✦ what is this?
windows volume mixer is ugly and limited. eartrumpet fixed that. we made it better.
custom themes. smooth animations. media popup. volume profiles. undo/redo. CLI. 19 hotkeys. and a changelog window with a shimmer effect because we care about the little things.
┌─────────────────┐
system tray ──► │ ♬⋆.˚ 🎺 ˚.⋆♬ │ ──► per-app volume
│ BetterTrumpet │ ──► custom colors
└─────────────────┘ ──► media controls
──► volume profiles
──► CLI control
⋆˚✿˖° features
core (inherited from eartrumpet)
| feature | |
|---|---|
| per-app volume control | ✓ |
| move apps between devices | ✓ |
| default device management | ✓ |
| multi-channel peak metering | ✓ |
| light/dark mode support | ✓ |
| configurable hotkeys | ✓ |
| multilingual (20+ languages) | ✓ |
˚₊‧꒰ა new in bettertrumpet v3 ໒꒱ ‧₊˚
| feature | |
|---|---|
| 🎓 premium onboarding wizard | ✓ |
| 🎨 full theme engine (7 color channels) | ✓ |
| ↩️ undo / redo volume changes | ✓ |
| 📌 pin flyout (stays open) | ✓ |
| 🔄 auto update notifications | ✓ |
| 🎚️ volume profiles (save/restore/export) | ✓ |
| ⌨️ quick switch device hotkey | ✓ |
| 🎵 media popup on tray hover | ✓ |
| ⚡ CLI with 19 commands | ✓ |
| 🛡️ crash protection (sentry + health monitor) | ✓ |
| 🌿 eco mode (battery saver) | ✓ |
| 🎞️ configurable animations | ✓ |
| 📦 export / import all settings | ✓ |
| 📋 what's new changelog window | ✓ |
✩₊˚.⋆ premium onboarding ˚˖𓍢ִ🎓
5-page welcome wizard that actually looks good.
╭─────────────────────────────────╮
│ ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬░░░░░░░░░░ 2/5 │
│ │
│ 🎵 Sortie audio │
│ │
│ ┌──────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ 🔊 Speakers (Realtek) ●│ │
│ │ ▌▌▌▌▌▐ │ │
│ ├──────────────────────────┤ │
│ │ 🎧 Headphones (USB) ○│ │
│ └──────────────────────────┘ │
│ │
│ ◄ Retour Suivant ► │
╰─────────────────────────────────╯
- dark theme matching the app (dona-inspired,
#101014background, blue accent) - progress bar at the top
- 5 pages: welcome → audio device → appearance → privacy → ready
- live VU meters on device cards
- theme preview with mini mixer bars
- toggle switches for telemetry & startup (no dark pattern — inline reassuring text)
- staggered checkmarks + confetti on the final page
- slide transitions between pages
✩₊˚.⋆ media popup ˚˖𓍢ִ໋🎧✧
hover over the tray icon → beautiful floating media player appears
╭─────────────────────────────────────╮
│ │
│ ┌─────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ ┌───────────────┐ │ │
│ │ │ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ │ │ │
│ │ │ album art │ │ │
│ │ │ (blurred) │ │ │
│ │ └───────────────┘ │ │
│ │ │ │
│ │ ♪ song title ♪ │ │
│ │ ━━━━━━━━━━━○──────── │ │
│ │ 0:42 / 3:21 │ │
│ │ │ │
│ │ ⟲ ⏮ ▶ ⏭ ⟳ │ │
│ └─────────────────────────────┘ │
│ │
╰─────────────────────────────────────╯
- album art background with configurable blur (0–30px)
- track progress bar (clickable seek!)
- shuffle & repeat controls
- smooth pop-in/pop-out animations
- expandable cover art view
- color glow that adapts to album art
- configurable hover delay (0.5–5s)
- option to show only when music is playing
✩₊˚.⋆ theme engine 🎨
7 color channels, saved themes, and a dynamic album art mode.
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ │
│ ✦ slider thumb your volume knob color │
│ ✦ track fill filled portion │
│ ✦ track background empty portion │
│ ✦ peak meter audio level indicator │
│ ✦ window background flyout bg color │
│ ✦ text label color │
│ ✦ accent glow glow around elements │
│ │
│ presets: cyberpunk, ocean, sunset, forest, │
│ neon, monochrome, or pick your own ˚ʚ♡ɞ˚ │
│ │
│ ✦ dynamic album art mode: theme adapts to │
│ whatever album art is currently playing │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
save unlimited custom themes. switch between them instantly.
✩₊˚.⋆ undo / redo ↩️
accidentally changed volume? ctrl+z to undo, ctrl+y to redo.
works for all slider changes across all apps and devices. stores a history stack so you can go back multiple steps.
✩₊˚.⋆ pin flyout 📌
click the pin icon (or ctrl+P) to keep the volume flyout open while you work.
no more clicking the tray icon every time you need to adjust something. pin it, leave it, adjust freely.
✩₊˚.⋆ volume profiles 🎚️
save your entire audio setup as a profile. restore it with one click.
╭─────────────────────────────────╮
│ Volume Profiles │
│ │
│ ┌──────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ 🎮 Gaming │ │
│ │ Discord 80%, Game 100% │ │
│ ├──────────────────────────┤ │
│ │ 🎵 Music │ │
│ │ Spotify 90%, All 40% │ │
│ ├──────────────────────────┤ │
│ │ 💼 Work │ │
│ │ Teams 100%, All 30% │ │
│ └──────────────────────────┘ │
│ │
│ [ Capture ] [ Apply ] │
╰─────────────────────────────────╯
- capture current state of all devices and apps
- apply profiles instantly
- rename, delete, reorder
- export/import as
.btprofilefiles - accessible from settings UI and CLI
✩₊˚.⋆ quick switch device ⌨️
new hotkey to instantly cycle through your playback devices.
set it in settings → shortcuts. press the hotkey and it jumps to the next device. wraps around. that's it.
no more right-clicking the tray, scrolling through a list, clicking the right one. one key. done.
✩₊˚.⋆ update notifications 🔄
automatic update checking with visual indicators everywhere.
- tray badge: small dot on the tray icon when update available
- flyout banner: banner at the top of the volume flyout
- context menu: "Mettre à jour (vX.Y.Z)" entry in right-click menu
- configurable channels: all updates, minor+major only, major only, or none
- check manually from settings or CLI
✩₊˚.⋆ CLI interface ⚡
19 commands to control everything from the terminal.
# volume control
bettertrumpet set-volume 75
bettertrumpet get-volume
bettertrumpet mute
bettertrumpet unmute
bettertrumpet toggle-mute
# devices
bettertrumpet list-devices
bettertrumpet get-default
bettertrumpet set-default <id>
# apps
bettertrumpet list-apps
bettertrumpet set-app-volume <name> <volume>
# profiles
bettertrumpet list-profiles
bettertrumpet apply-profile <name>
bettertrumpet capture-profile <name>
# settings export/import
bettertrumpet export-settings [path]
bettertrumpet import-settings <path>
# updates
bettertrumpet check-update
# system
bettertrumpet status
bettertrumpet version
pipe-based IPC — CLI sends commands to the running instance. works from any terminal.
✩₊˚.⋆ export / import settings 📦
backup and restore your entire configuration.
- exports everything: themes, hotkeys, media popup settings, volume profiles, eco mode, animations, update preferences
- saves as
.btsettings(readable JSON) - import from file to restore on a new machine
- available from settings (About page) and CLI
- skips
RunAtStartupon import for security
✩₊˚.⋆ what's new changelog 📋
after a version update, a "Quoi de neuf" window shows what changed.
- dark themed window matching the app (same design language as onboarding)
- categorized layout: hero feature → audio control → experience → under the hood
- 2×2 feature cards with icons
- staggered fade-in animations on load
- subtle shimmer on the title (single pass, not a loop — we're not aliexpress)
- doesn't show on first run (onboarding handles that)
- only shows once per version
✩₊˚.⋆ crash protection & telemetry 🛡️
- sentry integration with GDPR-compliant DSN
- crash handler that catches unhandled exceptions
- health monitor running in background
- structured logging throughout the app
- telemetry is opt-out (default on outside EU, off inside EU — automatic geo detection)
- no personal data collected, ever
✩₊˚.⋆ eco mode 🌿
reduce CPU/GPU usage when you don't need the eye candy.
| mode | behavior |
|---|---|
| eco mode | reduces peak meter FPS to 20, limits animations |
| auto eco | automatically activates eco mode on battery power |
manual toggle in settings, or let auto-eco handle it.
✩₊˚.⋆ animated tray icon 🎵
the tray icon comes alive when music is playing!
┌────────────────────────────────────┐
│ │
│ static → animated │
│ │
│ 🔊 → 🎵 ♪ ♫ │
│ │
│ (no audio) → (music playing) │
│ │
└────────────────────────────────────┘
- dynamic vector-based speaker icon
- sound waves animate with audio peaks
- seamlessly toggles based on media state
✩₊˚.⋆ installation
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ │
│ ✦ option 1: download release │
│ github.com/xammen/BetterTrumpet/releases │
│ │
│ ✦ option 2: build from source │
│ git clone https://github.com/xammen/BetterTrumpet │
│ open EarTrumpet.vs15.sln in visual studio │
│ build & run │
│ │
│ done ♬⋆.˚ ✩°｡⋆⸜ 🎺 │
│ │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
₊˚⊹♡ usage
- launch bettertrumpet
- click the tray icon → volume flyout
- adjust volume per app
- right-click for settings & device switching
- hover the tray icon for media controls
- pin the flyout to keep it open (ctrl+P)
- ctrl+Z / ctrl+Y to undo/redo volume changes
╭─────────────────────╮
│ 📌 pinned │
│ ♪ spotify ████░░ │
│ ♪ discord ██████ │
│ ♪ chrome ███░░░ │
├─────────────────────┤
│ ♬ master █████░ │
├─────────────────────┤
│ 🔄 Update available │
╰─────────────────────╯
⸝⸝˚⋆ settings
right-click tray icon → settings
organized in two categories:
general
| page | what it does |
|---|---|
| shortcuts | 6 global hotkeys (flyout, mixer, settings, vol up, vol down, switch device) |
| mouse | scroll wheel behavior on tray icon |
| community | telemetry, logarithmic volume |
| legacy | legacy icon, legacy compatibility |
| about | version info, diagnostics, export/import settings |
customization
| page | what it does |
|---|---|
| animations | smooth volume animation, speed, peak meter FPS, eco mode |
| colors | 7-channel theme engine with presets and custom themes |
| media popup | hover delay, blur radius, show-only-when-playing |
| volume profiles | create, apply, rename, delete, export/import profiles |
⋆｡°✩ hotkeys
| hotkey | action |
|---|---|
| configurable | open flyout |
| configurable | open full mixer |
| configurable | open settings |
| configurable | volume up (all devices) |
| configurable | volume down (all devices) |
| configurable | switch default playback device |
| ctrl+Z | undo last volume change |
| ctrl+Y | redo volume change |
| ctrl+P | pin/unpin flyout |
all configurable hotkeys are set in settings → shortcuts.
🔧 debug shortcuts
in debug builds, hold these keys while launching bettertrumpet:
| key | action |
|---|---|
| Ctrl gauche | force the onboarding wizard (even if already completed) |
| Shift gauche | force the "what's new" changelog window |
useful for testing the onboarding flow and changelog without uninstalling.
♪₊˚.⋆ supported systems
| os | |
|---|---|
| windows 10 (1803+) | ✓ |
| windows 11 | ✓ |
⋆˙⟡ tech stack
| language | c# / wpf |
| framework | .net framework 4.6.2 |
| audio api | windows core audio |
| media api | windows media session |
| telemetry | sentry (GDPR-compliant) |
| packaging | msix |
| CLI | named pipe IPC |
✩°｡⋆ credits
based on eartrumpet by:
- david golden
- rafael rivera
- dave amenta