One company that makes headsets especially for speech recognition and use in noisy environments is However, while the accuracy is very good, there is a slight hiss in the earpiece, and a slight echo as my voice seems to come through the earpiece. It also contains an in-line control device, allowing you to change the volume or mute the microphone whenever you want.

This microphone is very light, and, in spite of of the fact that you have to wear it over your ear, is fairly comfortable. You can either use both of them if you want stereo sound, or just the one with the microphone boom if you’re doing basic dictation or VoIP calls. The $100 Plantronicsīlackwire 435 is an interesting wired USB headset, with two separate earpieces that are connected together by wires, but that you can only wear using over–the–ear adapters.

If you plan to do any serious dictation, you should look for headsets that are specifically designed for speech recognition. On the other hand, headsets can be annoying to wear they mess up your hair, and if you wear glasses, headsets press them against your head, and the wires that tether you to your computer can prevent you from moving around.

On the plus side, headsets offer very good accuracy-speech recognition software will get more words right because the microphone connected to a headset is generally in a good position. However, the type of headset you use to chat over the Internet is not at all what you need for speech recognition software.įirst, consider the pros and cons of using a headset. You may be using a headset now to talk to friends or family via iChat or Skype, so using one for dictation won’t seem very different. Headsets are the most common type of microphone that people use to talk to a computer. Wired headsets: Basic tool for talking to a computer Good headsets may cost more than the actual speech recognition software you use, but if you plan to spend a lot of time dictating, the amount of time you save using speech recognition software ensures that this investment will pay for itself very quickly. (Technically, you can use your Mac’s internal microphone, or the one in your monitor if you use an Apple display, but this won’t give you the best results with speech recognition software.) Finally, you can use a desktop microphone, which allows you to work without wires or without wearing the mic.

Speech to text software for mac