Studio software should put your creativity first. It should empower you to perform, inspire you to create, and equip you with tools to make your content shine. To that end, Game Capture excels.
- Jun 01, 2016 QuickTime Player. You may or may not know that Mac’s built-in QuickTime Player can do screen recording. You can also edit your screencast right in iMovie—you can add text, transitions, use zoom, and more. From “Finder” on your Mac, go to “Applications.”. Once in “Applications,” scroll to select “QuickTime Player.”.
- Studio software should put your creativity first. It should empower you to perform, inspire you to create, and equip you with tools to make your content shine. To that end, Game Capture excels.
Although there are a lot of audio recording programs out there claiming to record almost any sound play on computer, the fact you should always keep in mind is that only a few of them promise capturing high quality audio. Therefore, if you care much about the quality of your recordings, choosing a proper high-powered audio recorder could really matter. Are you just looking for such recording tool but with a low budget? Luckily, among the numerous audio recording software available on internet, we are glad to see most of them are offered for free. To help you quickly pick up the best free audio recorder online, we complied a list of top 5 most popular free audio recording software that can record streaming music, radios, in-game sound, music in videos, and any other sound play on Mac and Windows with high quality.
Top 1. Audacity (Mac & Windows)
As a well known open source audio recorder, Audacity is capable of recording and editing anything you throw at it, including audio through microphone and sound card all in a few clicks thanks to the clean interface. It also allows users adjust pitch, bass, and treble, or normalize noise and add effects like reverb and phasing to the recordings. In addition, it supports multi-track capturing to save a lot of time for you. And unlike most other free audio recorders which are free for a limited time or free with locked features, Audacity is a real free of charge audio recording application offered in full free version. Overall, Audacity offers one of the most robust packages available among free recording programs.
Pros:
1. Totally free and extremely easy to use;
2. Support recording any sound on computer;
3. Edit recorded audio's quality with many effects;
4. Support multi-track recording.
2. Support recording any sound on computer;
3. Edit recorded audio's quality with many effects;
4. Support multi-track recording.
Cons:
1. Require plugins to accomplish optimal functionality;
2. Can't export audio recordings to MP3;
3. Effect editing is destructive to original audio track.
2. Can't export audio recordings to MP3;
3. Effect editing is destructive to original audio track.
Top 2. Apowersoft Free Online Audio Recorder
Differing from Audacity or other desktop audio recording tools, Apowersoft Audio Recorder is a free online recording solution that needs no plug-in on Windows or Mac. It allows you record any sound from system sound card and microphone in high quality within 3 steps only. It fully supports capturing streaming music, radio stations, music in games, voice chats, etc. playing via devices like Windows Media Player, QuickTime, iTunes, Tablets, Chromebook, Android smartphones, iPhone, Windows Phone and more. Besides, it offers additional recording functions like converting audio records to MP3, WMA, AAC, FLAC, WAV, M4A, OGG, adding ID3 tags, sharing recorded audios online, playing recordings in real time, etc.
Pros:
Free Gaming Recording Software For Mac Free
1. Free and no need to install setup file on computer;
2. Support any sound sources;
3. Save recordings in multiple popular formats;
4. Support extensional functions for recording.
2. Support any sound sources;
3. Save recordings in multiple popular formats;
4. Support extensional functions for recording.
Cons:
1. Can't edit output audio quality;
2. Multi-track recording not supported.
2. Multi-track recording not supported.
Top 3. Ardour (Mac & Windows)
Ardour DAW is another great open-source audio recorder with professional music recording features and no cost. Developed by Paul Davis, Ardour is aiming at providing powerful recorder for studios who are at low budgets. Featuring highly versatile multi-track audio recording, Ardour can record and edit audios non-destructively or destructively. Its use of Jack, an underlying sound server, makes it compatible with a number of outside applications as well. With the release of third edition, Ardour is supposed to import video for film scoring purpose and record, edit MIDI without a hassle. However, unlike most of other free DAWs, Ardour comes with a confusing graphical user interface which is inaccessible for beginners. It's more like a professional tool developed for musicians or audio engineers.
Pros:
1. Free and professional;
2. Support multi-track recording;
3. Edit recorded tracks non-destructively.
2. Support multi-track recording;
3. Edit recorded tracks non-destructively.
Cons:
1. It's complex and difficult for newbie;
2. No built-in effects or instruments.
2. No built-in effects or instruments.
Top 4. Aktiv MP3 Recorder (Windows)
If you are looking for a free streaming music recorder that can convey CD, tape, DVD, live performance, TV, Internet radio, streaming music, video games and any other sound source into popular audio formats like MP3, WMA, OGG, VOX, AU, AIFF, then you can't miss Aktiv MP3 Recorder. As a full-featured audio recorder, the big difference between Aktiv and other free recording tools is that it comes with recording scheduler which provides you the ability to record streaming audio at certain times according to your requirements.
Pros:
1. Free streaming audio recorder;
2. Support most popular output formats;
3. Provide schedule recording tasks.
2. Support most popular output formats;
3. Provide schedule recording tasks.
Cons:
1. Available for Windows only;
2. Installer contains some extra software.
2. Installer contains some extra software.
Top 5. Traverso DAW (Mac & Windows)
Traverso DAW is another cross-platform free multitrack audio recording and audio editing suite with support for CD mastering and non-linear processing. Traverso is different with other in UI as it offers a unique user interface using both the mouse and the keyboard together for precision and speed. In addition, Traverso includes non-destructive editing, the ability to use plugins and make edits without changing the actual recorded sample. Also it is offering full support for ALSA, Jack and PortAudio, and lockless real-time audio processing.
Pros:
1. Fullfeatured free recording app;
2. Innovative keyboard and mouse shortcuts;
3. Support non-destructive audio editing.
2. Innovative keyboard and mouse shortcuts;
3. Support non-destructive audio editing.
Cons:
1. Take some time for users to get used to the shortcuts;
2. Need plugins to edit audio non-destructively.
2. Need plugins to edit audio non-destructively.
Conclusion & Suggestion
As you can see, all the above recording tools are free of charge to meet most of your recording needs with options of recording audio, adding effects, and cutting waveforms, as well as other basic recording tasks. To conclude, if you are referring an all-in-one application that combines easy operation and high performance, Audacity and Aktiv MP3 Recorder could be the best options. But if you concern more about the professionalism and quality, you are suggested to go for Ardour or Traverso DAW that are more professional oriented. Or alternatively, Apowersoft Audio Recorder could be a great choice if you don't want to install any software on your computer. If you still have no idea which one to choose, simply try them out one by one and decide which works best for you.
More Professional Audio Recorder for Low Budget
Of course, no piece of free software is without its shortcomings. So do those free audio recorders. They are not as advanced as other paid software in functionality. In case you are searching for such paid recording products with reasonable price, we highly recommend a quick alternative solution to you. The renowned program is called TunesKit Audio Capture. It's available for both Mac and Windows platforms. It costs $19.95 but with more powerful features, including multi-track lossless recording, automatically fulfilling ID3 tags, editing output quality, splitting or merging recorded tracks, etc. You can download the free trial versions as below to test it out by yourself. For complete tutorial, visit this user guide.
Nick Orin is a review writer, software geek and Mac OS enthusiast. He spends all his free time in searching useful software and gadgets to share with others.
For game lovers, one of their pleasures would be recording the best moments of their gaming life and upload them on YouTube or other social media to share with their friends. Thus it’s important and necessary to own a professional game recording tool that can easily capture the gameplay with no lags.
Since there are various game recording software available in the market, which will make people dazzling and lost about which to choose, here we have collected the top 7 free game recording software for Windows and Mac after our test. Just keep reading to get the best one for yourself.
Best Free Game Recording SoftwarePart 1. Top 7 Free Game Recording Software for Windows and Mac
1. Bandicam
OS: Windows
Bandicam Game Recorder can be one of the top choices for gamers to record 4K UHD video and capture up to 480 FPS video. It enables you to record your gameplay and upload the recorded file to YouTube without converting (720p/1080p full HD video can be made).
- PROS
- Record various 2D/3D games such as Minecraft, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, Roblox, World of Warcraft, and League of Legends that use the DirectX/OpenGL/Vulkan graphics technologies.
- Compress the video while recording, so you can get a smaller recorded file compared to other game recording software.
- Record 4K Ultra HD video at resolutions up to 3840 x 2160 in size and HD video with max. 480fps.
- Gamers can experience much less lag than with other free game recorders as Bandicam uses much lower CPU/GPU/HDD.
- Support for simultaneous Webcam and Screen recording.
- CONS
- Bandicam is not totally free gaming screen recorder, it only offers limited trial version.
- It lacks live streaming.
- It’s not armed with video editing tools to edit the recorded gameplay.
2. Apeaksoft Free Online Screen Recorder
OS: Windows, Mac
Apeaksoft Free Online Screen Recorder enables you to record games online for free. There is no need to install any software and it’s compatible with both Windows and Mac OS.
- PROS
- Totally free and no need to install desktop program.
- Record the gameplay skills and game video trailers to gain more likes on YouTube, Twitch, and more.
- Save videos and Music from streaming sites like YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook, SoundCloud, etc.
- Grasp all the sound in your computer like built-in system audio and microphone voice.
- CONS
- Lacks video editing feature.
- Not able to record 4K gameplay, only 1080p supported.
3. Apeaksoft Screen Recorder
OS: Windows, Mac
If you think Apeaksoft Free Online Screen Recorder lacks the feature you want in a free game recorder program, we recommend you to use its pro version, the desktop program Apeaksoft Screen Recorder. It’s available in both Windows and Mac platform and provides you with professional way to record gameplay, any online and streaming video/audio in various popular formats and take snapshot of game and screen with high quality.
- Record games with up to 60fps frame rate and share with friends on Twitch, YouTube or Facebook.
- Record game screen and your camera screen as well as your sound simultaneously.
- Record any online video on YouTube, DailyMotion, Netflix, Hulu, etc. with any popular video/audio format.
- Customize recording area and preview the recording before you save it.
- The built-in video editing tools enable you to edit video/snapshot and draw new labels to the recorded file.
How to record a game with Apeaksoft Screen recorder?
Step 1Free download and install this game recorder on your computer according to your computer OS.
Step 2After launching the recorder, select “Video Recorder” option and choose the recording gameplay area according to your need.
Step 3If you want to record yourself playing the game, you also need to select the Webcam option to open the camera in your computer. And turn on System Sound and Microphone to record the game sound and your voice at the same time.
Step 4Then click “REC” button to start recording your gameplay. During the gameplay recording, you are able to make drawing or add annotations based on your need by clicking the writing icon.
Step 5If you want to finish recording when the game is finished, just click the red square on the top left corner and it will show you the recorded video.
You can preview the recording to clip the video length or take screenshot. If you are satisfied with the game recording, you can save the video to the location as you like.
4. OBS Studio (Open Broadcaster Software)
OS: Windows, Mac, Linux
OBS is also a free game recorder loved by many gamers, it’s mainly used for live game streaming on Twitch and YouTube as well as gameplay recording for YouTube.
- PROS
- Free and open source game recording software for video recording and live streaming.
- Compatible with Windows, Mac and Linux.
- High performance in real time video/audio capturing and mixing from multiple sources.
- Enable gamers to record screen and webcam simultaneously.
- Compatible with YouTube, Twitch, Facebook Live, Rstream.io, etc.
- CONS
- The software interface is not so user-friendly.
- OBS is only able to record gameplay at up to 30fps.
- There is no video editing tool built-in this free game recorder.
5. Camtasia
OS: Windows, Mac
Camtasia is an all-in-one screen recorder and video editor that is able to record and create professional-looking gameplay videos on Windows and Mac.
- PROS
- Record webcam to add a personal touch to your gameplay.
- The pre-made animations allows you to customize your recording by adding effects, music and sound effects.
- Support 4K Resolution Video recording and Editing.
- Provide tutorials to help you start easily.
- CONS
- Limited trial version.
- Does not support for live streaming.
6. Fraps
OS: Windows
Fraps is a free game recorder for Windows 10, 8.1, 8, 7, Vista and XP that can be used with games using DirectX or OpenGL graphic technology.
- PROS
- Lightweight and easy to use.
- Show how many frames per second (FPS) you are getting in a corner of your screen. You can set the gameplay capture frame rate manually from 1 to 120 FPS.
- Highlight cursor and capture audio from an external input device.
- CONS
- The recorded file is in large size.
7. Dxtory
OS: Windows 10, 8.1, 8, 7, Vista and XP
Dxtory is another game recorder for DirectX and OpenGL Applications. Since data is directly acquired from a surface memory buffer, it is very high-speed and works with small load.
- PROS
- Dxtory is light but quite robust game recording software with extremely simple interface.
- It can record game sound and your microphone’s sound simultaneously.
- Record the highest quality by lossless video source.
- Support third party VFW codecs, you can specify the video codec you like and set FPS from 10-120.
Free Gaming Recording Software For Mac 10 6 8
- CONS
- Annoying trial notification, you need to pay for full version.
- Lack video editing tools.
Part 2. FAQ about Game Screen Recording
How to record games with no lag?
To record games smoothly with no lag, it’d be better to reduce the video resolution and record the game in windowed mode instead of full screen. What’s more, the performance of your computer will also affect the game recording.
How do I record myself playing games?
To record yourself playing games, you need to turn webcam on and record the gameplay screen and your face simultaneously. You can use Apeaksoft Screen Recorder or OBS Studio to record yourself playing games.
Can I edit the gameplay or take a snapshot when recording the game?
Most game recorders do not have the built-in editing function to let gamers edit their recording. If you need to edit the gameplay or take a screenshot during recording, among the top 7 free game recording software, Apeaksoft Screen Recorder and Camtasia can do you a favor.
Conclusion
In this article we have recommended top 7 free gaming screen recorders, whether you want to record games online for free, or record gameplay on PC/Mac with no lag, hope you can find the best free game recording software for your demand here.