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RME User Forum → TotalMix FX → TotalMix routing — Mic for macOS Dictation without speaker feedback (U
Hi everyone,
I have an RME Fireface UFX III connected to a Mac M4. My speakers are connected to the Main Out (XLR), and I have a microphone connected to the Mic 9 input with phantom power (+48V).
I use macOS Dictation for speech-to-text. I want to be able to use dictation while the speakers are active, without feedback, via a TotalMix snapshot.
Can't find I solution.
Can anybody help me?
Thanks.
Sotiris
Move the fader of the main out a little bit.
Lift the fader from software playback 1/2 (Dictation app)
Thats all, you really want to save this to a snapshot ?
Hit the Store button in the snapshot area, the snapshots are blinking.
Move the faders to your desire and hit the snapshot mix number you like to store to.
If you have feedback, make action in Dictation switch off input monitoring.
Anyway for this job "mono-audio speech recording" I recommend to use a headphone instead of loudspeakers during the recording.
Afterwards listen the result via loudspeakers with the mic down to avoid feedback.
Thanks for the reply. To clarify, I'm not recording audio — I'm using macOS Dictation (speech-to-text) which requires the mic signal to reach the Mac via loopback. The issue is that with loopback ON on the Main output, any sound coming from the speakers (system audio, music, etc.) feeds back into the loopback and interferes with the speech recognition. Simply lowering the Main fader defeats the purpose since I won't hear anything. I need a routing solution where the mic reaches the Mac for dictation, but the speaker output doesn't feed back into the loopback signal.
The Dictation tool can not select other input channels than 1/2, right ?
This is a bottleneck.
And you have connected the loudspeakers to the output 1/2 but unfortunately you need channels 1/2 for Loopback.
solution : You have to connect the loudspeakers to other outputs.
Use jack cables and connect to outputs 3/4
In Totalmix Assign Main-out to output 3/4 Loopback OFF routing software playback 1/2 (Dictation and computer music) there
Output 1/2 Loopback ON and routing of Mic input 9 there
Edit : @Kubrak sorry I edited my post in the same time as you were writing yours.
Use headphones. Or use microphone with cardoid/hypercardoid pattern and place it properly so that it catches as few signal from loudspeakers. And place it close to you so that your speach is way stronger than what mic catches from loudspeakers..
Also lowering volume of loudspeakers helps.
And if you need to use the loopback (why do you need it?), you could route mic mix signal also to a different output and loopback that output. That way, you could lower the volume of loudspeaker without lowering signal for text to speach App....
Thanks for the replies.
@waedi — You understood the problem correctly. However, I'd prefer not to physically reconnect my speakers to different outputs. I'm looking for a software-only solution within TotalMix.
@Kubrak — I need loopback because macOS Dictation only recognizes the RME input through loopback on the Main output. I've already tried loopback on other outputs (Phones, AN 3/4) and Dictation doesn't pick them up.
What I'm essentially looking for is a way to keep the Main fader up (so loopback sends the mic signal to the Mac) but prevent the audio from actually reaching the physical Main Out XLR outputs — purely through TotalMix routing, without changing any cables. Is there a way to have the Main mix bus active for loopback purposes while muting or disconnecting the physical output? From what I've tested so far, muting the Main also kills the loopback signal, which suggests the loopback tap point is post-fader and post-mute on the UFX III.
It is not possible within Totalmix only.
Dictation seems to work fix on channels 1/2 and your loudspeakers are connected to channels 1/2 this is the conflict.
It is possible by using an additional software like Loopback from Rogue Amoeba
Another workaround :
Use an external mic preamp and connect it to the line input number 1 on the backside of the UFX.
Then the mic signal goes straight into Dictation without need of any Loopback.
or (this is the best solution I can offer) :
create a cable Loopback with a jack cable on the backside of the unit, from any line output to input 1, routing the mic signal in Totalmix to the output with that cable. This is cheap and done quick. (and switch off all loopback in Totalmix)
It is all a bit cumbersome but thats how it is.
Please check if this Dictation tool has a preference setting to select different input channels, I think it can't but thats just my expectation.
Thanks @waedi for confirming this. It's unfortunate that TotalMix doesn't offer a way to keep the loopback signal active while muting the physical output.
Regarding Loopback by Rogue Amoeba — I'll look into it, though it seems like an expensive workaround for something that could be handled internally.
If anyone else has a different solution or approach, I'd really appreciate it.
This also feels like it could be a useful feature request for RME: a 'loopback pre-output' option, or the ability to mute the physical output independently without killing the loopback signal. This would make loopback much more versatile for use cases like dictation, streaming, or any scenario where you need to send audio to the host without it coming out of the speakers.
I know that you do not want to move monitors to other outputs, but it is probably the best solution for your problem....
RME User Forum → TotalMix FX → TotalMix routing — Mic for macOS Dictation without speaker feedback (U
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