[DOCS] Voice dictation troubleshooting omits WSLg `libsox-fmt-pulse` dependency

Resolved 💬 2 comments Opened May 14, 2026 by coygeek Closed May 17, 2026

Documentation Type

Incorrect/outdated documentation

Documentation Location

https://code.claude.com/docs/en/voice-dictation

Section/Topic

Requirements and Troubleshooting for voice dictation on WSL/WSLg

Current Documentation

The docs currently say:

In WSL, voice dictation requires WSLg for audio access, which is included with WSL2 on Windows 11. On Windows 10 or WSL1, run Claude Code in native Windows instead. Audio recording uses a built-in native module on macOS, Linux, and Windows. On Linux, if the native module cannot load, Claude Code falls back to arecord from ALSA utils or rec from SoX. If neither is available, /voice prints an install command for your package manager.

And in Troubleshooting:

No audio recording tool found on Linux: the native audio module could not load and no fallback is installed. Install SoX with the command shown in the error message, for example sudo apt-get install sox.

What's Wrong or Missing?

For Claude Code v2.1.141, the WSL-specific voice-mode error now suggests installing sox libsox-fmt-pulse for WSLg users. The voice dictation docs still only mention WSLg generally and use a generic sudo apt-get install sox example. That leaves out the PulseAudio format package WSLg users need for the documented WSLg path.

Suggested Improvement

Add a WSLg-specific troubleshooting note near the existing Linux fallback guidance. For example:

After:

On WSLg systems, install both sox and libsox-fmt-pulse so SoX can record through PulseAudio: sudo apt-get install sox libsox-fmt-pulse

If the exact package names vary by distro, note that the WSLg fallback needs SoX plus PulseAudio format support, and keep the Debian/Ubuntu command as the concrete example.

Impact

Medium - Makes feature difficult to understand

Additional Context

Affected Pages:
| Page | Line(s) | Context |
|------|---------|---------|
| https://code.claude.com/docs/en/voice-dictation | 19-21, 157 | WSLg requirement is documented, but the fallback install example only mentions sox |

Total scope: 1 page affected

Version context: The Claude Code v2.1.141 changelog says: [VSCode] Voice mode: the WSL error now suggests installing sox libsox-fmt-pulse for WSLg users.

View original on GitHub ↗

This issue has 2 comments on GitHub. Read the full discussion on GitHub ↗