Learn how to send ATC audio to a Bluetooth headset while keeping simulator sounds on speakers, with fixes for Windows routing and poor audio quality.
On PC flight simulators such as Microsoft Flight Simulator, X-Plane, Prepar3D and FSX, set speakers as the simulator’s main output, then choose the Bluetooth headset as the communications output, where available, or in your external ATC client. Windows per-app routing works only when ATC runs in a separate application.
How do I split ATC and simulator audio on a PC?
The cleanest arrangement is to make the speakers your normal playback device and assign only the ATC source to the headset.
- Pair the Bluetooth headset first. Do this before launching the simulator or ATC client. Windows may show separate Stereo and Hands-Free endpoints; some newer devices present one endpoint and switch profiles automatically.
- Make the speakers the Windows default output. In the Windows sound settings, select your speakers as the normal playback device. You can also make the headset the default communications device, although selecting it explicitly inside the ATC software is more reliable.
- Send the simulator’s main output to the speakers. Choose the speakers in the simulator’s audio settings if it offers an output-device selector. Otherwise, it should follow the Windows default.
- Assign built-in ATC separately where supported. Look for an ATC, voice or communications playback-device setting and select the Bluetooth headset. A voice-volume slider alone does not change the output device.
- Set an external ATC client to the headset. Online ATC clients normally have their own playback selector, making this the easiest arrangement. Select the Bluetooth headset for received voice and configure the microphone separately; our VATSIM headset and microphone configuration covers the associated input and push-to-talk choices.
- Test both sources before departure. Play simulator audio through the speakers and trigger an ATC transmission through the headset. Restart both applications if either one was open before the Bluetooth device connected.
Which audio-routing method should I use?
Your ATC source determines whether the split can be done directly or requires a separate application.
| ATC source | Best routing method | Main limitation |
|---|---|---|
| Built-in ATC with a communications-output setting | Choose speakers for the simulator and the headset for communications | Setting names and available devices vary by simulator |
| External online ATC client | Assign the client to the headset and the simulator to speakers | The client may need restarting after a device change |
| Built-in ATC with one audio output | No ordinary Windows setting can split it | ATC and engine sounds leave the same application as one mix |
| Console simulator | Use a simulator-specific communications output if one exists | PC-style per-app routing is unavailable, and built-in ATC is normally treated as game audio |
How do I use Windows per-app audio routing?
Windows can route the simulator and an external ATC client to different devices because they are separate applications. Open the Volume mixer or per-app sound-device settings after both applications are running, assign the simulator to the speakers, and assign the ATC client to the Bluetooth headset.
If an application is missing from the list, make it produce sound and check again. Some applications read their playback device only at launch, so close and reopen them after changing the assignment.
Can Windows separate built-in ATC from engine sounds?
Windows cannot separate built-in ATC from other simulator sounds when both have already been mixed inside the same executable. Per-app routing sees one simulator audio stream, not separate engines, cockpit, weather and voice channels.
The simulator must expose a dedicated communications output, or ATC must come from a separate client. A hardware or virtual mixer cannot recover an individual voice channel after the simulator has combined everything into one output.
Why does Bluetooth ATC audio sound poor when I use the microphone?
Most Bluetooth headsets switch from high-quality A2DP stereo playback to a lower-bandwidth HFP/HSP hands-free profile when their microphone opens. That profile change can reduce quality, switch endpoints or briefly interrupt ATC reception.
- For the best received audio: use the headset’s stereo playback endpoint for ATC and a separate USB, wired or controller microphone for transmitting.
- If the Bluetooth microphone is required: select the corresponding Hands-Free endpoint for ATC playback and microphone input, then accept the reduced fidelity.
- If only one endpoint appears: the operating system may be managing the profile automatically. The same quality limitation can still apply.
- If transmissions arrive late: Bluetooth latency is the likely cause. Routing settings cannot remove delay introduced by the wireless audio link.
Why is ATC still coming from the speakers?
ATC remains on the speakers when the wrong endpoint is selected, the simulator lacks a separate voice output, or the application cached its device selection at launch.
- All audio moves to the headset: the headset has probably become the Windows default output. Restore the speakers as default and assign only the communications application to Bluetooth.
- ATC is silent: reselect the active Bluetooth endpoint. A client pointed at a disconnected Stereo endpoint may stop working after the headset switches to Hands-Free mode.
- Only MSFS 2020 ATC voices are missing: follow our MSFS 2020 ATC voice-routing checks, including communications-device and text-to-speech settings.
- Every MSFS sound is missing: use these Windows mixer and Bluetooth output checks for Microsoft Flight Simulator before changing ATC-specific options.
- Speaker volume drops during transmissions: Windows may be treating ATC as communications activity and reducing other audio. In the classic Sound control panel’s Communications tab, select
Do nothingif you do not want that automatic ducking. - Routing tests correctly but no calls arrive: check the active COM frequency, receive monitoring and radio volume. Audio-device routing cannot compensate for an unmonitored or incorrectly tuned radio.