leolion | 4 ngày trước | 5 min read

Audio Remote: Control Your Mac’s Mic and Volume from Your Phone

Online meeting, forget to turn on the mic and keep talking nonstop – everyone has gone through this, right? 😅

Part 1: Why do you need this app?

😩 The pains of online meetings

When working remotely, online meetings are everyday stuff. But there are some “classic” situations that drive everyone crazy:

1. Forgetting to turn on the mic
You’re sharing your screen to demo for the team, passionately explaining for a full 5 minutes. Then you see your coworker’s chat: “Hey, I can’t hear anything.” 🤦‍♂️

2. Forgetting to turn off the mic
You’re in a meeting and suddenly there’s a dog barking, a baby crying, or the clacking sound of a keyboard going straight into the call. Everyone looks at each other, not knowing where the sound is coming from.

3. Switching tabs to mute/unmute is a pain
You’re sharing Chrome, and to mute the mic you have to:
- Alt+Tab over to Google Meet/Zoom
- Click the mic button
- Alt+Tab back to the screen you’re sharing

It breaks your workflow, ruins your focus, and sometimes you even share the wrong screen!

4. Want to walk/run while in a meeting
AirPods have gesture control on iOS (tap the earbuds to toggle the mic). But on Mac? Nothing! Apple doesn’t allow it. So unfair!

💡 The solution: Audio Remote

I built an ultra-lightweight macOS app to completely solve these problems:

📱 Toggle the mic from your phone – no app install needed, just be on the same WiFi
🔊 Sync volume – tap the back of your phone to change your Mac’s volume
🖥️ HUD in the middle of the screen – instantly see whether you’re muted or unmuted
⌨️ System-wide shortcut – ⌘M to toggle the mic, works anywhere
⚡ Super fast – ~1ms latency

Goal: Everyone gets a “0-dollar Stream Deck” – control your Mac remotely without spending a penny! 😉

Part 2: Detailed step-by-step installation guide

Don’t worry if you’re not tech-savvy – I’ll walk you through step by step, from A to Z!

Step 1: Download and install the app on your Mac

Go to the following link and download the AudioRemote.dmg file:

👉 Download Audio Remote

Click the latest .dmg file (for example: AudioRemote-v2.4.0.dmg)

1.2. Installation

Open the .dmg file you just downloaded
Drag the Audio Remote icon into the Applications folder
Go to Applications and double-click to open the app

1.3. What to do if macOS blocks the app

If you see the message “App can't be opened because it is from an unidentified developer”:

Open Terminal (how to open: press Cmd + Space, type Terminal, press Enter)
Copy and paste the following command into Terminal:

xattr -cr /Applications/AudioRemote.app

Press Enter
Close Terminal and open the app again

1.4. Grant Microphone permission

When the app asks for Microphone access → Click Allow

If you accidentally clicked Deny, go to System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone → Turn on Audio Remote

Step 2: Turn on the HTTP Server and get your IP address

2.1. Turn on the HTTP Server

Look at the menu bar (top right corner of the screen) → you’ll see the 🎤 icon
Click that icon → Select Settings...
Find the HTTP Server section → Toggle it ON

2.2. Get your Mac’s IP address

Still in the Settings window, look at the Network Info section → Note the IP address (for example: 192.168.1.100)

💡 Tip: This IP will be used so your phone can send commands to your Mac. Make sure to write it down!

Step 3: Set up iOS Shortcuts on your iPhone

This is the most important step! You’ll download 2 ready-made shortcuts and only need to change the IP address.

3.1. Download the “Toggle Mic” Shortcut

On your iPhone, open the following link in Safari:

👉 Download the Toggle Mic Shortcut

Tap Get Shortcut (or Add Shortcut)
The shortcut will be added to the Shortcuts app

3.2. Download the “Sync Volume” Shortcut

On your iPhone, open the link below:

👉 Download the Sync Volume Shortcut

Tap Get Shortcut

Step 4: Change the IP address inside the Shortcuts

After downloading the shortcuts, you need to replace the default IP address with your Mac’s IP.

4.1. Edit the “Toggle Mic” Shortcut

Open the Shortcuts app on your iPhone
Find the shortcut you just downloaded (the name may be “Toggle Mac Mic”)
Tap the three dots (⋯) in the corner of the shortcut to edit it
Find the line with a URL like: http://YOUR_MAC_IP:8765/toggle-mic
Replace YOUR_MAC_IP with your Mac’s real IP (for example: 192.168.1.100)
Result: http://192.168.1.100:8765/toggle-mic
Tap Done

4.2. Edit the “Sync Volume” Shortcut

Do the same for the Sync Volume shortcut – replace YOUR_MAC_IP with your Mac’s IP.

Step 5: Add the Shortcuts to your Home Screen or Back Tap

Method 1: Add to Home Screen

Open the shortcut → Tap the three dots (⋯)
Tap the (i) icon in the top right corner
Select Add to Home Screen
Set a name and choose an icon
Tap Add

Now you can tap once on the Home Screen to toggle the mic!

Method 2: Assign to Back Tap

This is the coolest way – double-tap the back of your phone to toggle the mic!

Open Settings on your iPhone
Go to Accessibility → Touch → Back Tap
Select Double Tap
Scroll down to the Shortcuts section → Choose Toggle Mac Mic

Now double-tapping the back of your iPhone = toggling the mic on your Mac! 🎉

Method 3: Use Siri

You can say: “Hey Siri, Toggle Mac Mic” to toggle the mic!

Step 6: Test it!

Make sure your iPhone and Mac are on the same WiFi network
Start a Google Meet/Zoom call
Double-tap the back of your iPhone (or tap the shortcut on the Home Screen)
Look at your Mac’s screen → you’ll see the HUD showing the mic status
The mic will be toggled on/off!

🆘 Troubleshooting

Shortcut not working?

Check same WiFi: Your iPhone and Mac must be on the same WiFi network
Check if the IP is correct: Go to the Settings app on your Mac → check the IP again
Check if HTTP Server is ON: In Settings → HTTP Server should be ON
Test with Safari: On your iPhone, open Safari and type http://[YOUR-MAC-IP]:8765 → If you see a web interface, it’s OK

What if the IP changes?

If your router assigns dynamic IPs, the IP may change every time you restart the router. You need to:
1. Open the Settings app on your Mac → check the new IP
2. Update the shortcuts with the new IP

Tip: Configure a Static IP for your Mac in the router so the IP doesn’t change.

📥 Download

I found it so convenient that I’m sharing it for everyone to use for FREE!