MorendoWhat is a good SoundSource alternative on Mac?
It depends on what you use SoundSource for. For Audio Units and AirPlay, keep it: none of the extension-free apps in this guide replaces them. For per-app volume and an equalizer, FineTune does the job for free, with no extension and no admin password. For buses you set once, with an equalizer and shortcuts per bus, Morendo, which we make, costs 19 €. SoundDial and Submix are simpler still, for a few dollars.
What makes SoundSource the reference
SoundSource, by Rogue Amoeba, is on version 6: 6.1.2 shipped on August 26, 2026, for macOS 15 through 27. From the menu bar it gives every app its own volume, sends each app to the output of your choice, including one or several AirPlay devices, and runs a 10-band equalizer or any Audio Unit plug-in on it. It also exposes the device's own settings and answers to Apple's Shortcuts.
All of it goes through the ACE extension, Audio Capture Engine, which the installer sets up with your admin password. And all of it costs $49, the price listed on Setapp in May 2026; Rogue Amoeba's site only shows it at checkout. It is the most complete tool in this category, and the most expensive.
When to keep it
If you open SoundSource for its Audio Units, keep it. A compressor on a call, a room-correction plug-in, a limiter on everything that goes out: none of the extension-free apps in this guide loads a plug-in. Same for AirPlay: sending Apple Music to the living-room speaker while everything else stays in the headphones is SoundSource's job. And if you work with sound, podcasts, editing, music, the device settings alone justify the price.
The alternatives below target the other use, the one most people have: turn Discord down, lift Spotify's bass, send the game to the headphones. Without installing anything.
The alternatives, and what you lose or gain with each
FineTune is free and open source under GPL-3.0, at version 1.9.0 since July 9, 2026, for macOS 15 or later. What you keep: per-app volume, per-app output, the 10-band equalizer, keyboard shortcuts. What you gain: no extension, no password, a boost up to 4×, AutoEQ headphone correction. What you lose: Audio Units, AirPlay, device settings, and the interface is English only.
Morendo, which we make, costs 19 € once, for one Mac, on macOS 15 or later. It thinks in buses rather than apps: Media, Chat, Game, or your own. What you gain: an app dropped in a bus stays there from one launch to the next, and the bus carries the volume, the 10-band parametric equalizer, the global keyboard shortcuts and the outputs, one bus being able to feed several outputs with a level for each. Latency is measured and displayed. What you lose: Audio Units, AirPlay, and app-by-app routing, since routing is per bus. To isolate one app, give it a bus of its own.
SoundDial costs $12.99 (14.99 €) on the Mac App Store, macOS 14.2 or later, in 33 languages. What you gain: saved profiles, auto-ducking that lowers music when a call starts, per-app volume from 0 to 200%. What you lose: the equalizer, and per-app routing; it only picks the output.
Submix is the cheapest: $7.99 for one Mac, $17.99 for three, 7-day trial, macOS 14.2 or later. What you keep: volume, mute and output per app, with live meters and a boost. What you lose: the equalizer, and keyboard shortcuts are not announced.
| SoundSource | FineTune | Morendo | SoundDial | Submix | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $49 | Free | 19 € once | $12.99 | $7.99 |
| Extension or driver | ACE extension | None | None | None | None |
| Per-app volume | Yes | Yes, 4× boost | Yes | Yes, 0 to 200% | Yes, with boost |
| Output | Per app, AirPlay | Per app | Per bus, several outputs | Output picker | Per app |
| Equalizer | 10 bands and Audio Units | 10 bands per app | 10 bands per bus | No | No |
| Audio Units | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| AirPlay | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Keyboard shortcuts | Yes | The app currently playing | Per bus | Mixer, mute all | Not announced |
| Trial | The download | Free | 14 days, no card | No | 7 days |
Checked on September 10, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us, we fix it.
How to try without risk
Nothing forces you to decide on paper. The four alternatives install nothing: trying one means launching the app and granting one permission, system audio recording; removing it means deleting the app.
- SoundSource's download doubles as its trial: the moment to check whether you really use Audio Units or AirPlay, or only per-app volume.
- FineTune is free: drag it to Applications, or brew install --cask finetune. If your need is "this app quieter than the others", you are done.
- Morendo's trial lasts 14 days with every feature, no card. Sort your apps into Media, Chat and Game, set each bus once, and see whether you ever touch them again.
- Submix has a 7-day trial. SoundDial has none: it is a Mac App Store purchase, at $12.99.
After a week, if you have not missed SoundSource, you have your answer.
Frequently asked questions
Can you get Audio Units without a system extension?
Not among the apps in this guide. Running an Audio Unit plug-in on one app's sound currently takes SoundSource, with its ACE extension, or Wave Link 3, with its audio driver. FineTune and Morendo each have a built-in 10-band equalizer, which covers tone correction, not third-party effects.
Can Morendo send one app to a specific output?
Per bus. A bus feeds one or several outputs, with a level per output. To send a single app to the speakers, give it a bus of its own. What Morendo does not do: AirPlay, and app-by-app routing the way SoundSource does it.
How much does SoundSource cost?
$49, the price listed on Setapp in May 2026; Rogue Amoeba's site only shows the price at checkout. It is a purchase, not a subscription. Next to it, FineTune is free, Submix starts at $7.99, SoundDial costs $12.99 and Morendo 19 €.
Does FineTune replace SoundSource's equalizer?
For the 10-band equalizer, yes: FineTune has one per app, with 20 presets, your own presets per app and AutoEQ headphone correction. For Audio Unit plug-ins, no: that is the limit of every extension-free app in this guide.
Download Morendo, 14-day trial See the comparison
Related guides: FineTune vs Morendo · A per-app equalizer on Mac, without a driver · Game in the headphones, music on the speakers