Faders vs SoundSource vs Background Music vs eqMac: Mac Volume Mixers

How each app gets at your sound

To change one app's volume, a mixer has to sit between that app and your speakers. The four apps do it in different ways, and that decides what ends up installed on your Mac.

• Faders uses the audio taps Apple added in macOS 14.2. There is no driver, plugin or virtual device, and your normal output stays selected. macOS asks you to allow system audio access once. The trade-offs: it needs macOS 14.2 or later, and an app you adjust gains about 60 ms of delay. Apps you leave at 100 % are not processed.
• SoundSource runs on Rogue Amoeba's ARK (Audio Routing Kit) plugin. Its manual says you must install ARK to use SoundSource, and installing it asks for your Mac's administrator password.
• Background Music installs a virtual audio device and sets it as your default output in System Settings > Sound while it runs, then switches back when you quit. Because it reads system audio through a virtual input, macOS asks it for microphone access.
• eqMac includes its own audio driver. Its GitHub page describes it as a system audio passthrough device that runs in user space, based on Apple's sample driver.

Where SoundSource is better

SoundSource is the most complete audio tool of the four.

• Effects. A 10-band EQ for single apps or the whole system, Headphone EQ, Magic Boost, Balance & Pan, and support for Audio Unit plugins. Faders has no EQ or effects.
• More boost. Volume Overdrive can drive an app up to 400 %. Faders stops at 200 %.
• AirPlay and output groups. SoundSource streams apps to AirPlay devices, several in sync, and can play to more than one output at once. Faders sends each app to one output.
• One license for all your Macs. A single-user license covers one person on as many of their own Macs as they use. A Faders license covers up to 3.
• Extras such as Quick Configs (saved setups you switch with one click), a maximum volume per device and Shortcuts actions.

If you want an audio workbench rather than a volume mixer, SoundSource is worth its $49.

Where Background Music is better

• It's free and open source under GPLv2, so you can read the code or build it yourself.
• Auto-pause. It pauses your music player when another app starts making sound and resumes it afterwards. It supports iTunes, Spotify, VLC, VOX, Decibel, Hermes, Swinsian and GPMDP. Faders lowers other apps during calls but never pauses them.
• Older Macs. It lists macOS 10.13 or later. Faders needs macOS 14.2.
• Recording. You can choose Background Music as an input in QuickTime Player to record what your Mac is playing. Faders never records.

Version 0.5.0 came out in June 2026, and its README still describes it as alpha. It suits people who want a free tool and don't mind a virtual device taking over their default output.

Where eqMac is better

• Equalizers. Even the free version has a bass, mids and treble EQ and a 10-band EQ. Pro adds an EQ with unlimited bands and a spectrum analyzer, separate left and right EQ, spatial audio and Audio Unit hosting. Faders has none of this.
• A free volume boost beyond 100 % for the whole output, plus volume and balance for HDMI and DisplayPort devices.
• Older macOS. It lists macOS 10.13 or later, on Intel and Apple silicon.

Per-app volume (App Mixer) is a Pro feature, so if that is what you want, compare eqMac Pro's $30 a year or $40 lifetime price with Faders' one-time price.

Where Faders is better

• Price. Per-app volume, boost, per-app output and every call and device feature come in one purchase that costs less than SoundSource or eqMac Pro, even after launch pricing ends.
• Nothing extra to install. No plugin, driver or virtual device, no administrator password, and your output device stays the one you chose.
• Made for calls. When Zoom, Teams, Meet, FaceTime, Slack or Discord starts using the microphone, other apps fade to 30 % and come back afterwards. With Bluetooth headphones, Faders keeps the Mac's own microphone in use so they stay in high-quality audio, and ⌃⌥⌘M mutes every microphone at once.
• Runs on macOS 14.2 Sonoma, one version earlier than SoundSource 6 supports.
• Light. 0.0 % CPU when nothing is playing and about 15 MB of memory.
• Simple. One menu bar panel, a slider per app, levels remembered. Chrome and other browsers get one row each, even though they play sound through many helper processes.

The verdict

For most people who just want each app on its own slider, Faders is the better pick. It covers per-app volume, boost to 200 %, per-app output and call ducking for less than SoundSource or eqMac Pro, and it installs nothing beyond the app itself. It is sold at launch pricing that goes up as batches sell, so the current price is always on the Faders page.

Choose SoundSource if you want EQ, effects, Audio Units, AirPlay streaming or a boost beyond 200 %, or one license for every Mac you own. Choose Background Music if it must be free or your Mac runs a macOS version older than 14.2. Choose eqMac if an equalizer matters more to you than per-app volume.

One limit to know before you buy: Faders can't set a separate volume for each browser tab, because a browser plays all its tabs through one audio process.