Guide

How to make a Mac louder than its maximum volume

A quiet video, a call where someone mumbles, a podcast recorded too low: the volume is at the top and it still isn't enough.

Check these first

• The app's own volume. A video player, Spotify or a call app might be at half while the Mac is at full.
• The right output. Open Control Center › Sound and check sound is going where you think. A display or a disconnected device sometimes takes over.
• Bluetooth headphones. Some have their own volume, separate from the Mac's. Turn them up on the headphones, or in their app.
• Music's Sound Check and EQ. In the Music app, Sound Check evens out loudness by turning loud songs down. The EQ's Loudness preset makes quiet listening fuller.
• Accessibility. System Settings › Accessibility › Audio has options for mono audio and balance, which can make one ear quieter than the other.

Boost past 100%

The Mac's volume stops at the level its output was designed for. To go further, an app has to make the sound itself louder before it reaches the output.

With Sordina Pro

Louder adds up to +100% past the Mac's maximum, for every app at once or for one app on its own, so you can lift a quiet video without the next notification blasting. A limiter catches the loud peaks so they don't crackle.

1. Open Sordina from the menu bar.
2. To lift everything, click the bolt on the Mac row. To lift one app, click the bolt on its card.
3. Set how much in Settings › Boost. Start small, and turn it off when you're done.

Other options

• eqMac can boost the whole Mac past 100% in its free version.
• Background Music lets you boost quiet apps above their maximum, though its own notes warn that going above 50% on an app can clip.
• External speakers or headphones are the best fix if you're often at full volume: a boost can only do so much with small speakers.

Be careful with your ears and speakers

A boost makes everything that app plays louder, including sudden loud moments. Keep it as low as does the job, and be especially careful with headphones. If built-in speakers start to buzz or rattle, turn it down: that's the speakers reaching their limit.