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How to record System Audio in your DAW

BUFFR keeps computer output as its own stereo history beside your DAW tracks, so a browser, reference player, call, or other app can be recovered after it plays.

Reviewed July 25, 2026

The quick answer

Load BUFFR in a supported host and verify or toggle System Audio in Capture Sources. It records desktop and application output as a separate stereo source on macOS, Windows, and Linux—without folding that source into the track audio.

Because BUFFR is a retrospective recorder, you do not need to predict the exact moment worth keeping. If the plug-in was active and the material remains within its history, select the useful range and drag it out afterward.

System Audio is a separate capture path

DAW audio is the signal the host sends through BUFFR on a track, bus, or master. System Audio is output from the computer itself: a browser, media player, communication app, or another application.

BUFFR gives System Audio its own stereo lane. That separation lets you recover the reference without permanently mixing it into the master, while the normal plug-in lanes retain the DAW audio that the host supplies. Windows and macOS System Audio can also contain audible DAW output; Linux excludes the DAW host process family.

Set it up

  1. Add BUFFR to the track, bus, or master whose DAW audio you want to retain.
  2. Open Capture Sources and verify or toggle System Audio.
  3. Play audio from the other application and confirm activity on the System Audio lane.
  4. Switch to Always for an uninterrupted history, or keep the default On sound mode.
  5. After the useful moment, select its range and drag it into the DAW or another accepting destination.

macOS 13+ asks for Screen Recording permission. Linux requires a native PipeWire session, and sandboxed hosts can hide access. The BUFFR manualcarries current installation and troubleshooting details.

What this changes in practice

  • Audition a reference in a browser, then recover only the useful phrase.
  • Keep an application or call in its own lane while retaining the DAW master beside it.
  • Capture a sound from another music app without first building a loopback route.
  • Use Spectral Grab to isolate a time-and-frequency region before dragging it out.

Capture only audio you are allowed to record and reuse. A technical ability to record system output does not grant rights to someone else’s music, stream, or conversation.

BUFFR or a system-audio router?

Tools such as AudioRoute andSystem Audio Bridgeexpose computer output to a DAW. They are a strong fit when routing is the only missing piece and you already know when to press Record.

BUFFR combines that source with rolling DAW audio and MIDI history. Its advantage is recovery: choose what to keep after hearing it, then drag the selection to another BUFFR, a DAW, an accepting app, or a file manager through Matari’sopen protocol.

Frequently asked questions

Can BUFFR record browser audio into a DAW?

Yes. Browser output can appear in BUFFR’s separate System Audio lane while the plug-in runs in the DAW.

Does System Audio replace track capture?

No. It is an additional stereo source. BUFFR still records the audio channels supplied by the host.

Does this work on Linux?

Yes. BUFFR supports System Audio on Linux as well as macOS and Windows, with CLAP and VST3 builds.

Can it recover audio from before BUFFR opened?

No. BUFFR must be active and receiving System Audio before it can retain it.