BalatroAudioHotSwitch

Seamlessly switch audio devices while playing Balatro. Change your Windows audio output (speakers to headphones, etc.) without restarting the game.

Features

• Instant Audio Device Switching: When you change your Windows default audio device, the game audio automatically switches when you alt-tab back
• No Audio Interruption: Music continues playing on the new device
• Zero Configuration: Just install and play

Requirements

• Lovely Injector (mod loader for Balatro)
• Windows (uses OpenAL32.dll)

Installation

Step 1: Install Lovely Injector

If you haven't already, install Lovely:

1. Download lovely-x86_64-pc-windows-msvc.zip from releases
2. Extract version.dll to your Balatro game folder (same folder as Balatro.exe)

Step 2: Install This Mod

1. Navigate to %AppData%/Balatro/Mods/ (create Mods folder if it doesn't exist)
2. Copy the BalatroAudioHotSwitch folder there

Step 3: Install Updated OpenAL Soft (Required)

The mod requires OpenAL Soft 1.22.0+ (Balatro ships with 1.19.1 which lacks the required extension).

Windows

1. Copy the included OpenAL32.dll to your Balatro game folder
2. Replace the existing OpenAL32.dll (backup original if desired)

Alternatively, download from OpenAL Soft Releases (use bin/Win64/soft_oal.dll, rename to OpenAL32.dll)

Linux

Install OpenAL Soft 1.22.0+ from your package manager:

# Debian/Ubuntu
sudo apt install libopenal1

# Arch
sudo pacman -S openal

# Fedora
sudo dnf install openal-soft

Check version with: pacmd list-modules | grep openal or verify the extension is available.

macOS

Install via Homebrew:

brew install openal-soft

You may need to symlink or set DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH to use the Homebrew version instead of the system OpenAL.

Final Structure

Balatro/                          (Steam game folder)
├── Balatro.exe
├── version.dll                   (Lovely injector)
├── OpenAL32.dll                  (Updated 1.22.0+)
└── ...

%AppData%/Balatro/Mods/
└── BalatroAudioHotSwitch/
    └── lovely.toml

Usage

1. Start Balatro normally
2. Change your Windows audio output device (Settings > Sound > Output)
3. Alt-tab back to the game
4. Audio instantly plays through the new device

How It Works

The mod adds:

1. A love.focus() handler that triggers when you alt-tab back to the game
2. FFI code that calls OpenAL Soft's alcReopenDeviceSOFT function to seamlessly switch audio output

This uses the ALC_SOFT_reopen_device extension available in OpenAL Soft 1.22.0+, which can move audio output to a different device while preserving all audio state.

Disabling the Debug Console

Lovely Injector opens a debug console by default. To disable it:

1. Right-click Balatro in Steam → Properties
2. Add to Launch Options:

   --disable-console
   

Troubleshooting

Audio doesn't switch

• Ensure you replaced OpenAL32.dll in the game folder with version 1.22.0+
• Verify the mod is installed in %AppData%/Balatro/Mods/BalatroAudioHotSwitch/
• Check that Lovely's version.dll is in the game folder

Game crashes on startup

• Verify OpenAL32.dll is the 64-bit version
• Try restoring the original DLL to confirm it's a DLL issue

No audio at all

• Restore the original OpenAL32.dll
• Check Windows audio settings

Compatibility

• Game Version: Tested with Balatro 1.0.1+
• Platform: Windows, Linux, macOS (requires OpenAL Soft 1.22.0+) - tested on Windows only
• Other Mods: Compatible with Steamodded and most Lovely-based mods

Credits

• OpenAL Soft for the ALC_SOFT_reopen_device extension
• Lovely Injector for the mod loader

License

MIT License. Balatro is property of LocalThunk.