arecord Command Examples

Sound recorder for ALSA soundcard driver. More information: https://manned.org/arecord.

• Record a snippet in "CD" quality (finish with <Ctrl c> when done):

arecord {{[-vv|--verbose --verbose]}} {{[-f|--format]}} cd {{path/to/file.wav}}

• Record a snippet in "CD" quality, with a fixed duration of 10 seconds:

arecord {{[-vv|--verbose --verbose]}} {{[-f|--format]}} cd {{[-d|--duration]}} {{10}} {{path/to/file.wav}}

• Record a snippet and save it as an MP3 (finish with <Ctrl c> when done):

arecord {{[-vv|--verbose --verbose]}} {{[-f|--format]}} cd {{[-t|--file-type]}} raw | lame -r - {{path/to/file.mp3}}

• List all sound cards and digital audio devices:

arecord {{[-l|--list-devices]}}

• Allow interactive interface (e.g. use <Space> or <Enter> to play or pause):

arecord {{[-i|--interactive]}}

• Test your microphone by recording a 5 second sample and playing it back:

arecord {{[-d|--duration]}} 5 test-mic.wav && aplay test-mic.wav && rm test-mic.wav