Voice Memos not recording

I had the same problem.

What I did to fix it:

• Open Voice Memos
• Go to preferences ( cmd + , )
• Uncheck the `Location-based Naming`

I'm running Catalina 10.15.7, 'Play user interface sound effects' did not fix it for me. I wanted to mention what did though,

System Preferences -> Sound -> Input (thrid tab) -> Input volume. My volume for input was all the way down strangly.

This fix worked for me!

I had the same issue with my AirPods Pro, then I went to System Preferences > Sound > Input, and switched to Built-in mic and it started working for me. I turned off, turned on the bluetooth, and then AirPods Pro finally started working for me as well.

I have the same problem I logged in as a guess user and voice memos app works.

this worked for me. Hit F10 mute, start the recording and then you can unmute it after the recording begins

I was having the same issue. Single clicking the record button seems to be the issue. Double clicking the record button created a new, functioning recording for me.

https://kirkville.com/voice-memos-on-macos-catalina-doesnt-record/

Link above ( might get deleted) where it explains as others have said to enable sound effects in sound prefs but also what works is to press the MUTE button on the Mac

Have a brand new laptop and it refuses to work unless I do either of the above. Whereas on my iPod it works fine

So clearly a glitch

1. MBP 16" 10.15.5

Voice Recorder on macOS Catalina (as of release 10.15.5) only starts a new recording if this option is ON:

System Preferences > Sound > Sound Effects > Play user interface sound effects = ON

I am running Big Sur 11.0.1 on a 2019 21" iMac. My microphone is the one in the LogiTech HD webcam. When I was running Catalina, I had to configure: Settings>Sound>Sound Effects

Be sure these are checked:

Check: Play User Interface Sound Effects

Check: Play Feedback When Volume Changed

I don't need to check those boxes with Big Sur.

The other thing that works is to click the mute button (F10) and try it again. Why that works I have no idea, but it does.

Best bet is to enable the "Play user interface sound effects" setting within Sound Effects (under Sound)

Checking the user interface sound effects option here fixes it!!!! weird but it works

Same thing happening to me. If I create a new user it works fine. This is a new Mac and I actually even reinstalled whole macOS. Now a fresh install with completely formatted disk and guess what it is back. I suspect it could have something to do with my Apple ID as basically the only difference here is I have set up my Apple ID credentials etc.

Same issue. I've tried changing the midi settings as this was mentioned in a thread from last year, but it did not solve the issue. Creating a guest user and testing voice memos works for me too.

Thinking this is going to be a Genius bar issue to fix.I tried apple chat support, but it wasn't a good experience.

Same problem with a new (as of July 3) Mac Mini (Catalina 10.15.5). I'm using an external USB webcam/microphone. That device works perfectly on my new MacBook Air. But on the Mini, Voice Memos won't record. The "hit the mute button first" trick works, as does the "play user interface sound effects" trick, but the recording is essentially inaudible. Even holding the microphone directly in front of my mouth and shouting yields a sound graph that looks like dots—the tallest bar is maybe two pixels. The sound playback is not even recognizable as voice.

Voice Memos works normally on my MacBook and on my iPad with the build-in microphones. It works on the MacBook with the external webcam/microphone.

In System Preferences -> Security & Privacy -> Security -> Microphone, no applications show up except Zoom (and the microphone is also unusable in Zoom). I don't know how to coerce the system to add Voice Memos to the list of applications that are allowed to use the microphone.

Is the problem affected by iCloud settings? The MacBook and iPad have settings to allow Voice Memos to use iCloud. I could not find a comparable setting on the Mac Mini. Should there be one? If so, where would it be.

It is frustrating to buy a new computer for Zoom meetings and discover that it cannot be used for that purpose.

Thanks.

Edit: the external microphone works quite well using the dictation feature.