No transcription available for some phone call recordings and will not complete transcribing

I have used phone call recording a few times. The first couple (about one or two minutes long) generate a transcript quickly in Notes. However others that range from about 30 to 70 minutes do not generate any transcript - either automatically or manually, after the recording has finished.

I have tried (many times) to manually initiate a transcript for a recording that is one hour and 10 minutes long. Initially it says "No Transcript - Transcription will begin soon." Eventually it (may) say “Transcribing…” with a spinning icon above that (but no progress bar). I have left it to work on this over one hour recording for several hours, each time I tried. It never moves beyond saying “Transcribing…”. I am guessing it will never complete.

I would like to know why this recording (or another that is about 30 minutes long) do not have an automatically generated transcript or will not compete transcribing.

I would also like to know approximately how long it should take for each minute of audio recording to be transcribed on my device (or if this should be happening in real time).

iPhone 12 mini

Posted on Oct 30, 2024 4:00 PM

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GabeMcClintock

Level 1

12 points

Posted on Dec 10, 2024 8:02 AM

How do you take the file from notes and drop it into Voice Memos?

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BigJob80

Level 1

8 points

Mar 31, 2025 5:24 PM in response to Kiwi Moa

The fact that I have to come to a forum, to learn to export the recording to another app, to get the software to actually do what it’s supposed to, is sad.

Apr 2, 2025 2:02 PM in response to jillsuz7

Same. There was some sound degradation, though, so the transcription was worse than usual.

To minimize it, I connected speakers to my mac that are far superior to the tiny built-in out, and then made a mini recording studio on my bed:

I set the speakers on the mattress facing each other, just far enough apart to slide my iphone between them. I built a pillow wall around them, and a sheet and comforter over the top. Then I reached in to start the recorder, and last, started the outgoing recording to play on my laptop.

I got a much better transcript than my first try, just mac to iphone sitting on the desk.

What a pain, though. I had a 3.5-hour interview, so I kept setting a timer to restart a new recording every 30 minutes, so those weren't also too long. Then keep track of exactly where all the 7 files began and ended, with no gaps was a big exercise.

This took most of a day. So much for apple's productivity tool!

No transcription available for some phone call recordings and will not complete transcribing

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No transcription available for some phone call recordings and will not complete transcribing