Change the audio sample rate
Changing the audio sample rate can help bring down the process’ workload and reduce CPU usage.
Step 1: Right-click the speaker icon in the taskbar and click Sounds.
Step 2: Head over to the Playback tab, select your speakers and click Properties.
Step 3: Go to the Advanced tab, and under the Default Format drop-down, select a lower rate than the one selected.
Wait for a little while, and the CPU usage should drop.
Also read: Windows update error 0x80240fff: 8 Fixes
Update your audio drivers
Out of date or corrupt drivers can cause all sorts of random issues, including high CPU usage. Here’s how you can update your drivers.
Step 1: Press Windows Key + X and click on Device Manager.
Step 2: Double-click on Sound, video and game controllers to show all visible audio devices.
Step 3: Right-click your audio device and click on Update drivers.
Step 4: Click Search automatically for drivers, and Windows will automatically download and install any driver updates needed.
If this doesn’t work, you can follow the same steps to uninstall the audio drivers and restart your PC to install them again.
Disable Audio effects
While audio effects in Windows are meant to enhance user experience, they can be too taxing on weaker CPUs. Disabling them can help reduce CPU usage.
Step 1: Right-click the speaker icon in the taskbar and click Sounds.
Step 2: Head over to the Playback tab, select your speakers and click Properties.
Step 3: Go to the Advanced tab, and under Signal Enhancements, uncheck the Enable audio enhancements checkbox.
Disable volume adjustment
Step 1: Right-click the speaker icon in the taskbar and click Sounds.
Step 2: Head over to the Communications tab and check the Do nothing radio button.
