How to Transcribe Audio to Text on PC
Feb 3, 2023
Transcribing audio to text has become an increasingly popular task, as many people now realize the importance of having written records for their interviews and recordings. Transcribing audio to text is also a great way to increase accessibility and allow more people to access valuable content. There are a lot of reasons why one might want to transcribe audio to text in today’s world, but what is the best way to do it? After all, there are lots of ways to transcribe audio.
Fortunately, the days of needing to manually transcribe content are long gone, even though you can still take that route if you choose to. Nowadays, transcribing audio to text is a relatively simple process that can be done on a PC with the help of some specialized software. In this blog post, we’ll explore how you can transcribe audio to text on a PC. We’ll discuss the best tools available and how to use them in order to ensure accuracy in your transcriptions.
Manual Transcription
If you don’t want to use automatic transcription services, you can always try to transcribe a file yourself. Whether you’re transcribing a file on Mac or PC or don’t have a computer at all, this option works - it’s the old-fashioned way. To transcribe a file yourself, simply play it out loud at a slow pace in a quiet room and write down what you hear in a Google Doc or even on paper if you must, rewinding if you need to listen to something again.
While transcribing files yourself is possible, it is rarely a good idea. Transcribing files is time-consuming and tedious. If you have a lot of files to transcribe, it might even be impossible to do so in a timely manner! Human errors in manual transcriptions are also common, resulting in confusing content. For the best results, use a transcription tool to help you instead of doing it yourself.
Human Transcription Service
Another option for transcribing audio from your PC is to use an online service. There are several companies that offer human transcription services, and many of them have free trials. All you need to do is upload your audio file and wait for it to be transcribed by one of their human transcriptionists.
This can seem like a great option if you don't want to deal with installing any software. If you’re worried about accuracy, though, keep in mind that human errors are common, even among professional transcriptionists. Additionally, it can take a bit longer than using speech recognition software since humans have to listen to and type out the transcriptions manually. While working with a human transcription service might seem like a good idea, there are actually a lot of reasons why the alternatives are better options in 2023.
Microsoft Word Transcription
If you don’t want to use a human transcription service or transcribe audio yourself, you can always use software to help you. You might even be able to utilize software you’re already familiar with to help you transcribe audio to text; for example, did you know that Microsoft Word transcribes audio to text? While you probably already knew you can use this service to type content from scratch, you might not have known that you can also use it to transcribe existing audio to text.
Transcribing your audio to text in Microsoft Word is a relatively easy process, but you’ll need to make sure you have some software and accounts in place before you get started. First, make sure you’re using a browser that works with Word Online - either Microsoft Edge or Chrome, and that your browser is updated. You cannot use the regular version of Microsoft Word while transcribing; you’ll need the Word Online version in your browser.
After you’ve logged into your account and opened up Word Online, click Home and then “Dictate.” From the drop-down menu, you can then select “Transcribe” and “Upload audio.” You can upload your audio file from there, and Word will automatically transcribe your file into a Word document. This might take some time, but you’ll need to keep the window open as the software does its job.
Microsoft Word is definitely faster than writing down a transcription manually, but if you need an accurate transcription, there are better options out there like dedicated transcription services. If you use Microsoft Word to transcribe your audio to text, you’ll probably have to end up making plenty of edits to the text, since speech recognition isn’t always reliable.
Google Docs Audio-To-Text
If you're looking for a fast and easy way to transcribe audio to text, Google Docs’ transcription feature is one of the many transcript options you can choose from as an alternative to Microsoft Word. Google's free online word-processing software makes it easy to transcribe audio files (or your own voice!) in a matter of minutes.
To get started, open a new Google Doc and click on the "Tools" menu at the top of the page. From there, select "Voice Typing." Alternatively, you can also press CTRL + SHIFT + S to start Voice Typing. A microphone icon will appear on the left side of the screen; click on it to enable your computer's microphone. Note that this will not work if you are not using the Google Chrome browser.
Once your microphone is enabled, it will immediately start recording your voice in real-time. Simply start speaking into it or play your uploaded audio file and your words will appear in the document as text. If you make a mistake, you can always edit the text manually. When you're finished transcribing, simply click on the microphone icon again to disable the audio recording. You can then leave the document as it is and link others to it, or save it as a text file.
As with Microsoft Word, while Google Docs can transcribe audio to text, this isn’t always the best option as you’ll almost always need to manually edit the transcription yourself. Google Docs’ speech recognition is able to identify many words but might struggle with niche terminology or industry terms, and might also struggle to identify some voices.
Audio To Text Transcription Made Easy With Maestra
If you need to transcribe audio to text on your PC, Maestra's Transcription Tool can help. Our AI-powered software tool transcribes audio files quickly and easily. It's a faster, more accurate audio transcription tool that will turn your audio and video files to text within minutes. Compared to Microsoft Office, Google Docs, or manual transcription, our solution is more efficient and more accurate.
With Maestra’s transcription software and text editor, you can transcribe audio files of any length and in any language with significantly better accuracy than tools like Google Docs and Word. The tool is easy to use, and it only takes a few minutes to get started. Simply upload your audio file, select your desired language, and start transcribing. Best of all, you can give us a try for free today or book a demo!
Feb 3, 2023
