If your microphone is not working in Scam With Your Friends, first separate missing microphone input from delayed speech recognition and missing caller audio. Hotfix 2 reduced speech recognition delays, filtered additional false music captions, and prevented speech startup crashes on older Windows CPUs. Typed dialogue remains available, so you can continue communicating while checking the voice problem.
There is no verified universal microphone fix. A working headset does not prove that speech recognition or the AI service is responding, and silence from a caller does not automatically mean your microphone failed.
Identify where the conversation stops
Use the conversation screen and what you actually hear to describe the failure before changing settings.
| What happens | What to investigate |
|---|---|
| Your microphone also fails outside the game | Device connection, operating system input, or microphone access |
| You can speak, but recognition is slow | Speech recognition and the current game update |
| Typed dialogue also receives no reply | AI access or the status message shown by the game |
| The caller responds, but its voice does not load | Caller voice loading or Qwen3 rather than microphone capture |
| Starting speech causes the application to close | Speech startup crashes and the installed update |
These are diagnostic distinctions, not confirmed causes for every affected PC. Follow the row that matches your own result instead of changing every audio setting at once.
Start with the speech fixes in Hotfix 2
The release updates addressed several different parts of spoken conversations. Hotfix 2 reduced recognition delays and removed additional false music captions. It also fixed caller voice loading stalls and Qwen3 startup blocking caller input. Those symptoms can look similar during a call, but they involve different stages of the interaction.
Check that Steam has finished installing available game updates before repeating the same call. This is a general client check; it is not a promise that updating will solve an unreported hardware or service problem. If the installed version already includes these fixes, report the remaining symptom as a continuing issue rather than assuming the fix was never applied.
After updating, compare spoken and typed dialogue. If typed dialogue works but speech does not, that gives a more precise description than saying the entire AI is broken. If both fail, check the AI status message before spending more time on the microphone.
Check the microphone outside the game
The following are general device checks, not game-specific fixes confirmed for every setup:
- Confirm that the microphone is connected and is not muted on the device itself.
- Use an operating system microphone test to check whether speaking produces input.
- Confirm that the intended input device is selected, especially if a headset, webcam, and controller provide different audio devices.
- Check that desktop applications have microphone access in the operating system.
- If a USB microphone fails outside the game, try another suitable USB port or bypass a hub.
- Return to the game and test again after each relevant change.
A successful device test narrows the problem; it does not establish that the game is receiving or recognizing speech correctly. Likewise, a microphone working in a chat application does not by itself establish the cause of a game-specific failure.
Keep caller speech separate from your own input
Qwen3 concerns the caller voice experience. The launch guidance recommends allowing Qwen3 TTS to finish downloading on the main menu, particularly for non-English players seeking higher-quality text-to-speech. Hotfix 2 also added clearer troubleshooting messages and a reminder that Qwen3 can be disabled if it is too slow.
Do not treat that recommendation as a required download time or a guaranteed microphone repair. If your own words are recognized but the caller remains silent, record whether the caller voice is still loading and whether a Qwen3 message appears.
Record a useful remaining issue
If speech still fails, note the installed game version, Windows version, microphone model, and whether typed dialogue works. Include the exact visible error or status text and whether the problem occurs before a call, during recognition, or while loading the reply.
Do not claim a hardware fault from one failed call. Clear observations give support a better starting point than a list of unrelated fixes borrowed from other games.