diff --git a/audio/audio.c b/audio/audio.c
index a02f3ce5c6..76b8735b44 100644
--- a/audio/audio.c
+++ b/audio/audio.c
@@ -1743,7 +1743,6 @@ static AudioState *audio_init(Audiodev *dev, const char *name)
         atexit(audio_cleanup);
         atexit_registered = true;
     }
-    QTAILQ_INSERT_TAIL(&audio_states, s, list);
 
     s->ts = timer_new_ns(QEMU_CLOCK_VIRTUAL, audio_timer, s);
 
@@ -1769,6 +1768,10 @@ static AudioState *audio_init(Audiodev *dev, const char *name)
         } else {
             dolog ("Unknown audio driver `%s'\n", drvname);
         }
+        if (!done) {
+            free_audio_state(s);
+            return NULL;
+        }
     } else {
         for (i = 0; audio_prio_list[i]; i++) {
             AudiodevListEntry *e = audiodev_find(&head, audio_prio_list[i]);
@@ -1806,6 +1809,7 @@ static AudioState *audio_init(Audiodev *dev, const char *name)
                "(Audio can continue looping even after stopping the VM)\n");
     }
 
+    QTAILQ_INSERT_TAIL(&audio_states, s, list);
     QLIST_INIT (&s->card_head);
     vmstate_register (NULL, 0, &vmstate_audio, s);
     return s;
@@ -2119,13 +2123,17 @@ void audio_define(Audiodev *dev)
     QSIMPLEQ_INSERT_TAIL(&audiodevs, e, next);
 }
 
-void audio_init_audiodevs(void)
+bool audio_init_audiodevs(void)
 {
     AudiodevListEntry *e;
 
     QSIMPLEQ_FOREACH(e, &audiodevs, next) {
-        audio_init(e->dev, NULL);
+        if (!audio_init(e->dev, NULL)) {
+            return false;
+        }
     }
+
+    return true;
 }
 
 audsettings audiodev_to_audsettings(AudiodevPerDirectionOptions *pdo)
diff --git a/audio/audio.h b/audio/audio.h
index b5e17cd218..27e67079a0 100644
--- a/audio/audio.h
+++ b/audio/audio.h
@@ -170,7 +170,7 @@ void audio_sample_from_uint64(void *samples, int pos,
 
 void audio_define(Audiodev *audio);
 void audio_parse_option(const char *opt);
-void audio_init_audiodevs(void);
+bool audio_init_audiodevs(void);
 void audio_legacy_help(void);
 
 AudioState *audio_state_by_name(const char *name);
diff --git a/softmmu/vl.c b/softmmu/vl.c
index 706bd7cff7..dea4005e47 100644
--- a/softmmu/vl.c
+++ b/softmmu/vl.c
@@ -1885,7 +1885,9 @@ static void qemu_create_early_backends(void)
      * setting machine properties, so they can be referred to.
      */
     configure_blockdev(&bdo_queue, machine_class, snapshot);
-    audio_init_audiodevs();
+    if (!audio_init_audiodevs()) {
+        exit(1);
+    }
 }