3RVX is a free program that offers volume control through hotkey and/or middle mouse wheel combinations. It also visually represents the volume levels and volume changes on-screen and in the program’s system tray icon.
Ever wished that you could raise/lower or mute your PC volume using hotkeys and/or the mouse wheel? With 3RVX you can do that and more. This program is similar to programs such as
Volumouse, VolumeTouch, and MKN Volwheel; however 3RVX has a definite edge in both customizability and in it’s “coolness factor”.
This program is not just designed to offer on-the-fly volume control but also to represent this through some nifty on-screen (skinnable) visual elements. More notes on this program below:
The hotkeys: are freely customizable; and, moreover you can add as many as you want that perform any single action (e.g. if you like you can have two sets of keyboard shortcuts plus, say, a keyboard/mousewheel combo to mute the volume).
- The system tray icon: functions as a visual volume gauge that displays the current volume level. To avoid having multiple volume icons in the tray you might want to suppress the original Windows system tray volume icon (see “removing Windows’ volume icon” below.
On-screen volume control: a “volume gauge” will be displayed on-screen whenever you change the volume using 3RVX’s hotkeys. The image to the right shows 4 different versions of this in action (4 different skins). Note that this is customizable in terms of location on-screen and in terms of the location on-screen (including which monitor it should be displayed on).- Skins: 3RVX’s visual elements (the system tray icon, the pop-up volume gauge, and the volume control slider) are all customizable.The program includes seven visual styles to choose from (with the option to download and/or create more).
- Removing Windows’ volume icon: go to control panel then click on sound and audio devices. In the “Volume” tab find and uncheck “place volume icon in the taskbar. See image to the right.
- Memory consumption: around 4 megs in memory, which is simply excellent for a program like this (esp. as it requires .NET Framework, which sometimes causes unpredictably large memory usage – none of that here!)
The verdict: combine the sheer practical usefulness of hotkey-enabled volume control with sleek, skinnable visuals and controls and a small memory footprint and you get 3RVX. This program is a winner, and of the three similar freeware volume utilities mentioned above it is my clear favorite. Highly recommended.
Version Tested: 2.2 b
Compatibility: WinAll; no info on Vista. Requires Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0
Go to the developer’s download page to download the latest version (approx 2.04 megs). More info here.
