diff --git a/sys/wasapi/gstwasapisink.c b/sys/wasapi/gstwasapisink.c
index 9fe393a06f..81436cfa08 100644
--- a/sys/wasapi/gstwasapisink.c
+++ b/sys/wasapi/gstwasapisink.c
@@ -50,9 +50,10 @@ static GstStaticPadTemplate sink_template = GST_STATIC_PAD_TEMPLATE ("sink",
     GST_PAD_ALWAYS,
     GST_STATIC_CAPS (GST_WASAPI_STATIC_CAPS));
 
-#define DEFAULT_ROLE      GST_WASAPI_DEVICE_ROLE_CONSOLE
-#define DEFAULT_MUTE      FALSE
-#define DEFAULT_EXCLUSIVE FALSE
+#define DEFAULT_ROLE          GST_WASAPI_DEVICE_ROLE_CONSOLE
+#define DEFAULT_MUTE          FALSE
+#define DEFAULT_EXCLUSIVE     FALSE
+#define DEFAULT_LOW_LATENCY   FALSE
 
 enum
 {
@@ -60,7 +61,8 @@ enum
   PROP_ROLE,
   PROP_MUTE,
   PROP_DEVICE,
-  PROP_EXCLUSIVE
+  PROP_EXCLUSIVE,
+  PROP_LOW_LATENCY
 };
 
 static void gst_wasapi_sink_dispose (GObject * object);
@@ -124,6 +126,12 @@ gst_wasapi_sink_class_init (GstWasapiSinkClass * klass)
           "Open the device in exclusive mode",
           DEFAULT_EXCLUSIVE, G_PARAM_READWRITE | G_PARAM_STATIC_STRINGS));
 
+  g_object_class_install_property (gobject_class,
+      PROP_LOW_LATENCY,
+      g_param_spec_boolean ("low-latency", "Low latency",
+          "Optimize all settings for lowest latency",
+          DEFAULT_LOW_LATENCY, G_PARAM_READWRITE | G_PARAM_STATIC_STRINGS));
+
   gst_element_class_add_static_pad_template (gstelement_class, &sink_template);
   gst_element_class_set_static_metadata (gstelement_class, "WasapiSrc",
       "Sink/Audio",
@@ -221,6 +229,9 @@ gst_wasapi_sink_set_property (GObject * object, guint prop_id,
       self->sharemode = g_value_get_boolean (value)
           ? AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_EXCLUSIVE : AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_SHARED;
       break;
+    case PROP_LOW_LATENCY:
+      self->low_latency = g_value_get_boolean (value);
+      break;
     default:
       G_OBJECT_WARN_INVALID_PROPERTY_ID (object, prop_id, pspec);
       break;
@@ -248,6 +259,9 @@ gst_wasapi_sink_get_property (GObject * object, guint prop_id,
       g_value_set_boolean (value,
           self->sharemode == AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_EXCLUSIVE);
       break;
+    case PROP_LOW_LATENCY:
+      g_value_set_boolean (value, self->low_latency);
+      break;
     default:
       G_OBJECT_WARN_INVALID_PROPERTY_ID (object, prop_id, pspec);
       break;
@@ -376,42 +390,48 @@ gst_wasapi_sink_prepare (GstAudioSink * asink, GstAudioRingBufferSpec * spec)
   gboolean res = FALSE;
   REFERENCE_TIME latency_rt;
   IAudioRenderClient *render_client = NULL;
-  gint64 default_period, min_period, use_period;
+  REFERENCE_TIME default_period, min_period;
+  REFERENCE_TIME device_period, device_buffer_duration;
   guint bpf, rate;
   HRESULT hr;
 
-  hr = IAudioClient_GetDevicePeriod (self->client, &default_period, &min_period);
+  hr = IAudioClient_GetDevicePeriod (self->client, &default_period,
+      &min_period);
   if (hr != S_OK) {
     GST_ERROR_OBJECT (self, "IAudioClient::GetDevicePeriod failed");
-    goto beach;
+    return FALSE;
   }
+
   GST_INFO_OBJECT (self, "wasapi default period: %" G_GINT64_FORMAT
       ", min period: %" G_GINT64_FORMAT, default_period, min_period);
 
-  if (self->sharemode == AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_SHARED) {
-    use_period = default_period;
-    /* Set hnsBufferDuration to 0, which should, in theory, tell the device to
-     * create a buffer with the smallest latency possible. In practice, this is
-     * usually 2 * default_period. See:
-     * https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/dd370871(v=vs.85).aspx
-     *
-     * NOTE: min_period is a lie, and I have never seen WASAPI use it as the
-     * current period */
-    hr = IAudioClient_Initialize (self->client, AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_SHARED,
-        AUDCLNT_STREAMFLAGS_EVENTCALLBACK, 0, 0, self->mix_format, NULL);
+  if (self->low_latency) {
+    if (self->sharemode == AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_SHARED) {
+      device_period = default_period;
+      device_buffer_duration = 0;
+    } else {
+      device_period = min_period;
+      device_buffer_duration = min_period;
+    }
   } else {
-    use_period = min_period;
-    /* For some reason, we need to call this another time for exclusive mode */
-    CoInitialize (NULL);
-    /* FIXME: We should be able to use min_period as the device buffer size,
-     * but I'm hitting a problem in GStreamer. */
-    hr = IAudioClient_Initialize (self->client, AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_EXCLUSIVE,
-        AUDCLNT_STREAMFLAGS_EVENTCALLBACK, use_period, use_period,
-        self->mix_format, NULL);
+    /* Clamp values to integral multiples of an appropriate period */
+    gst_wasapi_util_get_best_buffer_sizes (spec,
+        self->sharemode == AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_EXCLUSIVE, default_period,
+        min_period, &device_period, &device_buffer_duration);
   }
+
+  /* For some reason, we need to call this a second time for exclusive mode */
+  if (self->sharemode == AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_EXCLUSIVE)
+    CoInitialize (NULL);
+
+  hr = IAudioClient_Initialize (self->client, self->sharemode,
+      AUDCLNT_STREAMFLAGS_EVENTCALLBACK, device_buffer_duration,
+      /* This must always be 0 in shared mode */
+      self->sharemode == AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_SHARED ? 0 : device_period,
+      self->mix_format, NULL);
   if (hr != S_OK) {
     gchar *msg = gst_wasapi_util_hresult_to_string (hr);
-    GST_ELEMENT_ERROR (self, RESOURCE, OPEN_READ, (NULL),
+    GST_ELEMENT_ERROR (self, RESOURCE, OPEN_WRITE, (NULL),
         ("IAudioClient::Initialize () failed: %s", msg));
     g_free (msg);
     goto beach;
@@ -431,7 +451,7 @@ gst_wasapi_sink_prepare (GstAudioSink * asink, GstAudioRingBufferSpec * spec)
 
   /* Actual latency-time/buffer-time are different now */
   spec->segsize = gst_util_uint64_scale_int_round (rate * bpf,
-      use_period * 100, GST_SECOND);
+      device_period * 100, GST_SECOND);
 
   /* We need a minimum of 2 segments to ensure glitch-free playback */
   spec->segtotal = MAX (self->buffer_frame_count * bpf / spec->segsize, 2);
diff --git a/sys/wasapi/gstwasapisink.h b/sys/wasapi/gstwasapisink.h
index 588d5807db..e445ce2908 100644
--- a/sys/wasapi/gstwasapisink.h
+++ b/sys/wasapi/gstwasapisink.h
@@ -61,6 +61,7 @@ struct _GstWasapiSink
   gint role;
   gint sharemode;
   gboolean mute;
+  gboolean low_latency;
   wchar_t *device_strid;
 };
 
diff --git a/sys/wasapi/gstwasapisrc.c b/sys/wasapi/gstwasapisrc.c
index dcb196c869..375400914a 100644
--- a/sys/wasapi/gstwasapisrc.c
+++ b/sys/wasapi/gstwasapisrc.c
@@ -48,15 +48,17 @@ static GstStaticPadTemplate src_template = GST_STATIC_PAD_TEMPLATE ("src",
     GST_PAD_ALWAYS,
     GST_STATIC_CAPS (GST_WASAPI_STATIC_CAPS));
 
-#define DEFAULT_ROLE      GST_WASAPI_DEVICE_ROLE_CONSOLE
-#define DEFAULT_EXCLUSIVE FALSE
+#define DEFAULT_ROLE          GST_WASAPI_DEVICE_ROLE_CONSOLE
+#define DEFAULT_EXCLUSIVE     FALSE
+#define DEFAULT_LOW_LATENCY   FALSE
 
 enum
 {
   PROP_0,
   PROP_ROLE,
   PROP_DEVICE,
-  PROP_EXCLUSIVE
+  PROP_EXCLUSIVE,
+  PROP_LOW_LATENCY
 };
 
 static void gst_wasapi_src_dispose (GObject * object);
@@ -116,6 +118,12 @@ gst_wasapi_src_class_init (GstWasapiSrcClass * klass)
           "Open the device in exclusive mode",
           DEFAULT_EXCLUSIVE, G_PARAM_READWRITE | G_PARAM_STATIC_STRINGS));
 
+  g_object_class_install_property (gobject_class,
+      PROP_LOW_LATENCY,
+      g_param_spec_boolean ("low-latency", "Low latency",
+          "Optimize all settings for lowest latency",
+          DEFAULT_LOW_LATENCY, G_PARAM_READWRITE | G_PARAM_STATIC_STRINGS));
+
   gst_element_class_add_static_pad_template (gstelement_class, &src_template);
   gst_element_class_set_static_metadata (gstelement_class, "WasapiSrc",
       "Source/Audio",
@@ -218,6 +226,9 @@ gst_wasapi_src_set_property (GObject * object, guint prop_id,
       self->sharemode = g_value_get_boolean (value)
           ? AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_EXCLUSIVE : AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_SHARED;
       break;
+    case PROP_LOW_LATENCY:
+      self->low_latency = g_value_get_boolean (value);
+      break;
     default:
       G_OBJECT_WARN_INVALID_PROPERTY_ID (object, prop_id, pspec);
       break;
@@ -242,6 +253,9 @@ gst_wasapi_src_get_property (GObject * object, guint prop_id,
       g_value_set_boolean (value,
           self->sharemode == AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_EXCLUSIVE);
       break;
+    case PROP_LOW_LATENCY:
+      g_value_set_boolean (value, self->low_latency);
+      break;
     default:
       G_OBJECT_WARN_INVALID_PROPERTY_ID (object, prop_id, pspec);
       break;
@@ -369,8 +383,8 @@ gst_wasapi_src_prepare (GstAudioSrc * asrc, GstAudioRingBufferSpec * spec)
   IAudioClock *client_clock = NULL;
   guint64 client_clock_freq = 0;
   IAudioCaptureClient *capture_client = NULL;
-  REFERENCE_TIME latency_rt;
-  gint64 default_period, min_period, use_period;
+  REFERENCE_TIME latency_rt, default_period, min_period;
+  REFERENCE_TIME device_period, device_buffer_duration;
   guint bpf, rate, buffer_frames;
   HRESULT hr;
 
@@ -383,27 +397,30 @@ gst_wasapi_src_prepare (GstAudioSrc * asrc, GstAudioRingBufferSpec * spec)
   GST_INFO_OBJECT (self, "wasapi default period: %" G_GINT64_FORMAT
       ", min period: %" G_GINT64_FORMAT, default_period, min_period);
 
-  if (self->sharemode == AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_SHARED) {
-    use_period = default_period;
-    /* Set hnsBufferDuration to 0, which should, in theory, tell the device to
-     * create a buffer with the smallest latency possible. In practice, this is
-     * usually 2 * default_period. See:
-     * https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/dd370871(v=vs.85).aspx
-     *
-     * NOTE: min_period is a lie, and I have never seen WASAPI use it as the
-     * current period */
-    hr = IAudioClient_Initialize (self->client, AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_SHARED,
-        AUDCLNT_STREAMFLAGS_EVENTCALLBACK, 0, 0, self->mix_format, NULL);
+  if (self->low_latency) {
+    if (self->sharemode == AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_SHARED) {
+      device_period = default_period;
+      device_buffer_duration = 0;
+    } else {
+      device_period = min_period;
+      device_buffer_duration = min_period;
+    }
   } else {
-    use_period = default_period;
-    /* For some reason, we need to call this another time for exclusive mode */
-    CoInitialize (NULL);
-    /* FIXME: We should be able to use min_period as the device buffer size,
-     * but I'm hitting a problem in GStreamer. */
-    hr = IAudioClient_Initialize (self->client, AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_EXCLUSIVE,
-        AUDCLNT_STREAMFLAGS_EVENTCALLBACK, use_period, use_period,
-        self->mix_format, NULL);
+    /* Clamp values to integral multiples of an appropriate period */
+    gst_wasapi_util_get_best_buffer_sizes (spec,
+        self->sharemode == AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_EXCLUSIVE, default_period,
+        min_period, &device_period, &device_buffer_duration);
   }
+
+  /* For some reason, we need to call this a second time for exclusive mode */
+  if (self->sharemode == AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_EXCLUSIVE)
+    CoInitialize (NULL);
+
+  hr = IAudioClient_Initialize (self->client, self->sharemode,
+      AUDCLNT_STREAMFLAGS_EVENTCALLBACK, device_buffer_duration,
+      /* This must always be 0 in shared mode */
+      self->sharemode == AUDCLNT_SHAREMODE_SHARED ? 0 : device_period,
+      self->mix_format, NULL);
   if (hr != S_OK) {
     gchar *msg = gst_wasapi_util_hresult_to_string (hr);
     GST_ELEMENT_ERROR (self, RESOURCE, OPEN_READ, (NULL),
@@ -425,7 +442,7 @@ gst_wasapi_src_prepare (GstAudioSrc * asrc, GstAudioRingBufferSpec * spec)
       "rate is %i Hz", buffer_frames, bpf, rate);
 
   spec->segsize = gst_util_uint64_scale_int_round (rate * bpf,
-      use_period * 100, GST_SECOND);
+      device_period * 100, GST_SECOND);
 
   /* We need a minimum of 2 segments to ensure glitch-free playback */
   spec->segtotal = MAX (self->buffer_frame_count * bpf / spec->segsize, 2);
diff --git a/sys/wasapi/gstwasapisrc.h b/sys/wasapi/gstwasapisrc.h
index 530fb2b927..ca3f641464 100644
--- a/sys/wasapi/gstwasapisrc.h
+++ b/sys/wasapi/gstwasapisrc.h
@@ -62,6 +62,7 @@ struct _GstWasapiSrc
   /* properties */
   gint role;
   gint sharemode;
+  gboolean low_latency;
   wchar_t *device_strid;
 };
 
diff --git a/sys/wasapi/gstwasapiutil.c b/sys/wasapi/gstwasapiutil.c
index be25de558c..402880aaf1 100644
--- a/sys/wasapi/gstwasapiutil.c
+++ b/sys/wasapi/gstwasapiutil.c
@@ -814,3 +814,49 @@ gst_wasapi_util_parse_waveformatex (WAVEFORMATEXTENSIBLE * format,
 
   return TRUE;
 }
+
+void
+gst_wasapi_util_get_best_buffer_sizes (GstAudioRingBufferSpec * spec,
+    gboolean exclusive, REFERENCE_TIME default_period,
+    REFERENCE_TIME min_period, REFERENCE_TIME * ret_period,
+    REFERENCE_TIME * ret_buffer_duration)
+{
+  REFERENCE_TIME use_period, use_buffer;
+
+  /* Figure out what integral device period to use as the base */
+  if (exclusive) {
+    /* Exclusive mode can run at multiples of either the minimum period or the
+     * default period; these are on the hardware ringbuffer */
+    if (spec->latency_time * 10 > default_period)
+      use_period = default_period;
+    else
+      use_period = min_period;
+  } else {
+    /* Shared mode always runs at the default period, so if we want a larger
+     * period (for lower CPU usage), we do it as a multiple of that */
+    use_period = default_period;
+  }
+
+  /* Ensure that the period (latency_time) used is an integral multiple of
+   * either the default period or the minimum period */
+  use_period = use_period * MAX ((spec->latency_time * 10) / use_period, 1);
+
+  if (exclusive) {
+    /* Buffer duration is the same as the period in exclusive mode. The
+     * hardware is always writing out one buffer (of size *ret_period), and
+     * we're writing to the other one. */
+    use_buffer = use_period;
+  } else {
+    /* Ask WASAPI to create a software ringbuffer of at least this size; it may
+     * be larger so the actual buffer time may be different, which is why after
+     * initialization we read the buffer duration actually in-use and set
+     * segsize/segtotal from that. */
+    use_buffer = spec->buffer_time * 10;
+    /* Has to be at least twice the period */
+    if (use_buffer < 2 * use_period)
+      use_buffer = 2 * use_period;
+  }
+
+  *ret_period = use_period;
+  *ret_buffer_duration = use_buffer;
+}
diff --git a/sys/wasapi/gstwasapiutil.h b/sys/wasapi/gstwasapiutil.h
index 1584a649ef..3ca96ecebe 100644
--- a/sys/wasapi/gstwasapiutil.h
+++ b/sys/wasapi/gstwasapiutil.h
@@ -77,4 +77,9 @@ gboolean gst_wasapi_util_parse_waveformatex (WAVEFORMATEXTENSIBLE * format,
     GstCaps * template_caps, GstCaps ** out_caps,
     GstAudioChannelPosition ** out_positions);
 
+void gst_wasapi_util_get_best_buffer_sizes (GstAudioRingBufferSpec * spec,
+    gboolean exclusive, REFERENCE_TIME default_period,
+    REFERENCE_TIME min_period, REFERENCE_TIME * ret_period,
+    REFERENCE_TIME * ret_buffer_duration);
+
 #endif /* __GST_WASAPI_UTIL_H__ */