yip.
A small, fast audio recorder for Windows. Press a key, talk, press it again.
Go on — this page answers to it too.
What it does
Records what the microphone hears, saves it where you can find it, and gets out of the way.
One-key recording
Ctrl+Alt+RStarts and stops a take from any app, even with the window closed. Rebind it in Settings.
The recording pill
Top or bottomA small capsule shows the recording light, elapsed time and a live meter. Tap it for Pause and Stop. It can shrink to a single dot and let clicks pass through.
Pause without gaps
Instant resumeThe device stream stays open while a take is held, so resuming is immediate and the clock doesn’t count the pause.
A meter you can trust
Log · peak holdLogarithmic scale, peak hold, a clip lamp, and counters for overruns and dropped frames — if anything went missing, you’ll know.
Built-in playback
Ctrl+PClick a recording and it plays. Scrubbing is smooth because the capture engine simply runs in reverse.
Lives in the tray
One instanceClosing the window keeps Yip running and hands its memory back. The hotkey keeps working; the tray icon brings the window back where you left it.
Feels like Windows
Mica · light/darkWinUI 3 with Mica and acrylic, following your theme, with keyboard shortcuts throughout.
What it won’t do
- AI
- Cloud
- Telemetry
- Accounts
Yip makes no network calls. Not for analytics, not for updates, not once.
Your recordings are plain files in Music\Yip. Open them with anything.
This page is the same: no trackers, no cookies. It fetches its fonts and nothing else, and the demo up top never asks for your microphone.
Formats
Every encoder ships with Windows, so Yip bundles none of its own.
| Format | Settings | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| WAV | 16 · 24-bit · 32-bit float | Editing later. Long takes roll over into a new part before the 4 GB limit. |
| FLAC | 16 · 24-bit | Lossless at about half the size. |
| MP3 | 128 – 320 kbps | Sending to anyone, playing anywhere. |
| M4A | AAC · 96 – 192 kbps | Small files for voice notes. |
Yip vs. Sound Recorder
Windows already ships a recorder. It is a fine app to open and use. Yip is built for recording without leaving what you were doing.
| Yip | Sound Recorder | |
|---|---|---|
| Start a take | Ctrl+Alt+R from any app | Open the app, click Record |
| While you work | A small pill stays on top with time, level, Pause and Stop | Status lives in its own window |
| Between takes | Waits in the tray at 0% CPU, window memory handed back | Not running until you open it |
| Quality | Exact bit depth (16 / 24 / 32-bit float) or bitrate | Auto, Best, High or Medium presets |
| Meter | Log scale, peak hold, clip lamp, dropped-frame count | Live waveform |
| Markers | None | Yes, during recording |
| Built from | WinUI 3 and a Rust engine. No network calls | Microsoft Store app |
Inside
Native parts only. No web view, no runtime to install, no garbage collector anywhere near the audio.
WinUI 3
C++/WinRT, self-contained.
C ABI
A plain C header. Nothing else crosses.
Rust
Capture thread never allocates, locks, blocks or logs.
WASAPI
Event-driven, Pro Audio priority.
Keys
Get it
Download
yip-setupfor x64 or ARM64 from the latest release.Run it. It installs for you alone, so there’s no admin prompt.
If SmartScreen objects, that’s because the build is unsigned and new.
Press Ctrl Alt R.
- Needs
- Windows 10 2004 (build 19041) or later
- Runs on
- x64 and ARM64. Windows 11 is home.
- Recordings
%USERPROFILE%\Music\Yip- Settings
%LOCALAPPDATA%\Yip\settings.json- Uninstall
- Leaves your recordings and settings where they are.
- License
- MIT. Build it yourself with VS 2022, Rust and CMake.