Tungs

Real-time translation for Discord voice chat

Set Tungs as your input and output device in Discord and the conversation is translated in both directions while you talk.

Download for Mac

macOS 14 or later

How to set up Tungs in Discord

Install Tungs, choose your two languages, then change the voice devices in Discord's settings.

  1. STEP 1

    Set up Tungs first

    In Tungs, choose the language you speak and the language they speak, then select the microphone and headphones you actually use. Leave Tungs running alongside the call.

  2. STEP 2

    Open User Settings

    In the Discord desktop app, click the cogwheel icon in the lower-left corner of the app, to the right of your avatar, to open User Settings.

  3. STEP 3

    Go to Voice & Video

    Select Voice & Video in the left sidebar, then make sure you are under the Voice tab rather than the Debugging tab.

  4. STEP 4

    Set Input Device to Tungs Microphone

    Under the Voice tab, open the Input Device dropdown menu and choose Tungs Microphone. Leave Input Mode on Voice Activity rather than Push to Talk, and keep Input Volume at a normal level.

  5. STEP 5

    Set Output Device to Tungs Speaker

    Open the Output Device dropdown menu and choose Tungs Speaker, then check that Output Volume is not turned down.

  6. STEP 6

    Turn off processing, then run Mic Test

    Scroll down to Noise Suppression and disable it rather than leaving it set to Krisp, lower the Attenuation slider to 0%, and disable Automatically determine input sensitivity under Input Mode. Then, under Mic Test, press Let's Check to confirm audio is flowing, and press Stop Testing when you are done.

Steps follow Discord’s own documentation: Discord Voice and Video Troubleshooting Guide Krisp FAQ Voice Input Modes 101 (Push-to-Talk & Voice Activated) How do I stop Discord from lowering my volume when someone else is talking?

Worth knowing

  • Noise Suppression sits under the Voice tab in Voice & Video. Discord's Krisp FAQ describes Krisp as machine learning that removes background noises that aren't human voices, such as dogs barking or doors slamming, and warns that in a quiet environment with a high-quality mic you may notice a decline in voice quality. The troubleshooting guide's Advanced Steps also list disabling Noise Suppression to see if it improves audio quality, so disable it before running translated speech through it. On Mac, Krisp requires an Apple CPU and OS version 12 or later.
  • Automatically determine input sensitivity sits under Input Mode; a checkmark means it is enabled, an x means it is disabled. Discord's Voice Input Modes 101 article says to disable it if your microphone volume fluctuates between being too loud and too soft, or if parts of your voice get cut off at the end of sentences, and then to set the input sensitivity slider manually. The same article notes Voice Activity has an inherent 200ms delay, which lands on top of translation latency.
  • Attenuation is Discord's feature that lowers your volume when someone else is talking. Discord's support article says to click the settings cog, select the Voice & Video tab, scroll down to Attenuation, and lower the attenuation slider to 0%. It notes that this slider is only available on the Desktop client.
  • Discord's troubleshooting guide tells Mac users to check that Discord has microphone permission, linking Apple's Change Privacy & Security settings on Mac guide, and says you can refresh the client completely by pressing Ctrl/CMD + R or by fully quitting and restarting Discord. Note also that Discord's Mic Testing article says your voice is played back through the selected output device, so once Tungs Speaker is selected the Mic Test playback is routed there.

Questions

Does Discord on macOS have its own microphone and speaker pickers, or does it follow the macOS sound settings?

Discord has its own in-app pickers on the desktop app. Open User Settings with the cogwheel in the lower-left corner, choose Voice & Video, and under the Voice tab you will find an Input Device dropdown menu and an Output Device dropdown menu. Because Discord keeps its own device selection there, you can point Discord at Tungs Microphone and Tungs Speaker without changing your Mac's system-wide input and output.

Tungs Microphone and Tungs Speaker do not appear in the Input Device or Output Device dropdowns. What now?

Start with Discord's documented refresh steps: its troubleshooting guide says you can refresh the client completely by pressing Ctrl/CMD + R, and that sometimes you need to completely exit and quit Discord and then restart it. Also confirm Discord has microphone permission on your Mac, which Discord's guide points to through Apple's Change Privacy & Security settings on Mac article. If Discord still detects no input, its Mic Test error tells you to check that you have selected the right input device. As a last resort, Discord suggests Reset Voice and Video Settings under the Debugging tab in Voice & Video.

Which Discord settings should I turn off so translated audio is not mangled?

Disable Noise Suppression rather than leaving it set to Krisp. Discord describes Krisp as machine learning that removes background noises that aren't human voices, and its FAQ warns of a decline in voice quality when your mic and environment are already clean. Disable Automatically determine input sensitivity under Input Mode and set the input sensitivity slider manually instead, which is what Discord recommends when volume fluctuates or the ends of sentences get cut off. Lower the Attenuation slider to 0% so Discord stops lowering your volume when someone else is talking.

Does the other person on the Discord call need to install Tungs?

No. Tungs installs two virtual audio devices named Tungs Microphone and Tungs Speaker, which you select in your own Discord Voice & Video settings. It translates speech in both directions while the call runs, across 13 languages. The other participant installs nothing and needs no account, and Tungs requires macOS 14 or later.

Other apps

Tungs is an audio device, so the same two devices work anywhere with a microphone and speaker menu.

13 languages — English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Russian, Hindi, Indonesian, Vietnamese — with the spoken language detected automatically.