Sonartext STT Actor - Professional Speech-to-Text Transcription

Transform audio content into high-quality text transcriptions with enterprise-grade accuracy using state-of-the-art AI models. Perfect for content creators, researchers, businesses, and developers who need reliable speech-to-text conversion.

🚀 Key Features

• 🎯 State-of-the-Art AI: Powered by Whisper-v3-large-turbo for industry-leading accuracy
• 👥 Speaker Diarization: Automatically identify and separate different speakers
• 📁 Multiple Input Sources: Support for direct uploads, YouTube videos, Twitter audio, Google Drive, AWS S3, and URLs
• ⚡ Fast Processing: Optimized for speed without compromising quality
• 💰 Cost Control: Built-in cost estimation and limits to manage expenses
• 📊 Flexible Output: Multiple formats including JSON, plain text, SRT, and VTT
• 🔐 Enterprise Security: Secure API integration with proper error handling
• 📈 Usage Analytics: Detailed processing statistics and performance metrics

🎯 Use Cases

Content Creation & Media

• Podcast Transcription: Convert episodes to searchable text for show notes and SEO
• Video Subtitles: Generate accurate captions for YouTube, social media, and streaming
• Interview Processing: Transcribe interviews with automatic speaker identification
• Course Materials: Create accessible text versions of educational audio content

Business & Research

• Meeting Transcription: Document important discussions with speaker attribution
• Research Analysis: Convert audio interviews and focus groups to analyzable text
• Call Center Analytics: Process customer service calls for quality assurance
• Legal Documentation: Transcribe depositions and hearings with high accuracy

Accessibility & Compliance

• ADA Compliance: Provide text alternatives for audio content
• Multi-language Support: Transcribe content in multiple languages
• Hearing Accessibility: Make audio content accessible to deaf and hard-of-hearing users

📥 Input Configuration

Required Parameters

{
  "audioSource": {
    "method": "url",
    "fileUrl": "https://example.com/audio.mp3"
  }
}

Complete Configuration Example

{
  "audioSource": {
    "method": "youtube",
    "fileUrl": "https://youtube.com/watch?v=example",
    "youTubeOptions": {
      "audioQuality": "highest"
    }
  },
  "transcriptionOptions": {
    "outputFormat": "json",
    "speakerDiarization": true,
    "wordTimestamps": true,
    "maxCostCents": 500
  },
  "outputOptions": {
    "saveFiles": true,
    "includeRawResponse": false
  }
}

Input Source Options

Method	Description	Example
url	Direct HTTP/HTTPS URL or local file	https://cdn.example.com/audio.mp3
upload	File upload via buffer	Used with file upload interface
youtube	YouTube video URL	https://youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ
twitter	Twitter/X post with audio/video	https://twitter.com/user/status/123456
gdrive	Google Drive file (public)	https://drive.google.com/file/d/FILE_ID
s3	AWS S3 object	s3://bucket-name/path/to/file.mp3

Advanced Options

{
  "transcriptionOptions": {
    "outputFormat": "srt",              // json, text, srt, vtt
    "speakerDiarization": true,         // Identify different speakers
    "wordTimestamps": true,             // Include word-level timing
    "maxCostCents": 1000               // Maximum cost limit (in cents)
  },
  "outputOptions": {
    "saveFiles": true,                  // Save files to Apify dataset
    "includeRawResponse": true          // Include full API response
  }
}

📤 Output Structure

JSON Format (Default)

{
  "success": true,
  "result": {
    "transcription": "Hello, welcome to our podcast. Today we're discussing AI innovations.",
    "speakers": [
      {
        "speaker": "Speaker 1",
        "start": 0.0,
        "end": 3.2,
        "text": "Hello, welcome to our podcast."
      },
      {
        "speaker": "Speaker 2", 
        "start": 3.5,
        "end": 7.8,
        "text": "Today we're discussing AI innovations."
      }
    ],
    "metadata": {
      "duration": 45.6,
      "wordCount": 124,
      "confidence": 0.94,
      "language": "en"
    }
  },
  "usage": {
    "costCents": 23,
    "processingTime": 12.5,
    "audioMinutes": 0.76
  }
}

SRT Format Example

1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:03,200
Hello, welcome to our podcast.

2
00:00:03,500 --> 00:00:07,800
Today we're discussing AI innovations.

Error Handling

{
  "success": false,
  "error": {
    "code": "AUDIO_TOO_LONG",
    "message": "Audio duration exceeds maximum limit",
    "details": {
      "maxDuration": 3600,
      "actualDuration": 4200
    }
  }
}

🚀 Getting Started

1. Basic Usage

{
  "audioSource": {
    "method": "url",
    "fileUrl": "https://example.com/meeting-recording.mp3"
  },
  "transcriptionOptions": {
    "speakerDiarization": true
  }
}

2. Run the Actor

Execute the actor and retrieve your transcription from the dataset.

💡 Pro Tips

Optimize Audio Quality

• Clear Audio: Use high-quality recordings with minimal background noise
• Proper Levels: Ensure consistent audio levels across speakers
• Format: MP3, WAV, and FLAC formats work best

Speaker Diarization Best Practices

• Enable for multi-speaker content (meetings, interviews, podcasts)
• Works best with 2-10 distinct speakers
• Clearer speaker separation improves accuracy

Cost Management

• Set maxCostCents to control expenses
• Use cost estimation feature before processing large files
• Consider audio length: pricing is typically per minute

YouTube Processing

• Supports both public and unlisted videos
• Automatically extracts best quality audio
• Handles various video lengths efficiently

💰 Pricing

This actor uses Sonartext's professional STT service with transparent, usage-based pricing:

• Event Based Pricing: $0.01 base fee per Actor Start
• Usage Fees: Pay $0.004 per minute of audio processed
• Volume Discounts: Available for high-usage customers
• Cost Control: Set maximum spending limits per job

🔒 Security & Privacy

• API Security: All requests use secure HTTPS with API key authentication
• Data Privacy: Audio files are processed securely and not stored permanently
• Compliance: Built for enterprise use with privacy-first architecture
• Rate Limiting: Respectful API usage with built-in rate limiting

⚠️ Legal Considerations

• Content Rights: Ensure you have proper rights to transcribe the audio content
• Privacy Compliance: Follow applicable privacy laws (GDPR, CCPA, etc.) when processing personal data
• Platform Terms: Respect YouTube's Terms of Service and other platform policies
• Copyright: Be mindful of copyrighted content when processing media files

🛠️ Advanced Features

Batch Processing

Process multiple files efficiently by chaining multiple actor runs or using the batch processing capabilities.

Integration Options

• APIs: Direct REST API integration available
• Webhooks: Real-time processing notifications
• Zapier: No-code workflow integration
• Custom Solutions: Enterprise integrations available

Supported Audio Formats

• Audio: MP3, WAV, FLAC, AAC, OGG, M4A
• Video: MP4, AVI, MOV, MKV (audio extracted)
• Containers: Support for most common audio/video containers

📞 Support & Documentation

Help & Support

• Documentation: Full API Documentation
• Support: Contact support through the Apify platform
• Community: Join our Discord for community support
• Enterprise: Dedicated support for business customers

Troubleshooting

• Rate Limits: Wait and retry if you hit API limits
• Large Files: Consider breaking very large files into segments
• Quality Issues: Check audio quality and format compatibility
• Costs: Monitor usage through the actor's cost reporting features

Updates & Changelog

This actor is actively maintained with regular updates for:

• New AI model versions
• Additional output formats
• Performance improvements
• Enhanced error handling

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📊 Actor Metrics

• Response Time: < 30 seconds for typical audio files
• Accuracy: 95%+ for clear audio with proper formatting
• Supported Languages: 50+ languages supported
• File Size Limit: Up to 500MB per file
• Duration Limit: Up to 6 hours per audio file

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Developed by: Sonartext
Version: 1.0.0
Last Updated: September 2025
License: MIT

For technical issues or feature requests, please use the Apify platform's support system or visit our documentation.