FH2 Streaming Radio — YouTube Music

[!CAUTION]

IMPORTANT: Go into the game's In-Game Audio Settings and TURN OFF the DJ Voice.

[!IMPORTANT]

## 🧩 NEW: ExtraOptions Edition

Running FH2 ExtraOptions 0.3.0 or newer (with its mod loader)? Grab `YouTubeRadio-ExtraOptionsEditionV0.3.0.zip` from the Assets below. It's the same v0.3.0 music code. The only change is that it loads as an ExtraOptions mod.

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Not using ExtraOptions? Grab the standard FH2-Streaming-Radio-YTM-v0.3.0.zip and follow Install / update further down.

[!WARNING]

## ⚠️ IMPORTANT INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS (ExtraOptions Edition)

1. Drag the whole `YouTube Radio` folder INSIDE the `mods` folder of your Azimuth install (next to loadorder.txt), so you end up with mods\YouTube Radio\mod.json, mods\YouTube Radio\plugins\youtube-radio.dll and mods\YouTube Radio\youtube-radio\.

2. Remove the standalone version first. Delete D3DCompiler_47.dll and the youtube-radio folder from next to Azimuth.exe, or two radio mods will run at once. If you had the Spotify version installed, remove it too, because only one radio mod can be installed at a time.

3. Your MUSIC and MUSIC\TITLE SCREEN folders go in mods\YouTube Radio\youtube-radio\. Empty ones are included, and you can copy your old MUSIC folder straight in.

4. Start the game. ExtraOptions loads the mod and adds it to loadorder.txt on its own.

5. Turn DJ Voice OFF in the in-game Audio Settings, then switch to Horizon XS.

🏝️ Storm Island DLC support, rounded out!

It mostly worked before, and now it's fully supported, including the Storm Island barn find, which holds your song for the whole scene just like the base-game barn finds.

🔧 Fixed this release

•Choppy audio fixed. The bug where the music could turn choppy mid-song, around since day 1, is fixed. No more switching stations to get it back.

•Song-change hitch fixed. The small hitch when the game's station schedule switched songs behind the scenes is fixed.

•Random mid-song Now Playing pop-ups fixed. Same cause as the hitch, fixed together.

There are no new config.ini settings: all of this is just how the mod works now.

Rolled up from recent releases

Audio Core Engine Overhaul

The audio engine was retuned from the ground up, and audio quality got a massive upgrade! Distortion should be a thing of the past, and default levels have been tuned to give the best experience, now allowing you to just set up your personal preferred audio mix in the game, straight from the in-game Audio Settings in the game's options! Optimizations made to general playback and immersion effects, and a new limiter keeps loud songs crisp instead of clipping. Recommendation: Set Radio Volume 2 higher than Car Volume for the best listening experience!

🏁 Fresh songs, Bucket List Challenges!

Now you will get a fresh song at the start of those Bucket Lists!!

⚠️ Known issue: won't connect?

In rare cases the phone's YouTube Music or YouTube app stays stuck on "connecting". Force-quit the phone app and connect again.

⚠️ One radio mod at a time

This uses the same D3DCompiler_47.dll as the Spotify version, FH2 Streaming Radio, so you can only run one of the two. They use separate folders, and you can copy your MUSIC folder between them.

Install / update (standard version)

1. Drop D3DCompiler_47.dll and the youtube-radio folder next to Azimuth.exe and replace the old files. If you had the Spotify version, replace its D3DCompiler_47.dll too.

2. Heads-up: there are no new settings this release, so if you're coming from v0.2.1 you can keep your own config.ini. Replacing it resets any settings you changed by hand. Your MUSIC folder, logo.png and song cache are never touched.

3. Turn DJ Voice OFF in the in-game Audio Settings, then switch to Horizon XS.

Something wrong?

Set log_level = debug under [advanced] in youtube-radio\config.ini, play, then send youtube-radio\youtube-radio.log. Put it back to info afterward.

[!CAUTION]

IMPORTANT: Go into the game's In-Game Audio Settings and TURN OFF the DJ Voice.

Audio Core Engine Overhaul

The audio engine was retuned from the ground up over the last 48 hours, and audio quality got a massive upgrade! Distortion should be a thing of the past, and default levels have been tuned to give the best experience, now allowing you to just set up your personal preferred audio mix in the game, straight from the in-game Audio Settings in the game's options! Optimizations made to general playback and immersion effects, and a new limiter keeps loud songs crisp instead of clipping. Recommendation: Set Radio Volume 2 higher than Car Volume for the best listening experience!

🏁 Fresh songs, Bucket List Challenges!

Now you will get a fresh song at the start of those Bucket Lists!!

⚠️ Known issue: choppy audio

In rare cases the music can turn choppy mid-song. Switching to another station and back should fix it.

⚠️ Known issue: won't connect?

In rare cases the phone's YouTube Music or YouTube app stays stuck on "connecting". Force-quit the phone app and connect again.

⚠️ One radio mod at a time

This uses the same D3DCompiler_47.dll as the Spotify version, FH2 Streaming Radio, so you can only run one of the two. They use separate folders, and you can copy your MUSIC folder between them.

Install / update

1. Drop D3DCompiler_47.dll and the youtube-radio folder next to Azimuth.exe and replace the old files. If you had the Spotify version, replace its D3DCompiler_47.dll too.

2. Heads-up: the config has been updated this release, and using the new config.ini is recommended, as audio boost values have a completely different effect now. Your MUSIC folder, logo.png and song cache are never touched.

3. Turn DJ Voice OFF in the in-game Audio Settings, then switch to Horizon XS.

Something wrong?

Set log_level = debug under [advanced] in youtube-radio\config.ini, play, then send youtube-radio\youtube-radio.log. Put it back to info afterward.

[!CAUTION]

IMPORTANT: Go into the game's In-Game Audio Settings and TURN OFF the DJ Voice.

🏁 v0.1.3: Race starts, rewinds and Showcases, all tightened up!

Another round of upgrades from the shared Audio Core Engine. More fixes for race day. 🎉

🛠️ Fixes

🎵 Fresh song on Start Race, every time

Start Race should now switch to a fresh song even after a long wait in the pre-race menu, or when the game's radio moves on while you're in it. 🔥

📻 Smarter station switching

Switching stations and coming back from menus now follow the game's own signals, so resuming uses the game's natural quick fade back in instead of a hard cut back in.

🏆 Showcase fix

Showcase races that have a scripted radio station change at race start don't tune away from your station anymore.

🔊 Change: new default loudness boost

The default loudness boost is now 3.5 dB (boost_db and local_boost_db in youtube-radio\config.ini). After hours of testing these updates, it just seemed 5 and 4 were causing a lot of clipping/distortion within our usable dB range. Reset to your preference in config.ini.

⚠️ Known issue: choppy audio

In rare cases the music can turn choppy mid-song. Switching to another station and back should fix it.

⚠️ Known issue: won't connect?

In rare cases the phone's YouTube Music or YouTube app stays stuck on "connecting". Force-quit the phone app and connect again.

⚠️ One radio mod at a time

This uses the same D3DCompiler_47.dll as the Spotify version, FH2 Streaming Radio, so you can only run one of the two. They use separate folders, and you can copy your MUSIC folder between them.

Install / update

1. Drop D3DCompiler_47.dll and the youtube-radio folder next to Azimuth.exe and replace the old files. If you had the Spotify version, replace its D3DCompiler_47.dll too.

2. Heads-up: replacing config.ini resets any settings you changed by hand (including your boost levels). Your MUSIC folder, logo.png and song cache are never touched.

3. Turn DJ Voice OFF in the in-game Audio Settings, then switch to Horizon XS.

Something wrong?

Set log_level = debug under [advanced] in youtube-radio\config.ini, play, then send youtube-radio\youtube-radio.log. Put it back to info afterward.

[!CAUTION]

IMPORTANT: Go into the game's In-Game Audio Settings and TURN OFF the DJ Voice.

🏁 v0.1.2: Every race starts with a fresh song!

Another round of upgrades from the shared Audio Core Engine. This one's all about race day. 🎉

🎵 NEW: Fresh song on race start

Press Start Race in the pre-race menu and the radio skips to the next song, so every race kicks off with something new. 🔥

Changed your mind and quit back to free roam? Your song keeps playing right where it was.

It's on by default. The setting is race_start_skip in youtube-radio\config.ini, under [on the station]:

•race_start_skip = true: skip to a new song when a race starts (default)

•race_start_skip = false: keep the song you had

🛠️ Fixes

🎪 Festival pause fix

Driving into a festival should no longer pause your music by mistake. The race-start pause now only reacts to a real race start.

🎶 Smoother song changes

Aims to smooth out the little skip or stutter you could hear when one song ended and the next one started.

⚠️ Known issue: choppy audio

In rare cases the music can turn choppy mid-song. Switching to another station and back should fix it.

⚠️ Known issue: won't connect?

In rare cases the phone's YouTube Music or YouTube app stays stuck on "connecting". Force-quit the phone app and connect again.

⚠️ One radio mod at a time

This uses the same D3DCompiler_47.dll as the Spotify version, FH2 Streaming Radio, so you can only run one of the two. They use separate folders, and you can copy your MUSIC folder between them.

Install / update

1. Drop D3DCompiler_47.dll and the youtube-radio folder next to Azimuth.exe and replace the old files. If you had the Spotify version, replace its D3DCompiler_47.dll too.

2. Heads-up: replacing config.ini resets any settings you changed by hand. Your MUSIC folder, logo.png and song cache are never touched.

3. Turn DJ Voice OFF in the in-game Audio Settings, then switch to Horizon XS.

Something wrong?

Set log_level = debug under [advanced] in youtube-radio\config.ini, play, then send youtube-radio\youtube-radio.log. Put it back to info afterward.

[!CAUTION]

IMPORTANT: Go into the game's In-Game Audio Settings and TURN OFF the DJ Voice.

🚀 Day one working on bugs and features with the new Audio Core Engine we released over the weekend!

Remember the new shared Audio Core Engine from the last update? This is what it can do. On the very first day of working with it, we went after the known issues that have been around since the start of this mod, and knocked them out. 🎯

⏸️ Music pauses at race start

⏪ Music pauses during rewinds

🎰 Music pauses during wheelspins

No settings, nothing to switch on. It just works out of the box. 🙌

🛠️ v0.1.1: Bug Fixes

Three long-standing pause issues, tackled in one go:

🏁 Pause on race start

Your YouTube song now pauses during the pre-race countdown and picks back up when the race begins (or when you back out to free roam).

⏪ Rewind pause

When the game mutes the music for a rewind, YouTube pauses too, including cancelled rewinds and View Replay. When the rewind is done, your song carries on from the same spot.

🎰 Wheelspin

The same fix covers wheelspins: the music pauses during the wheelspin and resumes when you claim your prize.

All three aim to keep your song from playing on in the background while the game goes quiet. They're always on.

🎵 NEW: Custom Start Screen Music (LOCAL MUSIC ONLY)

YOU PICK THE INTRO SONG! OR A BUNCH AND THEY WILL SHUFFLE EACH GAME LAUNCH! 🎉

Put your songs (MP3, FLAC, OGG, WAV or M4A) in youtube-radio\MUSIC\TITLE SCREEN. They play on the start screen, fade out when you press Start, and never play on the radio.

Settings are in youtube-radio\config.ini, in the new [custom title screen music] section:

•custom_start_screen_music: 0 = off, 1 = on (default)

•title_screen_source: 1 = the TITLE SCREEN folder (default), 2 = your whole MUSIC folder

No songs in the folder? The game's own start screen music plays as usual.

🧰 Friendlier config.ini

The config.ini got a full makeover, with clear sections like Your Station, Skip Song Button, Loudness and Casting From Your Phone, plus easier notes on what each setting does. The rarely used stuff now lives under [advanced].

⚠️ Known issue: choppy audio

In rare cases the music can turn choppy mid-song. Switching to another station and back should fix it.

⚠️ Known issue: won't connect?

In rare cases the phone's YouTube Music or YouTube app stays stuck on "connecting". Force-quit the phone app and connect again.

⚠️ One radio mod at a time

This uses the same D3DCompiler_47.dll as the Spotify version, FH2 Streaming Radio, so you can only run one of the two. They use separate folders, and you can copy your MUSIC folder between them.

Install / update

1. Drop D3DCompiler_47.dll and the youtube-radio folder next to Azimuth.exe and replace the old files. If you had the Spotify version, replace its D3DCompiler_47.dll too.

2. Heads-up: replacing config.ini resets any settings you changed by hand. Your MUSIC folder, logo.png and song cache are never touched.

3. Turn DJ Voice OFF in the in-game Audio Settings, then switch to Horizon XS.

Something wrong?

Set log_level = debug under [advanced] in youtube-radio\config.ini, play, then send youtube-radio\youtube-radio.log. Put it back to info afterward.

[!CAUTION]

IMPORTANT: Go into the game's In-Game Audio Settings and TURN OFF the DJ Voice.

🚀 MASSIVE UPDATE... with no new "features"!

This one is big. In the last 24 hours, the Audio Core Engine that controls how we get your music into the game has been massively updated and optimized to give you the best audio experience yet! Things that started as guesswork are now pinned down to a science. 🎯

🎧 Audio playback optimizations all over the place

🛠️ General stability enhanced

The new Audio Core Engine also means easier, quicker, faster updates to the mod, and it makes future sister mods for other compatible streaming services much easier! 🙌

📣 Please share this mod with anyone you know who's playing!

---

🎧 v0.1.0: Audio Optimization

The big one: the music now plays much nicer with the game. Same casting from YouTube Music or YouTube, way fewer hiccups.

🔁 Smoother song changes

The little hitch when the station moves to the next song (usually when the Now Playing popup shows up) is greatly reduced. A very faint one can still happen on some changes.

⏸️ Smarter pausing

The mod now notices when the game stops playing the station, holds your song, and picks up from the same spot. Your phone's play and pause still work like before.

🔍 Still investigating

We're still looking into making your YouTube or local music pause, behind the scenes, during in-game wheelspins, rewinds, and race starts.

⚠️ Known issue

Every now and then the music can turn choppy mid-song. Workaround: switch to another station and back. We're still looking into it.

⚠️ One radio mod at a time

This uses the same D3DCompiler_47.dll as the Spotify version, FH2 Streaming Radio, so you can only run one of the two. They use separate folders, and you can copy your MUSIC folder between them.

Install / update

1. Drop D3DCompiler_47.dll and the youtube-radio folder next to Azimuth.exe and replace the old files. If you had the Spotify version, replace its D3DCompiler_47.dll too.

2. Your config.ini is kept, and old settings that no longer exist are ignored. For fresh defaults (like the new local_boost_db = 4), delete or rename config.ini and the mod writes a new one.

3. First launch downloads two small helper programs (about 65 MB) in the background.

4. Turn DJ Voice OFF in the in-game Audio Settings, then switch to Horizon XS.

Something wrong?

Set log_level = debug under [debug] in youtube-radio\config.ini, play, then send youtube-radio\youtube-radio.log. Put it back to info afterward.

[!CAUTION]

IMPORTANT: Go into the game's In-Game Audio Settings and TURN OFF the DJ Voice.

🎉 v0.0.1: FH2 Streaming Radio YTM is here!

The YouTube Music version of the radio mod. Cast from YouTube Music or YouTube on any device with the app on the same network, pick Forza Horizon 2, and your songs play on a station in the game. Song title and channel show up in the Now Playing popup.

⚠️ One radio mod at a time

This uses the same D3DCompiler_47.dll as the Spotify version, FH2 Streaming Radio, so you can only run one of the two. They use separate folders (youtube-radio and spotify-radio), and since both support local music, you can copy your MUSIC folder between them.

📱 Cast from your phone

Play, pause, next, previous, seek, and volume all work from the app. Your queue plays in order and the next song is fetched ahead of time so it starts fast.

🎶 Local music

No casting? The station shuffles your own songs from youtube-radio\MUSIC, or links you put in youtube.txt.

🎮 More goodies

•LB + X skips to the next song (skip_combo)

•Music pauses in menus and when you change stations (pause_when_silent)

•Pick any of the 7 stations with station

•Your own logo with logo.png or logo.jpg

Install

1. Drop D3DCompiler_47.dll and the youtube-radio folder next to Azimuth.exe. Replace the Spotify version's D3DCompiler_47.dll if you have it.

2. Start the game. The first launch downloads two small helper programs (about 65 MB) in the background.

3. In YouTube Music or YouTube, tap cast and pick Forza Horizon 2.

4. Turn DJ Voice OFF in the in-game Audio Settings, then switch to Horizon XS.