KB5050021 and KB5050009 for Windows 11 are breaking USB audio DACs on 23H2 and 24H2 versions

Right now, the solution is to uninstall the updates

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KB5050021 and KB5050009 Windows 11 updates make USB audio DACs unusable

As if Windows 11 didn’t have enough unfixed bugs, it seems that another one is plaguing not only the 24H2 version, but also the older 23H2. Many users complain on a Microsoft Answers thread about problems with their USB audio DACs after installing the KB5050021 and KB5050009 updates.

Unfortunately, the KB5050021 and KB5050009 updates come with many other known bugs, but this one is not listed among them.

The users get the This device cannot start. (Code 10) error with the message Insufficient system resources exist to complete the API. The users report that reinstalling the device didn’t work and the only workaround was to roll back the Windows 11 patch.

Going through the thread we discovered that this can also happen on Windows 10 version 10.0.19045 Build 19045. It appears that the root of all the problems is the Microsoft Generic USB audio drivers.

I have the same issue with a different device that uses the Microsoft Generic USB audio drives. The user managed to fix this issue by uninstalling the Windows Update KB5049981 from Windows 10.

Among the affected devices, the users mentioned JDS Labs The Element, Fiio USB DAC E17K, Denon CEOL Carino USB DAC, and Fosi Audio DAC-Q4.

Microsoft didn’t respond to this thread and we didn’t find any acknowledgement for this issue. As we’ve mentioned above, uninstalling the KB5050021 and KB5050009 on Windows 11 and KB5049981 from Windows 10 is the immediate workaround for this problem.

If you don’t know how to proceed, we have a dedicated guide on how to uninstall an update on Windows 11. Hopefully, Microsoft will add this issue to the known bugs list and provide a solution soon.

Let us know in the comments below if you also encountered this problem on Windows 11 or 10.

More about the topics: windows 10, Windows 11

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