Siri with Mac Studio minus Studio Display?

[rotarypower101]

Are there ways to use Siri on a Mac Studio if no Apple display like the Studio Display is used?

Possibly with Airpods or maybe some standalone hardware preferably, for those few times it is helpful enough to excuse the frustration of utilizing it?

Just having a mode of access if needed would be helpful, and have not found many threads on the topic.

Anyone using Siri with an alternative to a studio/apple display, and has some suggestions to consider while retaining existing displays?

*To update, I purchased the cheap USBC option below, 3D printed a mount, and its working as good as SIRI ever has, or is seemingly capable of doing currently.

Though I am curious, does "Hey Siri" functionality work with NO physical interaction on this platform? A always listening trigger? Have not been able to get that functionality to actuate, though I have several other devices within hearing proximity, HomePod, iPhone, ipad, so not sure if that interplay is hindering that functionality?

 

[Chuckeee]

I believe any microphone will work. I use a Anker C200 webcam (via a powered USB-C hub), that has its own microphone on a Dell 4K display (with no camera or microphone), and Siri works fine (well as fine as Siri ever worked).

 

[casperes1996]

As Chuckee says there’s nothing special to it and no display requirements. It just takes audio input

 

[BrianBaughn]

Look for a "USB microphone" on Amazon. Once you've plugged it into the Mac Studio, selected it as your sound input and adjusted the input level I'm pretty sure you wouldn't have to do much of anything further.

 

[casperes1996]

Look for a "USB microphone" on Amazon. Once you've plugged it into the Mac Studio, selected it as your sound input and adjusted the input level I'm pretty sure you wouldn't have to do much of anything further.

Enable voice activation for Siri if I’d isn’t already

 

[rotarypower101]

Well thats good to read thank you!
My jaded impression was that this functionality might potentially be locked behind paired hardware as I didn't find any hits on the topic...

Are there any "prescriptive" selections that will work better for that standalone application since there is not a 3.5mm dedicated jack any longer?

If anyone might have some recommendations from experience looking for options, ideally I would like a compact Dark compact option that could be discreetly double side taped to the bottom lip of a glass surfaced desk (assuming proximity is advantageous for positioning).

Don't use Siri often, but sometimes it's just the right tool for the job.

Naive question, but is any special hardware needed for the "always listening hey siri" functionality? Or essentially will any option that is recognized on the OS operate as expected/desired? Or is "Hey Siri" voice activation even supported on desktops?

Are there possibly any brands/options that will "help" with dictation accuracy, considering apples own hardware mic selection paired with their software can struggle at times despite presumably being tuned and optimized for it?

 

[rotarypower101]

Would something as simple and inexpensive as this work, just for reference?

 

[Chuckeee]

Would something as simple and inexpensive as this work, just for reference?

Yes from the Apple and Siri perspective, but it a clip on microphone meant to be worn on your upper body

 

[rotarypower101]

Yes from the Apple and Siri perspective, but it a clip on microphone meant to be worn on your upper body

Thinking no matter what I end up with, I could 3D print a enclosure/mount to attach it to my specific scenario, as I am not seeing many close options for what I had envisioned and hoped for.

 

[Chuckeee]

I would be concerned with sound/pick-up quality with a clip on microphone if it is more than 18” away. But I’m not a microphone expert

 

[rotarypower101]

I would be concerned with sound/pick-up quality with a clip on microphone if it is more than 18” away. But I’m not a microphone expert

Thanks for the feedback, any choice I make will be a complete shot in the dark and hopeful selection, as I don't see anything explicitly calling out hardware for this application I had in mind.

I was thinking...maybe one of those made sense, as my hope is to place it ~18" from my mouth as measured incidentally, just under the lower lip of the desk.

Maybe it will work, maybe it wont...
First try for $6 shipped, not a big loss just to see how the functionality works on this platform.
Never set this up on my MacPro, and lament not trying.
Hopefully it works better and is more useful than anticipated.

 

[SirAnthonyHopkins]

Are there any "prescriptive" selections that will work better for that standalone application since there is not a 3.5mm dedicated jack any longer

The Mac Studio does have a 3.5mm jack.

 

[casperes1996]

The Mac Studio does have a 3.5mm jack.

I think they meant a line in port rather than a multi in/out

 

[audio_inside]

On my Mac Studio M2 Max running Ventura 13.6.7 I cannot get the 'Listen for "Hey Siri"' option to appear in System Settings, regardless of what audio input device is selected. Since this model does not have any built-in audio input device (really Apple?) I have tried with a variety of external audio interfaces/devices but no-go. Apple Support chat was a complete waste of time.

Siri works great when I explicitly invoke her by clicking the Siri icon on the menu bar, regardless of my input device - she's just not "always listening" and the option in Settings never appears, as you can see from this screenshot:



I have tried debugging this without success using the following approaches, rebooting each time I made a change:

• Starting in Safe Mode
• Removing the 'Blackhole' extension I was using for internal audio routing
• Removing and adding different audio input devices one at a time
• Changing audio input sample rates/depths for each possible input

I've tried the following input devices and they all show up and function successfully as System Setting -> Sound -> Inputs, but none seem to be accessed by Siri:

• Generic stereo USB input dongle
• Logitech dual-function headset used both in Bluetooth and USB dongle mode
• Audio input from a Logitech USB webcam

I've heard claims from a few correspondents that paired Airpods or a connected Studio Display are required (for vague "security" reasons) but that sounded bogus to me and Apple Support never mentioned that requirement. Apparently a couple of you guys have gotten it to work with plain-vanilla USB audio interfaces. What am I doing wrong?