Show HN: RM2000 Tape Recorder, an audio sampler for macOS
18 comments
·June 17, 2025marcelox86
Hi everyone, seeing all the new responses here - I will want to warn of a bug on 1.0.1 that prevents some samples from getting saved properly, and all that is left is a hidden "cached" audiofile on the sample directory. I've fixed it in version 1.0.2 and it should be approved by App Store review team soon :)
mjcohen
I have used Audio Hijack for recording a meeting (M1 13" MBP). How does this compare?
asdhtjkujh
Well done; this app has been needed forever, yet shockingly missing for years. I have some homebrew solutions in Max/MSP and Ableton but they're cumbersome.
My one request / question: is there any way this could be triggered with a global shortcut? I've long dreamed of being able to record ambient audio from films while watching without leaving full screen, much like one would take a screenshot.
marcelox86
Alt + Command + G is the default! This can be changed from settings too :)
mastazi
From the website
> Recording system audio is still very clunky: audio routing hacks, third-party tools that aren't meant for the task - too many steps.
I really love the idea because I'm one of the people who previously had to use those hacks!
But I wonder what are the privacy implications? Maybe the OP could clarify that this:
> RM2000 Tape Recorder just listens. Whatever your Mac is playing, it can record it instantly
means that nothing is retained unless explicitly recorded by the user, right? There isn't cache somewhere that captures last X minutes of audio or anything like that?
dylan604
why call it a tape recorder instead of a digital recorder? nothing in the skeuomorphic design even hints at a tape recorder and looks much more like a digital recorder. if it's a tape recorder, do you introduce tape hiss based on a preference of what tape formula is being used? maybe then introduce a NR option? also, what type of tape are you recording too? is it cassette tape, or a professional studio tape? that would also have quality implications to consider. what about dirty heads or pinch roller that is sticking so the tape doesn't move at a constant rate? also, is it assumed that it's always a new tape with each recording, or will it emulate sound quality degradation of multiple re-use of the same tape? could be a cool easter egg like the crayon color picker with a system clock set far into the future
or is this just a for the lulz throw back because it's kool type of name?
null
notcrazylol
God bless you brother. Adding a one time fee for more features is welcome. I wouldn't mind paying :)
oidar
I can't get it to save to my sample directory. On 15.5 currently.
randomsofr
Love the app, UI is great, congrats! Small side note, website loads a bit slow on mi computer, using latest Chrome on latest MacOS.
krackers
I like the design, very "Delicious Era". That rosetta icon gave me hope it worked on PowerPC though (Rosetta 2 icon is different)
soneil
"This app is currently not available in your country or region." (Ireland)
Seems like a strange thing to be geolocked?
lagniappe
I like Oneohtrix Point Never :)
marcelox86
The original name of the project was actually supposed to be `replica.app`!
Had to change it because an AI company came out with an AI music tool called replica...but i hope daniel lopatin comes across it one day :D
RM2000 Tape Recorder makes it stupid simple to grab audio samples and organize them: just record the sample, give it a title (and maybe some tags), and it is saved neatly into a directory of your choosing.
I'm a huge datahoarder and have always appreciated tools / services like PureRef and Are.na which help me make sense of everything I collect. Those services concern themselves with images and video - I wondered, why can't the same be done with music and audiofiles?
I actually got the inspiration for the filenaming scheme from the Emacs Denote package - every sample is saved in the format of title--tag1--tag2.mp3. Emacs Denote does something similar, for example an identifier--title--keywords.org .
I chose this method as any file browser with fuzzy search can search through samples, i.e. - the Ableton file browser. Just search up some of the tags, and a title, and you'll be able to find your sample.
I wanted this app to look good, as well (and is why I spent so much time making it!) The app is made with a mix of SwiftUI and AppKit, while the assets were rendered in Sketch
I appreciate your time and I'd love to hear your thoughts on it. If you do download it, and find suggestions / bugs, please let me know!
Cheers