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Fix dictation and microphone problems
If dictation hears nothing, check the mic first: with your MacBook’s lid closed, macOS sends silence from the built-in mic. Pick your external mic in Settings then Dictation under “Input device”. No pill when you hold 🌐? Switch SwitchDesk on in System Settings then Privacy & Security then Input Monitoring.
The built-in mic returns silence
With the lid closed, macOS mutes the built-in microphone, and it records exact silence rather than failing. If your Mac’s input is still set to the built-in mic, dictation hears nothing. Open the lid, or pick a mic that’s on:
Pick a USB or external mic
Open Settings → Dictation and find “Input device”
It shows which mic dictation will use right now: “Right now, dictation will listen on …”.
Set “Microphone” to your mic
Choose your USB, headset or external mic from the list. If it’s newly plugged in, press “Re-scan”.
Set a “Fallback”
Input device
Which microphone dictation listens to. Set a fallback for when your preferred mic isn’t connected.
MicrophoneFallbackRight now, dictation will listen on USB Microphone.
If the primary mic isn't available, the fallback is used. "System default" follows whatever you have selected in System Settings → Sound → Input.
The Input device card in Settings → Dictation.
Connection errors
Dictation is English only and needs an internet connection: your voice goes to our transcription provider while you talk. Apple’s speech engine takes over only if Siri & Dictation is on and an offline dictation language is installed.
| What you see | What to do |
|---|---|
| “Transcription server unavailable. Try again in a moment.” | A brief outage or a network blip. Try again; it usually works the second time. |
| “Transcription timed out. Try again.” | The connection is slow. Try again, or switch networks. |
| “Cloud transcription unavailable. Or enable Siri & Dictation in System Settings.” | Check your connection. To keep dictating when it drops, switch on Siri & Dictation in System Settings. |
| “You appear to be offline, and this Mac has no offline dictation model yet. Reconnect to the internet, or add an offline dictation language in System Settings → Keyboard → Dictation.” | Reconnect, or add an offline dictation language where it says. |
Nothing gets typed
- No pill when you hold 🌐. Switch SwitchDesk on in
System Settings then Privacy & Security then Input Monitoring. - Accessibility is off. SwitchDesk needs it to paste into other apps. Check
Settings then Dictation’s “Permissions” card, orSystem Settings then Privacy & Security then Accessibility. - The microphone isn’t allowed. You’ll see “Microphone access needed. Approve it in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone.”
- An emoji picker pops up. Set Globe to “Do Nothing”: Set up the Globe key →
- The text went to the wrong place. Click the SwitchDesk icon in the menu bar and copy it from “Recent Dictations”.
Copy Diagnostics for support
Open Settings → Dictation and scroll to the bottom
The “Dictation diagnostics” card shows a one-line count of your recent sessions and how they ended.
Press “Copy Diagnostics”
The button reads “Copied”, and the report is on your clipboard. Paste it into an email to support@abstrakt.group.
The diagnostics card in Settings → Dictation.