Knowledge Base / TROUBLESHOOTING

Fix echo and understand stream delay

An echo, a delayed headphone monitor and a listener hearing you later are different symptoms. Identify which one you have before changing your stream settings.

Reviewed 9 October 2026 · Follow the instructions supplied with your own rental.

First, identify who hears it

Only you hear a delayed voice: inspect your local monitoring path.
Listeners hear repeated speech or music: look for a duplicated source or returned stream audio.
Listeners hear one clean copy later: allow for the stream and player’s buffering. Do not use the listener stream to time a live performance.
A whistle or rising howl: mute the microphone, lower speaker volume and check for acoustic feedback.

Keep the listener stream out of your mix

For the first test, close or mute every player receiving your stream on the broadcasting computer, including the Second Life music player. Ask a helper to listen on a different device. If the echo disappears, the returned stream was being captured alongside your original audio. Keep that return muted while broadcasting, or route it to an output your broadcaster does not capture.

Check for two copies of the same source

Inspect the inputs selected in your broadcaster and mixer. A microphone can reach the mix directly and through a virtual mixer or loopback at the same time. Mute one route at a time and ask the listener whether the duplicate disappears. Write down the working path so you can restore it. Do not disconnect every device or change several routing controls at once.

If only your headphone monitor is delayed

A microphone routed through software has processing latency. If your audio interface supports direct monitoring, check its manufacturer’s instructions for a suitable monitoring path. Avoid hearing both its direct signal and a second software-monitored copy. Changing headphone monitoring does not automatically change what is transmitted: make another listener test.

A note for Mixxx users

Mixxx separates microphone monitoring from the recorded and broadcast mix. Its microphone guide explains software monitoring, direct monitoring and loopback. Use the section matching your equipment rather than copying another setup. A microphone heard in your headphones may still need the correct broadcast routing and microphone controls. Read Mixxx’s microphone guide.

Verify the result

Speak a short phrase, pause, then play a track. Ask the helper whether they hear one clean voice and one copy of the music. Test again after opening the applications you need for the event. Keep their playback away from your microphone. If the issue returns, note which application or route was enabled.

What to send TJ Lusch

Include your broadcaster and version, audio interface, virtual-audio software, whether only you or listeners hear the problem, and the checks already completed. A screenshot of input and monitoring selections helps. Send it privately; keep passwords out of public posts.