Convo captures two audio streams during a meeting: your microphone, which becomes the "You" speaker, and your computer's system audio, which becomes the "Participant" speaker. Most audio issues come down to one of those streams not reaching Convo. Find your symptom below.

Convo can't hear my meetings

Audio permissions (Mac)

1. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone
2. Make sure Convo is toggled on in the list
3. If Convo isn't listed yet, start a recording once so it requests access, then return here and enable it
4. Restart Convo after making changes

Windows audio permissions

1. Open Windows Settings > Privacy
2. Select "Microphone" from the left sidebar
3. Make sure "Allow apps to access your microphone" is enabled
4. Scroll down and ensure Convo is allowed access
5. Restart Convo after making changes

Convo only captured my voice, not the other person

This is the most common audio issue, and it's a different problem from Convo hearing nothing at all. Convo captures two separate audio streams:

• Your microphone becomes the "You" speaker in the transcript.
• Your computer's system audio (the other participants' voices coming out of your speakers) becomes the "Participant" speaker.

If your transcript only shows "You," the system audio path isn't reaching Convo. Convo keeps recording your microphone and won't show an error, so the call still records, just one-sided. The fixes below depend on your operating system.

Mac: grant Screen Recording permission

On Mac, Convo uses the Screen Recording permission to capture other people's voices. It does not record your screen, it uses the same system permission to access system audio. Without it, only your microphone is captured.

1. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Screen Recording
2. Make sure Convo is enabled in the list
3. Restart Convo after making the change

Windows: check your default output device

On Windows, Convo captures whatever plays through your default output device. If the other person's voice is playing through a different device than the one Windows has set as default, Convo won't pick it up.

1. Open Windows Settings > System > Sound
2. Under "Output," note which device is set as default, this is the device Convo listens to
3. Open your meeting app's audio settings (Zoom, Teams, or Meet) and set its speaker to that same device
4. Make sure your output is your actual speakers or headphones, not a USB microphone (some USB mics appear as an output device, and selecting one stops Convo from capturing the other participants)
5. If it still doesn't work, set your speakers as both the Default Device and the Default Communication Device in the Sound control panel, some meeting apps route audio to the communication device specifically
6. Bluetooth headsets normally work fine. If one rare headset is stuck in "hands-free" calling mode, test with built-in speakers or a wired device to rule it out

Running Convo in a virtual desktop?

If you run Convo inside a virtual desktop session (Citrix, Azure Virtual Desktop, or similar), Convo may only capture your microphone and not the other participants' audio. Install and run Convo directly on your computer rather than inside the virtual session.

Audio cuts out partway through the meeting

If Convo captures both sides at the start but the transcript goes quiet after a few minutes, your audio device most likely dropped its connection mid-session. This is most common with Bluetooth headsets and some USB devices.

1. Switch to your laptop's built-in speakers or a wired device and continue the call
2. Restart Convo so it reconnects to your current audio device
3. Close other apps that may have taken control of the audio device, such as another recorder, OBS, or Discord
4. If it keeps happening on the same device, update that device's audio driver or use a different one for meetings

Audio quality is poor

Convo isn't detecting when I'm in a meeting

Manual meeting detection

If automatic detection isn't working:

1. Open the Convo app
2. Click the play button on the toolbar, or press Cmd+L (Ctrl+L on Windows), to start recording
3. Convo begins capturing your microphone and system audio
4. Press the same button or shortcut again to stop recording when your meeting is finished

Calendar integration

Connect your calendar for automatic meeting detection:

1. Go to Settings > Integrations
2. Connect your Google Calendar or Outlook
3. Convo will automatically detect scheduled meetings
4. Enable notifications for upcoming meetings

Platform-specific issues

Nothing is transcribed even though audio is playing

Convo streams audio to its transcription service in real time. If your computer is capturing the meeting fine but the transcript stays empty, the connection to that service is most likely being blocked, usually by a corporate network.

1. Disconnect from any VPN and try again
2. On a company network, ask IT whether a firewall or proxy is blocking outbound WebSocket connections
3. Try the same call on a different network, such as a personal hotspot, to confirm it's network-related
4. If it only happens on your work network, email us and we'll send the domains to allowlist

Advanced troubleshooting

Testing your audio setup

You can confirm both audio streams are working in under a minute:

1. Start a recording (play button on the toolbar, or Cmd+L / Ctrl+L)
2. Say a few sentences out loud, then play a short YouTube video through your speakers
3. Click Insights on the toolbar and open the Transcript tab
4. Confirm your speech appears as "You" and the video appears as "Participant"
5. If only "You" appears, work through the "Convo only captured my voice" section above