How to change main menu music to anything

A CRUCIAL NOTE FOR 2026
Over the years, the software has been updated, and some users were unable to achieve the desired result. User <<Beckx>> identified the cause and created his own guide based on mine. Here’s what he found: © "You MUST use an OLD version of Wwise. Newer versions (2021+ / 2024+ / 2025+) generate .wem files that Civilization VI silently refuses to play."
No other changes . You can keep using my original guide with that note, or check the link to <<Beckx>>’s updated guide in the comments below.

So, i'm this one person, who dont like Civ 6 main menu music, Civ 5 terra nova, Civ 4 baba yetu. When i start game, i dont want every time to hear epic music, it gets bored after few plays. So i change it always, i change it in civ 4, in civ 5, and now, in civ 6. I will explain you, how to change this epic music to what ever you like! Here we go.

1. First step, is to navigate to you civ 6 main folder
   like: SteamLibrary\steamapps\common\Sid Meier's Civilization VI
2. Then open folder "base" -> "Platforms" -> "Windows" -> "audio"
3. Then go down and find file "Music_Bank.xml" -> open it via microsoft explorer for example )
4. In "Music_Bank.xml" press "ctrl+f" to open search and type "menu" then press "find next" till you got something like:

<File Language="SFX" Id="879938382">
<ShortName>MainMenu.wav</ShortName>
<Path>SFX\MainMenu_ADEF7B36.wem</Path>

5. You see this "File Language" section? this is our file, and we going to change this file, cuz our main menu music keept right in this one. Short name - is our "explanation", u can find same way any other music or theme and look into file language id to know, what to change. Any way, next step.
6. Navigate to file from id "879938382" and drag and drop it to some where (new folder on desktop?)
7. Get noticed, that this file have .wem extension. We need to open it some how, and the easyst way, is to convert it into some thing, that standart music player can play.
8. Google "Extract WEM Audio Files" -> first link will lead to reddit -> go in. And download tool from there.
9. After you download this tool, just exctract it into folder with .wem file and open "convert.bat" it automaticly convert any .wem files in this folder to .ogg
10. Play this .ogg file to know, that you extract menu music success :)
11. Now find new music you want for replace (i personaly use Civ 3 Conquest main menu theme)
12. Convert your music into .wav (yeah, you need .wav now, cuz only wav can be transfered into .wem) (just google "mp3 to wav converter" or any other file you need to convert and use any online converter, there lots of them and all works same and easy)

2026 Note about next 13 and 14 steps - user <<Beckx>> couldn’t update the music using my guide in 2026. He discovered the issue: the new version of this program doesn’t work with the outdated version of the game. He recommends using older software, no later than 2021. I haven’t verified this point because I no longer play civ, but I think it’s important to share his finding here. You can find the link to the old software in his guide (Link from his guide [www.audiokinetic.com]). I haven’t personally checked this link or the relevance of the discovery, so use it at your own risk. I’ll leave the guide as it was in 2021, when it still worked.

13. Original step. Now you need official .wem tool. Google "Wwise" and open audiokinetic website, find "download" section and download their laucnher (need to register for download, yeah, dont worry, this is last few hard steps just to swap music, omg, civ devs, why so HARD :D)
14. Original step. Now run their launcher and go to section "wwise" and download latest version. in Install section choose only "Authoring" packages and nothing else, in next step unchek all addons, you dont need them.
15. Now run WWSE. and press "new project" -> name it what ever you want "123 for example"
16. || Important step for quality || Press "Project" -> "project settings" -> "source settings" -> press 3 dots on "default conversion settings" and choose "conversion settings -> factory conversion settings -> vorbis -> vorbis quality High -> press OK
17. Now press project -> import audio file -> choose your .wav audio -> import
18. Now project -> convert all audio files -> convert
19. Now project -> file manager -> press into "project folder" right click and choose "open contained folder" -> open
20. Navigate in this folder to .cache -> windows -> sfx -> and here is your music in .wem format
21. now just renamed it into numbers from first steps and replace in civ 6 folder
22. Start civ and enjoy - how good you are :D

Sorry for bad english, i'm from russia and know only vodka and balalaika words. If my guide helps - i'm glad, if not - well, i feel nothing then :D have problems? contact me -> i will explain )