SuperCollider records the server's live audio output to a sound file with record and stopRecording

SuperCollider can capture whatever the audio server is playing straight to disk, so a live-coded or improvised performance is saved exactly as heard — every real-time parameter change included, with no re-render. The basic procedure: call s.record to start writing the server’s output buses to an audio file, make sound, then s.stopRecording to close it; the Post window prints the saved file path (a WAV/AIFF in the default recordings folder). s.makeWindow opens a GUI with record/mute/volume buttons for the same purpose. For finer control, s.prepareForRecord opens the output file ahead of time and must run before recording starts, then s.record begins, s.pauseRecording/s.record pause and resume, and s.stopRecording finishes. Because the server records its own output bus, any synth playing while recording is active is captured. Wrapping the sound-starting code and s.record together in s.bind (a synchronised bundle) keeps the start of the sound and the start of recording sample-aligned.

Examples

s.record;
{Saw.ar(LFNoise0.kr([2,3]).range(100,2000), LFPulse.kr([4,5])*0.1)}.play;
s.stopRecording; // Post window prints the saved file path

// sample-aligned start:
s.prepareForRecord;   // must run first
s.bind({
  x = { SinOsc.ar(440, 0, 0.2) }.play;
  s.record;
});
s.stopRecording;

Assessment

Record a 20-second live-coded loop to a sound file, pause and resume mid-loop, then stop, and locate the file from the printed path. Explain why prepareForRecord must precede record and why s.bind is used to start the sound and the recording together.