PublishedByBig Walk Guide
Big Walk voice chat not working? Fix mic, quiet voices, echo
Fix Big Walk voice chat by symptom: nobody hears you, quiet voices, echo, dropouts, Bluetooth, PS5, PS Portal and Mac, from the official FAQ and patch notes.
The short answer
Start in Big Walk's Settings > Audio and watch the "Microphone Activity" meter while you talk. If it does not move, the game is not getting your microphone, and the fix is on your device: a mute switch, the wrong Bluetooth mode, or a PS5 or Mac setting. If it moves but friends still cannot hear you, check Mute Mode and the moderation menu. If everyone is too quiet, make sure everyone has updated: version 1.4.8 made quiet voices louder.
One thing is not a bug. Voices fading with distance is deliberate, and the developers kept it that way when they fixed the volume. If a friend is only quiet when far away, walk closer.
Every fix below comes from the developer's official FAQ (read on 27 October 2026) or the official patch notes on Steam. Where we add our own reading, we say so. We have not tested each headset or console ourselves. Looking for the microphone puzzle instead? That is the green seat and microphone box guide.
What has changed in voice chat since launch
| Version and date | Voice change (official patch note) | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|
| 1.4.8, 7 Aug 2026 | Output normalization of player voice volume; voices louder, "especially voices that would otherwise be too quiet" | The main fix for quiet voices. It reached Steam first and other platforms later. The distance at which voices drop off did not change. |
| 1.4.10, 21 Aug 2026 | "Improvements to voice stability"; voices less likely to cut out or stop working | If voices still drop in and out, the FAQ points to networking (see below). |
| 1.5.1, 28 Aug 2026 | Separate volume sliders for different audio categories; the item that amplifies your voice reaches farther | There is more than one slider to check in Settings > Audio. |
| 1.6.0, 6 Oct 2026 | "(Windows + Mac) New setting: Echo Cancellation" | A setting to try if you hear echo on PC or Mac. The FAQ's echo answer does not mention it yet. |
Find your symptom
| Symptom | Check first | Official fix |
|---|---|---|
| Nobody can hear me | Does Settings > Audio > "Microphone Activity" move when you talk? | If not: test the mic in another app, plug it in fully, unmute the device. If it moves: check Mute Mode and the moderation menu. |
| Other players are too quiet | Is everyone on the latest version? | 1.4.8 fixed a known quiet-voice issue. Then raise each player's system input volume and move mics closer. |
| Voices drop in and out | Is anyone's connection or the host's framerate struggling? | A networking issue: go wired, close network-heavy programs, have the host lower graphics quality or let someone else host. |
| Voices sound doubled or echo | Who is playing on speakers? | Someone's mic is picking up a speaker. Take turns muting to find them; that player uses headphones or mutes when not talking. |
| Bluetooth: sound but no mic, or the reverse | Which Bluetooth device is the game using? | Set both the game's output and input to the headset device, not the headphone device. |
| PS5 mic does nothing | PS button > Sound | Turn "Mute Game Voice Chat" off. |
| Everyone is muted on PS Portal | Are you on cloud streaming? | A known bug. Use Remote Play from your own PS5 instead. |
| Mac: nobody hears you | System Settings > Privacy & Security > Microphone | Turn on the microphone toggle for Big Walk. |
| XLR mic through an audio interface is silent | Which input channel is the mic on? | The game reads Channel 1 only; move the mic to CH1. |
Nobody can hear me
The official checklist starts with one question: does the "Microphone Activity" meter in Settings > Audio bounce when you talk?
- The meter does not move: see whether the mic works in another program; push the plug fully in ("Hey, it happens," says the FAQ); check the mute switch on the headset or mic. The FAQ also says to lower your boom mic.
- Mute Mode is set to "hold": with Settings > Audio > Mute Mode on "hold", you have to hold the button to talk. This looks exactly like a broken mic.
- Someone is silenced: make sure no one has been "silenced" in the moderation menu. In the in-game menu it is under Session Details > Moderation Settings.
- Bluetooth headset: see the Bluetooth section below. The wrong device mode gives you sound but no microphone.
Our reading: if the meter moves and the checks above are clean, look at where you are standing before you blame the hardware. Voice drops off with distance by design, and the FAQ says even text chat "won't be readable when you are far away, or on opposite sides of soundproof glass". Some situations in the game are designed so you cannot hear each other. Walk back to your friends and test again. Our communication protocols page covers what to do when a teammate is out of earshot.
Other players sound too quiet
- Update everyone. The FAQ points to version 1.4.8, which "fixes a known issue with quiet voices for some users". Its patch note (7 August 2026) says it added output normalization that makes voices louder, "especially voices that would otherwise be too quiet".
- Raise input volume at system level. The quiet player turns up microphone input volume in their own device settings, not only in the game.
- Move the mic closer. The FAQ's own easy fix: everyone's microphone should be close enough to their mouth.
Two details from the developer's 1.4.8 patch note save a lot of confusion. The new volume boost "can take a moment to calibrate, so if a new player seems quiet for a moment, get them to keep talking for a few seconds." And the patch did not change the distance at which voices drop off: "We consider it an important part of the game's design that you can only hear players who are close to you."
Since 1.5.1 (28 August 2026) the game has separate volume sliders for different audio categories, so follow the FAQ's advice and make sure all the volume sliders in Settings > Audio are turned up. The same patch made the in-game item that amplifies your voice reach farther. That item is likely the megaphone (our reading); see our megaphone entry.
Voices drop in and out
The FAQ calls this "likely caused by networking issues" and gives the same steps as for players moving erratically:
- Quit other network-heavy programs, or shut down devices on your network that use a lot of internet.
- Move closer to your wireless router, or go wired with ethernet if you can.
- A low framerate on the host can cause network issues for everyone. Ask the host to lower their quality settings, or let a different player host.
Version 1.4.10 (21 August 2026) also improved voice stability, so make sure everyone is up to date first.
Voices sound doubled, or there is echo
The FAQ's diagnosis: someone has a feedback loop, with a microphone picking up voices from a speaker. Find them by taking turns muting yourselves; when the doubling stops, you have found the source. That player should mute when not talking or switch to headphones.
Version 1.6.0 (6 October 2026) also added an Echo Cancellation setting on Windows and Mac. If you play on one of those and the echo continues, look for it in the game's settings.
Bluetooth headset: sound but no mic, or the reverse
Bluetooth exposes a wireless headset as two devices: a headphone device (stereo, no microphone) and a headset device (mono, with microphone). If the game picks a mismatched pair, you get audio without a mic, or a mic without audio.
The official Windows 11 steps:
- Right-click the speaker icon in the taskbar and open Volume Mixer.
- Open Big Walk, then Alt-Tab back to the Volume Mixer; Big Walk should be listed.
- Expand Big Walk with the arrow on the right.
- Set both the output and the input device to the headset device.
The developer still recommends a wired headset or a standalone mic where you can: Bluetooth's headset mode is mono, and the game's sound is directional. On Mac, the FAQ adds that Bluetooth can make audio cut-outs worse on Apple silicon; wired headphones and closing background programs may help.
PS5, PS Portal, Mac and audio interfaces
- PS5: press the PS button, open Sound, and set "Mute Game Voice Chat" to Off. The DualSense has a built-in mic, so a headset is optional.
- PS Portal (cloud streaming): as of the FAQ we read on 27 October 2026, in-game voice chat is broken there. You will see "Communication disabled while party chat is active" and all player voices are muted. The developer calls it an ongoing issue. Voice chat works when you stream from your own PS5 with Remote Play.
- Mac: in System Settings > Privacy & Security > Microphone, turn on the toggle for Big Walk.
- XLR mic + audio interface: some interfaces put XLR inputs on Channel 2, but Big Walk only reads Channel 1. Reassign the mic to CH1 in the interface's software, or use a tool such as Voicemeeter to create a virtual mic on CH1.
- Steam Deck, Switch 2 and most laptops have built-in microphones, so no separate mic is needed. You can also play the whole game with text chat.
Can we just use Discord instead?
The official answer is no: talking outside the game is "NOT ALLOWED", because some situations are designed around who can and cannot hear whom. If you share a home, the FAQ's advice is separate rooms on separate devices, not one room. Text chat is not a way around this: it has the same distance, glass and walkie-talkie rules as voice. Our multiplayer rules page collects these rules with the official wording.
Still not working?
If voice is the only thing broken, also check that the game sound itself works: other apps play audio, and every slider in Settings > Audio is up. If you cannot join or host at all, that is a connection problem, not a voice problem. Start with the system clock and the Epic Online Services check in our connection checklist, and compare version numbers there. The patch history lists every voice-related change by version. If nothing helps, the FAQ asks you to email the developer at help@bigwalk.game.