Up until recently, I’ve been able to hear sound through my Audient id44 interface when Cubase was not open. It was far from perfect, and sometimes I would have to restart my computer to get sound from the other sources (Spotify etc), but it would always work after a restart.
I know about the “release driver when application is in background” setting and that does not seem to affect the issue. I’ve also re-installed the audio drivers, and have gone into Control Panel → Sound → Playback → Advanced, trying different sample/bit rates, as well as checked and unchecked “Allow applications to take exclusive control of this device”. When Spotify/Youtube is playing, I see the meter moving in the meter in the Control Panel → Sound → Playback dialogue. But no sound or any indication of it on my interface or software mixer.
**I realize this may not be a Cubase problem, but thought it was worth posting. Sound is working just fine coming out of Cubase!