What's Going Wrong

According to an updated Microsoft support document, the KB5124008 security update is causing audio output failures on PCs using USB audio devices. Affected users are reporting a range of symptoms, including:

The dreaded "This device cannot start (Code 10)" error in Device Manager
Devices not being detected at all
Volume controls that won't respond
Sound settings that freeze up
Complete silence — no audio output whatsoever

If your USB headset, DAC, or speaker system suddenly went quiet after updating, this bug is likely the culprit.

Who's Affected

Microsoft says the issue is limited to USB Audio Class 1.0 devices, so not every USB audio product out there is at risk. That said, the behavior is inconsistent — some devices keep working fine in basic stereo mode but break the moment you switch to multichannel setups like 8-channel audio or 3D/spatial sound.
Source