Click the SOURCE selector to choose theaudio source from which you wish torecord.

Select your audiosource.

Click the shiny record button to startrecording audio. When you've finishedcapturing your audio, click it again tostop recording.

Record your audio.

When you've finished recording, clickthe magnifying glass icon to reveal theaudio file. That's it!

Your file is ready!

That should get you started! You can explore the rest of the manual, or just diveright in! The full Piezo manual is always accessible from the Help menu.

The releases of Mac OS X 10.10 (Yosemite) and Mac OS X 10.9 (Mavericks) have led to somebig changes under the hood for Piezo, on all versions of Mac OS X. Most users should noticeno differences in their day-to-day usage of Piezo. However, these changes are significant, sowe've highlighted some differences you might see below.

Audio Capture

Basics

Piezo's audio capture engine has been overhauled for current compatibility as well as futureimprovements. If Piezo no longer works with an audio source as you desire, please contact usvia the Support form found in Piezo's Help menu.

Capturing Audio From Safari, FaceTime, or Messages

Unfortunately, due to underlying changes made by Apple, capturing audio from Safari,FaceTime, or Message is no longer possible with Piezo.

To capture web-based audio, you'll want to use another browser as your source in Piezo. Werecommend Google Chrome or Firefox. Use one of those browsers as your source in Piezo, andyou'll be able to record web-based audio.

If capturing audio specifically from Safari, FaceTime, or Messages is a requirement, you cantake a look at Audio Hijack Pro. It offers more powerful audio capture and is able to recordfrom these sources, thanks to its optional Instant On component.

Piezo: Super Simple RecordingPiezo makes it a snap to record audio on your Mac. With just a few clicks, you can recordaudio from any application, or from audio input devices like microphones. Piezo requiresalmost no configuration, and it's a blast to use.

Getting Started

We recommend having a quick read-through of this manual, but you can also just dive in ifyou like. You can refer back to the full manual for assistance at any time by accessing it fromthe Help menu.

Updated in Piezo 1.2.6:

An emergency update, necessitated by immediate changes Apple has madeto their Gatekeeper system, restores compatibility on Mac OS X 10.9.5 andhigher.

A few small bugs have been fixed.

What's New In Piezo 1.2

Piezo now tracks Skype's input and output devices, for easier VoIPrecording.

Piezo now features a Play-thru toggle in the Record menu, allowing theuser to toggle audio playthru on or off.

Piezo's preferences now feature a Reveal button, to show the Recordingdestination.

Piezo now properly handles periods in file names.

Piezo now better handles problems when the recording folder is unavailable, includingdefaulting back to ~/Music/Piezo.

Several other small improvements have been made.

System Requirements

A Macintosh computer

Mac OS X 10.7 or higher

Installation and Removal

To install Piezo, just drag it from your download folder to the Applications folder.

If you wish to remove Piezo, simply drag it to the Trash.

Purchasing Piezo

We provide a free trial of Piezo for you to test. During the trial, audio quality isdegraded after ten minutes of recording. The full version of Piezo can be unlocked witha license key from our online store.

When you're ready, head over to http://rogueamoeba.com/store/ to purchase Piezo.

For more information, see the Purchasing page.

Using PiezoGet started with details on the main Piezo controls, as well as information on recordingformats and editing audio!

Piezo's Main Window

Piezo's main window

Piezo's main window contains all of its essential controls to make recording audio a snap.When you open Piezo, you'll see this window. The VU meters at the top show audio activity:when the needles move, audio is being received from the selected source. Best of all, thedecibel scale on the meters is calibrated and accurate!

Below the VU meters is the Source selector, used to choose the application or device fromwhich to record audio. Once the desired source is selected, clicking the Record button allowsPiezo to record audio from the source.

When you're recording, you'll see the Record button illuminate, along with the VU meters.When you're done, click the Record button again to end your recording. Depending on yourpreferences, the recording may be automatically shown. If not, click the magnifying glass toreveal it.

You can adjust your recording settings from the settings popover. Click the file name or thesettings button to reveal the recording settings popover.

Recording Settings Popover

Piezo's Recording Settings

From this popover, you can change the filename of the recording you make, add a comment tothe file's metadata tag, and change the recording format.

Audio Play-thru

By default, Piezo allows audio to play-thru from application audio sources, but mutes audiodevice sources to prevent feedback loops from occurring. Using the Play-thru toggle found inPiezo's Record menu, however, it's possible to manually modify this behavior. Adjust this tosilence the play-thru of applications, or to hear the audio from input devices.

About Recording Formats

Piezo's Recording Formats

Piezo offers several options for recording. The names provide a basic guide for when eachformat should be used, but here's a bit more information:

AAC file format: The AAC audio format offers the best quality at a given bitrate. However,while widely supported, it is not as well-supported as MP3. Because of this, it's listed under"For personal use".

MP3 file format: The MP3 audio format has good quality levels, but not as good as AAC forthe same bitrate. However, it's nearly universal - just about every audio player in the worldsupports MP3. As such, it's listed under the "For Internet distribution" heading.

Bitrate: The bitrate is shown after the file format (For instance Music (high quality) is "AAC128 kbps Stereo"). This number gives you an idea the quality level, as well as the amount ofdisk space the recording will use. Higher bitrates will give you higher quality recordings, butalso use more disk space will be used. A simple estimate is that a 128 kbps file usesapproximately 1 MB of disk space per minute.

PreferencesPiezo's preferences can be accessed from the Piezo menu.

Piezo's Preferences window

Recording Settings

Save recordings to folder: All recordings made with Piezo will be saved to the locationspecified here. The default location is a folder called Piezo, inside your Music folder(~/Music/Piezo).

Show file after recording: When checked, this setting causes a Finder window to openafter each recording is finished, showing the recorded file.

Software Update

Automatically check for software updates: With this option activated, Piezo comparesitself to the most current version available from our server and alerts you when a new versionis available. Leave this on and Piezo will help you stay up-to-date.

Purchasing PiezoQuick Link: To buy a license key for Piezo, visit our online store.

Why should I buy Piezo?

Put simply, you should buy Piezo because it isn't free - we give you a chance to test out theprogram and all its features before you buy it. It's like test driving a car, for as long as it takesyou to decide.

In trial mode, all of Piezo's features are available to try, but it won't work for full-time use.During the trial, audio quality is degraded after ten minutes of recording.

If you use Piezo and find you like it, please purchase a license key - support the software youuse and love!

To purchase your license key, just visit http://rogueamoeba.com/store/.

Piezo can also be purchased through the Mac App Store.

After Purchase

How do I unlock the full version?

When you download Piezo from our site, you're receiving a free trial of the software. To get thefull, unlimited version, you just need a valid license key to unlock it. When you purchasethrough our store, you'll immediately receive a license key in your browser, as well as viaemail. This key will allow you to unlock the full version of Piezo. Simply enter your key intoPiezo as instructed, and you'll be all set.

What's your upgrade policy?

Our philosophy regarding paid upgrades is simple: We try to do what's right for you andwhat's right for us.

Rogue Amoeba doesn't have a hard and fast upgrade policy, just a great track record. Since2002, across our entire product line, we've provided dozens of major updates and hundreds ofnew releases total, free of charge.

If we add substantial new functionality, we may charge an upgrade fee. However, we do notmake most of our income from recurring sales, and we provide nearly all updates free ofcharge, including both bug fixes and new features. Finally, when an upgrade fee is charged, weeven grandfather in a generous amount of recent purchases with free upgrades.

What's your refund policy?

All Rogue Amoeba products are available as demos for an evaluation prior to purchase. We

believe that no customer should have to buy software in order to find out how well it works.Our software can be fully evaluated with no limitations in capabilities, prior to purchase.Customers are strongly encouraged to take advantage of these trials prior to purchase. Youmay also seek any needed technical support from us - we answer support emails rapidly andresponsively for current and potential customers alike.

If you would like a refund, please contact hello@rogueamoeba.com within 14 days of yourpurchase. Because we cannot recover the license key that was sold, refunds are issued on acase-by-case basis.

Getting More PowerPiezo is great to get you started recording audio, but you may want more power andfunctionality. If so, we may have a product that suits your needs.

Editing Recordings

Fission lets you edit audio recordings.

Piezo enables you to record audio, but what if you want to edit that audio after the fact? Thereare lots of audio editors out there, all of which should be compatible with the standard formatsto which Piezo records. We recommend our own audio editor, Fission. Fission edits audiolosslessly, so you never lose audio quality, even when editing MP3 and AAC files. Better yet,it's easy to use. Check it out via the free trial our site.

More Powerful Recording

Audio Hijack Pro provides more powerful audio recording options.

Piezo is a snap to get started with, but sometimes you may require more powerful recordingoptions. If so, you should check out Audio Hijack Pro. With Audio Hijack Pro, you can capturefrom already-running applications, record all System Audio at once, set timed recordings torun when you're not around, record to an enormous variety of recording formats, and more.See how Piezo and Audio Hijack Pro compare, then download a free trial right from our site.

Contact InformationPiezo Homepage

http://rogueamoeba.com/piezo/

Rogue Amoeba Homepage

http://rogueamoeba.com

Piezo Support

Check out our Support Center first.

If you still need help, choose "Contact Support..." from Piezo's Help menu to get in touch!

Rogue Amoeba Mailing List

Join the Rogue Amoeba low-traffic announcement list. There's no spam, EVER. It's as simpleas that.

http://rogueamoeba.com/company/lists/

Piezo Rights and RestrictionsDistribution

Unless explicitly stated in writing, Rogue Amoeba Software does not grant permission to sellPiezo ("The Software"). Non-profit distribution of The Software in its trial form is acceptableprovided that The Software is not modified in any way, and the complete works of TheSoftware are included in the distribution package. If The Software is to be included in adistribution package, Rogue Amoeba requests but does not require that one complimentarycopy of said package, sent to the following address:

Rogue Amoeba Software Marketing Department 25 Wheeler St. #314 Cambridge, MA 02138

What that said:

Don't sell this software directly for profit. If you want to distribute it, great! Just make sure it'sunmodified from the download from our site. If you create a distribution package, it'd be coolif you sent a copy to the address above, though this is not required.

Disclaimer

Piezo ("The Software") is provided as is. Rogue Amoeba Software ("The Author") is notresponsible for any damage to the user's computer system or data and in no event will TheAuthor, its officers, directors, employees or agents be responsible to the user for anyconsequential, incidental, or indirect damages (including damages for loss of business profits,business interruption, loss of business information, and the like) arising out of the use orinability to use the The Software, even if The Author has been advised of the possibility of suchdamages. Because some states do not allow the exclusion or limitation of liability forconsequential or incidental damages, the above limitations may not apply to you. Further, theconsumer agrees that using this software in any way illegal, or even for the purposes ofassessing its viability for illegal usage, is prohibited.

What that said:

Be safe when you use the software. Be aware that it's simply a tool designed to make your lifebetter. Don't use it to do illegal or evil things. If you do, be ready to take responsibility for yourown actions.