Recording

Choosing an audio source, using Otonota with Zoom or Google Meet, input devices, and what happens if a recording is interrupted.

Audio source

Settings > Audio > Audio input > Audio source decides what gets recorded. Changes apply from the next recording.

Source	Records	Use it for
Microphone only	The Mac’s microphone, or the input device you chose	In-person meetings, interviews, lectures
System audio only	Whatever the Mac is playing	Recording only the other side of an online call, or the audio of a video

With “system audio only”, the input device is not used. To record a microphone or line input, choose “microphone only”. The current version can’t record the microphone and system audio at the same time.

Zoom, Google Meet, Teams

1. Set the audio source to “system audio only”
2. Open the meeting app and start recording in Otonota. The first time, macOS asks for Screen & System Audio Recording permission. After granting it, relaunching the meeting app makes sure the permission takes
3. The other participants come in through system audio. Your own voice doesn’t, because the meeting app doesn’t play it back

If you want your own voice in the recording too, set the audio source to “microphone only”, skip the headphones, and let the other participants play through the speakers. The microphone picks up both sides.

System audio is captured with macOS’s ScreenCaptureKit. The screen itself is never recorded.

Input device

Settings > Audio > Input device lets you choose the built-in microphone, an external microphone, or an audio interface. “System default” follows the macOS Sound settings. Devices that aren’t connected show as “(not connected)”.

Level

The transcript pane has a level meter at the top. The dotted line is a guide to the threshold used to leave long silences out of recognition. “Auto gain” amplifies quiet voices.

Stopping and resuming

Press the record button (⌘R) again to stop. Recording again in the same session appends to it, with timestamps continuing from where they left off. Start a new session for a different meeting.

If a recording is interrupted

Recording files are saved every few seconds, so a crash doesn’t lose the audio and transcript so far. On next launch, Otonota asks whether to resume recording in the same session; if you do, a new recording block starts there.

If writing the recording file fails mid-session, Otonota switches to a new file and keeps going. If the transcript pane says the recording file couldn’t be saved, check your free disk space.