Accuracy Archives

Tough Transcripts: ATC & Problem-Solving

By now, you’ve probably heard us talk quite a bit about accuracy: how important accuracy is to us, how important accuracy is to our clients, and how our reputation is staked on our extremely high level of accuracy. But there’s more to ATC than just our accuracy. For today’s blog we thought we’d discuss another cornerstone trait of our business and our team: problem solving.

a solved rubix cube sits on a plain background, representing the Audio Transcription Center's ability to problem-solve when it comes to difficult transcription projects. — Photo by Miguel Á. Padriñán on Pexels.com

Like many businesses before us (and surely many that will come after), we pride ourselves at ATC on our problem-solving abilities. Different industries have different arrays of issues that they face on a daily basis. For instance, at your favorite coffee shop, the problem-solving skills may orient themselves towards handling irritable morning commuters, keeping the different milks stocked and syrups organized, etc. In many ways, we’re no different! Transcription service comes with its own set of unique problems, and we’re ready to handle them.

Maybe we’re biased (ok, we definitely are), but we feel that our team is uniquely equipped for solving the hiccups that come up on an everyday basis. The diversity of our remote team of transcriptionists means that an extremely wide variety of personal interests, degrees, and fields of knowledge are represented, giving us an arsenal of varied expertise that means that we can tackle anything our clients throw at us. And throw they do––whether it’s technical issues relating to uploading and downloading files, difficult, aged audio recordings, hyper-specific grammar and formatting requirements, migrating and digitizing content from old and obsolete pieces of technology, translating and transcribing foreign language audio, and so, so much more, we’ve learned and adapted to handling it all, and handling it fast. We have always relied on our team to use their collective brainpower to solve any problem that comes our way. And that trust has carried us through over 50 years of business.

So, when you’ve got an old, scratchy recording, or a collection of dusty tapes full of overlapping dialogue, or an oral history in a Spanish dialect, or any problem relating to transcription you can think of, who you gonna call?

ATC!

Software, Transcription

AI vs Human Transcription: the Nitty-Gritty

In a recent post, we discussed what we call “Forensic Transcription”––a term we use not to indicate transcription work relating to crime investigation, but to refer to our specific method here at ATC of approaching each project we undertake with a meticulous, detail-oriented attitude. This approach has earned us our reputation as a top transcription service, with a focus on accuracy above all that we continue to stake our reputation on. We have never strayed from our guarantee of at least 99% accuracy or no charge, and we don’t ever intend to.

But what really is “forensic transcription”, and why isn’t AI capable of it? After all, we don’t deny that AI technology has come a long way, even in just the past year. AI vs human transcription is a hot topic right now. AI transcription services abound––a simple Google search pulls up thousands of them, many of which boast low prices, incredibly fast turnaround, and even free trials. So what’s the missing link? Why hasn’t AI taken over the transcription market completely?

a robot hand and a human hand reach towards each other, not quite touching, meant to represent AI vs human transcription — Photo by Tara Winstead on Pexels.com

The answer is simple: accuracy. While the majority of the AI transcription services you might pull up in a search will boast on cost and speed, accuracy is not a term so often bandied about. AI has grown more accurate as it has continued to develop, particularly if you’re working with broadcast-quality audio, crystal-clear speech, and simple terms.

But rarely are recordings so cut-and-dry. The moment you add in, say, accents, foreign language excerpts, false starts, overlapping dialogue, technical jargon, or lower quality audio––all things that we can confidently say after over 50 years of transcription are pretty commonplace––AI struggles. As the tech currently stands in the struggle of AI vs human transcription, it still takes human brainpower to work through the complexities and nuances of most audio, and this kind of meticulous accuracy becomes particularly important depending on the project being transcribed.

Where AI transcription may work for a funny YouTube video about adding Mentos to Pepsi, where a lower level of accuracy is acceptable and the main focus of the content is in the visuals, it does not work well for a serious oral history recording from decades ago pertaining to a culturally significant topic, where foreign language excerpts, accents, audio quality, and specific terminology will all cause AI to falter. Projects of an academic, historical, or culturally important nature require the sensitivity and care of humans––and it is this truth that has guided us in our “forensic” approach to transcription, and will continue to guide us through projects to come, no matter the challenges.

Software, Transcription

Accents, Artificial Intelligence and Humans.

Accents. There are an estimated 30 accents that span the landscape of the United States. Tell me, if we as humans have a hard enough time parsing out the dropped “Rs” in words from a Bostonian (please note we’re a bunch of Bostonians here at ATC), how is Artificial Intelligence (AI) ready and able to do so? It isn’t!

There’s a reason we continue to be used as a human test-case against AI.

Is the adaptability of artificial intelligence’s deep learning modules able to discern all of these accents, colloquialisms, and dialects the same as the adaptability of a human team of transcriptionists? We think not. Who better to transcribe that Bostonian than fellow Bostonians? Who better to comprehend the words and colloquialisms from recordings of oral histories from folks in New Orleans (for instance) than people from New Orleans? We’ve been custom-matching client content to every human transcriptionist for 55 years, and we’ll keep doing so. We guarantee it!

Lastly, I know when I talk to the AI of my phone asking it one question or another, inevitably, it gets something wrong every time. And mind you, I’m somehow one of those Bostonians who no one ever believes is actually a Bostonian. Yet, it still has a hard time understanding me. Go figure.

At the Audio Transcription Center, nothing about our intelligence is artificial!

Software, Transcription

SUPERIOR TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRE MORE THAN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE!

Time and again we’ve tested, measured, and evaluated voice recognition software to determine their highest possible accuracy level. We have determined that with broadcast-quality audio of two well-spoken people, AI can presently reach 96% accuracy, at best. Translated that means approximately 10 errors per page versus our greater than 99% accuracy rate resulting in an average 2.5 errors per page.

So what does AI continue to have difficulty with?

less than broadcast-quality audio
multiple voices (interviews with 2 or more people, multi-person focus groups, etc.)
accents
ambient noise
special vocabulary
grammar
punctuation
spelling

Our production team custom-matches our clients’ subject matter to each transcriptionist’s particular strengths, knowledge, and interests. Our goal is to always make sure that what is said, is what is heard, is what is transcribed. Capturing each recording in a transcript that follows the client’s directions in intricate finite detail.

We have the most selective hiring standards in our industry. Aside from a minimum typing speed of 80 wpm, we only select people who are well-educated, culturally diverse, intellectually curious, and possess excellent grammar skills.

We are able to quickly mobilize a dedicated team for your time-sensitive projects as well as highly confidential work, and we also have a nationwide team available for projects of any size and subject matter.

AT THE AUDIO TRANSCRIPTION CENTER
NOTHING ABOUT OUR INTELLIGENCE IS ARTIFICIAL!

Transcription

Fast Isn’t Meaningful if a Transcript isn’t Accurate

There’s a reason the top academic institutions, government agencies, financial organizations, and market research firms continue to call on the Audio Transcription Center for their most challenging projects.

Our clients want their transcripts fast, but understand the importance of balancing speed with the delivery of a 99% accurate transcript.

Fast isn’t meaningful if a transcript isn’t accurate.

Accuracy is a necessity, and they know they’ll always get the most out of the diverse and knowledgeable transcriptionists who are custom-matched to each project. These awesome people bring their varied and unique experiences to each recording they’re transcribing. This allows for better understanding of the content, a more accurate transcript, and less time reviewing and fixing errors, saving time and dollars.

“I am so pleased with the transcriptions your people have done. This is a very large project, and I’ve only this week gotten to review the transcriptions. They are amazingly accurate, seemingly even looking up names to get them right.”
-An ATC client

At the Audio Transcription Center, our transcripts may be 99% accurate, but they’ll also always be unconditionally 100% guaranteed or no charge – no ifs, ands or buts.

Michael Sesling, Vice President

FAQ, Software, Transcription

The Hidden Truths of Voice Recognition Software

Q: Why the Audio Transcription Center cannot use Voice Recognition Software?
- A: Because Voice Recognition Software is not yet capable of producing to our strict standards.
Q: What strict standards?
- A: Let us count the ways:
  - VRS has difficulty in recognizing, simultaneously or not, two or more voices. Of course, two or more voices are intrinsic to oral histories.
  - VRS has difficulty with accents.
  - VRS has difficulty in dealing with less than broadcast quality sound.
  - VRS has difficulty with overlapping dialogue, idioms, collaquialisms, and especially ambient sound.
  - VRS – Formatting? Fuggedaboutit!
  - VRS developer IMB reached a 94.5% accuracy milestone which they are very proud of in its evaluation by “using the SWITCHBOARD corpus, a collection of telephone conversations that’s been used for decades.” “SWITCHBOARD is not the industry standard for measuring human purity, however, which makes breakthroughs harder to achieve.”
  - Finally, an important factor of VRS accuracy is the need for “training” the software to recognize the speech patterns and idiosyncrasies of the speakers. Imagine asking your narrators train the software that will be transcribing the session before each of your interviews. Oy!

BUT IT AIN’T ALL BAD

There are many projects where a very rough transcript is used as a quick reference source, and an actual verbatim transcript isn’t even required. In those cases, perfect transcripts are not needed, and VRS fits the bill… As well as lowers your initial budget.

In summary, if you don’t need a near-perfect transcript, VRS is a wonderful tool at a reduced cost. If you’re looking for an accurate transcript that is also 100% guaranteed, then the only option is to call your transcription vendor of choice. You might want to try us. Call us at (617) 423-2151, or click on the GET A QUOTE link in red.

FAQ, Transcription

What Is Verbatim Transcription and When Do You Need It?

What Is Verbatim Transcription and When Do You Need It

When requesting a quote from a transcription service, it’s important to know the level of detail you require. Do you need every single word including filler (“like,” “you know,” etc.)? Do you need every utterance and sound noted? This will help you get an accurate estimate in the short term, and will prevent you from paying twice for the same project in the future.

Continue reading “What Is Verbatim Transcription and When Do You Need It?” →

FAQ, Transcription

The Hidden Costs of “Cheap” Transcription Services

Before you select a transcription service, ask yourself “what are my priorities?” Cheap transcription services may be tempting as a way to save money but beware: low rates do not automatically mean low total cost. These are some of the many traps and hidden costs you may find:

Continue reading “The Hidden Costs of “Cheap” Transcription Services” →