Adding the DirectX Tool Kit for Audio

This lesson covers adding DirectX Tool Kit for Audio to your project.

Setup

First create a new project using the instructions from the first two lessons: The basic game loop and Adding the DirectX Tool Kit which we will use for this lesson.

NuGet package manager

If you used NuGet when Adding the DirectX Tool Kit, then you already have support for DirectX Tool Kit for Audio.. The id directxtk_desktop_2013 and directxtk_desktop_2015 packages are configured for Windows 7 and Windows Vista support, so it is making use of XAudio 2.7.

XAudio 2.7 requires the legacy DirectX SDK (June 2010). Due to some technical issues, it must be installed to the 'default' location of C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft DirectX SDK (June 2010). To install the legacy DirectX SDK on your development system, see this post and be sure to read this article for a known issue with the installer.

The other platform NuGet packages do not require the legacy DirectX SDK as they always make use of XAudio 2.8 or later which is built into Windows 8.0 or later, Windows phone 8.x, and Xbox One. This includes package id directxtk_uwp.

Complete the steps in Adding the headers below including the additional configuration for XAudio 2.7.

Project-to-project references

If you used project-to-project references when Adding the DirectX Tool Kit, then you need to add an additional DirectX Tool Kit for Audio project to your solution. There are two choices depending on your platform target.

XAudio 2.7

XAudio 2.7 supports Windows Vista, Windows 7, or later. It is deployed by the legacy DirectX End User Runtime package and requires the legacy DirectX SDK (June 2010) to develop with. Due to some technical issues, it must be installed to the 'default' location of C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft DirectX SDK (June 2010). To install the legacy DirectX SDK on your development system, see this post and be sure to read this article for a known issue with the installer.

1. Right-click on your solution in the Solution Explorer, and select Add / Existing Project...
2. Browse into the "DirectXTK\Audio" folder and select DirectXTKAudio_Desktop_2013_DXSDK.vcxproj or DirectXTKAudio_Desktop_2015_DXSDK.vcxproj, click "Open"
3. If Visual Studio presents a "Security Warning", select "OK". Optional: Uncheck "Ask me for every project in this solution" first.
4. Right-click on your project in the Solution Explorer, and select Add / References...
5. Select "Add New Reference..."
6. Check DirectXTKAudio_Desktop_2013_DXSDK.vcxproj or DirectXTKAudio_Desktop_2015_DXSDK.vcxproj and select "OK"
7. Select "OK"

Complete the steps in Adding the headers below including the additional configuration for XAudio 2.7.

XAudio 2.8

XAudio 2.8 is built into Windows 8.0 or later, and everything needed is include with the OS and the Windows 8.1 SDK which is deployed with VS 2013.

1. Right-click on your solution in the Solution Explorer, and select Add / Existing Project...
2. Browse into the "DirectXTK\Audio" folder and select DirectXTKAudio_Desktop_2013_Win8.vcxproj or DirectXTKAudio_Desktop_2015_Win8.vcxproj, click "Open"
3. If Visual Studio presents a "Security Warning", select "OK". Optional: Uncheck "Ask me for every project in this solution" first.
4. Right-click on your project in the Solution Explorer, and select Add / References...
5. Select "Add New Reference..."
6. Check DirectXTKAudio_Desktop_2013_Win8.vcxproj or DirectXTKAudio_Desktop_2015_Win8.vcxproj and select "OK"
7. Select "OK"

Complete the steps in Adding the headers below including the additional configuration for XAudio 2.8.

The other platform DirectX Tool Kit vcxproj files already include DirectX Tool Kit for Audio as they always make use of XAudio 2.8 or later which is built into Windows 8.1 or later (DirectXTK_Windows81, DirectXTK_Windows10), Windows phone 8.1 (DirectXTK_WindowsPhone81), and Xbox One (DirectXTK_XboxOneXDK_2015).

The universal Windows platform with Windows 10 (DirectXTK_Windows10) includes XAudio 2.9, and the Windows desktop version for Windows 10 (DirectXTK_Desktop_2015_Win10) includes using XAudio 2.9 as well. Both require building with the Windows 10 SDK.

Adding the headers

Now that we have the DirectX Tool Kit for Audio usable in your project, the next step is to include the library header into your project.

//
// pch.h
// Header for standard system include files.
//

#pragma once

...

#include "Audio.h"

...

XAudio 2.7

If you are using XAudio 2.7 for Windows 7 and Windows Vista compatibility, we also need to add the DirectX SDK include and library paths to your project. First go to Project / Properties and select "VC++ Directories" on the left. Then set Configuration to "All Configurations" and Platform to "Win32" (note this is called "x86" in VS 2015). Add to the end of these paths:

• Include Directories: ;$(DXSDK_DIR)Include
• Library Directories: ;$(DXSDK_DIR)Lib\x86

Click "Apply".

Then set Configuration to "All Configurations" and Platform to "x64". Add to the end of these paths:

• Include Directories: ;$(DXSDK_DIR)Include
• Library Directories: ;$(DXSDK_DIR)Lib\x64

Click "Apply".

It is important that the legacy DirectX SDK paths be after the existing path since are making use of the Windows 8.1 / VS 2013. See Where is the DirectX SDK? for more details.

Troubleshooting: If you get a compilation error indicating you are missing comdecl.h, then you have incorrectly configured your VC++ Directory include paths. If you get a link error indicating you are missing x3daudio.lib then you incorrectly configured your VC++ Directory library paths.

XAudio 2.8

If you are using XAudio 2.8, then your application should be built to require Windows 8.0 or later. In pch.h modify the following section:

#include <WinSDKVer.h>
#define _WIN32_WINNT 0x0602
#include <SDKDDKVer.h>

For platforms other than Windows desktop, you do not need to explicitly set _WIN32_WINNT as it's already set appropriately.

Troubleshooting: If you get a compilation error indicating you are missing comdecl.h, then you have incorrectly configured the _WIN32_WINNT variable. See Using the Windows Headers.

XAudio 2.9 requires Windows 10 and _WIN32_WINNT being set to 0x0A00

Deployment

If you are using XAudio 2.7, then your application has a dependency on the DirectX End-User Runtime. See Not So DirectSetup for information on using this package.

If you are using XAudio 2.8, then your application has a dependency on Windows 8.0 or later. If using XAudio 2.9, your application will only run on Windows 10 devices.

Next lesson: Adding audio to your project

Further reading

DirectX Tool Kit docs Audio
DirectX Tool Kit for Audio
XAudio2 and Windows 8