---
title: "AudioPiper: Capture Any Audio on Your Mac"
description: "Per-app audio capture via Core Audio Taps. No virtual drivers, no kernel extensions, no Soundflower. Record or stream to AI — from any app. Free on the Mac App Store."
type: "product"
canonical: "https://modelpiper.com/audiopiper/"
---

# AudioPiper: Capture Any Audio on Your Mac

> Per-app audio capture via Core Audio Taps. No virtual drivers, no kernel extensions, no Soundflower. Record or stream to AI — from any app. Free on the Mac App Store.

**Free on Mac App Store**

## Capture any audio on your Mac.

Per-app audio capture via Core Audio Taps. No virtual drivers, no kernel extensions, no Soundflower. Record or stream to AI — from any app.

macOS 14.2 introduced Core Audio Taps — a proper Apple API for capturing audio from individual apps without installing system-level audio routing software. AudioPiper wraps this API in a free menu bar app that captures, mixes, and streams audio to ToolPiper for real-time transcription.

- [Download from Mac App Store](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/audiopiper/id6759811522?mt=12)
- [See voice AI workflows](/workflows/voice-ai)

## Per-App Audio Capture

#### Capture Any App

Zoom, Chrome, Spotify, Slack — capture audio from individual apps. Toggle sources on and off with one click.

#### Mix Sources

Combine microphone + system audio + per-app audio. Per-source volume controls let you balance levels in real time.

#### No Virtual Drivers

Uses Apple's Core Audio Tap API (macOS 14.2+). No Soundflower, BlackHole, or Loopback. Nothing to install, nothing to break on macOS updates.

#### Constant Memory

Actor-based streaming WAV recorder uses constant memory regardless of recording length. Record for 5 minutes or 5 hours — memory stays flat.

#### Waveform Visualization

Real-time waveform display with 8x gain for visual monitoring. See audio levels from every source at a glance.

#### Background Capture

Sits in the menu bar. Toggle sources with one click. No window to keep open, no UI in your way.

## Stream to AI

#### Live Transcription

Stream audio to FluidAudio for real-time speech-to-text as you speak. All processing runs on your Mac.

#### Meeting Notes

Capture Zoom audio, transcribe locally, summarize with an LLM — all on-device. No audio uploaded anywhere.

#### Selective Capture

Only capture the browser tab playing a webinar, not Spotify in the background. Per-app capture means you choose exactly what the AI hears.

#### WebSocket Streaming

Audio streams over WebSocket to ToolPiper on port 10002. Low-latency, real-time audio delivery for AI processing.

## What It Records

#### Microphone input (built-in or external)

#### System audio (all apps combined)

#### Per-app audio via Core Audio Taps (macOS 14.2+)

#### Mixed sources (mic + app audio simultaneously)

#### WAV format output (lossless)

#### DRM-protected audio (Apple Music, Netflix)

#### Pre-selecting which apps to capture (you toggle after launch)

#### Compressed formats (MP3, AAC — records WAV only)

## FAQ

### Does it work without ToolPiper?

Yes, for recording. AudioPiper records audio to WAV files independently — no other software required. You need ToolPiper for live AI transcription, where AudioPiper streams audio over WebSocket and ToolPiper runs speech-to-text on-device.

### Can it capture DRM audio?

No. Core Audio Taps respect DRM restrictions enforced by macOS. Audio from DRM-protected sources like Apple Music or Netflix is not available for capture. This is an Apple-level restriction, not an AudioPiper limitation.

### What macOS version do I need?

macOS 14.2 (Sonoma) or later for per-app audio capture via Core Audio Taps. Microphone and system audio capture work on macOS 13+. Apple Silicon (M1 or later) is required.

### What format does it record?

WAV (lossless, uncompressed). This is ideal for AI processing and archival. Files are roughly 10 MB per minute of stereo audio at 48kHz. If you need MP3 or AAC, convert the WAV after recording with any audio tool.