AudioCowboy 🤠🔊

A Flow Launcher plugin to quickly switch the default audio input/output device and save/load device profiles — a rofi-style multi-layer menu under a single keyword.

ac            →  🔊 Output   🎤 Input   📁 Profiles   💾 Save
ac o [filter] →  pick the default output (playback) device
ac i [filter] →  pick the default input  (recording) device
ac s <name>   →  save the current input+output as a named profile
ac p [filter] →  list profiles → Enter applies; right-click → Apply / Delete

Switching sets all three audio roles (Console + Multimedia + Communications), so apps like Teams / Discord / Zoom follow the change too.

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How it works

Flow Launcher's plugin model has no native nested menu, so AudioCowboy fakes the rofi multi-layer experience by rewriting the search box (Flow.Launcher.ChangeQuery) to drill down a level while keeping the window open. One keyword (ac), several sub-commands.

There is no public Windows API to set the default device — every tool wraps the undocumented IPolicyConfig COM interface. AudioCowboy uses pycaw (pure Python) as its default backend, so the released plugin needs no external executable. If a NirSoft svcl.exe is present (in bin\ or on PATH), it's used instead. No admin rights are required either way.

Profiles store each device by its MMDevice endpoint ID (stable across reboots and unique even for two identical headsets), not by name — so a profile re-selects the right device even when friendly names collide.

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Install

From the Flow Launcher plugin store (once listed): open Flow, type pm install AudioCowboy, or find it in Settings → Plugin Store.

From a release zip (or to test before the store listing):

pm install https://github.com/True347/AudioCowboy/releases/latest/download/Flow.Launcher.Plugin.AudioCowboy.zip

The release zip bundles the pure-Python backend (lib/), so it works out of the box — no setup step. Restart Flow (or reload plugins) and type ac.

Manual / from source (developers): copy the folder into %APPDATA%\FlowLauncher\Plugins\AudioCowboy\, then either vendor the backend with pip install -r requirements.txt -t lib, or run powershell -File setup.ps1 to add the optional bin\svcl.exe instead. Restart Flow.

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Usage

You type	What happens
ac	Top menu. Each item drills into the next layer; the current default devices are shown.
ac o	List active output devices. The current default is marked ✓. Enter sets a new default.
ac o hdmi	Same, filtered to devices whose name contains "hdmi".
ac i	List active input devices; Enter sets the default.
ac s Gaming	Save the current output+input devices as a profile named "Gaming" (overwrites if it exists).
ac p	List saved profiles. Enter applies a profile; Shift+Enter opens its context menu (Apply / Delete). A ⚠ marks a profile whose device is currently unplugged.

On a device, Shift+Enter offers Set for all roles and Set as Communication device only.

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Profiles & data

Profiles are stored as JSON outside the plugin folder (so they survive plugin updates):

%APPDATA%\FlowLauncher\Settings\Plugins\AudioCowboy\profiles.json

{
  "schemaVersion": 1,
  "profiles": [
    {
      "name": "Gaming",
      "created": "2026-06-17T10:32:00Z",
      "output": { "endpointId": "{0.0.0.00000000}.{guid}", "friendlyName": "Speakers (Realtek)" },
      "input":  { "endpointId": "{0.0.1.00000000}.{guid}", "friendlyName": "Mic (HyperX QuadCast)" }
    }
  ]
}

Writes are atomic (temp file + os.replace), so a crash mid-write can't corrupt the file.

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Settings

Setting	Default	Meaning
svcl_path	(empty)	Override the path to svcl.exe. Empty = use bundled bin\svcl.exe.
show_disconnected	off	Also list unplugged / disabled endpoints.

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Troubleshooting

• "⚠ svcl.exe not found" — run setup.ps1, or set svcl_path in the plugin settings.
• Antivirus flags svcl.exe — it's a NirSoft false positive; allow it, or supply your own copy.
• A device won't switch — make sure it's Active (plugged in / enabled) in Windows Sound settings.
• Nothing happens / errors — check Flow's logs at %APPDATA%\FlowLauncher\Logs\.

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Backends

Backend	When used	Notes
pycaw (default)	always, unless svcl.exe is present	pycaw >= 20251023 (added SetDefaultDevice) + comtypes. Pure Python — vendored into lib/. This is what ships in the release.
svcl.exe (optional)	if bin\svcl.exe exists or it's on PATH, or svcl_path is set	NirSoft SoundVolumeCommandLine. Add via setup.ps1. Not redistributed (AV false positives).

Both produce the same MMDevice endpoint IDs, so profiles are interchangeable between them.

To publish to the Flow plugin store, see publish/PUBLISHING.md.

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Development

plugin.json          # manifest (keyword: ac, Language: python)
main.py              # JSON-RPC entry + router + actions
audio.py             # svcl.exe backend (+ optional pycaw fallback)
profiles.py          # profiles.json CRUD (atomic, update-safe path)
SettingsTemplate.yaml
setup.ps1            # downloads bin/svcl.exe
Images/              # icon set
tools/gen_icons.py   # regenerate icons (Pillow)
tests/               # smoke_test.py (offline) + inspect_live.py / inspect_actions.py
docs/RESEARCH.md     # design + feasibility research report

Run the offline tests (no Flow / svcl needed):

python tests\smoke_test.py

Inspect live output against your real devices:

python tests\inspect_live.py        # read-only: menus + device lists
python tests\inspect_actions.py     # save/load/delete in a temp dir (no-op switch)

Why one keyword instead of aci/aco/acs/acp?

In Flow Launcher's V1 Python model (Language: "python"), the request the plugin receives does not include which action keyword fired — only the search text after it. So separate keywords couldn't be told apart on an empty query. A single keyword with sub-commands (ac o, ac i, …) is the robust choice and faithfully reproduces the original rofi single-entry, multi-layer menu. (Distinguishing keywords would require the newer Python_v2 protocol.)

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Credits

• NirSoft SoundVolumeView / svcl — the audio-switching backend.
• Flow Launcher — the launcher and plugin API.
• Inspired by SoundSwitch and rofi audio-menu workflows.