When it comes to enjoying media, playing games, or attending zoom calls, the system sound plays a crucial part in rendering a good and effective experience. We all have different audio devices hooked onto our computers for different purposes – and sometimes, we may confuse the audio devices we’re using.

When you have multiple audio devices plugged in, it is best to name them. It might seem like a subtle thing to change but when you’re in a pinch, you won’t have to go through a rigorous trial and error process to find the right one.

There are two methods to rename your audio devices on Windows 11. You can either change/rename them from the Settings Menu, or the Control Panel. This guide covers both methods.

Renaming Audio Devices From the Settings Menu

First, launch ‘Settings’ from the Start menu by pressing the Windows key and selecting ‘Settings’ from the Pinned apps. You can also hold the Windows+I keys together to launch the Settings application.

On the Settings window, click on ‘Sound’ under the System settings to open Sound settings.

Here, you will see a list of all output devices installed on your computer under the ‘Output’ section. To rename an audio device (‘Speakers’ in this case), click on the rightward arrow on the Speakers tile (or the relevant tile depending on the device you wish to rename).

This will open the ‘Properties’ tab for the selected device. Here, click ‘Rename’ to rename the device.

You can rename it to anything you want. In this case, the sound device is a headset driver, and thus we are renaming it as ‘Headset’. Once done, click the ‘Rename’ button to see a tick appear next to it. This indicates the successful renaming of the audio device.

Similarly, you can rename the Input devices as well. On the Sound Settings page, scroll down and you will see all the input devices you have installed under the ‘Input’ section. Click the arrow next to the input device you want to rename.

Now, click on ‘Rename’ below the current name of the selected input device.

After renaming the audio device, click the ‘Rename’ button to see the same tick next to it.

This is how you can change the names of your audio devices from the Settings menu.

Read: How to Rename your PC in Windows 11

Renaming Audio Devices From the Control Panel

There is another method to rename audio devices on your computer — via the Control Panel. Start by launching ‘Control Panel’. Type the app name in Windows Search and choose the relevant search result to do so.

Next, select ‘Hardware and Sound’ on the Control Panel window.

Now, click on ‘Manage audio devices’ under the ‘Sound’ section on the ‘Hardware and Sound’ window.

A new ‘Sound’ window will open. Your output devices will be listed in the ‘Playback’ tab. Select the output device you wish to rename from the list and then click on the ‘Properties’ button at the bottom right.

On the Device’ Properties window, change the name of the device and click on the ‘Apply’ button to save your changes.

To rename input devices, switch to the ‘Recording’ tab. Select any input device from the list and click on ‘Properties’.

Now, rename the input device and then click on ‘Apply’ to save the changes.

Congratulations! You have now learned about renaming audio devices on your PC.