TIP: Soundflower WORKS in Big Sur

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Level 9

64,424 points

TIP: Soundflower WORKS in Big Sur

I was expecting to have to say goodbye to this old extension, but I'm pleased to confirm that it still works.

Soundflower provides additional audio outputs and inputs, allowing you to reroute audio output from one application as input to another.

You have to use the most recent version, 2.0b2, and curiously the installer says it "failed", but in fact the extension is installed in /Library/Extensions, and upon restart everything is working fine.

Just I used to do before, I created a Multi-output device in Audio MIDI Setup, with the speakers and Soundflower (so I can monitor the sound as it is playing), and was able to record using Quicktime Player.

Works perfectly.

HTH

Posted on Nov 22, 2020 3:53 AM

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Answer 1

Luis Sequeira1 Author

Level 9

64,424 points

Dec 14, 2020 1:09 AM in response to MacBMcT

My mac is a 16" MBP.

I gather that in M1 macs, you have to take extra steps to allow the use of kernel extensions, otherwise they simply do not work.

You need to start in Recovery Mode and run Startup Security Utility and explicitly allow kernel extensions (image was copied from a post by Rogue Ameba):

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Answer 2

RawRiver

Level 1

4 points

Nov 25, 2020 7:50 PM in response to Luis Sequeira1

I'm having this problem with the installer "failing". However, as you said I do see the extension installed in /Library/Extensions, but doesn't seem to be working at all. Don't see the alternate output/input channels. Any ideas? Already tried rebooting and uninstall reinstall.

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Answer 3

MacBMcT

Level 1

15 points

Dec 13, 2020 3:56 PM in response to Luis Sequeira1

Hello there. I tried, as you described, to install (and install again) and although I can see the SoundFlower extension in the /Library/Extension folder, it doesn't show up as an option when I try to create the Multi-Output device in Midi setup.

In trying to figure out why this isn't working for me but does for you, would you mind sharing the type/model of Mac on which you were able to successfully install SoundFlower? I'm trying to install it on my new M1/Apple Silicon Mac Mini and wondering if that isn't the issue on my end.

Thanks!

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Answer 4

Luis Sequeira1 Author

Level 9

64,424 points

Dec 14, 2020 1:02 AM in response to GISCAR2012NYC

GISCAR2012NYC wrote:

I have tried to install it twice and nothng. Does anyone know if Soundflower is addressing this issue?

I sincerely doubt it.

The last version is very old, and kernel extensions are going away.

It would probably require a complete rewrite to turn this into a form that would work on upcoming systems.

When Matt Ingalls, the original developer, got back the rights to it (from RogueAmeba, I think), he produced a version that worked at the time (2.0b2); I don't remember when that was, but it was years ago, way before Catalina;it is great that it continued to work in subsequent versions of macOS, up to and including (at least for me) Big Sur. No subsequent versions were released.

Do you have an M1 mac? I wonder if kernel extensions work in them...

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Answer 5

Dec 14, 2020 4:57 AM in response to Luis Sequeira1

hi Luis,

the soundflower kext does work on my machine in big sur too. i've answered other people's audio recording questions by pointing them to soundflower. some have been successful in installing it. others, not so much. i'm guessing that in the unsuccessful attempts it may be "pilot error." in any case, for the few unsuccessful people, i've suggested BlackHole Virtual Audio Driver. it has worked for those people. for me, i'm sticking with soundflower till the bitter end.

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Answer 6

Luis Sequeira1 Author

Level 9

64,424 points

Dec 14, 2020 5:02 AM in response to jeffreythefrog

jeffreythefrog wrote:

for me, i'm sticking with soundflower till the bitter end.

Thanks. My feelings exactly!

But when the time comes when Soundflower no longer works, BlackHole Virtual Audio Driver seems to be my next Soundflower.

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Answer 7

Dec 14, 2020 5:04 AM in response to Luis Sequeira1

you're welcome. and thanks for the tip about allowing kernel extensions for M1 users. in another thread there's an M1 user that hasn't been able to get either soundflower OR black hole working. i'll submit this to them. maybe it will work for them.

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Answer 8

Dec 14, 2020 8:15 AM in response to Luis Sequeira1

BlackHole Virtual Audio Driver did it for me!! ... after many many failed attempts and restarts to make soundflower work.

Luis and jefreythefrog thanks a lot for your very valuable pointers.

Soundflower did't work no matter how many different things I tried based on your notes. I am on a new M1 MacBookPro, maybe that is the difference between soundflower working and failing. I did NOT try the extra steps for authorizing kernel extensions that Luis pointed to above.

With BlackHole Virtual Audio Driver it was easy to get it set up.

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Answer 9

Luis Sequeira1 Author

Level 9

64,424 points

Jan 8, 2021 9:14 AM in response to tang1013

tang1013 wrote:

Intel Big Sur works, M1 won’t since Intel ignored DART

Can you elaborate on that?

What is DART in this context and did you perhaps mean that Apple ignored it? Sorry, I am not familiar with this.

Also, if you don't mind: does the Black Hole Audio driver work in M1 macs?

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Answer 10

tang1013

Level 1

8 points

Jan 8, 2021 9:21 AM in response to Luis Sequeira1

DART is hardware feature in M1 Macs which performs address translations) interrupt. not sure if it caused my client frozen, I didn't try black hole audio driver yet, do you know where I can download it?

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Answer 11

Luis Sequeira1 Author

Level 9

64,424 points

Jan 8, 2021 9:50 AM in response to tang1013

tang1013 wrote:

I took a look, Black Hole is using HAL audio plug-in, it is in user mode, it is different than SoundFlower which is using kernel extension

This is great, it should make Black Hole future-proof, as kernel extensions are going away sometime soon.

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Answer 12

Jan 19, 2021 3:10 PM in response to Luis Sequeira1

hi all,

previously i have said i was continuing with soundflower. that said, i can't in good faith recommend BlackHole without trying it. so i tried it. it works good and operates the same way the soundflower kext did. and since soundflower is "going away" soon anyways, i jumped ship in favour of BlackHole's different method of not being a kernel extension. starting now, i'm going to be recommending BlackHole.

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Answer 13

AvanDx

Level 1

12 points

Feb 1, 2021 1:06 AM in response to danielwilk39

Hi, I just tested out Blackhole, but is there a way to connect it with your speakers? Because when I record my screen using blackhole I can't hear my speakers but when I play the video back with the output as the internal speakers I do hear the internal audio from my Mac. Does anyone know a possible solution?

If anyone knows a solution to this on SoundFlower, that would be very helpful.

Thanks...

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Answer 14

Luis Sequeira1 Author

Level 9

64,424 points

Feb 1, 2021 1:14 AM in response to AvanDx

Just like with Soundflower, you need to create a “Multi-Output Device” in Audio MIDI Setup. In this multi-output device, include BlackHole and the built-in output. Then select this device for output and BlackHole for input.

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Answer 15

Luis Sequeira1 Author

Level 9

64,424 points

Feb 24, 2021 2:22 AM in response to E_flo

E_flo wrote:

Are you sure? Does it work with M1 MacBook Pro on bigSUR 11.2.1?

I am sure that Soundflower is working on my Intel Mac (16" MBP).

I don't have an M1 Mac (yet).

But others have said that "BlackHole Audio" DOES work in M1 macs: GitHub - ExistentialAudio/BlackHole: BlackHole is a modern macOS virtual audio driver that allows applications to pass audio to other applications with zero additional latency.

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