Nothing ruins a co-op session faster than a teammate who sounds like they’re calling from inside a washing machine — or one whose mechanical keyboard drowns out everything they say. The good news is that most Discord voice problems come down to a handful of settings, and they take five minutes to fix.
This guide covers the settings that actually matter for gaming. If you’re new to Discord altogether, start with our beginner’s guide to setting up Discord for gaming first.
All of these live in the same place: open Discord, click the cog next to your name in the bottom left, and choose Voice & Video.
1. Pick Your Microphone by Name
Under Input Device, choose your actual microphone rather than leaving it on “Default”. If Windows decides your webcam or monitor is now the default device — which can happen when you plug something in — Discord will quietly switch to it. Do the same for Output Device so your friends always come through your headset.
2. Push to Talk or Voice Activity?
Discord gives you two ways to transmit your voice:
- Voice Activity sends your voice automatically whenever you speak. It’s the most natural for relaxed sessions with friends.
- Push to Talk only sends your voice while you hold down a key. It’s the better choice if you share a room, have a loud keyboard, or play competitively and want silent comms until you need them.
If you use Push to Talk, add a small release delay so the end of your sentences isn’t cut off when you let go of the key.
3. Set Your Input Sensitivity Properly
On Voice Activity, Discord decides when you’re talking using Input Sensitivity. By default this is set automatically, which works for many people but can let through keyboard clatter and breathing, or cut off quiet words.
To set it yourself, turn off the automatic option and talk normally while watching the bar. Set the threshold just above the level of your room’s background noise and below your quiet speaking voice. Too high and the start of words gets clipped; too low and everyone hears your keyboard.
4. Use One Noise Suppression Tool — Not Three
Discord’s Noise Suppression filters out steady background noise like fans, traffic and keyboard clicks. Choose the lightest option that solves your problem.
The common mistake is stacking it with other tools. If you also use NVIDIA Broadcast, a headset’s own noise cancelling software or Windows’ voice processing, the filters fight each other and your voice comes out watery or clipped. Pick one and switch the others off.
5. Echo Cancellation and Automatic Gain Control
- Echo Cancellation: if you use closed headphones, you can usually turn this off. If you use speakers and friends can hear themselves echoing back, turn it on.
- Automatic Gain Control: this evens out your volume when you move nearer to or further from your mic. If your mic is fixed in place, turning it off often gives a more natural sound. Keep it on if you tend to lean back and forth.
6. Stop Discord Muting Your Game
The Attenuation setting lowers other apps’ volume — usually your game — when someone speaks. Lots of players find it distracting, especially in games where sound matters. Set it to zero, and only bring it up a little if your friends’ voices genuinely get lost under the game audio.
7. Test Before You Play
Use the Mic Test on the same page to hear yourself back. Thirty seconds of testing saves your friends an evening of “can you hear me?”
Quick Fixes for Common Problems
- Friends can hear your keyboard: switch to Push to Talk, or raise your input sensitivity.
- Your voice sounds robotic or underwater: you probably have two noise suppression tools running at once. Turn one off.
- Friends hear themselves echo: turn on Echo Cancellation, or switch to headphones.
- Your game goes quiet when anyone talks: set Attenuation to zero.
- Discord suddenly can’t hear you: check Input Device hasn’t switched away from your microphone.
Playing Local Co-op Online?
Discord pairs perfectly with Steam’s Remote Play Together, which lets you play local multiplayer games online with friends who don’t own them. Our Remote Play Together guide explains how to set it up.
FAQs
Is Push to Talk better than Voice Activity?
Neither is better overall. Push to Talk is best for noisy rooms and competitive play; Voice Activity is more natural for relaxed sessions, as long as your input sensitivity is set properly.
Should I use Discord’s noise suppression or NVIDIA Broadcast?
Either works well, but use one, not both. Running two noise filters at once is the most common cause of a robotic-sounding voice.
Why does my game get quieter when friends talk?
That’s Discord’s Attenuation setting. Set it to zero in Voice & Video settings to stop it.
Do I need a special microphone for Discord?
No. A gaming headset’s built-in mic is fine for most people, and good settings make more difference than expensive hardware. Our best gaming headsets guide covers options with strong microphones.
