Soundish Help

Getting started#

What Soundish does#

Soundish gives each app on your Mac its own volume, and sends any app's sound to the output you choose. Your output devices, an equalizer for each app and saved profiles are all in one panel in the menu bar.

Installing and first launch#

Soundish needs macOS 14.6 or later.

1. Download Soundish from appish.app/soundish.
2. Open the downloaded zip file.
3. Drag Soundish into your Applications folder.
4. Open Soundish from Applications.

No window opens. Soundish's icon appears in the menu bar, and your free trial of 7 days has started.

Nothing is installed into macOS. Soundish asks for a permission only at the moment it first needs it: the steps are under Permissions.

Keep Soundish in the Applications folder, so updates and permissions keep working. In Finder its name is written in lower case: soundish.

If a version of Soundish older than 1.5 has been on this Mac, Soundish asks once: Remove Old Audio Driver? Soundish no longer uses that driver. Remove Driver asks for your Mac password, restarts the Mac's sound for a moment and opens Soundish again. Keep It leaves the driver in place, where it does nothing.

Where Soundish lives#

Soundish lives in the menu bar, as a speaker with sound waves. It has no Dock icon. Click the icon to open Soundish's panel. Click the icon again, or anywhere outside the panel, to close it.

If you can't see the icon (the menu bar is full, the notch hides it, or a menu bar manager has tucked it away), open Soundish again:

1. Press Command-Space.
2. Type Soundish.
3. Press Return.

Soundish's window opens at the top right of your screen, with the same content as the panel. Close it with its close button when you're done.

Launch at Login#

With Launch at Login on, Soundish opens by itself when you log in, so your app volumes are back after a restart. It's off until you turn it on.

1. Click the Soundish icon in the menu bar.
2. Click Settings.
3. Turn on Launch at Login.

If macOS wants your approval first, a line under the switch reads "Waiting for your approval in System Settings". Click Open Login Items and allow Soundish there.

Without it, your app volumes, outputs and equalizers apply again once you open Soundish.

Quitting Soundish#

1. Click the Soundish icon in the menu bar.
2. Click Quit.

Every app plays normally at once: at its own volume, on the Mac's output. Your settings are kept for the next time you open Soundish.

Permissions#

Soundish uses three permissions, and asks for each only when it first needs it. Check Soundish lists all three with their state: see Check Soundish.

System Audio Recording#

This permission lets Soundish receive an app's sound, so it can change the app's volume, apply its equalizer and send it to another output. Nothing is recorded or saved.

System Settings lists it in Privacy & Security, under Screen & System Audio Recording (called Screen Recording before macOS 15), in the part named System Audio Recording Only.

macOS asks the first time you change an app in Soundish. Choose Allow.

To turn it on later:

1. Open System Settings.
2. Open Privacy & Security.
3. Open Screen & System Audio Recording.
4. Under System Audio Recording Only, turn on Soundish.

Without it Soundish can't change any app's sound. Your output devices' sliders, the default output, the input and the output device rules still work.

To check it, open Check Soundish. Its line reads "System Audio Recording is on" once Soundish has changed an app's sound since it opened, and "System Audio Recording hasn't been needed yet" before that.

Bluetooth#

Soundish uses Bluetooth for one thing: waking Bluetooth headphones or a speaker that are switched off or asleep, when you choose them under Reconnect in an app's output menu.

macOS asks the first time Soundish sees a Bluetooth audio device. Choose Allow.

To turn it on later:

1. Open System Settings.
2. Open Privacy & Security.
3. Open Bluetooth.
4. Turn on Soundish.

Without it everything else works. Bluetooth devices that are connected show in Soundish like any other output. Soundish can't wake one that's off, and none is listed under Reconnect.

To check it, open Check Soundish. Its line reads "Bluetooth is on", "Bluetooth hasn't been asked yet" or "Bluetooth is off".

Device Control and Data Access (called Accessibility before macOS 27)#

Soundish needs this permission for one option only: Volume Keys Control Focused App, which makes your keyboard's volume keys change the app you're using. Everything else in Soundish works without it, the hotkeys too. System Settings calls it Device Control and Data Access on macOS 27, and Accessibility on earlier versions.

To turn it on:

1. Click the Soundish icon in the menu bar.
2. Click Settings.
3. Under Hotkeys, turn on Volume Keys Control Focused App.
4. When macOS shows its request, click Open System Settings.
5. In Privacy & Security, open Device Control and Data Access (Accessibility before macOS 27).
6. Turn on Soundish.

The volume keys start working as soon as it's allowed. You don't need to reopen Soundish.

While the option is on and the permission is off, the panel shows a Permission Needed banner, and Settings shows Open System Settings under the option. Both open the right place.

Without it, the volume keys change the Mac's volume, as usual.

If Soundish isn't in the list, it has been removed, by hand or by a tool that resets permissions, and macOS won't ask again. Click + under the list and choose Soundish from Applications.

If Soundish is taken out of the list while it's running with the option on, the Mac can stop taking clicks and keys for a few seconds, twice at most. Soundish then lets go of the volume keys and says so: the panel shows Permission Needed, and the keys change the Mac's volume until Soundish is added again.

To check it, open Check Soundish. Its line reads "Device Control and Data Access isn't needed" while the option is off, and "Device Control and Data Access is on" or "Device Control and Data Access is off" while it's on.

App volume#

The app list#

The panel lists the apps that can play sound, under Applications, in alphabetical order. An app is listed while it's open, whether or not it's playing.

Soundish lists the apps that show in the Dock, and menu bar apps it recognizes as sound or video apps. It doesn't list itself, or a few of Apple's own apps that rarely play sound, such as Finder, System Settings, Preview and Xcode. The helper processes of browsers and similar apps aren't listed either: they count as part of their app.

Each row shows the app's icon and name, its volume as a percentage and a slider, and ends with two buttons: the first mutes the app, the second chooses its output.

With no such app open, the list reads "No apps running".

Change an app's volume#

1. Click the Soundish icon in the menu bar.
2. Drag the app's slider.

The slider runs from 0% to 200%, with a mark at 100%, the app's normal volume. Near the mark the slider snaps to 100%. Above 100% the slider and the percentage turn orange: Soundish is making the app louder than it plays by itself.

To go back to 100%, click the app's percentage.

The change applies as you drag. Soundish remembers it for that app, and applies it again each time the app opens.

Mute an app#

Click the first of the two buttons at the end of the app's row, a speaker with sound waves. The button turns red and the row dims. Click it again to unmute.

The mute is remembered like the volume.

Favorites#

Your favorite apps stay at the top of the list, under Favorites.

1. Right-click the app's row.
2. Choose Add to Favorites.

To take an app out, right-click its row and choose Remove from Favorites. With every listed app a favorite, the Applications section reads "No other apps".

Hide an app#

1. Right-click the app's row.
2. Choose Hide App.

The app leaves the list, and Soundish stops changing it: it plays at its normal volume on the Mac's output. Its settings are kept.

To show it again:

1. Click the crossed-out eye at the bottom of the panel. The number beside it says how many apps are hidden.
2. In Hidden Apps, click the eye beside the app.
3. Click Done.

The app is back in the list, with its saved volume, mute, output and equalizer. With nothing hidden, Hidden Apps reads "No hidden apps".

Good to know

• Above 100%, loud sound can distort. See What macOS allows.
• A browser has one volume for all its tabs.
• An app at 100%, not muted, on System Default and with its equalizer off is left alone: Soundish doesn't touch its sound.
• Soundish changes an app's sound in stereo. An app that plays surround sound is heard in stereo while Soundish is changing it.
• Your app settings apply while Soundish is running. Turn on Launch at Login to have them after a restart.

App outputs#

Send an app to an output#

1. Click the Soundish icon in the menu bar.
2. Click the output button, the last button in the app's row.
3. Choose a device.

The app now plays on that device, while everything else stays where it was. The button shows the device's icon, in color while the app has an output of its own. Soundish remembers the device for that app.

To send the app back, choose System Default in the same menu. An app on System Default follows the Mac's default output when that changes.

Each app has its own output, so several apps can play on different devices at once.

When a device goes away#

If an app's output is disconnected or switched off, the app plays on the Mac's default output until the device is back. Then it moves back by itself.

Check Soundish names the apps that are waiting for a device.

Reconnect Bluetooth headphones or a speaker#

Bluetooth headphones and speakers that Soundish has seen connected, and that aren't connected now, are listed under Reconnect in each app's output menu, with "(off)" after their names.

1. Click the app's output button.
2. Under Reconnect, choose the device.

Soundish asks the device to connect, and the app moves to it once it has. A beep means the device couldn't be reached: check that it's charged and nearby.

This needs the Bluetooth permission: see Bluetooth.

Good to know

• If Soundish can't move an app to its output after several tries, Check Soundish says where the app plays and where it should. Choose the output again to try once more.
• On an output with more than two channels, an app Soundish is changing plays on the first two.
• Over Bluetooth headphones, sound from an app Soundish is changing can arrive slightly after the picture of a video.
• A hidden app, and an app at its normal settings, plays on the Mac's default output.

Equalizer#

Each app has its own equalizer, with ten bands.

Open an app's equalizer#

1. Click the Soundish icon in the menu bar.
2. Click the output button, the last button in the app's row.
3. Choose Equalizer….

The page is named after the app. Back returns to the main page. While an app's equalizer is changing its sound, the menu item reads "Equalizer… (on)".

Presets and bands#

• The switch at the top left turns the app's equalizer on and off. The page reads Equalizer On or Equalizer Off beside it.
• Presets offers Flat, Bass Boost, Bass Reducer, Treble Boost, Vocal, Loudness, Electronic, Rock and Spoken Word. Choosing one turns the equalizer on.
• The ten sliders are the bands, from low to high: 31, 63, 125, 250, 500, 1k, 2k, 4k, 8k and 16k Hz. Drag a slider up to boost its band and down to cut it, by up to 12 dB either way. Near the middle a slider snaps to 0. Moving a slider turns the equalizer on.
• Reset puts every band back to 0.

Changes apply as you make them, and Soundish remembers them for that app.

Good to know

• The page says: "Boosted bands can clip on loud material: the output is held at full scale, so big boosts may distort at high volume." If you hear that, lower the boost or the app's volume.
• An equalizer that's on with every band at 0 changes nothing.
• The equalizer belongs to the app. It goes with the app to whichever output it plays on.

Output devices#

The panel's Output Devices section lists your Mac's outputs: its own speakers, headphones, displays, docks, USB and Bluetooth devices.

The default output#

The Mac's default output is where sound plays unless an app has an output of its own. Its row has a colored icon and a checkmark beside its name.

To change it, click the icon of the device you want.

The output you choose here stays the default until another device connects or it goes away: see Output device rules.

Device volume and mute#

Each device's slider sets the device's own volume, from 0% to 100%. For most devices it's the same volume the Mac's volume keys change.

A device that can be muted has a small speaker button beside its percentage. Click it to mute and unmute. Dragging the slider of a muted device unmutes it.

A row that reads "Volume controlled by device" belongs to a device whose volume can't be set from the Mac. Use the device's own controls.

Maximum volume#

A device can have a maximum volume, to protect its speakers or your ears.

1. Right-click the device's row.
2. Point to Maximum Volume.
3. Choose 85%, 75%, 50% or 25%.

For another figure, choose Custom…, type a percentage from 5 to 100 and click Set Limit. Anything else is refused with a beep, and 100 means no limit.

An orange mark on the slider shows the limit. A device that's louder than its new limit is turned down to it at once, and Soundish's slider stops there. If the volume is raised above it another way, with the volume keys or in Control Center, Soundish brings it back down to the limit.

To remove the limit, choose No Limit. The limit is remembered for that device, also while it's disconnected.

Monitor volume#

The Mac's volume keys can't change the volume of most external monitors. On a Mac with Apple silicon, Soundish can set the volume and mute of a monitor's own speakers, for monitors that accept it. Such a monitor has a slider and a mute button like any other device.

Monitor Volume Control (DDC) in Settings turns this off and on. It's on at first. The setting says: "Control external monitor volume over HDMI/DisplayPort. Not supported on some Macs' built-in HDMI port or DisplayLink docks; some monitors ignore volume commands."

Good to know

• Soundish can't read a monitor's volume back. A monitor's slider shows the last level Soundish set, and 50% until you first move it. If you change the volume with the monitor's own buttons, the slider doesn't follow.
• A maximum volume on a monitor limits what Soundish sets. The monitor's own buttons can still go higher.
• Monitor volume isn't offered on Intel Macs, and the switch isn't shown there.
• Device sliders, mute, the default output and maximum volumes keep working after the trial has ended.

Input#

The Input line near the bottom of the panel shows your Mac's input device, the microphone it uses. Click it and choose another device to change it.

This is the same setting as the input in macOS's Sound settings. It reads "No Input" when the Mac has no input device.

Profiles#

A profile saves the volume, mute, output and equalizer of every app in the list, so you can bring a whole setup back with one click or a hotkey.

Save a profile#

1. Set your apps the way you want them.
2. In the panel's Profiles section, click Save Current as Profile. Once you have a profile, click the + after your profiles.
3. Type a name.
4. Choose an icon.
5. Click Save Profile.

The sheet says how many apps it saves, for example "Saves volume, mute, output and EQ for all 5 running apps". The new profile is the active one: its icon and name show beside "Soundish" at the top of the panel.

Apply a profile#

Click the profile in the Profiles section, or press its hotkey: see Shortcuts.

Every app in the profile gets its saved settings. An app that isn't open gets them when it next opens. An app whose saved output isn't connected plays on the Mac's default output until that device is back.

Update, rename, duplicate or delete a profile#

Right-click the profile:

• Update with Current Settings: Soundish asks first. The apps open now get their current volume, mute, output and equalizer in the profile. The profile's other apps keep their saved settings.
• Rename...: type the new name and click Save.
• Duplicate: makes a copy, with "(Copy)" after its name.
• Delete: removes the profile at once, without asking, and its hotkey with it.

Good to know

• A profile holds the apps that were in the list when you saved it. Hidden apps aren't in it, and applying it leaves every other app as it is.
• Applying a profile doesn't change your output devices' volumes. A profile saved by an old version of Soundish can hold the default output's volume, and still sets it.
• The active profile stays highlighted after you change a volume by hand. The profile itself changes only when you choose Update with Current Settings.
• Profiles can't be applied after the trial has ended.

Volume keys#

Make the volume keys change the app you're using#

With Volume Keys Control Focused App on, your keyboard's volume keys change the volume of the app in front, not the Mac's volume. The mute key mutes and unmutes that app. It's off until you turn it on.

1. Click the Soundish icon in the menu bar.
2. Click Settings.
3. Under Hotkeys, turn on Volume Keys Control Focused App.
4. Allow Soundish in System Settings when macOS asks. The steps are under Device Control and Data Access.

Each press changes the app's volume by 10%, between 0% and 200%.

Good to know

• The keys change the app in front only when Soundish lists it. For any other app they change the Mac's volume, as usual.
• It works for an app that plays on another output too.
• When a key changes an app, macOS's own volume display doesn't appear. Open Soundish's panel to see the app's level.
• After the trial has ended, the keys change the Mac's volume.

Output device rules#

The rules decide which device becomes the Mac's default output as devices connect. They're in Settings, under Output Device Rules, which lists every output Soundish has seen. A green dot marks the ones connected now.

Rank your devices#

1. Click the Soundish icon in the menu bar.
2. Click Settings.
3. Under Output Device Rules, click the up arrow beside a device to add it to the ranking.
4. Click the up arrow again to raise it, or the down arrow to lower it.

Ranked devices come first and read "Priority 1", "Priority 2" and so on. When a device connects, the highest ranked device that's connected becomes the default output. A device you haven't ranked doesn't take over by itself.

Keep a device from becoming the default#

Click the crossed-out speaker beside the device. It turns red.

When macOS makes that device the default as it connects, Soundish moves the default to your highest ranked device, or to another device if none is ranked. This suits a monitor with no speakers. Click the button again to allow the device.

An output you choose yourself#

An output you choose yourself stays the default until another device connects or it goes away. Then the ranking applies again.

Choosing means clicking a device's icon in Soundish, picking it in Control Center or in macOS's Sound settings, or pressing your Cycle Output Device hotkey. Putting on AirPods that are already connected counts as choosing them.

Forget a device#

A device that isn't connected has an × beside it. Click it to forget the device: it leaves the list and the ranking. It's listed again the next time it connects.

Good to know

• Hold the pointer over a button to see what it does: "Never make this the default output", "Add to priority list" or "Raise priority", "Lower priority" and "Forget this device".
• A ranked device stays ranked. You can lower it, or forget it while it's disconnected.
• Soundish waits about a second after a device connects before it switches, so a device that's still settling isn't chosen too early.
• When the Mac wakes, devices that were there before sleep and come back don't undo your own choice.
• Putting on AirPods that are already connected makes them the output even if you've marked them never to be the default: macOS switches to them, and Soundish treats that as your choice.
• The rules keep working after the trial has ended.

Settings#

To open Settings, click the Soundish icon in the menu bar, then Settings. Back returns to the main page. Closing the panel returns it to the main page too.

Soundish shows the names of its sections in capitals, such as GENERAL and HOTKEYS. This page writes them General and Hotkeys.

Each app's row#

These are on the main page, in each app's row.

• The slider: the app's volume, from 0% to 200%. 100% for an app Soundish hasn't seen before.
• The percentage: click it to go back to 100%.
• The speaker button: mutes the app. Not muted at first.
• The output button: the app's output, System Default at first, and Equalizer…, off at first.
• A right-click: Add to Favorites or Remove from Favorites, and Hide App.

Each output device's row#

These are on the main page, under Output Devices.

• The icon: click it to make the device the default output.
• The slider and the speaker button: the device's own volume and mute.
• A right-click, then Maximum Volume: the device's limit. No Limit at first.

The General section#

• Launch at Login: opens Soundish by itself when you log in. Off at first.
• Monitor Volume Control (DDC): volume and mute for external monitors that accept it. On at first. Shown on Macs with Apple silicon.

The Hotkeys section#

• Focused App Volume Up, Focused App Volume Down, Mute/Unmute Focused App and Cycle Output Device, and one line for each profile, which reads Apply and the profile's name: your hotkeys. None is set at first. See Shortcuts.
• Volume Keys Control Focused App: makes the keyboard's volume keys change the app in front. Off at first. See Volume keys.

The Output Device Rules section#

The ranking, the never-default mark and forgetting a device. Nothing is ranked or marked at first. See Output device rules.

The License section#

This shows your license. With a license it reads License Active, with the email address it's registered to and Deactivate on this Mac. During the trial it reads "Free Trial" with the days remaining. Otherwise it reads Trial Expired or License Required. Enter License Key and Buy License are there until a license is active. See Your license.

The Help section#

• Check Soundish: what's working, and how to fix what isn't.
• Export Diagnostics: saves a file for support.
• Email Support: starts an email to hello@appish.app.
• Copy Log Command: copies a Terminal command that saves Soundish's log.
• Help on the Website: opens this page.
• What macOS Allows: the limits listed under What macOS allows.
• Acknowledgements: the open-source notices. If the page says the notices are missing, download Soundish again from appish.app/soundish.

The About section#

This shows the version of Soundish you have. The current version is 1.5.2. Website opens appish.app/soundish, and Check for Updates looks for a newer version.

Shortcuts#

Soundish calls its keyboard shortcuts hotkeys. They work in every app while Soundish is running, and need no permission. None is set until you record one.

The hotkeys#

• Focused App Volume Up: raises the volume of the app in front by 10%, up to 200%.
• Focused App Volume Down: lowers it by 10%.
• Mute/Unmute Focused App: mutes or unmutes the app in front.
• Cycle Output Device: makes the next output device the Mac's default output. It skips devices you've marked never to be the default.
• Apply, with a profile's name: applies that profile. There's one line for each of your profiles.

Two keys work inside Soundish's own sheets:

• Return: saves, in the Save Profile and Rename Profile sheets.
• Escape: cancels the Save Profile sheet, and stops recording a hotkey.

Record a hotkey#

1. Click the Soundish icon in the menu bar.
2. Click Settings.
3. Under Hotkeys, click the box beside the action. It reads Record before you click, then Press keys….
4. Press the keys.

The box shows your hotkey. To change it, record another. To remove it, click the × beside the box.

What a hotkey can be#

• A hotkey needs Command or Control, and one more key. Shift and Option can be added, but alone they won't do, since they type characters in every app: the box reads Add ⌘ or ⌃.
• A function key, F1 to F20, can be used with any of Shift, Option, Control and Command.
• In use means another of your Soundish hotkeys already has those keys, or macOS wouldn't give them to Soundish. Choose other keys.

Good to know

• The focused-app hotkeys act on the app in front when Soundish lists it. For any other app you hear a beep.
• Cycle Output Device beeps when there's no other device to switch to. Its choice counts as an output you chose yourself: see An output you choose yourself.
• Deleting a profile removes its hotkey.
• After the trial has ended, the focused-app and profile hotkeys do nothing. Cycle Output Device still works.
• The volume keys are a separate option: see Volume keys.

Your license#

The free trial#

The trial lasts 7 days from the first time you open Soundish, with every feature. A banner at the top of the panel shows the days remaining.

When the trial ends without a license:

• the panel shows Trial Expired, and License Required at the top right;
• every app plays normally: at its own volume, on the Mac's output, with no equalizer;
• the apps' rows are dimmed and can't be changed, profiles can't be applied, and the focused-app hotkeys do nothing;
• all your settings are kept;
• your output devices' sliders and mute, the default output, maximum volumes, the input and the output device rules keep working.

Enter a license key and your app settings are back, without reopening Soundish.

Buy and activate#

A license costs $14.99. To buy one, click the trial banner at the top of the panel, or Buy License in Settings. Your key arrives by email.

To activate:

1. Click the Soundish icon in the menu bar.
2. Click Settings.
3. Under License, click Enter License Key.
4. Paste the key from your purchase email.
5. Click Activate License.

The page shows "Licensed to" with your email address. Activating needs an internet connection.

If activating doesn't work, the page says why:

• "Couldn't reach the license server. Check your connection and try again.": you're offline, or the server is busy.
• "This license key is for a different product.": the key belongs to another Appish app.
• "This key is active on the maximum number of Macs.": see The activation limit.
• Any other message comes from the license server. Check the key against your purchase email.

A key that isn't accepted doesn't end a running trial.

Move to another Mac#

Free the seat on the old Mac first:

1. Click the Soundish icon in the menu bar.
2. Click Settings.
3. Click Deactivate on this Mac.
4. Click Deactivate.

Then activate your key on the new Mac.

After deactivating, Soundish goes back to its free trial on the old Mac if days are left. If none are left, every app plays normally there.

Deactivating needs an internet connection. Without one Soundish says License Still Active, and your license stays on that Mac. Try again when you're online.

On a Mac that was activated before Soundish 1.5.2, Soundish can't free the seat itself. It asks Remove the License from This Mac? instead. Click Remove, then email hello@appish.app and we'll free the seat.

The activation limit#

A key can be active on a set number of Macs. When they're all used, activating says: "This key is active on the maximum number of Macs. Deactivate it on a Mac you no longer use, or email hello@appish.app and we'll free a seat."

Entering the same key again on a Mac that already has it uses no new seat.

Using Soundish offline#

Soundish confirms your license when it opens, and once a day while it runs.

If it can't reach the license server when it opens, it stays licensed as long as the last confirmation was less than 7 days ago. While Soundish is running, a check that gets no answer doesn't take your license away.

After more than 7 days offline, Soundish shows the trial state the next time it opens. If your trial days are used up, every app plays normally. Soundish keeps your key and your settings and asks the license server again every hour. Once the server answers, the panel shows Active again and your settings apply.

Your license key couldn't be confirmed#

Soundish says this in two ways.

Under License Active, in Settings, you may read "Couldn't be confirmed just now", with the reason, and "Your license stays, and Soundish asks again within the hour." The daily check got an answer that wasn't a yes. Soundish stays licensed and asks again an hour later. There's nothing you need to do.

Check Soundish may read "Your license key couldn't be confirmed", while Settings reads "Couldn't confirm your license yet" with the reason. Soundish has your key, but the license server hasn't confirmed it: you've been offline for more than 7 days, or the server didn't accept the key. Soundish keeps the key and tries again every hour.

1. Check that your Mac is online.
2. Click the Soundish icon in the menu bar.
3. Click Settings.
4. Under License, click Try Again.

If that doesn't help, enter your key again: in Check Soundish, click Enter License Key, paste the key and click Activate License. This confirms the same Mac again and uses no new seat. If the key isn't accepted, email hello@appish.app.

After a cleaner app has wiped the settings#

A cleaner utility can delete Soundish's settings file. Soundish keeps your license key in your Keychain too, so your license comes back by itself the next time Soundish opens. You don't need to enter your key again.

Your app volumes, outputs and equalizers, your profiles, hotkeys, favorites, hidden apps and device rules are in the settings file. Those start again as on a new Mac.

A lost key#

Your key is in your purchase confirmation email. If you can't find it, email hello@appish.app from the address you bought with.

Updates#

Soundish checks for a new version a few seconds after it opens, each time. If there is one, a window offers it.

To check yourself:

1. Click the Soundish icon in the menu bar.
2. Click Settings.
3. Under About, click Check for Updates.

Soundish doesn't check on a schedule in between. If it runs for weeks without a restart, check by hand.

An update keeps your settings, your license and Soundish's permissions. Soundish quits and opens again to finish it. For those few seconds every app plays at its normal volume.

If something isn't working#

Check Soundish#

Check Soundish lists what's working and what isn't, each line with a button to fix it where there is one. A green mark means fine, a gray one is a note, orange is a warning and red is a problem.

1. Click the Soundish icon in the menu bar.
2. Click Settings.
3. Under Help, click Check Soundish.

It reads everything as the page opens. To check again, click Back and open it again.

What the lines mean:

• "Soundish is changing 3 apps", with your own number: all is well. Their saved volume, mute, output and equalizer apply now.
• "Nothing to change right now": all is well. Every open app is at its normal volume on the Mac's output.
• "Soundish isn't changing any app": the trial has ended, so every app plays normally. Enter License Key opens the page for it.
• "Your license key couldn't be confirmed": see Your license key couldn't be confirmed.
• "macOS isn't letting Soundish read its settings": restart your Mac. See macOS isn't letting Soundish read its settings.
• "Free trial: 5 days left", with your own number, or "Free trial: ends today": Buy a License opens the store.
• "Checking your license": Soundish is asking the license server. It keeps working meanwhile.
• "System Audio Recording is on" or "System Audio Recording hasn't been needed yet": fine either way. macOS asks for it the first time Soundish changes an app's sound.
• "System Audio Recording is off": Soundish can't change any app's sound until you allow it. Open System Settings opens the place.
• "Bluetooth is on", "Bluetooth hasn't been asked yet" or "Bluetooth is off": whether Soundish can wake Bluetooth headphones and speakers. Everything else works without it.
• "Device Control and Data Access isn't needed", "Device Control and Data Access is on" or "Device Control and Data Access is off": the permission for the volume-keys option. The first means the option is off. Before macOS 27 the line says Accessibility.
• "The volume keys are off": macOS stopped passing the volume keys to Soundish, as it does when Soundish is taken out of Device Control and Data Access while it's running. If Soundish is gone from that list, add it again with +. If it's still there, turn Volume Keys Control Focused App off and on. Open System Settings opens the place.
• "Launch at Login is on", "Launch at Login is off" or "Launch at Login needs your approval": whether Soundish opens when you log in. Turn On switches it on, and Open Login Items opens the place to allow it.
• "Music waits for AirPods Pro", with your own app and device, or "2 apps wait for their output devices": the app's saved output isn't connected, so the app plays on the default output until it is.
• "Music plays on MacBook Pro Speakers, not AirPods Pro", with your own app and devices, or "2 apps don't play on the outputs chosen for them": Soundish couldn't move the app after several tries. Choose the output again in the app's row.
• "Some saved settings couldn't be read": part of your saved settings was damaged. The rest is in use and the damaged part is kept aside. Email Support starts an email: attach your Diagnostics file.
• "Soundish isn't in Applications": quit Soundish, move it to the Applications folder and open it from there.

Export Diagnostics#

Export Diagnostics saves a text file that tells support how Soundish is set up on your Mac.

1. Click the Soundish icon in the menu bar.
2. Click Settings.
3. Under Help, click Export Diagnostics.
4. Choose where to save "Soundish Diagnostics.txt". Soundish suggests the Desktop.

Finder then shows you the file.

The file holds:

• your Mac's model, macOS version and displays, and which copy of Soundish is running;
• Check Soundish's lines and the state of each permission;
• the state of your license: licensed or on trial, whether a key is stored, and when it was last confirmed;
• your settings: the volume-keys option, monitor volume, Launch at Login, your hotkeys, your device rules, and how many profiles you have;
• your output and input devices, with their volume, mute and maximum volume;
• the apps in Soundish's list, by name, with their volume, mute, output and equalizer state;
• what Soundish is doing with each app's sound, the names and dates of its crash reports, and its log since it opened.

It doesn't hold your license key, an email address, your Mac's user name, your profiles' names, or the name of a device's owner: "Ann's AirPods Pro" is written "AirPods Pro". Nothing is sent by itself. Read the file first if you like, then attach it to an email.

With the menu bar icon hidden, open Soundish again from Applications or Spotlight to reach Settings.

Email Support and Copy Log Command#

Email Support starts an email to hello@appish.app in your mail app. Say what happened and what you expected, and attach your Diagnostics file.

Copy Log Command copies a Terminal command that saves the last day of Soundish's log to your Desktop. Use it when support asks for the log:

1. Click Copy Log Command. It reads Log Command Copied for a moment.
2. Open Terminal.
3. Paste the command.
4. Press Return.

The command is:

/usr/bin/log show --last 1d --info --predicate 'subsystem == "matmus.soundish"' > ~/Desktop/Soundish-log.txt

Attach "Soundish-log.txt" from your Desktop to your email.

Common problems#

An app isn't in the list#

Cause: the app is hidden, or it's a menu bar app Soundish doesn't recognize as a sound app, or one of the few Apple apps Soundish leaves out.

Fix: click the crossed-out eye at the bottom of the panel and show the app again if it's there. If it isn't, email hello@appish.app with the app's name.

The app rows are dimmed#

Cause: the trial has ended and no license is active, so Soundish isn't changing any app. The panel shows Trial Expired or License Required.

Fix: click the banner and enter your license key. Your settings come back at once.

An app stays at its normal volume#

Cause: Soundish isn't running, the app is hidden, or Soundish isn't allowed to record system audio.

Fix: open Soundish, and turn on Launch at Login so it opens after a restart. Show the app again if it's hidden. Then open Check Soundish and look at its System Audio Recording line: the steps are under System Audio Recording.

The sound distorts when I boost an app#

Cause: above 100%, Soundish makes an app louder by multiplying its sound. Past the loudest the output can play, loud parts are clipped. A big equalizer boost does the same.

Fix: lower the app's volume toward 100%, or lower the boosted bands, and turn the output device up.

One browser tab can't have its own volume#

Cause: a browser plays all its tabs through shared helper processes, so macOS gives Soundish the browser's sound as one.

Fix: there isn't one. Play the two things in two different browsers to give each its own volume.

An app plays on the wrong output#

Cause: the app's saved output isn't connected, so it plays on the default output until it is. Or Soundish couldn't move the app. Check Soundish says which.

Fix: connect the device, or choose another output in the app's row. If Check Soundish says the app "plays on" one device, "not" another, choose the output again.

My Bluetooth headphones aren't under Reconnect#

Cause: Soundish lists a Bluetooth device there once it has seen it connected while Bluetooth was allowed. Either the permission is off, or the headphones haven't been connected since you allowed it.

Fix: allow Soundish under Bluetooth, then connect the headphones once from macOS's Bluetooth menu. They're listed the next time they're off.

The Mac's output keeps changing by itself#

Cause: a ranked device connected, so your output device rules made it the default. Or macOS switched to a device as it connected.

Fix: lower that device in Output Device Rules, or click its crossed-out speaker to keep it from becoming the default. An output you choose yourself stays until a device connects or it goes away.

The volume keys change the Mac's volume, not the app's#

Cause: the option is off, its permission is off, or the app in front isn't in Soundish's list. After the trial has ended, the keys change the Mac's volume too. If the panel shows Permission Needed and says the volume keys are off, macOS has stopped passing them to Soundish.

Fix: turn on Volume Keys Control Focused App in Settings, and allow Soundish as under Device Control and Data Access. If Soundish is gone from that list, add it again with +. If it's still there, turn the option off and on.

The Mac ignored my clicks and keys for a few seconds#

Cause: Soundish was taken out of Device Control and Data Access while it was running with Volume Keys Control Focused App on. macOS then holds each click and key for a few seconds while it waits for Soundish.

Fix: nothing to do: after two such pauses at most, Soundish lets go of the volume keys by itself. To have them back, add Soundish to the list again with +.

A hotkey box says In use#

Cause: another of your Soundish hotkeys already has those keys, or macOS wouldn't give them to Soundish.

Fix: record a different combination. To free the keys, click the × beside the hotkey that has them.

My monitor has no volume slider#

Cause: the monitor doesn't accept volume commands the way it's connected, Monitor Volume Control (DDC) is off, or the Mac is an Intel Mac. Its row reads "Volume controlled by device".

Fix: turn the setting on in Settings. If the monitor is on the Mac's own HDMI port or on a DisplayLink dock, try USB-C, Thunderbolt or DisplayPort. Some monitors ignore volume commands on every connection: use the monitor's own buttons.

My monitor's slider doesn't match its volume#

Cause: Soundish can't read a monitor's volume. The slider shows the last level Soundish set, and 50% until you first move it.

Fix: move the slider once. The monitor follows it from then on.

I can't find the Soundish icon#

Cause: the menu bar is full, the notch hides the icon, or a menu bar manager has hidden it.

Fix: open Soundish again from Applications or Spotlight. Its window opens with everything the panel has.

Soundish says Trial Expired but I have a license#

Cause: Soundish couldn't confirm your key for more than 7 days, or the license server didn't accept it.

Fix: check that your Mac is online, then follow Your license key couldn't be confirmed.

My key is active on the maximum number of Macs#

Cause: every seat of your license is in use.

Fix: on a Mac you no longer use, open Settings and click Deactivate on this Mac. If you no longer have that Mac, email hello@appish.app and we'll free a seat.

Soundish doesn't open after a restart#

Cause: Launch at Login is off, or macOS is waiting for your approval.

Fix: turn on Launch at Login in Settings. If a line says it's waiting for your approval, click Open Login Items and allow Soundish there.

macOS isn't letting Soundish read its settings#

Cause: the part of macOS that hands apps their settings has stopped answering. Soundish shows a red banner with these words. Until a restart it changes nothing in its settings file, so nothing you change is saved, and your saved settings stay as they are.

Fix: restart your Mac. Meanwhile Export Diagnostics saves straight to your Desktop, and the license can't be deactivated.

Soundish asks to remove an old audio driver#

Cause: a version of Soundish older than 1.5 installed an audio driver, which Soundish no longer uses.

Fix: click Remove Driver and type your Mac password. If you click Keep It, nothing changes: the driver does nothing. If Soundish says Driver Not Removed, it works all the same.

Video and sound are slightly out of step#

Cause: sound from an app Soundish is changing passes through Soundish on its way to the output, which takes a moment. Over Bluetooth headphones it can be enough to notice.

Fix: put the app back to its normal settings and Soundish leaves its sound alone: click its percentage to go back to 100%, unmute it, choose System Default as its output and turn its equalizer off.

What macOS allows#

Soundish changes each app's sound as it passes through. macOS decides what an app can reach, so these stay true.

Before macOS 27, where this list says Device Control and Data Access the app says Accessibility.

• Above 100%, loud sound can distort. Soundish makes a quiet app louder by multiplying its sound. Past the loudest the output can play, the sound is clipped, so loud parts distort. There's no limiter.
• Changed sound is stereo. An app Soundish is changing plays in stereo, even when the app itself plays surround sound. On an output with more than two channels, it plays on the first two.
• Video over Bluetooth. Over Bluetooth headphones, sound from an app Soundish is changing can arrive slightly after a video's picture. Put the app back to 100%, unmuted, on System Default with its equalizer off, and Soundish leaves its sound alone.
• A browser is one app. Browsers and apps built on them play from helper processes. Soundish follows those, so the whole browser gets one volume: there's no volume for each tab.
• Soundish has to be running. Your app volumes, outputs and EQ apply while Soundish runs. Quit it and every app plays normally at once. Turn on Launch at Login to have them back after a restart.
• After the trial. When the trial ends without a license, every app plays normally. Your settings are kept for when you enter a key.
• Devices that come and go. An app sent to a device that goes away, such as Bluetooth headphones, plays on the default output until the device is back.
• AirPods you put on. Putting on AirPods that are already connected makes them the output, even when you've marked them never to be the default. macOS switches to them, and Soundish treats that as your choice.
• A monitor's volume. Where Soundish sets a monitor's volume, it can't read it back. The slider shows the last level Soundish set, and the monitor's own buttons can go past a maximum volume.
• The volume keys. With the volume-keys option on, the keys change the app in front when Soundish lists it, and the Mac's volume otherwise. They need Device Control and Data Access in Privacy & Security.
• Removed from Device Control and Data Access. If Soundish is taken out of Privacy & Security › Device Control and Data Access, for example by a reset, macOS won't ask for it again. In System Settings, click + and add Soundish again: the volume keys work again at once, with no relaunch.
• Recording permission. macOS asks once whether Soundish may capture system audio. Soundish needs that to change an app's sound. Nothing is recorded or saved.

Removing Soundish#

Deactivate first#

Deactivating frees your license's seat, so you can use your key on another Mac. See Move to another Mac.

Quit and move Soundish to the Trash#

1. Click the Soundish icon in the menu bar.
2. Click Settings.
3. Turn off Launch at Login.
4. Click Back.
5. Click Quit.
6. Drag Soundish from your Applications folder to the Trash.

When Soundish quits, every app plays at its normal volume on the Mac's output. Your output devices keep the volume they had, and maximum volumes no longer apply.

What stays on the Mac#

Moving Soundish to the Trash leaves a few small things behind. To remove a file or folder, choose Go to Folder in Finder's Go menu, paste its path, and move it to the Trash.

• ~/Library/Preferences/matmus.soundish.plist: your settings.
• ~/Library/Caches/matmus.soundish, ~/Library/HTTPStorages/matmus.soundish and ~/Library/WebKit/matmus.soundish: small caches from the license and update checks.
• Your license key, in your Keychain. Open Keychain Access, search for "com.appish.soundish.license" and delete the items it finds.
• Soundish's lines in System Settings: under Privacy & Security, in Screen & System Audio Recording, in Bluetooth and in Device Control and Data Access, and under General, in Login Items. Select Soundish there and click the minus button.
• The old audio driver, only if a version of Soundish older than 1.5 installed it and you kept it: /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/HAL/SoundishDriver.driver.

Privacy#

What leaves your Mac#

• The license check. Soundish sends your license key to the license server, run by Lemon Squeezy, when you activate, when Soundish opens, once a day while it runs, every hour while a stored key waits to be confirmed, and when you deactivate. Activating also sends your Mac's name, so the seat can be told apart from your other Macs. The server gives the seat an id, which Soundish sends back when you enter the same key again on this Mac or free the seat.
• The update check. A few seconds after it opens, and when you click Check for Updates, Soundish fetches the list of versions from appish.app. A newer version is downloaded from there if you choose to install it.
• Email you send. Email Support opens an email in your mail app. Nothing goes until you send it.
• Pages you open. Buy License, Website and Help on the Website open in your browser.

What never leaves your Mac#

• Your apps' sound. Soundish changes it as it passes through, and records and saves nothing.
• Which apps you use, their volumes and outputs, and your devices' names.
• The Diagnostics file. It's saved where you choose and goes nowhere unless you email it.

Soundish has no analytics and no tracking.