# Problems recording samples from Spotify on macOS \[SOLVED\] **URL:** \ **Category:** macOS\ **Created:** [November 2, 2018, 2:54pm UTC](https://forum.audacityteam.org/t/problems-recording-samples-from-spotify-on-macos-solved/50779 "2018-11-02T14:54:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![carlcaulkett](https://forum.audacityteam.org/user_avatar/forum.audacityteam.org/carlcaulkett/32/32841_2.png) [@carlcaulkett](https://forum.audacityteam.org/u/carlcaulkett)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2018, 2:54pm UTC](https://forum.audacityteam.org/t/problems-recording-samples-from-spotify-on-macos-solved/50779/1 "2018-11-02T14:54:23Z")
- Audacity 2.2.1 - macOS 10.14.1 Mojave - Scarlett 2i2 Audio Interface - Spotify 1.0.92.390.g2ce5ec7d Hello, I am trying to experiment with grabbing samples from Spotify using Audacity. For my recording device I have the choice of: “Built in Line Input”, “Built in Digital Input” and “Scarlett 2i2 USB”. None of these options appears to produce any recorded sound. What am I doing wrong? ---
**Author:** ![carlcaulkett](https://forum.audacityteam.org/user_avatar/forum.audacityteam.org/carlcaulkett/32/32841_2.png) [@carlcaulkett](https://forum.audacityteam.org/u/carlcaulkett)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2018, 3:48pm UTC](https://forum.audacityteam.org/t/problems-recording-samples-from-spotify-on-macos-solved/50779/2 "2018-11-02T15:48:42Z")
I found a free and workable solution with SoundFlower at [https://github.com/mattingalls/Soundflower/releases/tag/2.0b2](https://github.com/mattingalls/Soundflower/releases/tag/2.0b2). Apparently it’s an old Cycling '74 product so it’s got a good heritage! To use it I had to fire up `Utilities/Audio MIDI Setup`, select the new Soundflower (2ch) entry, then hit the gear wheel options button below, and select `Use This Device for Sound Output` to redirect Spotify to Soundflower. Then when using Audacity, I was able to select `SoundFlower (2ch)` as my recording device, and all was well! The only problem is that I haven’t sussed out how to actually hear the audio as I record it, so I’m having to rely on timings at the moment., but that’s okay! ---
**Author:** ![steve](https://forum.audacityteam.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/f19dbf/32.png) [@steve](https://forum.audacityteam.org/u/steve)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2018, 4:29pm UTC](https://forum.audacityteam.org/t/problems-recording-samples-from-spotify-on-macos-solved/50779/3 "2018-11-02T16:29:22Z")
> [@](#): > > SoundFlower That is extremely old / obsolete, and in my experience it’s not very stable on modern Macs. There’s a much newer version called “iShowU Audio Capture” (Note this is not our product and we don’t provide technical support for other people’s software, but here’s the link: [https://support.shinywhitebox.com/hc/en-us/articles/204161459-Installing-iShowU-Audio-Capture](https://support.shinywhitebox.com/hc/en-us/articles/204161459-Installing-iShowU-Audio-Capture)) ---
**Author:** ![carlcaulkett](https://forum.audacityteam.org/user_avatar/forum.audacityteam.org/carlcaulkett/32/32841_2.png) [@carlcaulkett](https://forum.audacityteam.org/u/carlcaulkett)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2018, 4:39pm UTC](https://forum.audacityteam.org/t/problems-recording-samples-from-spotify-on-macos-solved/50779/4 "2018-11-02T16:39:50Z")
Okay, cool! I’ll check it out. Thanks, Steve! ---
**Author:** ![carlcaulkett](https://forum.audacityteam.org/user_avatar/forum.audacityteam.org/carlcaulkett/32/32841_2.png) [@carlcaulkett](https://forum.audacityteam.org/u/carlcaulkett)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2018, 5:35pm UTC](https://forum.audacityteam.org/t/problems-recording-samples-from-spotify-on-macos-solved/50779/5 "2018-11-02T17:35:22Z")
> [@](#): > > > [@](#): > > > > SoundFlower > > That is extremely old / obsolete, and in my experience it’s not very stable on modern Macs. > There’s a much newer version called “iShowU Audio Capture” > (Note this is not our product and we don’t provide technical support for other people’s software, but here’s the link: [https://support.shinywhitebox.com/hc/en-us/articles/204161459-Installing-iShowU-Audio-Capture](https://support.shinywhitebox.com/hc/en-us/articles/204161459-Installing-iShowU-Audio-Capture)) iShowU seems to work fine, although I still cannot figure out how to monitor the sound as I record. Any ideas, anyone? ---
**Author:** ![carlcaulkett](https://forum.audacityteam.org/user_avatar/forum.audacityteam.org/carlcaulkett/32/32841_2.png) [@carlcaulkett](https://forum.audacityteam.org/u/carlcaulkett)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2018, 9:12pm UTC](https://forum.audacityteam.org/t/problems-recording-samples-from-spotify-on-macos-solved/50779/6 "2018-11-02T21:12:23Z")
I’ve checked the page at [https://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/Recording\_Computer\_Playback\_on\_Mac](https://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/Recording_Computer_Playback_on_Mac) and have set up the Multi-Output Device as described. I then selected the “iShowU Audio Capture” as the recording device and the “Multi-Output Device” as the playback device. Maybe I’m doing something wrong because although Audacity is capturing the audio from Spotify, as I mentioned before, I’m not hearing anything while the recording is taking place. It’s not a massive problem because after I export the audio from Audacity, I’m hacking it to bits in Ableton, but it seems a little strange that it is not allowing me to minitor in real-time. ---
**Author:** ![carlcaulkett](https://forum.audacityteam.org/user_avatar/forum.audacityteam.org/carlcaulkett/32/32841_2.png) [@carlcaulkett](https://forum.audacityteam.org/u/carlcaulkett)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2018, 9:40pm UTC](https://forum.audacityteam.org/t/problems-recording-samples-from-spotify-on-macos-solved/50779/7 "2018-11-02T21:40:08Z")
I’ve sorted the problem. I’d forgotten to select the “Multi-Output Device” in “System Preferences” → “Sound” as my selected device for sound output. This is really cool because it looks like I can leave my audio settings set up like this on a continual basis, and not have to faff around changing devices according to what stage in the process I am at. Conclusive proof, if any were needed, that macOS is a dream OS for anyone doing audio stuff! ---
**Author:** ![steve](https://forum.audacityteam.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/f19dbf/32.png) [@steve](https://forum.audacityteam.org/u/steve)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2018, 9:45am UTC](https://forum.audacityteam.org/t/problems-recording-samples-from-spotify-on-macos-solved/50779/8 "2018-11-03T09:45:04Z")
Thanks for the update. I’ll close this topic now as it provides a confirmed solution. To summarize: **The problem:** Mac computers have no built-in ability to record sounds that are playing on the computer. **The solution:** Install “iShowU Audio Capture” from [https://support.shinywhitebox.com/hc/en-us/articles/204161459-Installing-iShowU-Audio-Capture](https://support.shinywhitebox.com/hc/en-us/articles/204161459-Installing-iShowU-Audio-Capture) and configure as described in the Audacity wiki here: [https://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/Recording\_Computer\_Playback\_on\_Mac#ishowu](https://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/Recording_Computer_Playback_on_Mac#ishowu)