Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Find quick solutions and troubleshooting tips for common issues in DuRT.
1. Permissions & Audio
Q: Why is there no sound captured during Live Caption?
- Ensure that Screen & System Audio Recording is enabled for DuRT in
System Settings➔Privacy & Security. - Make sure the audio playing app (e.g. Safari, Chrome, Zoom) is not muted.
- If you recently granted permissions, please restart DuRT (
⌘ + Q).
Q: Does DuRT require kernel extensions or virtual audio drivers?
- No. DuRT uses Apple's native ScreenCaptureKit and CoreAudio, requiring zero kernel extensions or third-party virtual audio cables.
2. Models & Performance
Q: Does Apple Speech Recognition work completely offline?
- Yes. When on-device dictation is enabled in macOS System Settings, Apple Speech functions 100% offline on your device with zero internet access required.
Q: How can I achieve higher accuracy or specialized multilingual transcription?
- We recommend integrating the OneASR Gateway or OpenAI Whisper API. These engines support advanced word-level timestamp alignment and speaker diarization across dozens of languages.
3. Subtitles & Workflows
Q: How do I export subtitles with word-level timestamps?
- In the Media Transcription step configuration, enable the Word-level Timestamps toggle. When export is executed, select
.jsonor timed.srt.
Q: Can I run custom prompts for LLM proofreading?
- Yes. In the LLM Process step, you can customize the system prompt or select from built-in categories (Proofreading, Translation, Summary, Semantic Segmentation).
4. Account & Billing
Q: Is DuRT free? What is the difference between Free and Pro?
- Core dictation and transcription are permanently free: DuRT Free features unlimited duration and file size, internal live audio captions, offline Apple speech recognition, and direct BYOK connections.
- DuRT Pro: Unlocks automated multi-step pipelines, AI semantic proofreading/segmentation/translation/summary, TTS voiceovers, screen recording, hardcoded burn-in subtitles, 4K export, and one-click Notion sync.
- For a comprehensive breakdown, see the full Plans & Feature Comparison Matrix (Free vs Pro).
Q: What plans are available for DuRT Pro?
- A 5-Day Full Pro Trial is automatically activated upon first install (no credit card or upfront subscription needed).
- Afterward, you can choose from Monthly ($1.99/mo), Annual ($17.99/yr), or a Lifetime License ($34.99) via the Mac App Store with full Apple refund and subscription protections.
Q: Are there extra fees when using my own API keys (BYOK)?
- Using Apple on-device offline recognition or local models like Ollama is 100% free with zero network costs.
- When connecting to cloud providers (OpenAI, DeepSeek, etc.), requests go directly from your Mac to the provider. Token usage is billed directly by the provider according to your account with zero middleman markup by DuRT.