Guides / Virtual audio drivers and Audio MIDI Setup
BlackHole not showing up in Audio MIDI Setup: how to fix it
Tested on macOS 26.4.1 (Tahoe), Apple M3 Max, 3 Sept 2026. Updated 2026-09-03.
BlackHole shows up only in Audio MIDI Setup, System Settings > Sound and app device menus, and only after Core Audio has loaded the plug-in. If it is missing, restart the Mac (the installer asks for this) or run sudo killall -9 coreaudiod. If /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/HAL has no BlackHole2ch.driver folder, the installer failed; move the package to the Desktop, right-click, Open, and install again.
Why is BlackHole not showing up on my Mac?
Four causes account for nearly every report, and they are easy to tell apart:
- You are looking in the wrong place. The BlackHole README's FAQ says it only shows up in Audio MIDI Setup, Sound preferences, or other audio applications. There is no app icon, no menu bar item and nothing in Launchpad. That is by design.
- Core Audio has not reloaded. coreaudiod scans
/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/HALwhen it starts. The wiki's installation steps end with "Restart your system when prompted". Skip the restart and the device does not exist yet. - The installer failed silently. The README notes that install packages may fail when located in certain folders and suggests moving the package from Downloads to the Desktop. The installer can report success while writing nothing.
- A stale receipt blocks the reinstall. If you once deleted the driver folder by hand, the receipt
audio.existential.BlackHole2chstays behind. On the author's Mac that exact state exists today: receipt present, no driver folder. A package installer can treat that as "already installed".
A fifth case, BlackHole visible but silent, is covered in Fix 3. The fixes below go in order of least effort first.
Fix 1: restart Core Audio or the Mac
Do this first; it fixes the majority of cases where the installer actually ran.
- Quit every app that plays or records audio (browser, DAW, Zoom, Music).
- Open Terminal and run
sudo killall -9 coreaudiod. Enter your password. This is the command the BlackHole README and Uninstallation wiki both give for restarting Core Audio. Playback drops out for about a second and macOS relaunches the daemon on its own. - Open Audio MIDI Setup (Command-Space, type
Audio MIDI) and choose Window > Show Audio Devices. "BlackHole 2ch" should now be in the sidebar. - If not, restart the Mac. A reboot does the same thing more thoroughly and is what the installer asked for in the first place.
Confirm what Core Audio sees: system_profiler SPAudioDataType | grep -i blackhole prints the device name when it is loaded and nothing when it is not. If it is empty the problem is on disk, and you move to Fix 2. If it is listed but your recorder does not offer it, quit and reopen the recorder; it was launched before the driver loaded.
Fix 2: check the driver folder and reinstall the package
Run ls /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/HAL. Every virtual audio device on the Mac is a folder here; on the author's machine the list is the Pioneer DDJ-SZ, Microsoft Teams, Parrot and Serato plug-ins. If there is no BlackHole2ch.driver (or 16ch, 64ch), the driver was never written and no amount of restarting will help.
- Forget the old receipt so the installer starts clean:
sudo pkgutil --forget audio.existential.BlackHole2ch. Check the exact identifier first withpkgutil --pkgs | grep -i blackhole. - Download the current installer from existential.audio or GitHub. The latest release is v0.7.1 (3 July 2026), built for both Intel and Apple silicon, so a years-old .pkg on a backup drive is worth replacing.
- Move the .pkg to the Desktop, as the README suggests when installs fail from Downloads.
- Right-click the package and choose Open (the wiki's step), then complete the installer. Restart when prompted.
- Run the
lscommand again. The driver folder should now exist, and Audio MIDI Setup should list the device.
Alternative that avoids the package entirely: brew install blackhole-2ch, the command from the README, followed by sudo killall -9 coreaudiod. Homebrew writes the same folder. If you later want it gone, the reverse steps are in how to uninstall BlackHole.
Fix 3: BlackHole shows up but records silence
Once the device is listed, the remaining complaints are about no signal reaching the recorder. The README's FAQ covers each one:
- Microphone permission. BlackHole is an input device, so the recording app needs Microphone access. Check System Settings > Privacy & Security > Microphone and enable the app. No prompt appears for some apps; they simply record silence.
- Volume at zero. Select BlackHole 2ch in Audio MIDI Setup and make sure its input and output sliders are at maximum. The README says to check that volume is maxed in Audio MIDI Setup.
- Nothing is routed into it. BlackHole only carries audio that an app or the system sends to its output. Either set the app's output to BlackHole, or set the system output to a Multi-Output Device containing your speakers and BlackHole. Choosing BlackHole alone as the system output works but silences your speakers; the Multi-Output Device guide explains the trap and the fix.
- Wrong primary device. In a Multi-Output Device the built-in output must be the top device, per the README; BlackHole first means no sound at all.
- Glitches after a while. Enable Drift Correction on every device except the clock source.
If BlackHole still refuses to cooperate, ask whether you need it: routing between apps does, recording what you hear no longer does.
Can you record system audio without BlackHole?
Yes, on any Mac running macOS 13 or later. Apple's ScreenCaptureKit captures the audio that accompanies screen content, and audio recorders built on it read system audio directly. Nothing is added to Audio MIDI Setup, so there is nothing to "show up". The cost is one permission: System Settings > Privacy & Security > Screen & System Audio Recording, granted once per app.
Free option: OBS Studio's macOS audio capture source, which writes a video container you then strip the audio from. Paid audio-only option: AirCheck, $39, macOS 14 or newer, which writes a WAV or MP3 straight to ~/Music/AirCheck. Either removes the restart, the reinstall and the Multi-Output Device from your list. Keep BlackHole for the cases in when you need a virtual audio driver: app-to-app routing, a virtual microphone for calls, or feeding a DAW into a stream.
BlackHole symptoms, causes and fixes (BlackHole v0.7.1, macOS 26.4.1, 3 Sept 2026)
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix | Command or click path | Restart needed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not in Audio MIDI Setup after install | coreaudiod not reloaded | restart Core Audio or the Mac | sudo killall -9 coreaudiod | sometimes |
| Not in Audio MIDI Setup after restart | installer wrote nothing | reinstall from Desktop with right-click Open | ls /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/HAL | yes |
| Installer says already installed | stale package receipt | forget receipt, reinstall | sudo pkgutil --forget audio.existential.BlackHole2ch | yes |
| Listed, records silence | no Microphone permission or volume at 0 | grant permission, max the sliders | System Settings > Privacy & Security > Microphone | no |
| Listed, speakers silent | BlackHole chosen as output alone | build a Multi-Output Device, speakers first | Audio MIDI Setup > plus > Create Multi-Output Device | no |
| Works, then glitches | no Drift Correction | tick Drift Correction on non-clock devices | Audio MIDI Setup > device > Drift Correction | no |
Fixes are the ones published in the BlackHole README FAQ and wiki; the receipt identifier was read on the author's Mac.
Where AirCheck fits
If the goal behind installing BlackHole was a clean recording of what the Mac plays, AirCheck ($39, macOS 14 or newer) removes the whole failure chain: no driver folder, no coreaudiod restart, no receipt, no Multi-Output Device. It captures system audio through ScreenCaptureKit after one Screen Recording permission, records 24-bit at the device rate (48 kHz on the author's Mac), and if the audio stream stalls it restarts capture into the same file after 5 seconds rather than leaving you with a silent take.
When you do not need it: If you need BlackHole as a virtual microphone or to pipe a DAW into OBS, keep fixing it; the steps above are the maintainer's own and AirCheck does not do routing.
AirCheck records what your Mac plays, or any input, to one file. $39 once.
macOS 14 or newer. One-off payment. Fourteen-day refund, no questions asked.
Questions people ask
Why is BlackHole not showing up in Audio MIDI Setup?
Core Audio has not loaded the plug-in yet, or the installer never wrote it. Run sudo killall -9 coreaudiod or restart the Mac, then check that /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/HAL contains BlackHole2ch.driver. If it does not, reinstall from the Desktop with right-click, Open.
Does BlackHole need a restart after installing?
Yes. The installation steps on the BlackHole wiki end with restarting the system when prompted, because coreaudiod loads plug-ins at start. Restarting Core Audio with sudo killall -9 coreaudiod is the shortcut.
Is there a separate BlackHole for Apple silicon and Intel?
Not any more. The README and product page say the current release is built for Intel and Apple silicon. If you are installing from an old package file, download v0.7.1 or newer from existential.audio or GitHub instead.
Why does BlackHole show up but record nothing?
Either the recording app lacks Microphone permission, BlackHole's sliders in Audio MIDI Setup are at zero, or nothing is being sent to BlackHole's output. Set the system or app output to BlackHole (via a Multi-Output Device to keep your speakers) and check the permission.
Sources
- Existential Audio: BlackHole README (FAQ, Homebrew, coreaudiod)
- Existential Audio: BlackHole wiki, Installation
- Existential Audio: BlackHole wiki, Uninstallation
- Existential Audio: BlackHole v0.7.1 release
- Existential Audio: BlackHole product page
- Apple: WWDC22, Meet ScreenCaptureKit
Related guides
- How to uninstall BlackHole or Soundflower on a Mac
- How to create a Multi-Output Device on a Mac (and keep hearing your audio)
- Is BlackHole safe for a Mac?
- What is a virtual audio driver, and when do you need one on a Mac?
- What is Audio MIDI Setup on a Mac?
- How to create an aggregate device on a Mac
- Virtual audio drivers and Audio MIDI Setup: all guides
- Every guide, by topic