VS Sound
VS Sound adds optional audio feedback to Visual Studio Code: hear when diagnostics report errors, when tasks finish, when you save, when debug sessions start or end, when terminals open or exit, and for common Git workspace events. Assign your own audio files, tune volume, and use per-feature cooldowns so sounds stay useful—not noisy.
Building or contributing? Clone and workflow docs live in DEVELOPMENT.md on GitHub.
Install
Install VS Sound from the Visual Studio Marketplace. Requires VS Code 1.85 or newer.
Quick start
- Open the Command Palette and run VS Sound: Open Panel, or open Settings and search for
vssound.
- Turn Enable VS Sound on and enable the features you care about.
- Use Choose file… (in the panel) or set paths under Settings → VS Sound for each sound slot you use.
- Use Preview on a row or Play test sound to verify playback.
What you can hook up
| Area |
What triggers sound |
| Diagnostics |
Errors in the active editor (workspace files only). Optional edge mode reduces repeats while errors stay; still plays when error count goes up or you switch to a file that newly shows errors. |
| Tasks |
Integrated terminal tasks exit success (code 0) or failure (non-zero). |
| Save |
Active document saved (e.g. Ctrl+S). |
| Debug |
Debug session starts or ends. |
| Terminal |
Terminal created; shell exits (success vs failure). |
| Git |
.git/HEAD changes (commit, checkout, etc.); fetch/pull updates FETCH_HEAD; merge in progress (MERGE_HEAD). |
Commands
- VS Sound: Open Panel — settings UI for toggles, paths, volume, cooldowns, and previews.
- VS Sound: Play Test Sound — plays the Test sound slot (same as the panel’s test button).
Settings (overview)
All settings are under the vssound prefix.
vssound.enabled — master on/off.vssound.features.* — turn diagnostics, tasks, save, debug, terminal, and git on or off.vssound.diagnostics.edgeTriggerOnly — when on (default), avoids spamming error sounds on every diagnostic refresh; still fires on meaningful changes (see table above).vssound.sounds.* — file path per event (errors, build success/failure, save, debug start/end, terminal open/exit, Git commit/pull/merge conflict, test).vssound.volumePercent — 0–100; 0 skips playback where supported. Some players ignore volume for certain formats.vssound.cooldown.*Ms — minimum milliseconds between sounds per category (errors, task success/failure, terminal, save, debug, Git). 0 means no cooldown for that category.
For defaults and full descriptions, open Settings and search vssound, or see the extension’s Feature Contributions on the Marketplace.
Requirements on your machine
VS Code does not play audio by itself. The extension runs a system player for your files, depending on OS and what is installed—for example afplay on macOS, ffplay / mpv on Windows or Linux, or Windows MCI / PowerShell for some formats. If nothing suitable is available, sounds will not play; check View → Output and select VS Sound for error messages.
Troubleshooting
- No sound — Confirm VS Sound is enabled, the feature is on, the file path exists, and a player works for that format on your OS. Try Play test sound after setting the Test path.
- Too many sounds — Tighten cooldowns, turn on error edge mode, or disable features you do not need.
Links
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