M4A audio file to quotes with timestamps in English
M4A audio file to quotes with timestamps in English: send the file and get the text with the timecodes. One file may be up to 30 minutes on the free plan, no minute limit on Pro.
Transcribsi reads the M4A audio file in English and writes the list of quotations. The file comes off the platform as it is, one file may be up to 30 minutes, and the free plan gives 3 files a day.
How to get the file and turn it into quotes with timestamps
- 1
Send it as a voice message
For a voice message the Telegram Bot API asks for an .OGG file encoded with OPUS, an .MP3 file or an .M4A file
- 2
Attach the recording
The engine takes the M4A audio file from the widget of the page; the speech is in English, and the list of quotations comes back with the timecodes.
- 3
Ask the task for the list of quotations
The text of the M4A audio file is given to the instruction of the list of quotations, and the answer is written in the sections Who spoke, Quotes with timestamps, Themes, one after another.
- 4
Tell the engine what it hears
The engine reads 99+ languages; the speech of this M4A audio file is in English, and the widget carries that setting for the list of quotations.
- 5
Check the file before the upload
In the FAQ of the FFmpeg library of Audacity the M4A is written next to the codec it carries: M4A (AAC), AC3 and WMA
What comes back from the engine
- TXT
One segment per line, the way a person wrote it down. It is the format to paste into a ticket, a chat or a document.
- TXT, CSV
The start and the end time of every segment, and the speakers named separately when you ask for it.
- SRT, VTT
SRT and VTT with the time of every line, so the recording can carry its own subtitles.
- Markdown, DOCX
The transcript is edited through the API and exported as Markdown for a wiki, or as DOCX for a review.
What M4A keeps, and what it says about it
- Where the file is
Audacity opens an M4A file with the FFmpeg library: it allows the program to import and export a much larger range of audio formats, including M4A (AAC), AC3 and WMA.
- What the file is
The Telegram Bot API takes an audio file only in the .MP3 or .M4A format, and it sends a voice message in the .OGG file encoded with OPUS, .MP3 or .M4A format.
- What can go wrong
Google Drive keeps the M4A among the files it stores: any file type can be stored in Drive, and the list of the audio formats it previews names MP3, MPEG, WAV, .ogg and .opus.
- What the platform says
In the FAQ of the FFmpeg library of Audacity the M4A is written next to the codec it carries: M4A (AAC), AC3 and WMA.
- What the platform says
A voice message of the Telegram Bot API is an .OGG file encoded with OPUS, an .MP3 file or an .M4A file.
- Length of one file
up to 30 minutes on the free plan, no minute limit on Pro
- Free plan
$0: 3 files a day, up to 30 minutes per file, no card
- Pro plan
$10 a month when you pay yearly ($120 a year), or $20 a month
What the recording does not give you
Google Drive keeps the M4A among the files it stores: any file type can be stored in Drive, and the list of the audio formats it previews names MP3, MPEG, WAV, .ogg and .opus. The M4A audio file is only the input: the engine reads the English speech and writes the list of quotations out of the transcript.
Tips
The instruction of the list of quotations is already written.
A recording of the M4A audio file in English is read as English.
A file over 30 minutes has to be cut into parts; the Pro plan takes a recording of any length.
Bots can currently send audio files of up to 50 MB in size, and the limit may be changed in the future.
Questions about M4A audio file and quotes with timestamps
What does the M4A say about the M4A audio file?
Audacity opens an M4A file with the FFmpeg library: it allows the program to import and export a much larger range of audio formats, including M4A (AAC), AC3 and WMA. The engine reads the English speech of the M4A audio file and writes the list of quotations from that text.
Which problems can come with the M4A audio file?
Bots can currently send audio files of up to 50 MB in size, and the limit may be changed in the future. The engine does not change the file of the M4A audio file; it reads it as it is and writes the list of quotations.
How is the list of quotations built from the M4A audio file?
The engine reads the English speech and the instruction writes the list of quotations in the sections Who spoke, Quotes with timestamps, Themes; every line comes from the transcript of the M4A audio file.
Is there a limit to the length of the M4A audio file?
One file of the M4A audio file may be up to 30 minutes on the free plan; the free plan gives 3 files a day.
Is a link enough for the M4A audio file?
Bring the file of the M4A audio file to your own disk and upload it here; the engine returns the list of quotations with the time of every line.
Related pages
The same task on another recording, with the same steps and the same sections.
Interview to quotes with timestampsThe page of the task: the instruction that is written for it and an example of the answer.
Transcribe audio to textWhat the service does with a file: the formats of the export, the limits and the plans.
Sources
- MAudacity manual: FFmpeg Import/Export Library (read 2026-10-25)manual.audacityteam.org · checked
- CTelegram Bot API (read 2026-10-25)core.telegram.org · checked
- SGoogle Drive Help: Files you can store in Google Drive (read 2026-10-25)support.google.com · checked
- TTranscription service page (read 2026-10-25)transcrib.si · checked
- TPricing page (read 2026-10-25)transcrib.si · checked
Reading: 4 minutesUpdated Transcribsi editorial team
Drop a recording — the text arrives in a minute
Speakers by name, a time on every line, export to TXT, SRT, VTT, CSV and Markdown.