Troubleshooting: overview by symptom

Applies to: Windows, macOS, Linux

Find your symptom below and open the linked article. Check the four points in the box first.

Check first: Stenowise is up to date (Settings › About › Check for updates › Check now). Stenowise has the permissions it needs: microphone access on Windows and macOS, and Accessibility on macOS as well. The device is signed in, so Settings › Account shows “Signed in on this device”. The microphone you speak into is at the top of the list under Settings › Dictation › Microphone › Change.

Recording and microphone

If Stenowise shows “No microphone found”, “No access to the microphone” or “Microphone not responding”, read Stenowise can’t hear me.
If the on-screen indicator shows “No signal” during a recording, Stenowise can’t hear me also helps.
If quiet words are missing from the text, Check your microphone shows whether the level is too low or the driver filters the signal.
If Stenowise records through the wrong microphone, set the order as described in Choose a microphone and set the order.

Dictating and pasting

If pressing the shortcut does not start a recording, read The shortcut does not work.
If “Text could not be pasted” appears or the text lands in the wrong window, read The text is not pasted.
If a field does not accept a change by voice, Change text by voice explains how to paste it from the clipboard.
If a dictation takes a long time or the indicator shows “this is taking a bit longer”, read Stenowise is slow.

Recognised text

If names or technical terms are wrong or “Possible recognition error” appears, read The recognised text is wrong.
If the text appears in the wrong language, choose a fixed language as described in Dictate in several languages.
If “Raw version pasted” appears or punctuation is missing, Why is the raw version there? explains the reasons.
If Stenowise shows “Recognition failed”, dictate again or use “Recognise again” in the history.
If “Recognition on this device did not start” or “No tier downloaded yet” appears, read On-device recognition does not start.

Account and weekly limit

If “Sign-in required” appears, read “Sign-in required” appears.
If “Weekly limit reached” appears, What happens when the weekly limit is reached? explains when you can dictate again.

Start and updates

If Stenowise does not start, the window is missing or “Unexpected shutdown” appears, read Stenowise does not start or shows no window.
If Stenowise shows “Update check failed” or an update does not install, read Update Stenowise.

Not listed

Some limits are known and listed under Known limitations. For anything else, report the problem under Support › Report a problem.

Last updated 28 September 2026