Audio Effects

SoundSource makes it easy to apply audio effects to any audio playing on your Mac. This page provides details on effects you can use with SoundSource.

Built-In Effects

SoundSources includes three powerful audio effects to help you improve the sound of your audio. We've worked to make these built-in effects simple to use, so anyone can get great-sounding audio.

Magic Boost

When you activate Magic Boost, you'll get richer, fuller sound from any source. Magic Boost listens for quiet passages of audio, and gives them a healthy boost, while leaving louder audio untouched. Whatever your audio source, Magic Boost will give you tremendous volume, all with a single click. It's perfect for maxing out small speakers like those found on Mac laptops.

Volume Overdrive

While Magic Boost will increase the level of quiet portions of audio, Volume Overdrive can assist in getting extra volume out of your speakers. It will amplify audio from individual applications up to 400%, making it possible to hear your audio even in loud environments. Volume Overdrive also improves the quality of overdriven audio using limiting to prevent digital distortion.

Note that Volume Overdrive is not available on the system's default output. It must be applied to individual apps, within SoundSource's Applications section.

Comparing Magic Boost and Volume Overdrive

Magic Boost and Volume Overdrive can both increasing the volume of audio, but they do so in different ways.

Magic Boost works to keep all audio at the same level, by raising the volume of quiet portions while leaving louder parts unaffected. This complex adjustment is often useful, but flattening the difference in levels can occasionally produce audio which sounds strange to the ear.

Volume Overdrive allows you to boost volume levels past 100%, maxing out the volume while maintaining the relative difference between quiet and loud portions. This is a simpler adjustment which attempts to get more out of your speakers, but may produce audible distortion, especially at higher boost settings.

10-Band Lagutin Equalizer

For almost two decades, Rogue Amoeba's renowned 10-band Lagutin equalizer has helped users obtain better sound. Select from almost two dozen presets, or configure the EQ manually as well. Once you've set it, you'll get the exact sound you want, any time you play audio.

You can even save your own custom equalizer settings. Adjust the equalizer to your liking, then select Save Preset As… from the Presets menu.

Audio Unit Effects

In addition to its built-in effects, SoundSource also features support for Audio Unit effects. These advanced audio effects provide complex audio adjustments. Using Audio Unit effects, you can adjust audio in countless ways to get the exact sound you want, from any application, or from your entire system.

SoundSource provides access to over a dozen Audio Units provided by Apple as part of MacOS, as well as Audio Units you've installed from other companies. It will find Audio Units in two locations:

/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/Components
~/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/Components

When a compatible Audio Unit is installed in either of these locations, SoundSource will include it in the menu shown when clicking Add Effect for either the System Output device, or a per-application adjustment.

Audio Effects Indicator

SoundSource makes it easy to see which of your audio sources are being adjusted through the use of audio effects. Just look for the helpful FX indicator on the Hide/Show Effects button:

In the example screenshot below, audio effects are being applied to the System Output device, and to Spotify's audio, while Safari and Chrome's audio is not being adjusted.

Advanced Notes on Audio Flow

Audiophiles may be curious about the exact pipeline through which audio flows when using SoundSource. Audio first flows through any per-app adjustments which are configured, and then through any System Output Device adjustments.

Within a single effects area, audio is first adjusted by the 10-Band Equalizer (and Balance control, if present), then any active Audio Unit effects, and finally by the Magic Boost effect.