Free plan includes 10 manual file transcriptions. Pro unlocks unlimited transcriptions, speaker diarization, parallel queueing, and export (PDF, text, Markdown, subtitles).
Overview
Beyond real-time voice dictation, Vowen can transcribe pre-recorded audio and video files. Use this for interviews, podcasts, recorded meetings, or any media file.How to Transcribe a File
Open the Transcribe dialog
Click the + Transcribe button at the top right of the Vowen window, or open Transcribe from the sidebar and click the same button there. A dialog opens with the upload options.
Pick a transcription model
Choose any of your configured local or cloud models from the Transcription Model dropdown. This selection is per-file, so you can run a single file through a higher-accuracy model without changing your global default.
Set language and speaker options
Pick a language from the Language dropdown, or leave it on Auto-detect. If your selected model supports speaker diarization, toggle Identify Speakers to label each speaker in the output (Pro feature). Leave Add Timestamps on (the default) to include clickable per-segment timestamps, or turn it off for a clean, timestamp-free transcript. (This toggle is hidden when Identify Speakers is on, since diarized output carries its own segment structure.)
Supported Formats
Audio:mp3, wav, m4a, aac, ogg, flac, wma, opus
Video: mp4, mov, avi, mkv, flv, wmv, webm, mpeg, mpg
For video files, Vowen automatically extracts the audio track before transcription.
Timestamps
For manual transcriptions using Parakeet or Whisper CLI mode, timestamps are included in the output. These appear as time badges marking when each segment was spoken. Most cloud transcription models also produce timestamps; refer to the Models Guide for specifics.File Size and Duration Limits
Vowen handles large files automatically. Compression and chunking happen behind the scenes based on the provider you pick:| Provider | Threshold | What Vowen does |
|---|---|---|
| Groq Whisper | 24 MB | Compresses WAV to MP3 at 96 kbps, then splits into chunks of about 30 minutes |
| ElevenLabs Scribe v2 | 50 MB | Splits into 20-minute chunks and merges the results |
| Mistral Voxtral | 50 MB or 27 minutes | Splits into 27-minute chunks |
| Sarvam Saaras v3 | 30 seconds (hard provider limit) | Splits into 28-second chunks |
| Deepgram, AssemblyAI, Soniox, Speechmatics, xAI Aurora | No client-side limit | Audio is sent as-is; provider-side limits apply |
Regenerating Transcriptions
When you open a completed transcription, the detail page shows a Regenerate Transcript panel in the sidebar with every model you have configured, grouped by Local and Cloud. Local models include Parakeet; cloud options can include Groq, Soniox, Deepgram, Mistral, AssemblyAI, Sarvam AI, ElevenLabs, Speechmatics, xAI, and any other provider you have connected.- Open the transcription detail page
- Pick any model from the panel
- For models that support speaker diarization, toggle Identify Speakers to label each speaker in the new transcript
- Click Regenerate Transcript
Export Options
Open a transcription and click Export to save it outside Vowen. The export dialog shows a live preview and lets you pick a format:| Format | Extension | Best For |
|---|---|---|
.pdf | Shareable formatted document | |
| Plain Text | .txt | Notes, copy-paste, archival |
| Markdown | .md | Docs, wikis, note apps |
| SubRip | .srt | Standard video editor subtitles |
| WebVTT | .vtt | Web video captions |
Exporting requires Pro, as does running multiple manual transcriptions in parallel (Queue Transcriptions) and toggling Identify Speakers.
Subtitle formats (SRT and VTT) only appear when the transcript has per-segment timing. Captions are timed straight from those segments — one cue per spoken segment, with speaker names when available. A transcript with no segment timing (for example, some batch output) won’t offer subtitles; use PDF, Text, or Markdown instead.
Renaming a Transcription
A transcription’s title defaults to the audio file’s name, but you can rename it. Open the transcription and edit the title field at the top of the detail page — changes save automatically and the new title shows up in your list.Organizing with Tags
Manual transcriptions have their own tag system (separate from meeting-note tags):- Add tags to any transcription card with add tag — create a new colored tag or reuse an existing one
- Use the tag filter bar above the list to filter by tags, with a Match: Any / All toggle when two or more are selected, plus sort options (Newest, Oldest, Recently tagged)
- Use the search box to find a transcription by name
Multi-Select & Bulk Actions
Select multiple transcriptions to act on them together. Hover a finished card to reveal its checkbox (or use Select all); a bulk-action bar appears at the bottom with:- Add tags — apply or remove tags across every selected transcription at once
- Delete — remove the selected transcriptions (deletion requires Pro)
Editing a Transcript
Open any completed transcription (or meeting note) to edit it segment by segment in the transcript editor:- Edit text — click into a segment and type. Undo and redo with
Cmd/Ctrl+ZandCmd/Ctrl+Shift+Z - Split a segment — open the segment’s actions menu (the
⋯button), place your cursor where you want the cut, and choose Split at caret. The split snaps to the nearest word boundary so it never breaks mid-word, and timestamps are interpolated to the cut point - Delete a segment — choose Delete segment from the same menu
- Reassign a line to a speaker — on diarized transcripts, the menu also lets you move a single line to a different speaker (or a new one). To fold two speakers together entirely, use Merge Speakers in the Speakers sidebar
Finding Text in a Transcript
PressCmd+F (macOS) or Ctrl+F (Windows) inside a transcript to open the find bar. It does a case-insensitive search across the whole transcript, highlights every match, and shows a current/total counter. Press Enter for the next match and Shift+Enter for the previous one (navigation wraps around); press Esc to close.
Playing Back the Audio
When a transcription has a saved audio file, a waveform player appears at the top of the detail page:- Play/Pause, plus Back 10s and Forward 10s skip buttons
- Scrub by clicking or dragging anywhere on the waveform to seek
- Click a segment’s timestamp to jump the audio to that point and start playing
- As audio plays, the current segment is highlighted and scrolled into view automatically (paused while you’re editing)