Manual Fix a problem
My microphone isn't working
The "No microphones detected" message, the wrong input device, and the Windows privacy setting that quietly blocks desktop apps.
Almost every microphone problem is one of two things: Windows isn't letting Neato Echo use the microphone, or your PC is listening to a different microphone than you think.
Start in the app, because it can check the permission for you.
Start here
Open the Permissions section
In Settings, choose Privacy & Data under System, and scroll to Permissions. It lists Microphone.
Check the Microphone card
If the permission is missing, the Microphone card shows a Grant Access button. Windows doesn't show a permission prompt for desktop apps the way it does for Store apps, so if the card stays ungranted, the setting lives in Windows Settings — see the next step.
A card that has already been granted looks different: it turns green with a checkmark and the Grant Access button is gone. That's how you tell the two states apart — a card with no button is a granted one, not a broken one.
Allow it in Windows Settings
Follow the steps below, then reopen this section — the card shows as granted once Windows agrees.
Allowing the microphone in Windows
- Open Settings → Privacy & security → Microphone.
- Switch on Microphone access.
- Switch on Let apps access your microphone.
- Check that Let desktop apps access your microphone further down the page is also on — this is the one that catches people out, because the toggle above it can be on while this one is off. Neato Echo is a desktop app, so this is the switch that matters.
- Confirm Neato Echo appears in the list underneath.
Choosing the right input
If the permission is granted and you still get nothing, the app is almost certainly listening to a different microphone.
Open Settings → System → Sound in Windows and check the selected input while you speak — the level meter should move. The devices that catch people out:
- Headsets that are connected but not worn, so the mic is on the desk.
- Monitors and webcams with built-in mics, which often become the default the moment they're plugged in.
- Bluetooth headphones in the wrong profile — some switch to a low-quality headset mode that other apps then take over.
- Virtual devices installed by conferencing or streaming software, which can silently become the default.
You can also pick a specific microphone inside the app rather than following the Windows default — see Choose your microphone.
If the microphone is unavailable
If the app reports Microphone Unavailable, another application is holding the device exclusively. Quit conferencing, recording and streaming apps and try again. This is the usual cause on Windows; the device is not shared while another app has it open in exclusive mode.
FAQ
The permission prompt never appears.
That's normal on Windows — desktop apps don't get a prompt. The setting is decided in Windows Settings → Privacy & security → Microphone, and Let desktop apps access your microphone must be on.
My microphone works in other apps.
That rules out the hardware and tells you it's the permission or the device selection. Work through both sections above; they're the only two things that can be different between apps.
It picks me up but the recording is very quiet.
Raise the input level in Windows Settings → System → Sound under your input device. A recording that's too quiet produces an empty result rather than an error — see Nothing was transcribed.
Related
Still need help?
Write to [email protected] with your Windows version, your Neato Echo version (Settings → System), and what you were doing. A person reads every message.