When the HEVC codec was announced back then, I was really excited. 4K or high-definition movies were getting bigger and bigger, and that was exactly the solution. However, as a Microsoft user, my joy didn't last long, as they couldn't reach an agreement, and the following message appeared, and I quote verbatim:

"As of April 7, 2023, Microsoft no longer offers the free version of the HEVC codec. If you play a video with HEVC directly using a built-in player on Windows 11/10, you'll have to pay €0.99 for the HEVC video extensions. Fortunately, this is a one-time purchase; as long as you purchase the extension, you can continue to enjoy HEVC videos. There are also free HEVC video extensions available."

HEVC Video Extension 2.2.33.0 | Latest version: 2.2.33.0 (28 Feb 2025) | License: Freeware
System requirements: Windows 10/11
https://codecpack.co/download/hevc-video-extensions.html

 

AV1 decoding on hardware level is, as it seems, done on the hardware. Once AV1 was available, there was AV1 decoding inside the GPU, the physical amalgamation of metals and plastic you can hold with your hands. It's not on the drivers, it's baked inside the GPU. Nvidia, for example, started supporting it on the RTX 30-series. When was that, 2022?

If you can't hardware decode AV1, your next option is software decoding, and Microsoft has that available for just as long as AV1 exists. I don't get why you are complaining about this very specific thing when that seems to be something that you don't understand.

 

Yeah, MS wants to offload the HEVC patent pool fees to you (€0.90 for HEVC on the MS Store). MS themselves likely pay a combined >$70 million / year to the HEVC patent pools (ViaLA/MPEG LA, HEVC Advance, Velos Media).

I think they're just reluctant because the patent pools have in the past suggested AV1 might violate their patents.

What's your use-case/software though? Most software should play most formats by itself without needing to install anything from the MS Store. Software decoding is very, very fast in any case.

 

I was under the same expression so I purchased that 1 quids decoder, turns out I have no need for it as WIndows 11 24H2 already has an HEVC decoder, what it doesn't have however is AV1 decoder. There's something going with AV1 which isn't normal, something's definitely off.

 

Unless you have a decoder for specified codec installed / enabled on the system, decoding is not offloaded to the dedicated decoding block, instead goes to the main GPU cores. What this does is 1 - you're not utilizing the power of your GPU and 2- the cores that should have been used to handle other tasks are now handling the video decoding. That 2x the loss (without a decoder)

Why users don't notice this while playing multimedia on their systems is that most popular decoders are already packed / enabled with Windows images. That's the catch here, while Windows media foundation already has pretty much everything, for some reason it lacks AV1.

This is not a complaint as I can get around this myself, this is more of a criticism and rant. Complain is when somebody is actually listening and has the authority / ability to resolve it.

As mentioned previously, this is not about decoding, that was just an example. There are far many things wrong with modern day Windows that effect more severely than video decoding.

Please, lets not make this about video decoding, derailing the thread.

 

I hope you don't mind that I wanted to get to the bottom of the matter using AI:

Spoiler: Source: Grok KI

I get the frustration—nothing worse than dropping cash on a codec pack only to find out half of it was already covered, then hitting a wall on the next one. Sounds like you snagged the cheap HEVC extension (which is free from the Microsoft Store these days anyway), but good news there: Windows 11 24H2 does indeed bundle native HEVC decoding right out of the box via Media Foundation, so no extra install needed for that in most scenarios.

On the AV1 front, you're not wrong that it's a bit of a weird spot right now—adoption has been patchy despite it being a royalty-free beast for efficiency (up to 30% better compression than H.265 at similar quality). Windows 11 has had software AV1 decoding baked in since version 21H1 (via the OS-level decoder), so basic playback should work in apps like Movies & TV, Edge, or VLC without much fuss. But hardware-accelerated AV1 decoding? That's where things get "off"—it relies on your GPU:



GPU Vendor Minimum for AV1 Decode Notes
Intel Arc (Alchemist) or Core 12th Gen+ iGPU Full support in 24H2 with latest drivers.
AMD RX 6000 series+ Solid, but ensure Radeon Software is up to date.
NVIDIA RTX 30 series+ (Ada Lovelace for best perf) Works great, but older cards fall back to CPU.

If your hardware doesn't qualify, it'll default to CPU decoding, which can chew through battery life or stutter on high-res streams (e.g., 4K YouTube AV1). Microsoft finally included the free AV1 Video Extension as a default "inbox" app in 24H2 fresh installs (rolled out fully by mid-2025), which enables hardware accel where available and smooths out compatibility for system apps. If you're on an upgrade (not a clean install), it might not have auto-installed—grab it from the Microsoft Store (search "AV1 Video Extension," it's free and tiny).

Quick fixes to test:

1. Install the extension: Open Microsoft Store > Search "AV1" > Install. Restart any media apps.
2. Check hardware support: Run dxdiag (search in Start menu), go to Display tab—look for "AV1" under video codecs or drivers. Or use VLC's Tools > Codec Information on an AV1 file to see if it's using GPU.
3. Player tweaks: VLC or MPC-HC have their own AV1 decoders (libdav1d for software fallback). For browser stuff, ensure Chrome/Edge are updated—they've had AV1 since 2020.
4. Driver update: Grab the latest from your GPU maker (GeForce Experience, Adrenalin, Intel Arc Control). 24H2's WDDM 3.2 pushes better AV1 encoding too, but decoding benefits from it indirectly.

If it's still borked after that (e.g., black screens or errors), drop your GPU model/system specs—could be a driver quirk or app-specific issue. AV1's "off" vibe is mostly growing pains from the ecosystem catching up, but it's getting there fast for streaming efficiency. What app/format are you trying to play where it's failing?

 

ASIO? Wow. So outdated. MS needs a better alternative!

 

It is a very simple system: does your GPU have hardware decoding? If yes, then you don't need anything. If not, you need to get a software decoder (that Microsoft has available or most likely your player comes with). Want it done on the GPU/CPU (if Intel) video side? Get one that has it (any from the last few years). Other than that, you're doing software decoding and that will never happen on the same place your GPU native decoders and encoders live, because they can't (since it is a physical piece inside the hardware).

 

Outdated compared to what?

 

They are there to enable device specific features and software, the latency is lower and the clock stable with multiple devices. A number of RME devices aren't even class complaint - madiface, digiface, hdsp, etc. In all cases you lose modular totalmix routing and in some cases reduced channel count as well. CC in RME devices is a convenience for testing or quick plug n play kinda settings. Otherwise not running the driver is handicapping.

 

And since when has mickeysoft ever supplied anything like this that just works and is stable? ASIO is only half of it, the other half is the actual driver for the hardware. If you don't believe that then just look at the track record ms has with generic hardware like printers, scanners, cameras, etc... Generic drivers in most cases do not cut it because most often features and support for the original hardware are missing or simply don't work. The only way I ever use a ms generic driver is when there is no OEM driver to be found. They will have to prove themselves worthy in the case of supporting pro audio hardware as good as the OEM does. They will have to pry my OEM drivers from my cold dead hands...

Half-assing OEM hardware support for pro audio will not cut it for me and for most I would guess. Ms has a long history of half-assing a great deal of things. One gambit that comes to mind would be to hold this supposed ASIO support hostage on the stupid mickeysoft store in order to get monkeys to jump in with ms accounts and "log-in" the OS to their corporate toilet - kind of like what they tried with the HEVC/H265 support which should have been included in the OS install image from the start. Fortunately there were "workarounds" put in place almost immediately for that which I employed in order to get HEVC support since there was no way I was patronizing the ms store...

 

Last edited: Oct 1, 2025 at 10:05 PM

There is a lot of talking out of asses on this thread, since no one here actually knows what is going to happen, hasn't been following development and is all too happy to devolve to doomsaying and wild speculation under the illusion of educated guessing, if you want to know more about the whole upcoming MIDI system rewrite and USB ASIO driver coming next year, even have a chance to look at the source code for both yourself, join this Discord: https://discord.gg/SvKVZNsG

Edit: you can downvote all you like. You're still talking out of your ass.

 

Last edited: Oct 1, 2025 at 10:06 PM

Exactly! THAT's the problem! There was never an adequate alternative. ASIO is 28 years old!
Time to re-invent that interface for Windows PCs.

 

Since HEVC was always an add-on from the store it always meant you had to logon there and get it AND one was forced to have all that ms store junk running to install it. The added cost for HEVC that came later was just a slap in the face. Almost immediately, since that HEVC support was withheld from the install image and made into a hostage situation by ms there was a MSI install version of the HEVC driver made available away from the store.

 

The technology of interacting with audio hardware at the kernel level is not inadequate or outdated. You want aggregation, and you don't seem to understand the cost of aggregation without standardization across hardware, which is not a thing in the PC space. So the OS, which is the only thing Microsoft has control over, achieves aggregation via WASAPI at about the lowest latency you can get given the constraints, more so if you use exclusive mode, or your other alternative is to use ASIO. That is the tradeoff for 3rd party hardware compatibility on the level that Windows provides. It's like saying, "everyone should be rich" with no clue as to why that isn't and won't ever be the case.

 

IF its a step towards apple users not being so smug about latency and internal connectivity i approve

 

And what part of what I said was untrue? Speculation, which is a large part of what is being spewed here is now considered "talking out your ass"? talk to the hand...

 

That is the literal definition.