The four options
SETUP → Files, under "Transcribing files and links", has four choices:
| Option | What it means |
|---|---|
| Automatic (recommended) | For each file the app takes the fastest option there is: the NVIDIA card, else the accelerated processor, else the plain one. Right for almost everyone. |
| NVIDIA graphics card · CUDA | Several times faster than the processor. Needs an NVIDIA card and the CUDA engine, which the app offers to download. If it does not start, the plain processor does the file. |
| Accelerated processor · BLAS | The processor with the OpenBLAS library, faster than plain mode, no graphics card needed. Also downloaded on request. |
| Plain processor · CPU | Built in, nothing to download, the slowest. Useful when the other options give errors. |
The choice applies at once. It also decides where Whisper runs during dictation.
The install offer
The first time a faster engine would help, a window called "Speed up transcription" shows its download size and source. "Install and accelerate" downloads it once and keeps it on your computer. "Not now" asks again after a restart; "Never" stops asking.
If you changed your mind, press "Offer installs again" on the same page. The offer then appears at the next transcription.
Check that it works
The "Transcription engines" list shows each engine with a coloured light: green is ready, orange is installed but its last check failed, red is declined, grey is not installed. Hover over a row for its version and last error. A line above it says whether an NVIDIA graphics card was found.
"Test engines" starts each installed engine briefly and shows whether it responds. It downloads and changes nothing. Run it when a file ends with ERROR.
What else affects speed
- The Whisper size. Large v3 is the slowest; Large v3 Turbo is several times faster at nearly the same accuracy.
- Several files at once on Pro: with CUDA they go one at a time; on the processor, up to two at once on computers with eight or more logical processors.
On FILES, the badge next to the lights (AUTO, or the engine in use) shows which one handles the current file.