Under The Microscope

SoundSource: The Sound Control That Should Be Built Into MacOS

Update (March 26th, 2019): Just over two years later, we released an overhauled SoundSource 4. With this update, the app grew into a fully-featured system-wide audio control utility.

SoundSource now includes the ability to control audio on per-application basis, and add effects to any audio. Worth noting, the play-thru functionality found SoundSource 3 was removed from versions 4 and up. Learn more about SoundSource here.

The below post is preserved in its entirety for historical purposes.


Today, we’re pleased to unveil SoundSource, a tremendously handy new tool offering fast access to all your Mac’s critical sound settings!

From SoundSource’s menu bar icon, you can instantly configure the audio devices your Mac uses for Input, Output and Sound Effects. In seconds, you can adjust the volume for each of your audio devices or switch between connected devices. SoundSource can also enable the soft play-thru of audio from input devices. Use the Play-Thru window to monitor any connected input, such as a microphone, right through your headphones or other output.

SoundSource is a superior sound control in a tremendously convenient package. It tucks out of your way in the menu bar until you need it, then provides easy access to swap audio devices, adjust volumes, and more. It’s the sound control that should be built into MacOS, now available from Rogue Amoeba.1

Get It Now

Visit the SoundSource page to learn more and download our free trial for Mac OS X 10.10 (Yosemite) and higher. When you’re ready, you can purchase SoundSource right through our store.

Find Out More About SoundSource

A Special Offer for Current Rogue Amoeba Customers

As a special bonus for our customers, folks who own a license for any of current MacOS applications are eligible to receive a complimentary license for SoundSource 3! If you already own one of our other products, click here to redeem this offer.

If you’ve been considering picking up Airfoil, Audio Hijack, or any of our other Mac apps, now’s a great time to do it. When you purchase, you’ll also earn a complimentary copy of SoundSource 3.


Footnotes:

  1. If the SoundSource name sounds familiar, you may have used our original SoundSource application back in the early 2000s. SoundSource 3 is a modern new version, offering the audio device controls from the original SoundSource, as well as the audio play-thru functionality once found in our LineIn application. Click here to read more. ↩︎

9 Responses to “SoundSource: The Sound Control That Should Be Built Into MacOS”

  1. Paul says:

    Hello! Nice to have you back.


  2. Thomas Landgraeber says:

    Guys, I just wanted to say Thanks for providing a free SoundSource license code (I am a long-time Audio Hijack and Fission user).

    I’ve also used SoundSource for years when it was freely available back in the days and loved it, too.

    You guys make amazing things. Great job!

    Cheers from Berlin, Germany,

    Thomas
    Sound Engineer (AES, VDT)


  3. Tom Meade says:

    Mirroring Thomas above – you guys add to the experience – never subtract.
    Thank you.
    A longtime hacker . . .


  4. Red says:

    Any idea if this would come to windows as well?


  5. Fazal Majid says:

    Thanks for the release, and the complimentary offer for loyal customers.

    You really should add one key feature that is missing in OS X: the ability to display and change sample rate and bid depth for an interface, since iTunes is too dumb to do so and requires dropping into Audio MIDI Setup to do it.


  6. Ryan says:

    Does this not allow you to select AirPlay sources for output? That’s a deal breaker for me if it doesn’t replace the functionality of the existing Volume menu for $10. Couldn’t see anything in the free download version.


  7. Bojan says:

    @Ryan

    No, it doesn’t as far as I could see from the trial. With this option it would make a fine replacement for the Volume menu, and would have appeal to a broader community of users. Would like to hear from the developers on this…


  8. Paul W says:

    I’m unclear on what “the soft play-thru of audio from input devices” enables.
    I would like to have one microphone input work in two applications simultaneously. (To, for example, record audio while using dictation).

    Similarly, I’d like to route audio playback from one app into another, live. (Again, in my case, to play recorded audio notes into the dictation app.)

    Does SoundSource provide either of these functions?

    Thanks,
    Paul


  9. Paul Kafasis says:

    Paul: Thanks, we think so too!

    Thomas Landgraeber, Tom Meade: Thanks for the kind words – tell your friends!

    Red: We don’t have anything to announce there right now, but it’s certainly something we’ll consider.

    Fazal Majid: We’ll certainly consider sample rate adjustment for a future version.

    Ryan, Bojan: As with all of our software, the free trial is identical to the full version. Unfortunately, the issue here is MacOS itself. AirPlay devices don’t appear (on the system) as audio devices until they’re actually selected. Prior to that, they’re entirely hidden, and the Sound SysPref is doing something very hacky to show this as if they were real audio devices. If you open up Audio MIDI Setup, for instance, and you’ll see that they’re not present there either.

    We’ll be considering ways we might improve things in the future, but we’ll have to see what’s even possible.

    Paul W: Soft play-thru means hearing, through your specified output, the audio that’s coming in via a microphone or other input. By default, mic audio is not played through the system, but with SoundSource’s Play-Thru window, it is.

    As far as what you’re looking to accomplish, you should have a look at Loopback: https://rogueamoeba.com/loopback. With Loopback, you can route audio between apps.


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