- Macbook Record Screen With Sound
- Free Mac Screen Recorder With System Audio
- Free Mac Screen Recorder With System Audio Download
Although there are a lot of audio recording programs out there claiming to record almost any sound play on computer, the fact you should always keep in mind is that only a few of them promise capturing high quality audio. Therefore, if you care much about the quality of your recordings, choosing a proper high-powered audio recorder could really matter. Are you just looking for such recording tool but with a low budget? Luckily, among the numerous audio recording software available on internet, we are glad to see most of them are offered for free. To help you quickly pick up the best free streaming audio recorder online, we complied a list of top 5 most popular free audio recording programs that can record streaming music, radios, in-game sound, music in videos, and any other sound play on Mac and Windows with high quality.
Apeaksoft Screen Recorder is a professional tool to record any video/audio and capture screen on your Windows or Mac. This screen recorder enables you to record any on-screen activities you want with original image/sound quality. For instance, you can use it to record local videos, Skype calls, GoToMeeting, games, webinars, lectures, online. Go to System Preferences/Sound. In the sound Output, choose Loopback Audio in the Output tab. At this point, you will hear no sound from any of your Mac’s applications, but don’t worry. Go to the QuickTime Player application; choose File/New Screen Recording.
- Top 1. Audacity (Mac & Windows)
- Top 2. Apowersoft Free Online Audio Recorder
- Top 3. Ardour (Mac & Windows)
- Top 4. Aktiv MP3 Recorder (Windows)
- Top 5. Traverso DAW (Mac & Windows)
- Alternative - TunesKit Audio Capture [Best]
Top 1. Audacity (Mac & Windows)
As a well-known open source free audio recorder, Audacity is capable of recording and editing anything you throw at it, including audio through microphone and sound card all in a few clicks thanks to the clean interface. It also allows users adjust pitch, bass, and treble, or normalize noise and add effects like reverb and phasing to the recordings. In addition, it supports multi-track capturing to save a lot of time for you. And unlike most other free audio recorders which are free for a limited time or free with locked features, Audacity is a real free of charge audio recording application offered in full free version. Overall, Audacity offers one of the most robust packages available among free recording programs.
Pros:
1. Totally free and extremely easy to use;
2. Support recording any sound on computer;
3. Edit recorded audio's quality with many effects;
4. Support multi-track recording.
Cons:
1. Require plugins to accomplish optimal functionality;
2. Can't export audio recordings to MP3;
3. Effect editing is destructive to original audio track.
Top 2. Apowersoft Free Online Audio Recorder
Differing from Audacity or other free audio streaming recorder, Apowersoft Audio Recorder is a free online recording solution that needs no plug-in on Windows or Mac. It allows you record any sound from system sound card and microphone in high quality within 3 steps only. It fully supports capturing streaming music, radio stations, music in games, voice chats, etc. playing via devices like Windows Media Player, QuickTime, iTunes, Tablets, Chromebook, Android smartphones, iPhone, Windows Phone and more. Besides, it offers additional recording functions like converting audio records to MP3, WMA, AAC, FLAC, WAV, M4A, OGG, adding ID3 tags, sharing recorded audios online, playing recordings in real time, etc.
Pros:
1. Free and no need to install setup file on computer;
2. Support any sound sources;
3. Save recordings in multiple popular formats;
4. Support extensional functions for recording.
Cons:
1. Can't edit output audio quality;
2. Multi-track recording not supported.
Top 3. Ardour (Mac & Windows)
Ardour DAW is another great open-source audio recorder with professional music recording features and no cost. Developed by Paul Davis, Ardour is aiming at providing powerful recorder for studios who are at low budgets. Featuring highly versatile multi-track audio recording, Ardour can record and edit audios non-destructively or destructively. Its use of Jack, an underlying sound server, makes it compatible with a number of outside applications as well. With the release of third edition, Ardour is supposed to import video for film scoring purpose and record, edit MIDI without a hassle. However, unlike most of other free DAWs, Ardour comes with a confusing graphical user interface which is inaccessible for beginners. It's more like a professional tool developed for musicians or audio engineers.
Pros:
1. Free and professional;
2. Support multi-track recording;
3. Edit recorded tracks non-destructively.
Cons:
1. It's complex and difficult for newbie;
2. No built-in effects or instruments.
Top 4. Aktiv MP3 Recorder (Windows)
If you are looking for a free streaming music recorder that can convey CD, tape, DVD, live performance, TV, Internet radio, streaming music, video games and any other sound source into popular audio formats like MP3, WMA, OGG, VOX, AU, AIFF, then you can't miss Aktiv MP3 Recorder. As a full-featured audio recorder, the big difference between Aktiv and other free recording tools is that it comes with recording scheduler which provides you the ability to record streaming audio at certain times according to your requirements.
Pros:
1. Free streaming audio recorder;
2. Support most popular output formats;
3. Provide schedule recording tasks.
Cons:
1. Available for Windows only;
2. Installer contains some extra software.
Top 5. Traverso DAW (Mac & Windows)
Traverso DAW is another cross-platform free multitrack audio recording and audio editing suite with support for CD mastering and non-linear processing. Traverso is different with other in UI as it offers a unique user interface using both the mouse and the keyboard together for precision and speed. In addition, Traverso includes non-destructive editing, the ability to use plugins and make edits without changing the actual recorded sample. Also it is offering full support for ALSA, Jack and PortAudio, and lockless real-time audio processing.
Pros:
1. Fullfeatured free recording app;
2. Innovative keyboard and mouse shortcuts;
3. Support non-destructive audio editing.
Cons:
1. Take some time for users to get used to the shortcuts;
2. Need plugins to edit audio non-destructively.
More Professional Audio Recorder for Low Budget - TunesKit
Of course, no piece of free software is without its shortcomings. So do those free audio recorders. They are not as advanced as other paid software in functionality. In case you are searching for such paid recording products with reasonable price, we highly recommend a best free sound recorder to you. The renowned program is called TunesKit Audio Capture. It's available for both Mac and Windows platforms. It costs $19.95 but with more powerful features, including multi-track lossless recording, automatically fulfilling ID3 tags, editing output quality, splitting or merging recorded tracks, etc. You can download the free trial versions as below to test it out by yourself. For complete tutorial, visit this user guide.
Conclusion & Suggestion
As you can see, all the above recording tools are free of charge to meet most of your recording needs with options of recording audio, adding effects, and cutting waveforms, as well as other basic recording tasks. To conclude, if you are referring an all-in-one application that combines easy operation and high performance, Audacity and Aktiv MP3 Recorder could be the best audio recording software. But if you concern more about the professionalism and quality, you are suggested to go for Ardour or Traverso DAW that are more professional oriented. Or alternatively, Apowersoft Audio Recorder could be a great choice if you don't want to install any software on your computer. If you still have no idea which one to choose, simply try them out one by one and decide which works best for you.
Nick Orin is a review writer, software geek and Mac OS enthusiast. He spends all his free time in searching useful software and gadgets to share with others.
- Part 1: How to Record Audio on Computer with FoneLab Screen Recorder (Internal & External)
- Part 2: How to Record Audio on Computer with Audacity (App & External)
- Part 3: How to Record Audio on Computer with Voice Recorder (External)
Capture video, audio, online tutorial, etc on Windows/Mac, and you can easily customize size, edit the video or audio, and more.
- Screen Recorder
- Mac Video Recorder
- Windows Video Recorder
- Mac Audio Recorder
- Windows Audio Recorder
- Webcam Recorder
- Game Recorder
- Meeting Recorder
- Messenger Call Recorder
- Skype Recorder
- Course Recorder
- Presentation Recorder
- Chrome Recorder
- Firefox Recorder
- Screenshot on Windows
- Screenshot on Mac
Generally speaking, recording audio from computer can be divided into three situations.
- Record audio on Windows or Mac with your voice. Usually, you can use a headphone or external microphone to record voice on computer clearly.
- Record not only audio on computer, but also your voice over at the same time.
Which kind of audio do you want to record on your computer? Not all audio recording software can meet your demand completely.
Guide List
Before recording computer audio and microphone, you need to figure out what you can get first. Luckily, this article will show you the detailed introductions and tutorials of audio recording.
FoneLab Screen Recorder | Audacity | Voice Recorder | |
---|---|---|---|
Platform | Windows, Mac | Windows, Mac | Windows |
Record Internal Audio | √ | √ | x |
Record External Audio | √ | √ | √ |
Record internal and external audio simultaneously | √ | x | x |
Audio editing tool | √ | √ | x |
User-friendly interface | √ | x | √ |
1. How to Record Audio on Computer with FoneLab Screen Recorder (Internal & External)
You can record audio on your computer without quality loss. No background noise will be captured. There is no maximum time limit. Thus, you can record a playlist as MP3, WMA or other formats.
Macbook Record Screen With Sound
If you only want to record sound on computer only, you can enable the microphone recording feature only. FoneLab Screen Recorder will record what you are speaking through the connected microphone only. So you can record a lecture, interview or other conversions.
For people who want to record both internal and external audio on computer, you can set to record on computer from all audio sources. The audio recorder will recognize available audio coming from software, browser, microphone and more smartly. If you want to add voice over along with background music, you can not miss this audio recording software.
- Record internal audio on computer without microphone losslessly. You can make a copy of live audio in a noisy environment.
- Record external sound on computer. Only audio throughout your external microphone can be recorded.
- Record audio playing on computer and from microphone at the same time.
- Save audio recording files as MP3, WMA, AAC, M4A or CAF format.
- Trim your audio recording with custom start and stop time.
- Compatible with Windows 10/8.1/8/7 and Mac OS X 10.10 or above.
FoneLab Screen Recorder allows you to capture video, audio, online tutorial, etc on Windows/Mac, and you can easily customize size, edit the video or audio, and more.
- Record video, audio, webcam and take screenshots on Windows/Mac.
- Preview data before saving.
- It is safe and easy to use.
Step 1Run FoneLab Screen Recorder
Free download, install and launch FoneLab Screen Recorder. This section will show you the Windows version. To record audio on Windows computer, choose Audio Recorder in the main interface.
Step 2Record audio on your computer
Record internal audio: To record audio from video or music on your computer, turn on System Sound. Make sure Microphone is turned off. Only the sound coming from your computer will be recorded. Then adjust the volume bar below.
Record external audio: If you want to record voice on computer, you can turn on Microphone and turn off System Sound. Thus, the internal audio will be ignored.
Record internal & external audio: During this time, turn on both System Sound and Microphone options. As a result, you can record system sound and your voice simultaneously.
Step 3Adjust audio recording settings
MP3 is the default output audio format. If you want to make changes, you can click the More settings on the top right corner. Here you can set the audio format and quality.
Step 4Record computer sound
Click REC to start recording audio on your Windows computer. You can pause and resume audio recording to skip unwanted parts. Click Stop to stop recording sound on computer. Later, click Save followed by Next to export the audio recording file.
FoneLab Screen RecorderFoneLab Screen Recorder allows you to capture video, audio, online tutorial, etc on Windows/Mac, and you can easily customize size, edit the video or audio, and more.
- Record video, audio, webcam and take screenshots on Windows/Mac.
- Preview data before saving.
- It is safe and easy to use.
2. How to Record Audio on Computer with Audacity (App & External)
Audacity is a free and open-source audio recorder and editor. It is supported to record audio from apps and webs, such as WhatsApp, Skype and other system sounds. Well, you can record a mix with Audacity as well. Moreover, you can customize multi-audio tracks with Audacity. In a word, you can record and edit audio on computer with Audacity for free.
Step 1Run Audacity. Click the down-arrow icon. You can see MME by default.
Step 2Select Windows WASAPI to record internal audio with Audacity on your computer.
Step 3Click the drop-down icon beside. Choose Speakers (Realtek High Definition Audio) (loopback). Thus, you can record audio coming from your computer.
Step 4Click Transport on the top toolbar. Select Transport Options. Remove the checkmark before Software Playthrough.
Step 5Click the red Record icon to start recording audio from computer in Audacity.
Step 6Stop recording on computer. At last, unfold the File list. Select Export followed by Export as MP3. Now you can record audio on computer as MP3.
Note: Audacity is not always good to use. You still need to install plugins and encoders to get advanced features. The complex interface and unstable bugs are not friendly to beginners.
FoneLab Screen RecorderFoneLab Screen Recorder allows you to capture video, audio, online tutorial, etc on Windows/Mac, and you can easily customize size, edit the video or audio, and more.
- Record video, audio, webcam and take screenshots on Windows/Mac.
- Preview data before saving.
- It is safe and easy to use.
3. How to Record Audio on Computer with Voice Recorder (External)
Audacity is a free and open-source audio recorder and editor. It is supported to record audio from apps and webs, such as WhatsApp, Skype and other system sounds. Well, you can record a mix with Audacity as well. Moreover, you can customize multi-audio tracks with Audacity. In a word, you can record and edit audio on computer with Audacity for free.
Step 1Run Audacity. Click the down-arrow icon. You can see MME by default.
Step 2Select Windows WASAPI to record internal audio with Audacity on your computer.
Step 3Click the drop-down icon beside. Choose Speakers (Realtek High Definition Audio) (loopback). Thus, you can record audio coming from your computer.
Step 4Click Transport on the top toolbar. Select Transport Options. Remove the checkmark before Software Playthrough.
Step 5Click the red Record icon to start recording audio from computer in Audacity.
Step 6Stop recording on computer. At last, unfold the File list. Select Export followed by Export as MP3. Now you can record audio on computer as MP3.
Note: Audacity is not always good to use. You still need to install plugins and encoders to get advanced features. The complex interface and unstable bugs are not friendly to beginners.
FoneLab Screen RecorderFree Mac Screen Recorder With System Audio
FoneLab Screen Recorder allows you to capture video, audio, online tutorial, etc on Windows/Mac, and you can easily customize size, edit the video or audio, and more.
- Record video, audio, webcam and take screenshots on Windows/Mac.
- Preview data before saving.
- It is safe and easy to use.
Free Mac Screen Recorder With System Audio Download
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