Settings
Every settings section in Kairos and what each field controls.
Open settings with Cmd/Ctrl + , or from the dashboard chrome. The
dialog is organised into three groups, Capture, Output, and
App: each with a handful of subsections.
Capture
Audio
Picks the input device and tunes microphone gain.
| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| Input device | Which microphone or audio input Kairos listens to. Every input your OS exposes shows up. |
| Live input meter | Real-time level meter for the selected input. Has a Test button that opens the mic and shows RMS and peak levels with a 700ms peak-hold. |
| Gain | Boosts or attenuates the captured signal before it reaches the speech engine. |
Speech
Chooses the transcription provider and model.
Four providers are supported:
| Provider | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Deepgram | Cloud, streaming (Nova-3) | Best accuracy with Bible keyword boosting. Requires API key + internet. |
| Whisper | Local (Distil-Whisper large-v3) | Fully offline, no API key, audio never leaves your machine. |
| OpenAI | Cloud, batch | Cheapest cloud option. Adds ~1–3s latency per utterance. Three model choices. |
| Gladia | Cloud, streaming (v2 live API) | Low-latency partials, code-switching available on higher tiers. |
When OpenAI is selected, a Model picker appears with three choices:
gpt-4o-mini-transcribe, $0.003/min ($0.18/hr). Cheapest.gpt-4o-transcribe, $0.006/min ($0.36/hr). Best word error rate.whisper-1, $0.006/min ($0.36/hr). The original Whisper API.
Each cloud provider has its own API key input. Keys are stored locally and never transmitted except to the provider you select.
Detection
Tunes auto-queue, detection cooldown, and the media voice trigger.
| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| Auto-queue high-confidence detections | When on, detections above the confidence threshold are queued without operator action. |
| Confidence threshold | 50–100% slider. Detections at or above this score are surfaced (and auto-queued when auto-mode is on). |
| Show low-confidence detections | When off, the detections panel hides anything below the threshold and shows a count at the bottom of the list instead. |
| Detection cooldown | 0–10000ms. Minimum gap before the same verse can be detected again. 0 disables. |
| Media voice trigger, match threshold | 30–100%. How much of a media item's description must match the transcript before Kairos suggests it. |
| Reading mode, auto-pause after | 0–30 min. After this many minutes of silence, reading mode auto-pauses so it doesn't fire on unrelated speech. 0 = never auto-pause. |
Output
Appearance
Theme and operator-display preferences.
| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| Color scheme | Light, Dark, or System (follows your OS). |
| Transcript text size | 12–22px slider. Affects only the live transcript panel; broadcast text always renders at the theme's size. |
| Show timestamps on segments | Toggle. When on, transcript segments display their arrival timestamps. |
| Density | Comfortable (more breathing room) or Compact (tighter panel headers and transport bar). |
| Reduce motion | Toggle. Disables animations across the operator UI. |
Bible
Picks the primary translation.
| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| Primary translation | Sets which translation detected verses render in by default. Grouped in the picker by English and Other Languages. |
The full bundled list is in Bible translations.
Broadcast
Broadcast window behaviour. (NDI source name, resolution, frame rate, and alpha mode live in the dedicated broadcast settings panel. linked from the Advanced row.)
| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| Open broadcast window on launch | Toggle. Skips the manual "open window" step at the start of every service. |
| Confirm before going on air | Toggle. Adds a confirmation prompt when you flip the live switch on. Prevents accidental on-air mid-service. |
| Open broadcast settings… | Button. Opens the dedicated broadcast settings dialog (resolutions, NDI defaults, per-output theme assignment). |
Remote
OSC and HTTP listeners.
| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| OSC port + start/stop | UDP listener for OSC controllers (TouchOSC, Stream Deck via Companion). |
| HTTP port + start/stop | TCP listener for HTTP clients and scripted automation. |
| Command log | Live log of incoming OSC/HTTP commands with source + timestamp. Useful for debugging controller setups. |
Both listeners can be started and stopped without restarting the app. See Remote control for what controllers can drive.
Firewall reminder
The Remote section includes a Firewall Note callout in-app reminding you to allow Kairos through your OS firewall on private networks. Without it your controllers can't reach the listeners.
App
Shortcuts
Read-only reference of every keyboard shortcut, grouped by where you use them (App, Capture, Search panel, Theme designer). The same list is exposed in the docs at Keyboard shortcuts.
Data
Manage local data.
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Export settings | Saves every Kairos setting to a JSON file. Good for moving between machines or backing up before a major service. |
| Import settings | Restores from a previously exported JSON file. Shows a toast confirming how many values were restored. |
| Reveal logs folder | Opens the OS folder containing Kairos's log files. Useful when reporting issues. |
| Clear session | Wipes the current session's transcript, detections, and queue. Sessions in the history are not affected. |
Help
Tutorial, support links, troubleshooting.
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Interactive tutorial | Replays the first-run guided tour. |
| Keyboard shortcuts | Jumps to the Shortcuts subsection. |
| Support email | Opens your mail client with the support address pre-filled. |
About
| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| Version + credits | Current Kairos version and acknowledgements. |
| Check for updates | Pings the update server. Shows a toast if a newer version is available. |
| Reset settings | Restores every setting to its factory default. Confirmation prompted. |
Settings stay local
Every setting is stored on the machine running Kairos. There's no cloud sync, if you run Kairos on two machines for failover, set each one up independently (or use Export settings + Import settings to move them across).