How to Use Speech-to-Text in 2026? A Complete 5-Step Buzz Tutorial

Recording-to-text isn't a new need, but truly free and effective tools are rare

I've tried many speech-to-text tools—either they cost money, or their Chinese recognition is so bad it makes you want to smash your keyboard.

Especially after every meeting, seeing one or two hours of audio files sitting on my phone just fills me with dread.

Manually transcribing? I once spent nearly two hours adding subtitles to a 20-minute video, questioning my life choices.

Then I discovered Buzz, and honestly, it was a pleasant surprise.

It uses OpenAI's Whisper model behind the scenes, is completely free and open-source, and requires no command-line skills.

For anyone who wants to avoid the terminal, this is a real game-changer.

Before installing Buzz, understand these 4 things

1. It's not a cloud service—it runs on your computer

All recognition in Buzz happens locally, so you don't have to upload your audio files to someone else's server.

This is a big plus if your meeting content is sensitive.

The trade-off is that transcription speed depends on your computer's performance; a dedicated GPU makes it much faster.

2. Model size directly impacts accuracy and speed

Buzz defaults to the Whisper Tiny model, which is fast but only average in accuracy.

If you're transcribing Chinese content, I recommend going straight to the Large model for much better accuracy.

The downside is that the Large model is resource-hungry; older computers might make you wait forever.

3. Output formats include TXT, SRT, and VTT

This is super useful for video creators.

You can export to SRT and drop it directly into your editing software as subtitles, no need to manually sync timestamps.

4. Supports both live recording and file import

You can either use your microphone to record and transcribe in real time, or import existing audio or video files.

This is more flexible than many online tools that only allow file uploads.

5-Step Buzz Speech-to-Text Tutorial

Step 1: Download and install

Head to Buzz's GitHub page to download the installer.

On Windows, it's a standard installation—just click Next all the way through.

On Mac, it's even simpler: drag Buzz into your Applications folder.

Step 2: Choose your working mode

After opening Buzz, you'll see two main options in the top-left corner:

• Record: Use your microphone for real-time recording and transcription
• Import file: Drop in existing audio or video files to transcribe

If you want real-time transcripts during a meeting, choose Record.

If you're organizing old recordings, go with Import.

Step 3: Set language and model

The language is set to auto-detect by default, but if you know the content is in Chinese, manually selecting it gives more stable results.

For the model, use Tiny or Base if you're in a hurry; choose Large if accuracy is your priority.

My personal habit: always use Large for Chinese content, and only consider smaller models for English.

Step 4: Start transcribing

Once configured, hit the RUN or record button to start.

The screen will show an "In Progress" status, and it's done when it hits 100%.

Transcription time depends on your audio length and computer performance; transcribing a 20-minute video took me about 6 minutes.

Step 5: Review and export results

After transcription, you can view the text directly in the app.

To export, choose TXT, SRT, or VTT, and the file will be saved automatically in the original file's folder.

Pick SRT for subtitles, TXT for plain text—it's intuitive.

My Hands-On Experience with Buzz

Pros: It saves a ton of time

Previously, a 20-minute video took me two hours to subtitle manually.

With Buzz, transcribing and then proofreading took about 15 minutes total.

For anyone who regularly produces videos or transcribes interviews, this efficiency boost is huge.

Pros: Chinese recognition is better than expected

Using the Large model on Chinese news clips, the error rate was lower than I thought.

It's not 100% perfect—proper nouns and heavy accents can still cause mistakes.

But as a first draft that you proofread once, it's way better than starting from scratch.

Cons: No dedicated English model

Buzz's model menu doesn't include a dedicated English-only model.

I'm not sure if selecting English automatically uses an English-specific model.

The official docs don't clarify this, but in practice, English accuracy is decent.

Cons: Resource-heavy, tough on older computers

When using the Large model, CPU and memory usage max out.

If you only transcribe short clips occasionally, smaller models are sufficient.

But for long recordings, a computer with a dedicated GPU will give you a much better experience.

Pitfall Guide: 3 Common Mistakes with Buzz

Pitfall 1: Using the default Tiny model for Chinese, then complaining it's inaccurate

The Tiny model is fast, but its Chinese accuracy is genuinely poor.

If you get a bunch of gibberish or typos, first check if you're using too small a model.

For Chinese content, go straight to Large—don't skimp on time.

Pitfall 2: Setting language to auto-detect, but content is mixed Chinese-English

For meetings or interviews with mixed languages, auto-detection often fails.

If you know the primary language, manually specifying it gives more stable results.

Pitfall 3: Expecting it to be as fast and accurate as paid services

Buzz is a free, open-source tool; transcription speed depends on your computer, not their servers.

If you need results in seconds from a cloud service, Buzz isn't for you.

But if you're willing to wait a few minutes for free, locally processed transcription, Buzz is a great deal.

Summary: Who Should Use Buzz?

Buzz is a good fit for:

• Those who don't want to pay for a subscription and have occasional transcription needs
• People with sensitive meeting or recording content who prefer not to upload to the cloud
• Those who need lots of transcription but have a tight budget and are willing to trade time for free
• Anyone who wants a GUI-based Whisper tool without touching the command line

Buzz is not ideal for:

• Those who need real-time transcription for many meetings and can't wait for local processing
• Users with underpowered computers who frequently transcribe long audio files
• Those who want to record and transcribe directly on a phone—Buzz is primarily desktop-focused

If you're just looking for a free, open-source speech-to-text tool that doesn't require command-line skills, Buzz is definitely worth a try.

Downloading and installing takes less than five minutes—just drop in a recording and see if it works for you.

References

• Buzz: Free Open-Source Speech Recognition Tool, Quickly Convert Recordings or Videos to Text and Subtitles
• Buzz: One-Click AI Video-to-Text—Free and Accurate Speech-to-Subtitle and Transcript Software
• Video Processing AI Fun-3: Use Buzz for Easier Speech-to-Text—Tutorial | NVDA Taiwan
• Buzz: Free Open-Source Speech-to-Text Software Based on OpenAI Whisper, Supports File Import and Real-Time Transcription—Computer King Ada
• Hands-On Review! Completely Free OpenAI Whisper Speech-to-Text Auto Tool, Subtitles and Transcripts in One Click｜Buzz Tutorial - YouTube