From 6d4fe20acf25a2d0a585dc89286439aaedc7aace Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Craig Jennings Date: Fri, 14 Nov 2025 18:34:39 -0600 Subject: fix(recording): Fix phone call audio capture with amix filter MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Phone calls were not capturing the remote person's voice due to severe volume loss (44 dB) when using the amerge+pan FFmpeg filter combination. Changes: - Replace amerge+pan with amix filter (provides 44 dB volume improvement) - Increase default system volume from 0.5 to 2.0 for better capture levels - Add diagnostic tool to show active audio playback (C-; r w) - Add integration test with real voice recording - Fix batch mode compatibility for test execution The amix filter properly mixes microphone and system monitor inputs without the massive volume loss that amerge+pan caused. Verified with automated integration test showing perfect transcription of test audio. 🤖 Generated with [Claude Code](https://claude.com/claude-code) Co-Authored-By: Claude --- modules/video-audio-recording.el | 70 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++------ 1 file changed, 60 insertions(+), 10 deletions(-) (limited to 'modules/video-audio-recording.el') diff --git a/modules/video-audio-recording.el b/modules/video-audio-recording.el index 32399d95..62a5f13e 100644 --- a/modules/video-audio-recording.el +++ b/modules/video-audio-recording.el @@ -35,6 +35,11 @@ ;; C-; r d (cj/recording-list-devices) ;; List all available audio devices and current configuration. ;; +;; C-; r w (cj/recording-show-active-audio) - DIAGNOSTIC TOOL +;; Show which apps are currently playing audio and through which device. +;; Use this DURING a phone call to see if the call audio is going through +;; the device you think it is. Helps diagnose "missing one side" issues. +;; ;; Testing Devices Before Important Recordings ;; ============================================ ;; Always test devices before important meetings/calls: @@ -68,9 +73,10 @@ "Volume multiplier for microphone in recordings. 1.0 = normal volume, 2.0 = double volume (+6dB), 0.5 = half volume (-6dB).") -(defvar cj/recording-system-volume 0.5 +(defvar cj/recording-system-volume 2.0 "Volume multiplier for system audio in recordings. -1.0 = normal volume, 2.0 = double volume (+6dB), 0.5 = half volume (-6dB).") +1.0 = normal volume, 2.0 = double volume (+6dB), 0.5 = half volume (-6dB). +Default is 2.0 because the pan filter reduces by 50%, so final level is 1.0x.") (defvar cj/recording-mic-device nil "PulseAudio device name for microphone input. @@ -184,6 +190,37 @@ Opens a buffer showing devices with their states." (special-mode)) (switch-to-buffer-other-window "*Recording Devices*"))) +(defun cj/recording-show-active-audio () + "Show which audio sinks are currently PLAYING audio in real-time. +Useful for diagnosing why phone call audio isn't being captured - helps identify +which device the phone app is actually using for output." + (interactive) + (let ((output (shell-command-to-string "pactl list sink-inputs"))) + (with-current-buffer (get-buffer-create "*Active Audio Playback*") + (erase-buffer) + (insert "Active Audio Playback (Updated: " (format-time-string "%H:%M:%S") ")\n") + (insert "======================================================\n\n") + (insert "This shows which applications are CURRENTLY playing audio and through which device.\n") + (insert "If you're on a phone call, you should see the phone app listed here.\n") + (insert "The 'Sink' line shows which output device it's using.\n\n") + (if (string-match-p "Sink Input" output) + (progn + (insert output) + (insert "\n\nTIP: The '.monitor' device corresponding to the 'Sink' above is what\n") + (insert "you need to select for system audio to capture the other person's voice.\n\n") + (insert "For example, if Sink is 'alsa_output.usb...Jabra...analog-stereo',\n") + (insert "then you need 'alsa_output.usb...Jabra...analog-stereo.monitor'\n")) + (insert "No active audio playback detected.\n\n") + (insert "This means no applications are currently playing audio.\n") + (insert "If you're on a phone call and see this, the phone app might be:\n") + (insert " 1. Using a different audio system (not PulseAudio/PipeWire)\n") + (insert " 2. Using a Bluetooth device directly (bypassing system audio)\n") + (insert " 3. Not actually playing audio (check if you can hear the other person)\n")) + (goto-char (point-min)) + (special-mode)) + (switch-to-buffer-other-window "*Active Audio Playback*") + (message "Showing active audio playback. Press 'g' to refresh, 'q' to quit."))) + (defun cj/recording-select-device (prompt device-type) "Interactively select an audio device. PROMPT is shown to user. DEVICE-TYPE is 'mic or 'monitor for filtering. @@ -453,22 +490,28 @@ Otherwise use the default location in `audio-recordings-dir'." filename cj/recording-mic-boost cj/recording-system-volume)))) (defun cj/ffmpeg-record-audio (directory) - "Start an ffmpeg audio recording. Save output to DIRECTORY." + "Start an ffmpeg audio recording. Save output to DIRECTORY. +Records from microphone and system audio monitor (configured device), mixing them together. +Use C-; r c to configure which device to use - it must match the device your phone call uses." (cj/recording-check-ffmpeg) (unless cj/audio-recording-ffmpeg-process (let* ((devices (cj/recording-get-devices)) (mic-device (car devices)) + ;; Use the explicitly configured monitor device + ;; This must match the device your phone call/audio is using (system-device (cdr devices)) (location (expand-file-name directory)) (name (format-time-string "%Y-%m-%d-%H-%M-%S")) (filename (expand-file-name (concat name ".m4a") location)) (ffmpeg-command (format (concat "ffmpeg " - "-f pulse -i %s " - "-ac 1 " - "-f pulse -i %s " - "-ac 1 " - "-filter_complex \"[0:a]volume=%.1f[mic];[1:a]volume=%.1f[sys];[mic][sys]amerge=inputs=2[out];[out]pan=mono|c0=0.5*c0+0.5*c1\" " + "-f pulse -i %s " ; Input 0: Microphone (specific device) + "-f pulse -i %s " ; Input 1: System audio monitor + "-filter_complex \"" + "[0:a]volume=%.1f[mic];" ; Apply mic boost + "[1:a]volume=%.1f[sys];" ; Apply system volume + "[mic][sys]amix=inputs=2:duration=longest[out]\" " ; Mix both inputs + "-map \"[out]\" " "-c:a aac " "-b:a 64k " "%s") @@ -477,6 +520,9 @@ Otherwise use the default location in `audio-recordings-dir'." cj/recording-mic-boost cj/recording-system-volume filename))) + ;; Log the command for debugging + (message "Recording from mic: %s + ALL system outputs" mic-device) + (cj/log-silently "Audio recording ffmpeg command: %s" ffmpeg-command) ;; start the recording (setq cj/audio-recording-ffmpeg-process (start-process-shell-command "ffmpeg-audio-recording" @@ -485,7 +531,7 @@ Otherwise use the default location in `audio-recordings-dir'." (set-process-query-on-exit-flag cj/audio-recording-ffmpeg-process nil) (set-process-sentinel cj/audio-recording-ffmpeg-process #'cj/recording-process-sentinel) (force-mode-line-update t) - (message "Started audio recording to %s (mic: %.1fx, system: %.1fx)." + (message "Started recording to %s (mic: %.1fx, all system audio: %.1fx)" filename cj/recording-mic-boost cj/recording-system-volume)))) (defun cj/video-recording-stop () @@ -534,6 +580,7 @@ Otherwise use the default location in `audio-recordings-dir'." (define-key map (kbd "a") #'cj/audio-recording-toggle) (define-key map (kbd "l") #'cj/recording-adjust-volumes) (define-key map (kbd "d") #'cj/recording-list-devices) + (define-key map (kbd "w") #'cj/recording-show-active-audio) ; "w" for "what's playing" (define-key map (kbd "s") #'cj/recording-select-devices) (define-key map (kbd "c") #'cj/recording-quick-setup-for-calls) (define-key map (kbd "t m") #'cj/recording-test-mic) @@ -542,7 +589,9 @@ Otherwise use the default location in `audio-recordings-dir'." map) "Keymap for video/audio recording operations.") -(keymap-set cj/custom-keymap "r" cj/record-map) +;; Only set keybinding if cj/custom-keymap is bound (not in batch mode) +(when (boundp 'cj/custom-keymap) + (keymap-set cj/custom-keymap "r" cj/record-map)) (with-eval-after-load 'which-key (which-key-add-key-based-replacements @@ -551,6 +600,7 @@ Otherwise use the default location in `audio-recordings-dir'." "C-; r a" "toggle audio recording" "C-; r l" "adjust levels" "C-; r d" "list devices" + "C-; r w" "what's playing (diagnostics)" "C-; r s" "select devices" "C-; r c" "quick setup for calls" "C-; r t" "test devices" -- cgit v1.2.3