PS5 + RØDECaster Duo — intermittent robotic audio / USB interference

Hi everyone, hoping someone with experience using a RØDECaster Duo with a PS5 can help me troubleshoot an intermittent audio issue.

My setup is:

• PS5 connected directly to USB 2 on my RØDECaster Duo for audio.
• Elgato capture card connected to my Mac/OBS for video capture.
• Headphones plugged into the front 3.5 mm socket on the RØDECaster Duo.
• OBS receives my game audio through the RØDECaster Duo.
• I also use PS5 party chat, so I need both game audio and party chat working for myself and my stream.

The problem:

Every so often, the audio suddenly becomes robotic, tinny or distorted, sometimes with static. It can affect the game audio and party chat at the same time. My friends have also experienced hearing their own voices echoed back to them.

The strange thing is that everything can sound completely normal, then suddenly go distorted, and eventually clear up on its own without me changing anything or restarting the PS5.

When it happens, I can hear the distortion in my headphones, and it is also present in OBS recordings. The USB 2 channel meter on the RØDECaster still moves normally.

Things I’ve checked:

• PS5 audio format is set to Linear PCM.
• RØDECaster Duo firmware is up to date.
• Both RØDECaster Duo Main Stereo and Chat are set to 48,000 Hz in Mac Audio MIDI Setup.
• The USB-C cable is a proper data cable that I use with my Shure MV7, so I haven’t established that the cable is faulty.
• Turning processing off on the USB 2 channel changed the sound slightly but didn’t resolve the issue.

I’ve read that the RØDECaster Duo isn’t officially supported as a direct USB audio device on PS5.

My questions:

1. Has anyone experienced intermittent robotic or distorted audio when connecting a PS5 directly to a RØDECaster Duo over USB?
2. Could this be a USB audio compatibility issue between the PS5 and the Duo, rather than a faulty cable or mixer?
3. Has anyone found a reliable fix?
4. If I need to stop using the direct USB connection, what is the best way to route PS5 game audio and two-way party chat through the RØDECaster Duo into OBS, while still hearing everything through my headphones and sending my microphone to party chat?

I’d really appreciate advice from anyone who has successfully run this setup. I want to keep my current streaming workflow working and avoid buying unnecessary equipment or changing connections without knowing it will solve the problem.

Thanks!