How do I route PlayIt Live audio through Stereo Tool using virtual cables?

To process PlayIt Live's audio through Stereo Tool and bring it back into PlayIt Live for streaming, you need two virtual audio cables. The signal path is: PlayIt Live → Cable A → Stereo Tool → Cable B → PlayIt Live. Using two separate cables prevents feedback loops, since sending Stereo Tool's output back into the same cable that feeds its input will cause echoing.

Install the virtual cables

Download and install VB-Audio Virtual Cable (or the multi-cable package if you need more than one). VB-Audio Virtual Cable is donationware, so please consider supporting the developer if you find it useful. Each cable creates two endpoints, which appear in Windows as CABLE-A Input / CABLE-A Output and CABLE-B Input / CABLE-B Output. The Input is the playback side, and the Output is the recording side. Restart Windows if prompted.

Send PlayIt Live to Stereo Tool

In PlayIt Live, go to File > Settings and click on the Live-Assist Mode tab. In the Player audio device assignment section, set each player's audio device to CABLE-A Input. In Stereo Tool, set the input sound card to CABLE-A Output.

Return Stereo Tool's output to PlayIt Live for streaming

In Stereo Tool, set the output device to CABLE-B Input. In PlayIt Live, open Tools > Internet Broadcast and click Change Source in the Broadcast Source section. Select CABLE-B Output as the audio source for your broadcast stream.

Recommended signal path

• PlayIt Live players → CABLE-A Input
• Stereo Tool input → CABLE-A Output
• Stereo Tool output → CABLE-B Input
• PlayIt Live broadcast source → CABLE-B Output

Monitoring the processed audio

With this setup, both PlayIt Live's output and Stereo Tool's output are routed to virtual cables, so you will not hear the processed audio through your speakers by default. To listen to the output, you can use Windows to forward CABLE-B Output to your physical sound card. Right-click the speaker icon in the Windows taskbar and choose Sound settings, then open More sound settings (or Sound Control Panel). Go to the Recording tab, double-click CABLE-B Output, switch to the Listen tab, tick Listen to this device, and choose your built-in sound card under Playback through this device. Click OK to apply.

Important notes

• Keep all devices at the same sample rate (48 kHz is recommended) to avoid glitches or format mismatches.
• Never send Stereo Tool's output back into the same cable that feeds its input, as this creates a feedback loop.