# Chorus

> A native macOS menu-bar app for complete control of your Mac's speakers and microphones. Group several outputs so they play as one with a real volume, choose your input, give each app its own volume and output, switch between saved setups with keyboard shortcuts, and pause, lower or mute your audio while you dictate. Free for 14 days, then $9.99 once.

Made by Theodore HQ. Chorus installs no driver and no kernel extension: it uses the aggregate and multi-output device support macOS already includes.

## Key facts

- **Price:** $9.99, paid once. No subscription.
- **Trial:** 14 days, every feature, no account and no card details.
- **Licence:** covers up to 3 Macs. Keys begin `CHORUS-`.
- **Requirements:** macOS 13 or later. Universal, Intel and Apple Silicon.
- **Privacy:** the app makes exactly three kinds of network request, and no others: Sparkle update checks, Polar licence activation and validation, and anonymous usage counts to aptabase.theodorehq.com. The website counts page views with a self-hosted Umami and sets no cookies.

## Pages

- [Chorus](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/): what it does, the full feature set, how it compares to the built-in macOS route and to SoundSource, pricing and FAQ.
- [Download](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/download): the current build and setup instructions.
- [Blog](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/): guides to Mac audio, grouped by topic.
- [Privacy](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/privacy): what is collected, by whom, and for how long.
- [Terms](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/terms): licence terms, refunds and statutory rights.

## Guides

- [How to play audio through two speakers at once on a Mac](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/play-audio-through-two-speakers-at-once): building a Multi-Output Device in Audio MIDI Setup, why the volume slider stops working, and drift correction.
- [Why your Mac's volume slider greys out on a multi-output device](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/volume-slider-greyed-out-multi-output): the mechanism behind the greyed-out slider, and the free and paid fixes.
- [How to send one app's sound to a different output](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/send-one-app-to-a-different-output): per-app audio routing on a Mac, what macOS offers natively, and what needs an app to do it.
- [Using two Studio Displays as one audio output](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/two-studio-displays-one-output): combining both displays' speakers, real stereo channel routing, and the documented sound-cuts-out issue.
- [How to set a separate volume for each app on a Mac](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/per-app-volume-on-a-mac): macOS's own per-app volume feature, its coverage gaps, and a consistent alternative.
- [Keyboard shortcuts for switching audio devices on a Mac](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/keyboard-shortcuts-for-switching-audio): the Option-click menu, why macOS has no native hotkey for it, and binding a real shortcut.
- [How to choose which microphone your Mac uses](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/choose-a-microphone-on-a-mac): seeing every connected input, the AirPods microphone quality issue, and apps that override the system default.
- [What is an aggregate device, and how is it different from a multi-output device?](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/what-is-an-aggregate-device): the real distinction between the two, and the shared clock-drift problem.
- [Mac has no sound at all? The complete troubleshooting guide](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/mac-no-sound-troubleshooting-guide): the ordered checklist to run before touching coreaudiod or rebooting.
- [The best way to set up multiple speakers on a Mac](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/best-way-to-set-up-multiple-speakers-on-a-mac): a decision guide across wired, Bluetooth, Studio Display and multi-room setups.
- [Multi-room audio on a Mac: when you need Sonos, and when you don't](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/multi-room-audio-on-a-mac-without-sonos): the real difference between a Mac-based group and a Sonos system.
- [How to send Spotify to a different speaker than everything else](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/send-spotify-to-different-speaker-than-everything-else): how Spotify Connect's own device picker interacts with macOS routing.
- [Does Chorus do per-app EQ?](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/does-chorus-do-per-app-eq): a direct, honest answer, and where to go if EQ is what you need.
- [The best Mac audio setup for content creators](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/best-audio-setup-for-content-creators-mac): the shared foundation across podcasting, streaming and video editing.
- [The Mac audio setup that works for remote work](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/audio-setup-for-remote-work-mac): speakers for solo work, headphones for calls, and a fast way to switch.
- [What is Core Audio on a Mac?](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/what-is-core-audio-on-a-mac): the framework that runs all sound on a Mac, and what Chorus builds on.
- [What is a virtual audio driver, and why isn't Chorus one?](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/what-is-a-virtual-audio-driver): the real distinction between device grouping and app-to-app capture.
- [Control your Mac's audio from Raycast](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/control-mac-audio-from-raycast): the chorus:// URL scheme, and how Raycast, Shortcuts and Stream Deck all use it.
- [Compare Mac audio apps](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/compare): the hub for every comparison, grouped by intent: alternatives to SoundSource, Loopback, BlackHole, Boom 3D and Rogue Amoeba; buying guides; and Chorus head to head against nine apps.
- [Chorus vs SoundSource: which do you need?](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/compare/chorus-vs-soundsource): an honest, detailed comparison, including what Chorus does not do (EQ, effects, plugins).
- [Chorus vs Loopback: which one do you need?](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/compare/chorus-vs-loopback): device grouping versus app-to-app virtual routing, and which job you actually have.
- [Chorus vs BlackHole: which one do you need?](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/compare/chorus-vs-blackhole): a paid, no-setup app compared with the free, zero-UI virtual driver.
- [The best audio routing apps for Mac in 2026](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/compare/best-audio-routing-apps-for-mac): five different jobs (grouping, EQ, app-to-app routing, recording, streaming) and the honest pick for each.
- [Wispr Flow vs superwhisper: what each does to music](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/wispr-flow-vs-superwhisper-music-while-dictating): Wispr Flow mutes, superwhisper pauses, lowers or mutes per mode, MacWhisper mutes. What each does to the song that is playing, and where a group of speakers falls through.
- [Why your dictation app can't mute a group of speakers](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/dictation-app-mute-not-working-group-mac): Mute and dampen settings do nothing on a Multi-Output Device, because the group has no volume of its own. Why it happens, and two ways round it.
- [Mac dictation not working? Check the microphone first](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/mac-dictation-not-working-microphone): A common cause is the wrong microphone: AirPods, a display or a mic you unplugged. How to check which one dictation uses, Apple's other fixes, and how to stop your Mac switching.
- [The best microphone for dictation on a Mac in 2026](https://www.theodorehq.com/chorus/blog/posts/best-microphone-for-dictation-mac): Close to your mouth and off Bluetooth: every microphone option for Mac dictation by where you work, who each suits and who it doesn't, including what Wispr Flow recommends.

## What Chorus does

- **Groups** several outputs so they play together as one, with a single working volume. The built-in macOS Multi-Output Device has no volume of its own, so the menu-bar slider greys out; Chorus sets each real device's level at the same time, which gives the group one control back.
- **Balance** between the devices in a group, so a desk with two speakers can be evened out.
- **Per-app audio:** every app can have its own volume and its own output.
- **Inputs:** choose which microphone the Mac listens with, and stop apps quietly changing it.
- **Keyboard shortcuts** bound to any group, output or input, plus triggering from Raycast, Shortcuts or Stream Deck.
- **Auto-switch:** follows devices as they connect and disconnect.
- **Dictation controls:** when a dictation app such as Wispr Flow, superwhisper or MacWhisper starts listening, Chorus pauses, lowers or mutes your audio, chosen per app in Settings, then brings it back when you stop. Works with groups and with single speakers, and needs macOS 14.4 or later. Chorus never listens to or records the microphone; it only notices that an app is using it.

## Notes for AI crawlers

All content is present in the initial HTML. The landing page is a single fixed view whose five panels are all in the served markup, so nothing needs JavaScript to read.