How to Fix Audio Renderer Error on YouTube

The Audio Renderer Error often appears when there is a problem with your system’s ability to process and play audio. A few common causes that can prevent YouTube from rendering audio properly include audio driver issues, audio settings problems, browser issues, and more. Let’s take a closer look at how to deal with these problems and quickly fix the Audio Renderer Error.

1. Restart Your Computer

One of the easiest and quickest methods to solve this issue is by restarting your computer. As the error message itself suggests, “Audio renderer error. Please restart your computer.” It’s the most straightforward and apparent solution that should be tried first. Since the error can be a random bug, restarting the system should fix it immediately. If not, continue reading for additional troubleshooting steps.

2. Replug Audio Devices

After restarting your computer, the next most basic solution is to replug your audio devices. Whether you are using USB headphones, a jack, or a wireless device, simply unplug them, wait for a few seconds, and plug them back in again. Once that’s done, try restarting your computer and returning to YouTube to see if the issue reappears.

3. Clean Browser Cache and Cookies

As most users access YouTube through a dedicated browser, it’s possible that the browser is the source of this issue. To eliminate that doubt, we suggest clearing the browser cache and cookies as this can potentially remove corrupted or outdated data. Although cache and cookies can make your browsing experience faster, they are often culprits in many computer problems.

For this guide, we will be using Google Chrome to show you how to clean your browser cache and cookies. However, if you use a different browser such as Microsoft Edge, Opera, or any other, the steps to troubleshoot the issue are quite similar, and the specific settings are generally located in similar places.

1. Open Google Chrome and click on the three vertical dots at the top right.
   Click on the three dots
2. From here, look for the Clear Browsing Data option and click on it.
   

   

3. This will directly take you to the desired menu. Here, uncheck the first box next to your Browsing History and check the two boxes below it for cookies and cached files.
   

   

4. Finally, click on the Clear data option, and you’re good to go.
   

   

4. Restart the Audio Driver

Before we move on to updating and rolling back your audio drivers, try restarting them to see if the issue persists. Restarting your audio driver will not make any changes to the driver and will simply give it a fresh start, ensuring it is free from bugs and glitches. To restart your audio driver, follow these steps:

1. Head to the Windows Search bar and type in Device Manager. Open the best matching result.
   

   

2. Next, look for the “Sound, video, and game controller” option and double-click to expand it.
   

   

3. From here, select the correct audio driver and right-click on it to open a small menu.
   

   

4. Select the Disable Device option from the list.
   Disable device
5. When you select it, a prompt should open up asking for your confirmation of this action. Click the Yes button to proceed further.
   

   

6. After waiting for a minute or two, go back to that small menu and now click on the Enable Device option. Finally, open YouTube to see if anything changes.
   

   

5. Update the Audio Driver

If the issue persists even after restarting the audio driver, the next course of action is to update it to the latest version. When updating your audio driver, you simply have to follow the same steps as you did for restarting it. The only two different steps involve:

1. Once you right-click on your audio driver, select Update Driver.
   

   

2. This will open a dialogue box where you’ll select the “Search automatically for updated driver software” option to let Windows look for the latest drivers.
   Select the first option

6. Reinstall Your Audio Driver

If Windows doesn’t find any compatible updates for your driver, or the issue persists even after updating, one final driver-related solution is to reinstall it. Since Windows automatically handles driver installation when you plug in a device, all you need to do is uninstall the driver. Windows will reinstall it, ideally providing a more stable and issue-free version this time.

Uninstalling your audio driver follows nearly the same steps as the above driver troubleshooting. Simply select the Uninstall device option, and once you confirm your action, the driver will be uninstalled right away. To install it back, restart your computer and Windows will automatically install it.

7. Run the Audio Troubleshooter

Windows comes with built-in troubleshooting utilities that help you solve minor issues related to different aspects of your system. Since the issue is related to audio, the audio troubleshooter can help you pinpoint the main cause and offer suitable solutions. Here’s how to run the Audio Troubleshooter:

1. Open the Windows Search bar and search for “Troubleshooting settings“. 
   

   

2. From here, click on the Additional troubleshooter option to see a list of all the different aspects Windows can help you with.
   

   

3. Under the Get up and running tab, click on the Playing Audio option and select the Run the troubleshooter button.
   

   

4. The audio troubleshooter should start running and should identify any underlying issues, along with solutions to resolve them.

8. Disable Audio Enhancements

Another audio-related setting to disable is the Audio Enhancements. Although audio enhancements aim to improve your sound quality, they can also cause issues with your audio devices. To be on the safe side, we recommend turning the feature off. Here’s how that’s done:

1. Open the Windows Search bar and search for Sound Settings.
   

   

2. From here, click on Device properties.
   

   

3. In the extreme right corner, you should see a Related Settings tab. Here, click on Additional device properties.
   

   

4. Once the menu opens, head to the Enhancements tab. Finally, click on the Disable all sound effects option. 
   

   

Encountering errors is never fun, especially when you are trying to enjoy some entertaining content on YouTube. However, with the above-mentioned fixes, we hope you will be able to solve the error in no time. Be sure to let us know in the comments below which solution worked best for you!