diff --git a/src/RemSound.App/MainForm.cs b/src/RemSound.App/MainForm.cs
index 0b6ccd0..d087e17 100644
--- a/src/RemSound.App/MainForm.cs
+++ b/src/RemSound.App/MainForm.cs
@@ -3621,7 +3621,13 @@ public sealed class MainForm : Form
         // The chooser row only makes sense where applications mode is possible.
         if (sendModeLabel is not null) sendModeLabel.Visible = supported;
         SetRowControlVisible(sendModeList, supported);
-        if (!supported && sendModeList.SelectedIndex != SendModeDevicesIndex)
+        // Items.Count > 0 guard: this method is called once EARLY in the constructor (via ApplyAsioMode)
+        // before the Input/Output tab has populated sendModeList, so the list can still be empty here.
+        // Setting SelectedIndex on an empty ListBox throws ArgumentOutOfRangeException. On Windows 10+ the
+        // branch is skipped anyway (process-loopback IS supported), which hid the bug — but on Windows 7
+        // (unsupported) it crashed the app at launch (issue #22). When the list is empty there's nothing to
+        // reset; it's created selecting Devices, and this runs again (line ~3611) once the list is built.
+        if (!supported && sendModeList.Items.Count > 0 && sendModeList.SelectedIndex != SendModeDevicesIndex)
         {
             suppressSendAppEvents = true;
             sendModeList.SelectedIndex = SendModeDevicesIndex;
diff --git a/src/RemSound.App/SelfTest.cs b/src/RemSound.App/SelfTest.cs
index 4e196cf..d59279b 100644
--- a/src/RemSound.App/SelfTest.cs
+++ b/src/RemSound.App/SelfTest.cs
@@ -82,6 +82,7 @@ internal static class SelfTest
         RunStep(results, "Auto-save non-read-only profiles (options + guard + silent timer)", AutoSaveNonReadOnlyProfiles);
         RunStep(results, "Service verb gate (normal launch stays load-safe)", ServiceVerbGate);
         RunStep(results, "Main window builds without loading the service assembly (Win7-safe)", MainWindowServiceAssemblyFree);
+        RunStep(results, "Main window builds where process-loopback is unsupported (Win7 launch, issue #22)", Win7SendModeConstruction);
         RunStep(results, "Menu shortcuts don't clash with controls", MenuShortcutsDontClashWithControls);
         RunStep(results, "Service log discovery (newest activity log)", ServiceLogDiscovery);
 
@@ -1449,6 +1450,31 @@ internal static class SelfTest
         }
     }
 
+    /// <summary>Issue #22: on Windows 7 process-loopback is unsupported, so ApplySendModeVisibility — called
+    /// early in the constructor (via ApplyAsioMode), BEFORE the Input/Output tab populates the send-mode
+    /// list — set SelectedIndex on an EMPTY ListBox and threw ArgumentOutOfRangeException, crashing the app
+    /// at launch. On Windows 10/11 the branch is skipped (process-loopback IS supported), which hid the bug
+    /// from the gate. This forces the unsupported path so the crash is reproduced (and now prevented) on a
+    /// Win10/11 test box.</summary>
+    private static string? Win7SendModeConstruction()
+    {
+        var prev = RemSound.Sender.ProcessLoopbackCapture.ForceSupportedForTest;
+        RemSound.Sender.ProcessLoopbackCapture.ForceSupportedForTest = false; // pretend we're on Windows 7
+        try
+        {
+            MainForm? mf = null;
+            Exception? ctorEx = null;
+            try { mf = new MainForm(null, RemSound.Core.Profile.NewBlank(), null, null, headless: true); }
+            catch (Exception ex) { ctorEx = ex; }
+            finally { mf?.Dispose(); }
+
+            Check(ctorEx is null,
+                $"constructing the main window with process-loopback unsupported (the Win7 path) must not throw — got {ctorEx?.GetType().Name}: {ctorEx?.Message}");
+            return "the main window constructs cleanly with process-loopback unsupported (Win7 send-mode path)";
+        }
+        finally { RemSound.Sender.ProcessLoopbackCapture.ForceSupportedForTest = prev; }
+    }
+
     private static int FreeUdpPort()
     {
         using var s = new System.Net.Sockets.Socket(System.Net.Sockets.AddressFamily.InterNetwork,
diff --git a/src/RemSound.Sender/ProcessLoopbackCapture.cs b/src/RemSound.Sender/ProcessLoopbackCapture.cs
index 4ea6f44..d4b63b1 100644
--- a/src/RemSound.Sender/ProcessLoopbackCapture.cs
+++ b/src/RemSound.Sender/ProcessLoopbackCapture.cs
@@ -3,6 +3,9 @@ using System.Threading;
 using NAudio.CoreAudioApi;
 using NAudio.Wave;
 
+// Lets the in-app self-tests (assembly "RemSound") flip ForceSupportedForTest to exercise the Win7 paths.
+[assembly: System.Runtime.CompilerServices.InternalsVisibleTo("RemSound")]
+
 namespace RemSound.Sender;
 
 /// <summary>
@@ -59,9 +62,14 @@ public sealed class ProcessLoopbackCapture : IWaveIn
         includeTree = includeProcessTree;
     }
 
+    /// <summary>Test-only override: when set, <see cref="IsSupported"/> returns this instead of the real OS
+    /// check, so a self-test running on Windows 10/11 can exercise the Windows-7 (unsupported) code paths —
+    /// e.g. the send-mode UI that crashed at launch on Win7 (issue #22). Null = use the real OS check.</summary>
+    internal static bool? ForceSupportedForTest;
+
     /// <summary>True on Windows builds new enough for the process-loopback API (10.0.19041+).</summary>
     public static bool IsSupported =>
-        OperatingSystem.IsWindowsVersionAtLeast(10, 0, 19041);
+        ForceSupportedForTest ?? OperatingSystem.IsWindowsVersionAtLeast(10, 0, 19041);
 
     public void StartRecording()
     {