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Audio Routing: macOS


macOS 14.2 Senoma and later:

MiniMeters on macOS 14.2 and later uses a Core Audio Tap to capture the selected system output device. More info here.


  1. Open MiniMeters and click Settings from the bottom right.

    Screenshot of the settings button in MiniMeters.

  2. Under the Audio Device panel and choose "Default Output Capture" from the Audio Device section.

    Screenshot of the audio devices list in MiniMeters.

  3. A window will pop up requesting System Audio permissions. MiniMeters needs this to monitor your desktop audio. You can revoke this permission at any time from System Settings.

    Screenshot of macOS's system audio permissions screen.

macOS 13.0 Ventura to macOS 14.1 Senoma:

From macOS 13.0 to 14.1 MiniMeters uses ScreenCaptureKit to capture desktop audio. MiniMeters throws out the captured video information as it is unneeded, leaving only the audio.


  1. Open MiniMeters and click Settings from the bottom right.

    Screenshot of the settings button in MiniMeters.

  2. Under the Audio Device panel and choose "Desktop Audio" from the Audio Device section.

    Screenshot of the audio devices list in MiniMeters.

  3. A window will pop up requesting Screen Capture permissions. MiniMeters needs these to set up the session to record. You can revoke this permission at any time from System Settings.

    Screenshot of macOS's screen recordings permissions screen.

macOS 12 Monterey and earlier:

Desktop Audio Capture is not supported on macOS 12 Monterey and prior.

Here are some 3rd party tools that may help you get your system audio into MiniMeters:

Product Name Setup Guide Difficulty Paid
Rogue Amoeba SoundSource Setup Guide Easy Paid
Rogue Amoeba Audio Hijack Setup Guide Moderate Paid
Static Z Sound Siphon Setup Guide Moderate Paid
eqMac None Moderate Free/Paid
Advanced:
Existential Audio BlackHole Guide Advanced Free
Rogue Amoeba Loopback None Advanced Paid

Specific Audio Interfaces:

Some audio interfaces support a creation of a loopback device.

UAD Interfaces:

Follow the instructions in this tutorial.