Credit: Yash Wate / MakeUseOf
Published Nov 18, 2024, 7:30 AM EST
Yash is an author at MUO who writes for the site's Android, iOS, and Mac verticals. He found his passion for writing while he used to develop apps for the web.
In 2018, he decided to combine his experience in tech with his love for gadgets and venture into journalism. Since then, he has written hundreds of features, how-tos, and explainers for multiple online publications to help users get more out of their tech.
Yash also writes at How-To Geek, while reviewing consumer tech products to help people make the right purchase decisions at TechPP. He's been using a Mac for work since 2017. On the mobile side, he likes to use both iPhone and Android to feed his curiosity.
Sign in to your MakeUseOf account
Jump Links
-
Using SoundSource to Control the Volume of Individual Apps
-
What Else Can the SoundSource App Do?
Unlike Windows, macOS doesn't let you adjust the volume of each app on your Mac individually. However, you can achieve this using third-party apps. SoundSource is one such app I use to control volume levels for individual apps on my Mac.
Using SoundSource to Control the Volume of Individual Apps
SoundSource is an all-in-one solution for all your audio control needs on a Mac. It lives in the menu bar and lets you control a bunch of things, including volume levels for individual apps, with a few simple clicks.
Download: SoundSource (Free trial, $47)
To get started, download SoundSource to your Mac using the link above. Then, launch it and finish the initial setup. All you need to do is click the Enable button on different cards you see on the screen and follow the on-screen instructions.
You may also want to add SoundSource as a login item on your Mac so that it automatically launches when you log in to your Mac. Once set up, you can use SoundSource to set volume levels for different apps on your Mac by following these steps:
-
Click the SoundSource icon (volume icon) in the menu bar.
-
Expand the Applications section, and you'll see a few apps with volume sliders on their right. Drag the slider next to an app to set its volume.
- Alternatively, if you don't see an app on the list, click the Add Favorite button, hit Select Applications, and choose the app whose volume you want to adjust to add it to the list. Then, adjust the volume using its slider.
What Else Can the SoundSource App Do?
SoundSource is a powerful Mac app that does many other things besides letting you set volume levels for each app on your Mac individually. Some of its notable features include:
- Audio Routing: It allows you to route audio for certain apps through another output device while keeping notifications and other audio routed through system speakers. To use it, click the button with an upward-pointing arrow next to the app whose audio you want to route and select an output device from the list (as shown in the screenshot above).
- Equalization: SoundSource offers a 10-band equalizer that you can use to tweak the audio to your liking. You can do this for an output device or on a per-app basis. Access the advanced settings by clicking the right chevron icon next to an output device or app. Then, select a preset using the drop-down next to 10-Band EQ or tweak the equalizer to improve your audio as you like.
- Audio Balance: A nifty feature that lets you adjust the audio from the left and right channels to get balanced audio. Click the drop-down arrow next to the output device whose audio you want to balance under System and drag the slider accordingly.
SoundSource is a reliable utility that gives you per-app volume control on a Mac. However, you'll need to purchase its license to use it without any limitations, as the free trial adjusts audio for 20 minutes upon launching the app. After that, the app applies noise to degrade the audio. You can relaunch the app to start a new session and test out the app thoroughly.
Alternatively, if you don't want to spend money on a third-party app like SoundSource, there are some free alternatives that you can try. Background Music is a popular option, but it's worth noting that I encountered a few bugs while testing it.