Audio Profile Switcher (AdvancedVolumeMixer)

Vibe-coded. Architecture, C++, QML, WASAPI plumbing, debugging and the build scripts were written by Claude, which played every developer role on this project. A human only asked for things, clicked around and complained.

Windows tray app that keeps per-output volume profiles. Every audio output (headphones, speakers, HDMI...) gets its own set of profiles, and a profile is a list of per-app volume/mute rules: "Gaming on headphones: Discord 50%, game 80%, Spotify muted". Switch profiles with a click, a global hotkey or the tray menu.

Features

• Remembers every audio output it has seen, including disconnected ones
• Remove outputs you don't care about (virtual cables, monitor speakers...): they're hidden and ignored, and a "Removed" list lets you restore them or delete them for good
• Profiles per output, each with its own process rules and global hotkey
• Per-app volume and mute through the WASAPI session API
• Rules for processes that aren't running yet: they apply once the process starts playing audio
• Rule scopes: single process, group of processes (a.exe; b.exe), or all processes
• Process name picker with autocomplete and a list of running apps
• Edit mode: change several profiles and apply them all at once with Accept, or throw them away with Cancel
• Global hotkeys that work on any keyboard layout
• Lives in the tray: closing the window doesn't quit the app

Settings are stored in %LOCALAPPDATA%\Stalker7274\AdvancedVolumeMixer\profiles.json.

Requirements

• Windows 10 / 11
• Qt 6.8+, MinGW 64-bit kit, installed with the Qt Online Installer. In the installer select:
  • Qt 6.8.x → MinGW 64-bit
  • Developer and Designer Tools → MinGW 64-bit (the matching compiler)
  • optionally CMake and Ninja from the same section
• CMake 3.21+ (the one from the Qt installer is fine)

Build a release

build-release.bat

On the first run it asks for the Qt kit folder, for example C:\Qt\6.8.3\mingw_64 (the folder that has bin\ and lib\cmake\Qt6\ inside), and saves it to build.local. It then finds MinGW, Ninja and CMake in the same Qt installation, builds an optimized Release (-O3, LTO, stripped) and puts a clean, ready-to-run copy into dist\.

Option	What it does
build-release.bat C:\Qt\6.8.3\mingw_64	use this Qt folder without asking
--reconfigure	forget the saved Qt folder and the build cache
--zip	also pack dist\ into AdvancedVolumeMixer.zip
--no-pause	don't wait for a key at the end (for scripts)

Clone into a short path such as C:\dev\AdvancedVolumeMixer. With deep folders, Qt's generated file names go over the Windows 260-character path limit and the build fails.

Develop in an IDE

CMake looks for Qt in this order:

1. -DAVM_QT_DIR=C:/Qt/6.8.3/mingw_64 (or your own -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH)
2. a QT_DIR=... line in build.local next to CMakeLists.txt (git-ignored, written by build-release.bat)
3. the QTDIR environment variable

• CLion: set the toolchain to the MinGW from the Qt installer. Either run build-release.bat once, or add -DAVM_QT_DIR=... to the CMake options of the profile.
• Qt Creator: open CMakeLists.txt and pick the Desktop Qt 6.8.x MinGW 64-bit kit. Nothing else to set up.

A Debug build runs straight from its build folder, because windeployqt copies the Qt runtime there after every build.

Project layout

main.cpp                      app entry, tray setup
source/public/controllers/    AudioMixerController: state, persistence, edit mode, hotkeys (QML singleton "Mixer")
source/public/models/         list models for outputs, profiles and rules
source/public/structs/        data structs with JSON (de)serialization
source/public/winWrappers/    WASAPI device watcher, audio sessions, RegisterHotKey
source/public/tray/           system tray icon and menu
ui/                           QML UI (Material style, dark theme in ui/theme/Theme.qml)

License

WTFPL: do whatever you want with it.