VoiceMeeter Banana

VoiceMeeter is a free virtual audio mixer for Windows from VB-Audio, and it solves the same routing problems Mac users tackle with Loopback or Audio Hijack. The Banana edition adds extra hardware inputs and outputs plus more virtual buses, which is the sweet spot for podcasters with multiple sources to manage.

You can route system audio, browser sound, a USB microphone, and a Discord call into separate channels for a multi-track recording, or send a clean mix to OBS while keeping a separate monitoring feed. The interface, fair warning, looks like a 1990s hardware mixer.

The metering is small, the labels are abbreviated, and the routing logic takes a few hours of YouTube tutorials and trial-and-error to internalise. Once you do, however, you have a serious tool for free, with the same architectural flexibility as paid alternatives.

Windows feature updates have historically caused some VoiceMeeter setups to break, requiring a reinstall or a driver refresh, so plan for the occasional troubleshooting session. VB-Audio also offers Potato, a more expansive edition with even more channels and routing options.

For most podcasters Banana is plenty. Donate if you use it regularly; the developer earned it. VB-Audio also offers Potato, a more expansive edition with even more channels and routing options, but for most podcasters Banana is plenty.