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 --format=cd {{path/to/file.wav}}

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

arecord -vv --format=cd --duration={{10}} {{path/to/file.wav}}

• Record a snippet and save it as an MP3 (finish with Ctrl-C when done):

arecord -vv --format=cd --file-type raw | lame -r - {{path/to/file.mp3}}

• List all sound cards and digital audio devices:

arecord --list-devices

• Allow interactive interface (e.g. use space-bar or enter to play or pause):

arecord --interactive

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

arecord -d 5 test-mic.wav && aplay test-mic.wav && rm test-mic.wav