An audio driver in macOS is system software that allows the operating system and applications to communicate with audio hardware (internal speakers, USB interfaces, Thunderbolt devices, etc.) or virtual audio pipelines.

| Driver Type | Buffer Size | RTL (ms) | CPU Load (%) | Stability | |-------------|-------------|----------|--------------|------------| | Core Audio (class compliant) | 32 | 1.8 | 4% | Excellent | | RME DriverKit driver | 32 | 1.5 | 3% | Excellent | | Generic USB 2.0 (no driver) | 64 | 3.2 | 5% | Very Good | | Virtual (BlackHole 2ch) | 128 | 8.5 | 8% | Good |