There really isn’t a way to make a generically cross-platform tool, because each OS has its own architecture (or apart from macOS, architectures, plural). (JACK users will find the UI very similar to JACK!) Windowsīy the way, it’s interesting that users expect a tool made for macOS audio architectures to work on Windows. I can’t speak to Loopback specifically, as I haven’t tested it. Since all of these tools run atop Apple’s own audio infrastructure, you should expect performance to be theoretically the same. The main advantage would appear to be its graphical interface for routing. I presume if people are using a paid tool over a free one, they’re finding some use for it. Many, many readers wrote me to point to Rogue Amoeba’s Loopback, which I frankly had forgotten. I made a modern alternative to Soundflower.

This triggered a lively discussion after the developer mentioned it on Reddit: I think given the pace of Apple’s updates, the actively developed Mac-specific tool here wins: It’s pretty simple stuff, and my initial tests suggest this it’s solid. You get 16 channels of audio (configurable up to 256 if you need that for some reason), lots of sample rates, and – as with the other solutions mentioned here – zero latency. Basically, look to Soundflower first for older OSes, and consider Blackhole for 10.10 (Yosemite) and later, especially if you’re up to Mojave or Catalina. But it was never as friendly to new users as Soundflower.īlackhole gives you more of that sort of simplicity, with modern updates – including full support for macOS Catalina that has eluded some other tools. JACK audio is a powerful option across platforms, and it’s especially powerful and easy on Linux, on which platform developers are more likely to write native clients. Its original code base was based on now-deprecated Mac tools, which could mean more complexity supporting newer OS releases I’m investigating what its compatibility will be with Catalina (if that’s possible). The utility Soundflower got some brand recognition among music and audio nerds after its introduction way back in 2004, and it does still have people working on support.

Need to record audio from an app, or route sound from one tool to another? Blackhole is an easy, free way to do that on the Mac, right through the latest macOS Catalina.

Alternatives to audio hijack