After investigating this particular issue, it turns out that there are several reasons why you might see this error code when attempting to record something in Audacity. Here’s a list of potential culprits:
Method 1: Allowing Apps to Access the Microphone
If you’re facing this issue on Windows 10, the most common problem that will cause this error code is a new privacy setting that cuts microphone access to 3rd party apps such as Audacity by default. Keep in mind that after the Creator’s Update, this setting is enforced by default. So unless you take the time to specifically configure your computer to allow 3rd party apps access to your microphone, you’ll keep encountering this error. Follow the instructions below to allow Audacity access to your microphone: In case you are still encountering the error code -9999, move down to the next potential fix below.
Method 2: Closing Skype
As it turns out, Skype is one of those apps that can conflict with Audacity. According to some affected users, Skype can cause the 9999 error with Audacity even when running in the background. The reason for this is that with certain headsets, Skype will ‘reserve’ the default recording device, which will make it unavailable for Audacity. If this scenario is applicable, you should be able to fix this conflict by closing Skype whenever you want to use a recording device in Audacity. Even if there is no active Skype window open, you should close off any background process by right-clicking on the Skype icon in the tray bar icon and choosing Quit Skype from the context menu. Once Skype is successfully closed, open Audacity and attempt to use the recording feature again to see if the error is now resolved. In case you are still encountering the same error code 9999 when using the recording feature, move down to the next potential fix below.
Method 3: Disabling the Host Intrusion Protection in Kaspersky Antivirus
If you’re using Kasperksy or a different 3rd party suite, chances are you’re seeing the 9999 error code due to a security feature protecting you from untrusted apps listening in to your microphone – on Kaspersky, this feature is called Host Intrusion Protection. If you are indeed using Kaspersky as your main AV, you should be able to resolve the issue by going by opening the Settings menu of Kaspersky Endpoint Security and going to Advanced Threat Protection->Host Intrusion Prevention. Inside the application screen, simply move Audacity from the Low Restricted group to the Trusted group before saving the changes. Note: Keep in mind that if you’re using a different antivirus, this security feature might be called differently and be found in a different location. In this case, you should search online for specific steps of disabling the Host Intrusion Prevention features. After you do this, launch Audacity again and see if the issue is now fixed. In case you are using a different antivirus suite and you can’t find the equivalent of Host Intrusion Prevention, follow the next method below to get rid of the conflicting antivirus.
Method 4: Disabling or Uninstalling the 3rd party AV (if applicable)
If you are using a 3rd party suite and you suspect that it might be conflicting with the Audacity software, you should try disabling the real-time protection or even uninstalling the security suite temporarily – this will allow you to confirm whether you’re dealing with a conflict or not. The ideal place to start is to disable the real-time protection feature and see if this ends up resolving the problem. With the vast majority of 3rd party security suites, you can do this by right-clicking on the tray bar icon of your antivirus. However, if this problem is related to a firewall restriction, disabling real-time protection will not be enough. In this case, you should take the time to uninstall the security suite and see if the error code stops occurring in Audacity. Here’s a quick step-by-step guide on how to uninstall the conflicting 3rd party suite:
What is ‘Modern Setup Host’ and How to Fix High Disk Usage by Modern Setup Host?Fix: Audacity ‘Error while opening sound device’How to Fix Audacity ‘Internal PortAudio Error’ on Windows 10Fix: Audacity Could not Find any Audio Devices
