Audio Troubleshooting

Common recording issues and how to fix them.

Most recording problems come down to permissions or model configuration. Work through the relevant section below to resolve your issue.

No audio captured

If you start a recording but the transcript stays empty with no audio waveform activity, check these in order:

1. Verify both permissions are granted. Open System Settings > Privacy & Security and confirm that QuickContract is enabled under both System Audio Recording and Microphone. See Audio Permissions for step-by-step instructions.
2. Restart QuickContract. After granting or changing permissions, macOS sometimes requires the app to be restarted before the new settings take effect. Quit QuickContract fully (Cmd + Q) and relaunch it.
3. Check your macOS version. System audio capture requires macOS 14.2 or later. Open Apple menu > About This Mac to verify. If you're on an older version, update macOS before attempting to record.
4. Confirm audio is playing. Make sure the other participants are actually speaking and that your Mac's audio output is not muted. QuickContract captures the system audio output — if your volume is muted at the OS level, there may be no audio signal to tap.

Only hearing one side

If the transcript only contains text from one speaker ("me" but not "them", or vice versa), the issue is typically a missing permission for one of the two audio streams.

• Missing "them" (no other participants): The System Audio Recording permission is likely not granted. QuickContract needs this permission to tap the audio output from your meeting app. Grant it in System Settings > Privacy & Security > System Audio Recording.
• Missing "me" (your voice absent): The Microphone permission is denied. QuickContract will still record system audio when mic access is missing, but your side of the conversation won't appear. Grant Microphone access in System Settings > Privacy & Security > Microphone.

After enabling the missing permission, restart QuickContract and start a new recording to confirm both streams are working.

Transcription is blank or garbled

If audio waveforms show activity but the resulting transcript is empty, garbled, or full of repeated words:

• No Whisper model downloaded. Open Settings > Meeting Recording and check whether a model is downloaded. You need at least the base model installed before transcription can work. See Whisper Models.
• Very short recording. Recordings under a few seconds may not produce meaningful transcription. Whisper processes audio in 10-second chunks, so very brief recordings might not generate enough data for a complete chunk.
• Try the large model. If you're transcribing conversations with heavy accents, non-English languages, or specialized vocabulary, the base model may struggle. Download and switch to the large model in Settings for improved accuracy.
• Background noise. Excessive background noise can interfere with transcription quality. If possible, use headphones and a dedicated microphone to improve the audio signal.

Call detection not working

If QuickContract doesn't show the recording banner when you join a call:

• App not supported. Call detection monitors a specific list of apps: Zoom, Teams, Slack, Discord, FaceTime, and Webex. If you're using a different app or a browser-based call, detection relies on the microphone activity fallback (5 seconds of sustained mic use). Make sure your microphone is active.
• Detection disabled for that app. Check Settings > Meeting Recording > Call Detection to confirm the app's toggle is enabled. You may have previously disabled it.
• App running but no active call. Process enumeration detects when the app is running, not necessarily when a call is active. If the app is open but you haven't joined a meeting, the banner may appear briefly and dismiss. This is expected behavior.

Recording stops unexpectedly

If a recording ends before you expect it to, auto-stop is the most likely cause. QuickContract's auto-stop feature triggers when the meeting app is no longer running and 15 seconds of silence is detected. Before the recording is finalized, a 10-second countdown appears — clicking Cancel during this countdown keeps the recording going.

Common scenarios that trigger auto-stop:

• You left the meeting but forgot to stop recording. This is auto-stop working as intended — it cleans up after you.
• The meeting app crashed or was force-quit. QuickContract sees the process disappear and, combined with the resulting silence, initiates auto-stop.
• Long pause in conversation. If the meeting app is closed during a silent pause (for example, you end the call during a break), auto-stop may trigger. Watch for the countdown banner and cancel it if the meeting isn't actually over.