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I often need to join Zoom meetings where I am merely a participant (that is, listening only and not speaking).

Zoom lets you join without a webcam fine, but moronically requires you to have an audio input as well as output to use computer audio. This means if you have a speaker/headphones/earbuds, too bad, so sad - according to Zoom - unless you also have a mic connected to your computer.

This means that I need to dial in by telephone even though I have a perfectly functional audio output, which works but is not ideal.

There's probably little chance of getting Zoom to use some common sense here, so I'm wondering how easy it would be to "spoof" the existence of a microphone to Zoom at the application layer from Windows, to make it complacent and let me use computer audio. I don't need the spoofed mic to work, or actually do anything at all, but just be detectable by Zoom so that it'll let me proceed.

Is there a way to do this, without physically connecting any hardware to the computer?

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    All of my current PCs have microphones built in so I've no way of testing this, but there are USB audio adapters, simple dongles that have both Mic and Spkr 1/8" plugs, very inexpensive. Something like that might be enough to fool Windows into thinking there's a mic. This is an example of what I have in mind: amazon.com/Plugable-Headphone-Microphone-Aluminum-Compatible/dp/…
    – Steve Rindsberg
    Commented Jan 4, 2022 at 21:02
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    Full disclosure, I haven't tried this with Zoom, but Virtual Audio Cable (paid) and VB-Cable (free) both present software-based audio inputs to Windows.
    – Anaksunaman
    Commented Jan 4, 2022 at 22:06
  • Why not just use any mic in the input jack, if your PC does not have one, and mute audio on Zoom?
    – DrMoishe Pippik
    Commented Jan 4, 2022 at 23:38
  • @DrMoishePippik I don't think you understand the question. I do not have a mic, or I would do that.
    – InterLinked
    Commented Jan 5, 2022 at 13:19
  • @SteveRindsberg Desktop computers generally do not have any built-in audio, and most older laptops do not have built-in webcams or mics.
    – InterLinked
    Commented Jan 5, 2022 at 13:20

2 Answers 2

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If you googlge "Windows virtual mic", you can find many solutions.

One of them is Virtual Audio Cable, which is donation-ware. Upon install, it will create a virtual input device and a virtual output device. To use the "mic" / input device, you'll have to go to Control Panel -> Hardware and Sound -> Manage audio devices, and in the "Recording" tab enable the "CABLE output" device. (left side of image)

Then, in Zoom, in "Audio Settings", choose "CABLE output" as your microphone. Just ignore the "if you cannot hear your voice..." message. (right side of image).

enter image description here

EDIT: If you've ever connected a docking station or any audio adapter to your PC, chances are good that in the "audio devices" you'll still see the recording devices, but in a "disabled" state (see my image: I have three of them!). It's enough to manually enable them, and Zoom will accept that as a microphone. That way you don't even need to install any software!

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I'm not familiar with Zoom, however, some systems will simply accept anything plugged into the mic socket as evidence of a microphone being attached.

Have you tried plugging an old earphone with an appropriate jack plug into that socket?

You are more likely to own an earphone or headphone. A broken one should do, or even just cut off the jack plug and use that.

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  • As stated, problem is I do not have a mic. I can plug earbuds into the headphone jack, but I have nothing to plug into the mic jack.
    – InterLinked
    Commented Jan 8, 2022 at 20:00
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    I meant plug the earbuds into the mic socket to fool the system into thinking there is a mic attached. It works on my laptop. The software continues with silent input the broken earphones can't pick anything up
    – PotatoCrisp
    Commented Jan 9, 2022 at 14:07

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