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I have a bluetooth headset that does not allow me to use it as both a microphone and a headset.
I have determined that audio will play through the Bluetooth headset as long as the recording device is set to Conexant ISST Audio. If I set the recording device to BHS-530 Hands-Free then no sound will play through either BHS-530 Playback device.
I can get audio to play while the BHS-530 Handsfree is setup as the Recording device but not while it is actively listening. As an example my BHS-530 Stereo is selected for both my default audio and default communication device. I start playing a YouTube video and audio works with the Playback menu is up in the Sound dialog (first screenshot), as soon as I select the recording menu (second screenshot) the audio stops. If I switch the recording device back to Conexant ISST Audio the youtube video will continue to send sound regardless of which menu I am on.
What do I need to set so that I can use the headset for both audio and microphone (Microsoft Teams Calls)
The headset comes up as two separate devices once it connects to windows:
Playback Device
Type: Headset
Name: BHS-530 Hands-Free
and
Type: Headphones
Name: BHS-530 Stereo
Recording Device
Type: Headset
Name: BHS-530 Hands-Free
Type: Internal Microphone
Name: Conexant ISST Audio
(this is my laptop's internal mic)
Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.
The true test to see if it’s working is to listen to some background music played through your music player of choice while on a Skype call. It’s a pretty niche thing to do (playing D&D over hangouts while playing nature sounds from YouTube), but it’s where I notice the issue mostly.
I was having this same issue with my Aeropex bluetooth headphones. It shows up as two separate devices, the regular headphones, and a headset. If I wanted to use the microphone, then there was no audio. The only way for it to work was to also select the headset option as the output device. The only problem with doing that is you get downgraded to 1 channel audio with tape recorder quality. It's absolute garbage.
So I figured out how to fix it. Open up the Sound Control Panel which shows all of your devices with a Playback and Recording tabs. Go to the Recording tab, and you'll see whatever microphone devices you have. Select whichever one you're trying to use, and open up it's properties. Once in there, go to the Listen tab. You'll see halfway down it says "Playback through this device:" with a selection box underneath it. Select whichever device you want your audio to play through. Make sure you click on Apply or OK at the bottom of the window.
You should now have your bluetooth microphone working, as well as your bluetooth headphones, or whatever audio output you selected. The only issue I've noticed so far is if you're on the Recording tab of the Sound Control Panel, then for some reason it cuts out the audio. As soon as you switch to a different tab, or change priority to another window, then the audio should work again. Just some weirdness with bypassing whatever restriction that is in place I guess.
I have a solution to this. Basically the Intel bluetooth hardware is a bit rubbish. I think everyone on this thread and others are also finding the problems with Intel bluetooth adapters. I've not seen a single issue raised about Realtek bluetooth adapters.
The solution is to use a Realtek one instead. For a laptop that means getting an external one. I have the Mpow MPBH519AB. Search for Mpow 519 and you'll find them. I also have an Mpow BH456A too. They both use the Realtek chipsets. They work.
Windows won't allow 2 bluetooth adapters at once. You need to go to device manager and disable the Intel one and then the Realtek (Mpow or other brand) will become the active one and then all is well.
Simple. So by my way of thinking this isn't actually a Windows/MS problem, it's an Intel problem.
......
I think you've hit on why this is an issue for so many bluetooth headsets. It is indeed the case that the Headset must be selected for both the microphone and headphones to work simultaneously. But, look at what the standard Windows 10 Sound Settings page looks like when it is selected:
The headset isn't a valid option for this page. Most Windows 10 users will end up here, and select the only valid option that looks right, the headPHONES, not the headSET. This is kind of annoying and is certainly confusing a lot of users as evidenced by the length of this thread.
