How to Record Computer Audio as MP3 on Mac (FREE) - OBS Studio Tutorial
Learn how to record internal computer audio on your Mac as an MP3 for free. This guide uses OBS Studio, VLC, and Audacity to capture, convert, and edit.
Key Takeaways
Capturing internal computer audio on a Mac can sometimes feel unnecessarily complicated, especially if you want the final file to be a clean, high-quality MP3.
Whether you are looking to save a snippet of a podcast, record an online meeting, or capture system sounds alongside your microphone, you can do it all completely for free. By combining three powerful open-source tools, you can easily record system audio, convert it to an MP3, and edit the final file so it sounds perfectly crisp and loud.
Disclaimer: Always ensure you have the proper rights and permission to capture and save the audio you are recording.
Free Tools You Will Need
To capture, convert, and clean up your computer's audio, you will need to download three free, open-source applications.
FAQ
Can I record my microphone and system audio at the same time on a Mac?
Yes. When configuring OBS Studio, you can set up your microphone under the Audio settings and add macOS Audio Capture in the Sources panel. The Audio Mixer will show both inputs. Be sure to lower the desktop audio slider slightly so the system sound doesn't overpower your voice.
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Combine three free tools to process Mac system audio: OBS Studio for capturing, VLC Media Player for format conversion, and Audacity for editing.
Use macOS Audio Capture in OBS Studio to record system audio (and an optional microphone) as an MP4 file, keeping the video resolution as low as possible to save disk space.
Use the Convert / Stream feature in VLC Media Player to extract the audio from your OBS MP4 recording and save it as an MP3.
Polish your final MP3 in Audacity by trimming dead space and applying the Normalize effect to intelligently boost the volume without distorting it.
Users on macOS 12 or earlier lack native audio capture in OBS and must use an alternative screen recording method to capture the audio before converting the file in VLC.
OBS Studio is primarily a broadcasting and screen recording tool, but it is also one of the best ways to capture internal macOS audio.
Grant App Permissions
Download and install OBS Studio.
Upon opening the app for the first time, your Mac will prompt you to grant OBS Studio permission to record.
Go through the system settings prompts and grant the necessary permissions.
Close and reopen OBS Studio. (Note: You can review these permissions at any time by clicking the OBS menu in the top menu bar and selecting Review app permissions).
Configure Output, Audio, and Video Settings
Next, you need to configure OBS so that it records exactly what you need without eating up your hard drive space. Click on Settings.
Output Settings: Navigate to the Output tab. Make sure your Recording Path is set to an easy-to-find location (like your Desktop). Set the Recording Quality to High Quality and the Recording Format to MP4. Because OBS Studio doesn't natively support exporting directly to MP3, MP4 is the best universal format to use for now.
Audio Settings: Navigate to the Audio tab. If you plan to record your voice alongside the computer audio, you can specify which microphone you want to use here under the Mic/Auxiliary Audio options.
Video Settings: Navigate to the Video tab. Because we only care about the audio, we want to make the video file as small as possible. Change the Output (Scaled) Resolution to the smallest size available and set the Common FPS Values to 30.
Click OK to save your settings.
Step 2: Set Up Your Audio Sources
Now, you need to tell OBS to listen to your Mac's internal audio.
In the main OBS interface, locate the Sources panel at the bottom.
Click the + (Plus) icon and select macOS Audio Capture.
Click OK.
You can choose to capture a specific application, but selecting Desktop Audio Capture will ensure you capture everything playing on your system. Click OK.
Take a look at the Audio Mixer panel. You will now see two inputs: one for your macOS Audio Capture and another for your mic. Play some sample audio on your computer to ensure the levels are bouncing.
Pro Tip: If you are using your microphone, lower the desktop audio slider slightly so the computer's sound doesn't drown out your voice. Make sure your mic audio doesn't hit the red zone (exceeding 0 dB), or your voice will clip and sound distorted. If you don't want to record your mic at all, simply click the speaker icon next to the mic input to mute it.
Step 3: Record Your Audio
When you are ready, click Start Recording in the OBS Controls panel.
OBS will pop up a warning letting you know that you aren't capturing any video. Click Yes to continue, as this is exactly what we want.
Play the internal audio you wish to capture.
Once finished, click Stop Recording.
An MP4 video file containing your recorded audio will now be saved to your chosen destination (e.g., your Desktop).
Step 4: Convert the Recording to MP3 using VLC
Since our file is currently an MP4 video, we need to extract the audio and save it as an MP3.
Download, install, and open VLC Media Player.
In the top menu bar, click File, then select Convert / Stream.
Drag and drop your MP4 recording into the designated box at the top of the window.
Under the Profile section, choose Audio - MP3 from the dropdown menu.
Click Save as File, then click Browse to name your new file (for example, output.mp3) and choose where to save it (like your Desktop).
Click Save, and then click Save once more.
VLC will quickly process the file and generate your new MP3.
Step 5: Clean Up and Enhance the Audio with Audacity
Your MP3 file is created, but it likely has unwanted silence at the beginning and end, and the volume might be too quiet based on your system volume during recording. We can polish it up using Audacity.
Trim Blank Space
Download and install Audacity(Note: choose the "Download Without Muse Hub" option, as it is not needed for this tutorial).
Open Audacity and drag your new MP3 file into the workspace. You will see the audio waveforms appear.
Select the Selection Tool (the cursor icon at the top).
Click and drag over the flat lines of dead space at the beginning and end of your recording.
Press the Delete key on your keyboard to trim those sections out.
Normalize the Volume
To ensure your final MP3 is loud enough to hear clearly without distorting:
Select the entire audio clip by clicking its header.
Go to the top menu and select Effect > Volume and Compression > Normalize.
Leave the default settings as they are and click Apply. This will intelligently boost the audio up to a standard volume.
Export the Final MP3
Click File > Export Audio > Export to computer.
Ensure the format is set to MP3 Files.
Give your final masterpiece a name (e.g., final.mp3) and select a save location.
(Optional) Click Edit Metadata... if you want to add track details to the file.
Click Export.
You can now double-click your final MP3 to listen to your perfectly trimmed, volume-boosted, internal Mac audio recording!
Support for Older Macs
If you are running macOS 12 or earlier, OBS Studio natively lacks the ability to capture your internal audio input using the macOS Audio Capture source.
However, you can still achieve this by using an alternative screen recording method to capture the audio first. Once you have that initial video/audio recording, you can pick this tutorial right back up at Step 4 to convert it to an MP3 using VLC.
If you are on macOS 13 or newer and simply want to learn how to capture video alongside your audio, check out this guide on How to Screen Record on Mac.
Why do I need to record as an MP4 video file first instead of directly to MP3?
OBS Studio is primarily a broadcasting and video recording tool, so it does not natively support exporting audio directly as an MP3. Saving the recording as an MP4 video is the best universal format to use before extracting and converting the audio using VLC Media Player.
How do I fix quiet or distorted computer audio recordings?
To prevent distortion during recording, ensure your audio levels in the OBS Audio Mixer don't hit the red zone (exceeding 0 dB). If your final recording is too quiet, you can boost it by importing the file into Audacity and selecting Effect > Volume and Compression > Normalize to intelligently increase the overall volume.
Can I capture internal Mac audio if I am using macOS 12 or an older operating system?
If you are running macOS 12 or earlier, OBS Studio cannot natively capture internal audio using the macOS Audio Capture source. Instead, you will need to use an alternative screen recording method to capture the audio, and then convert that video file to an MP3 using VLC. If you want to screen record on macOS 13 or newer, check out this Mac screen recording guide.
Is it legal to record audio playing on my Mac?
You should always ensure you have the proper rights and permissions to capture and save any audio playing on your system. Only record music, podcasts, or online meetings if you own the content or have explicit permission from the copyright owner or participants.
