diff --git a/CMakeLists.txt b/CMakeLists.txt
index 584f2e2ba..c2a8da7cd 100644
--- a/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -295,6 +295,7 @@ if ( WIN32 OR CYGWIN )
     endif()
   endif ()
   message ( STATUS "Targeting Windows Version ${windows-version}" )
+  add_definitions ( -D _UNICODE -D UNICODE )
   add_definitions ( -D _WIN32_WINNT=${windows-version} )
   add_definitions ( -D WINVER=${windows-version} )
   list ( APPEND CMAKE_REQUIRED_DEFINITIONS "-DWINVER=${windows-version}" )
diff --git a/cmake_admin/PkgConfigHelpers.cmake b/cmake_admin/PkgConfigHelpers.cmake
index 8c98fe3f0..4a9f87f59 100644
--- a/cmake_admin/PkgConfigHelpers.cmake
+++ b/cmake_admin/PkgConfigHelpers.cmake
@@ -76,7 +76,8 @@ macro ( unset_pkg_config _prefix )
 endmacro ( unset_pkg_config )
 
 function ( get_target_properties_from_pkg_config _library _prefix _out_prefix )
-  if ( "${_library}" MATCHES "${CMAKE_STATIC_LIBRARY_SUFFIX}$" )
+  if ( NOT "${_library}" MATCHES "${CMAKE_IMPORT_LIBRARY_SUFFIX}$"
+       AND "${_library}" MATCHES "${CMAKE_STATIC_LIBRARY_SUFFIX}$" )
     set ( _cflags ${_prefix}_STATIC_CFLAGS_OTHER )
     set ( _link_libraries ${_prefix}_STATIC_LIBRARIES )
     set ( _library_dirs ${_prefix}_STATIC_LIBRARY_DIRS )
diff --git a/doc/examples/fluidsynth_enumsettings.cxx b/doc/examples/fluidsynth_enumsettings.cxx
index 8973b9de2..40599c94b 100644
--- a/doc/examples/fluidsynth_enumsettings.cxx
+++ b/doc/examples/fluidsynth_enumsettings.cxx
@@ -12,6 +12,10 @@
  * [Pedro López-Cabanillas <plcl@users.sf.net>]
  */
 
+#ifdef _WIN32
+#include <windows.h>
+#endif
+
 #include <list>
 #include <string>
 #include <iostream>
@@ -23,6 +27,11 @@ int main(int argc, char**)
     fluid_settings_t* settings = nullptr;
     void* context = nullptr;
 
+#ifdef _WIN32
+    SetConsoleOutputCP(CP_UTF8);
+    setvbuf(stdout, nullptr, _IONBF, 0);
+#endif
+
     std::cout << "C++ enum settings of FluidSynth v" << fluid_version_str() << std::endl;
 
     if (argc > 1) {
diff --git a/doc/fluidsettings.xml b/doc/fluidsettings.xml
index c805077e4..a26beffdc 100644
--- a/doc/fluidsettings.xml
+++ b/doc/fluidsettings.xml
@@ -492,7 +492,7 @@ Developers:
             <type>str</type>
             <def>default</def>
             <desc>
-                Selects the DirectSound (Windows) device to use.
+                Selects the DirectSound (Windows) device to use. Starting with 2.3.6 all device names are expected to be UTF8 encoded.
             </desc>
         </setting>
         <setting>
@@ -705,7 +705,7 @@ Developers:
             <type>str</type>
             <def>default</def>
             <desc>
-                Device to use for WASAPI driver output.
+                Device to use for WASAPI driver output. Starting with 2.3.6 all device names are expected to be UTF8 encoded.
             </desc>
         </setting>
         <setting>
@@ -721,7 +721,7 @@ Developers:
             <type>str</type>
             <def>default</def>
             <desc>
-                Device to use for WaveOut driver output.
+                Device to use for WaveOut driver output. Starting with 2.3.6 all device names are expected to be UTF8 encoded.
             </desc>
         </setting>
     </audio>
@@ -804,7 +804,7 @@ Developers:
             <name>winmidi.device</name>
             <type>str</type>
             <def>default</def>
-            <desc>The hardware device to use for Windows MIDI driver (not to be confused with the MIDI port). Multiple devices can be specified by a list of devices index separated by a semicolon (e.g "2;0", which is equivalent to one device with 32 MIDI channels).</desc>
+            <desc>The hardware device to use for Windows MIDI driver (not to be confused with the MIDI port). Multiple devices can be specified by a list of devices index separated by a semicolon (e.g "2;0", which is equivalent to one device with 32 MIDI channels). Starting with 2.3.6 all device names are expected to be UTF8 encoded.</desc>
         </setting>
     </midi>
     
diff --git a/include/fluidsynth/settings.h b/include/fluidsynth/settings.h
index 78db7dc32..45ab07a65 100644
--- a/include/fluidsynth/settings.h
+++ b/include/fluidsynth/settings.h
@@ -48,6 +48,9 @@ extern "C" {
  *       // ...
  *     }
  * @endcode
+ * All string settings are encoded in UTF-8. This includes the names
+ * of the audio and MIDI devices, exposed as setting options.
+ * 
  * @sa @ref CreatingSettings
  *
  * @{
diff --git a/src/drivers/fluid_dsound.c b/src/drivers/fluid_dsound.c
index 16fc83277..a99038b55 100644
--- a/src/drivers/fluid_dsound.c
+++ b/src/drivers/fluid_dsound.c
@@ -107,8 +107,18 @@ typedef struct
 BOOL CALLBACK
 fluid_dsound_enum_callback(LPGUID guid, LPCTSTR description, LPCTSTR module, LPVOID context)
 {
-    fluid_settings_t *settings = (fluid_settings_t *) context;
-    fluid_settings_add_option(settings, "audio.dsound.device", (const char *)description);
+    fluid_settings_t *settings = (fluid_settings_t *)context;
+    char *name;
+#if _UNICODE
+    int nsz = WideCharToMultiByte(CP_UTF8, 0, description, -1, 0, 0, 0, 0);
+    name = FLUID_ARRAY(char, nsz);
+    WideCharToMultiByte(CP_UTF8, 0, description, -1, name, nsz, 0, 0);
+#else
+    name = FLUID_STRDUP(description);
+#endif
+    FLUID_LOG(FLUID_DBG, "adding audio.dsound.device=%s", name);
+    fluid_settings_add_option(settings, "audio.dsound.device", name);
+    FLUID_FREE(name);
 
     return TRUE;
 }
@@ -121,11 +131,20 @@ fluid_dsound_enum_callback(LPGUID guid, LPCTSTR description, LPCTSTR module, LPV
 BOOL CALLBACK
 fluid_dsound_enum_callback2(LPGUID guid, LPCTSTR description, LPCTSTR module, LPVOID context)
 {
-    fluid_dsound_devsel_t *devsel = (fluid_dsound_devsel_t *) context;
-    FLUID_LOG(FLUID_DBG, "Testing audio device: %s", description);
-
-    if(FLUID_STRCASECMP(devsel->devname, description) == 0)
-    {
+    fluid_dsound_devsel_t *devsel = (fluid_dsound_devsel_t *)context;
+    char *name;
+#if _UNICODE
+    int nsz = WideCharToMultiByte(CP_UTF8, 0, description, -1, 0, 0, 0, 0);
+    name = FLUID_ARRAY(char, nsz);
+    WideCharToMultiByte(CP_UTF8, 0, description, -1, name, nsz, 0, 0);
+#else
+    name = FLUID_STRDUP(description);
+#endif
+    FLUID_LOG(FLUID_DBG, "Testing audio device: %s", name);
+
+    if (FLUID_STRCASECMP(devsel->devname, name) == 0)
+    {
+        FLUID_FREE(name);
         /* The device exists, return a copy of its GUID */
         devsel->devGUID = FLUID_NEW(GUID);
 
diff --git a/src/drivers/fluid_wasapi.c b/src/drivers/fluid_wasapi.c
index f94077f9d..1a933fbe0 100644
--- a/src/drivers/fluid_wasapi.c
+++ b/src/drivers/fluid_wasapi.c
@@ -788,9 +788,9 @@ static void fluid_wasapi_register_callback(IMMDevice *dev, void *data)
         int nsz;
         char *name;
 
-        nsz = WideCharToMultiByte(CP_ACP, 0, var.pwszVal, -1, 0, 0, 0, 0);
-        name = FLUID_ARRAY(char, nsz + 1);
-        WideCharToMultiByte(CP_ACP, 0, var.pwszVal, -1, name, nsz, 0, 0);
+        nsz = WideCharToMultiByte(CP_UTF8, 0, var.pwszVal, -1, 0, 0, 0, 0);
+        name = FLUID_ARRAY(char, nsz);
+        WideCharToMultiByte(CP_UTF8, 0, var.pwszVal, -1, name, nsz, 0, 0);
         fluid_settings_add_option(settings, "audio.wasapi.device", name);
         FLUID_FREE(name);
     }
@@ -828,9 +828,9 @@ static void fluid_wasapi_finddev_callback(IMMDevice *dev, void *data)
         goto cleanup;
     }
 
-    nsz = WideCharToMultiByte(CP_ACP, 0, var.pwszVal, -1, 0, 0, 0, 0);
-    name = FLUID_ARRAY(char, nsz + 1);
-    WideCharToMultiByte(CP_ACP, 0, var.pwszVal, -1, name, nsz, 0, 0);
+    nsz = WideCharToMultiByte(CP_UTF8, 0, var.pwszVal, -1, 0, 0, 0, 0);
+    name = FLUID_ARRAY(char, nsz);
+    WideCharToMultiByte(CP_UTF8, 0, var.pwszVal, -1, name, nsz, 0, 0);
 
     if(!FLUID_STRCASECMP(name, d->name))
     {
diff --git a/src/drivers/fluid_waveout.c b/src/drivers/fluid_waveout.c
index b67ead761..039295f4f 100644
--- a/src/drivers/fluid_waveout.c
+++ b/src/drivers/fluid_waveout.c
@@ -201,9 +201,7 @@ static DWORD WINAPI fluid_waveout_synth_thread(void *data)
 void fluid_waveout_audio_driver_settings(fluid_settings_t *settings)
 {
     UINT n, nDevs = waveOutGetNumDevs();
-#ifdef _UNICODE
-    char dev_name[MAXPNAMELEN];
-#endif
+    char *dev_name;
 
     fluid_settings_register_str(settings, "audio.waveout.device", "default", 0);
     fluid_settings_add_option(settings, "audio.waveout.device", "default");
@@ -218,13 +216,15 @@ void fluid_waveout_audio_driver_settings(fluid_settings_t *settings)
         if(res == MMSYSERR_NOERROR)
         {
 #ifdef _UNICODE
-            WideCharToMultiByte(CP_UTF8, 0, caps.szPname, -1, dev_name, MAXPNAMELEN, 0, 0);
-            FLUID_LOG(FLUID_DBG, "Testing audio device: %s", dev_name);
-            fluid_settings_add_option(settings, "audio.waveout.device", dev_name);
+            int nsz = WideCharToMultiByte(CP_UTF8, 0, caps.szPname, -1, 0, 0, 0, 0);
+            dev_name = FLUID_ARRAY(char, nsz);
+            WideCharToMultiByte(CP_UTF8, 0, caps.szPname, -1, dev_name, nsz, 0, 0);
 #else
-            FLUID_LOG(FLUID_DBG, "Testing audio device: %s", caps.szPname);
-            fluid_settings_add_option(settings, "audio.waveout.device", caps.szPname);
+            dev_name = FLUID_STRDUP(caps.szPname);
 #endif
+            FLUID_LOG(FLUID_DBG, "Testing audio device: %s", dev_name);
+            fluid_settings_add_option(settings, "audio.waveout.device", dev_name);
+            FLUID_FREE(dev_name);
         }
     }
 }
diff --git a/src/drivers/fluid_winmidi.c b/src/drivers/fluid_winmidi.c
index b42edddc1..1157d7f10 100644
--- a/src/drivers/fluid_winmidi.c
+++ b/src/drivers/fluid_winmidi.c
@@ -229,14 +229,24 @@ fluid_winmidi_callback(HMIDIIN hmi, UINT wMsg, DWORD_PTR dwInstance,
  * @param dev_name, name of the device.
  * @return the new device name (that must be freed when finish with it) or
  *  NULL if memory allocation error.
+ * Note: the returned name will be encoded in UTF8 if built with _UNICODE.
  */
-static char *fluid_winmidi_get_device_name(int dev_idx, char *dev_name)
+static char *fluid_winmidi_get_device_name(int dev_idx, TCHAR *input_dev_name)
 {
     char *new_dev_name;
+    char *dev_name;
 
     int i =  dev_idx;
     size_t size = 0; /* index size */
 
+#if _UNICODE
+    int nsz = WideCharToMultiByte(CP_UTF8, 0, input_dev_name, -1, 0, 0, 0, 0);
+    dev_name = FLUID_ARRAY(char, nsz);
+    WideCharToMultiByte(CP_UTF8, 0, input_dev_name, -1, dev_name, nsz, 0, 0);
+#else
+    dev_name = FLUID_STRDUP(input_dev_name);
+#endif
+
     do
     {
         size++;
@@ -256,6 +266,7 @@ static char *fluid_winmidi_get_device_name(int dev_idx, char *dev_name)
     {
         FLUID_LOG(FLUID_ERR, "Out of memory");
     }
+    FLUID_FREE(dev_name);
 
     return new_dev_name;
 }
@@ -429,14 +440,7 @@ fluid_winmidi_parse_device_name(fluid_winmidi_driver_t *dev, char *dev_name)
                         break;
                     }
 
-#ifdef _UNICODE
-                    WCHAR wDevName[MAXPNAMELEN];
-                    MultiByteToWideChar(CP_UTF8, 0, dev_name, -1, wDevName, MAXPNAMELEN);
-
-                    str_cmp_res = wcsicmp(wDevName, new_dev_name);
-#else
                     str_cmp_res = FLUID_STRCASECMP(dev_name, new_dev_name);
-#endif
 
                     FLUID_LOG(FLUID_DBG, "Testing midi device \"%s\"", new_dev_name);
                     FLUID_FREE(new_dev_name);
diff --git a/src/fluidsynth.c b/src/fluidsynth.c
index 11c917dfe..f08fa96e2 100644
--- a/src/fluidsynth.c
+++ b/src/fluidsynth.c
@@ -46,6 +46,9 @@ void print_help(fluid_settings_t *settings);
 void print_welcome(void);
 void print_configure(void);
 void fluid_wasapi_device_enumerate(void);
+#ifdef _WIN32
+static char* win32_ansi_to_utf8(const char* ansi_null_terminated_string);
+#endif
 
 /*
  * the globals
@@ -120,16 +123,25 @@ int process_o_cmd_line_option(fluid_settings_t *settings, char *optarg)
         }
 
         break;
-
-    case FLUID_STR_TYPE:
-        if(fluid_settings_setstr(settings, optarg, val) != FLUID_OK)
+        
+    case FLUID_STR_TYPE: {
+        char *u8_val = val;
+#if defined(_WIN32)
+        u8_val = win32_ansi_to_utf8(val);
+#endif
+        if(fluid_settings_setstr(settings, optarg, u8_val) != FLUID_OK)
         {
             fprintf(stderr, "Failed to set string parameter '%s'\n", optarg);
+#if defined(_WIN32)
+            free(u8_val);
+#endif
             return FLUID_FAILED;
         }
-
+#if defined(_WIN32)
+        free(u8_val);
+#endif
         break;
-
+    }
     default:
         fprintf(stderr, "Setting parameter '%s' not found\n", optarg);
         return FLUID_FAILED;
@@ -391,6 +403,13 @@ int main(int argc, char **argv)
     int fast_render = 0;
     static const char optchars[] = "a:C:c:dE:f:F:G:g:hijK:L:lm:nO:o:p:QqR:r:sT:Vvz:";
 
+#ifdef _WIN32
+    // console output will be utf-8
+    SetConsoleOutputCP(CP_UTF8);
+    // console input, too
+    SetConsoleCP(CP_UTF8);
+#endif
+
 #if SDL2_SUPPORT
     // Tell SDL that it shouldn't intercept signals, otherwise SIGINT and SIGTERM won't quit fluidsynth
     SDL_SetHint(SDL_HINT_NO_SIGNAL_HANDLERS, "1");