Patch support

My call hears nothing

Check these in order; the app shows the first one that applies as a banner.

1. Your call app has to listen to Patch Mix instead of your microphone. Open its microphone setting and choose Patch Mix. Where it is:
   • Zoom: Settings, then Audio, then Microphone.
   • Google Meet (in Chrome): More options, then Settings, then Audio, then Microphone.
   • Microsoft Teams: Settings, then Devices, then Microphone.
   • Discord: User Settings, then Voice & Video, then Input Device.
   • OBS: Settings, then Audio, then Mic/Auxiliary Audio.
   Patch notices when an app opens Patch Mix and marks it Listening.
2. Patch is still in Preview. Preview plays only to you; your call hears silence until you choose Go live.
3. Outgoing is muted. Open Diagnostics (the stethoscope button in the title bar, or the menu bar icon) and choose Unmute outgoing.
4. Outgoing audio is paused. Patch pauses after your Mac sleeps, when your microphone disconnects or when a permission is missing, so nothing is sent by surprise. The banner says why. Fix it, then press Resume in the footer. If the microphone is gone and you don’t need it, choose Continue with media only.

Diagnostics can see which apps have Patch Mix open, not what the person on the other end hears. If every stage says it’s working, ask them.

Patch Mix isn’t in my call app’s microphone list

Patch Mix comes from a small audio component that installs with Patch.

• In Patch, open Settings and look at Audio component. If it says Not available, choose Repair…. Finish or stop any call first: all sound on your Mac pauses for about a second, and Patch never changes its audio component while a session is open.
• If you just installed and the devices still don’t show, restart your Mac and open Patch again. On some Macs the new devices appear only after a restart.
• If the call app was already open, quit it and open it again so it reads the device list afresh.
• If Patch says the installer couldn’t be opened, download Patch again from tonal.fm/patch/download and run the installer.

Music or app sound is garbled, quiet or disappears in the call

Call apps treat anything that isn’t speech as noise and remove it. Turn that off for the call.

• Zoom: in Settings, then Audio, under Microphone modes choose Original sound for musicians. In a meeting it’s under the arrow next to the Audio button. Also turn off Automatically adjust microphone volume so Zoom doesn’t fight the levels you set in Patch. If you keep Zoom’s noise removal, set Background noise suppression to Low.
• Discord: turn Noise Suppression off. Under Voice Processing turn off Echo Cancellation and Automatic Gain Control. Set Input Mode to Voice Activity with automatic sensitivity off and the threshold at its lowest, or use Push to Talk, so quiet clips aren’t gated out.
• Google Meet: turn Noise cancellation off in Meet’s Audio settings.
• FaceTime: set Mic Mode to Standard. Voice Isolation removes music.
• Webex: choose Music mode, or turn noise removal off.
• Any other app: look for noise suppression, echo cancellation or automatic gain in its audio settings and turn them off.

Menu names change between versions. If one isn’t where we say, look for the same words nearby.

People on the call hear themselves (echo)

• Never choose Patch Pass-Thru as the speaker in your call app. Set the call app’s speaker to your headphones. Pass-Thru is for apps you want to send into the mix, not the call itself. If Patch sees your call app playing into Pass-Thru it turns Send to call off for that source and says Would echo callers.
• Don’t add your call app itself as a source. Patch stops you: it would send everyone’s voices back to them.
• If the call is in Chrome, don’t also capture Chrome. Play your music in another browser, or in Music or Spotify.

“Patch needs permission”

Patch asks macOS for two things, each once.

• Microphone, so your voice goes into the mix. If it was turned off: System Settings, then Privacy & Security, then Microphone, turn Patch on, then come back and press Resume.
• System Audio Recording, so Patch can capture the apps you add. macOS asks the first time you add an app, not when you install. If it was turned off: System Settings, then Privacy & Security, then Screen & System Audio Recording, turn Patch on.

Diagnostics has an Open Microphone settings or Open System Audio Recording settings button that takes you straight there. Deny either permission and only that source goes silent; Patch never asks again outside System Settings. If a source stays silent and Patch says it may not have permission, that’s an inference, because macOS doesn’t tell Patch the answer directly. Check System Settings.

I can’t hear the music myself

What you hear and what your call hears are separate.

• Pick headphones on the You hear on card. When it’s Off, sources set to Hear locally are silent for you but still reach the call.
• If your headphones unplug, local listening pauses and resumes when they reconnect. Your call still hears the mix.
• Bluetooth headphones add a short delay, often about 0.2 s. Use wired headphones to hear your own microphone without lag.
• The voices on the call play wherever your call app sends them, not through Patch.

The sound cuts out for a second every 20 seconds

That’s the trial. Every session is full quality for 20 minutes. After that, what you send drops out for one second every 20 seconds until you stop. Stop and start again for another 20 minutes, or buy a licence and paste the key in Settings. Your own listening isn’t affected.

My licence key won’t activate

The message in Settings tells you which it is.

• Couldn’t reach the licence server: check your connection and try again. Patch only contacts the licence server when you activate or deactivate, and about once a week after that. Your trial keeps working meanwhile.
• Already active on the maximum number of Macs: a key covers three Macs. On a Mac you no longer use, open Patch, Settings, Deactivate on this Mac…. No access to it? Use the link in your receipt email to manage activations, or email us.
• That key wasn’t accepted or for a different product: paste the key exactly as it appears in your receipt email, with no spaces around it.
• This key is no longer valid: the licence was refunded or revoked. Patch goes back to the trial. If that’s a mistake, email us.
• Can’t find your key? It’s in the receipt email from Polar, our payment provider. Search your mail for “Patch”.

Moving Patch to a new Mac

Before you wipe or sell the old Mac, open Patch there and choose Settings, Deactivate on this Mac…. Uninstalling alone doesn’t free the activation, so it keeps counting towards the three. If the old Mac is already gone, activate on the new one anyway: when you reach the limit, free a seat from the link in your receipt email.

Installing, repairing or removing

• Installing or repairing the audio component pauses all sound on your Mac for about a second. Do it between calls. The installer won’t run while Patch is sending audio: stop the session in Patch first.
• To remove Patch: in the app, Settings, then Uninstall Patch…. It removes the app, the audio component, Patch Mix and Patch Pass-Thru. Tick the box to also remove your saved setups, settings and licence; otherwise they’re kept in case you reinstall. macOS asks for your password.
• If Patch Mix and Patch Pass-Thru are still listed afterwards, restart your Mac to finish removing them.
• If Patch won’t open at all, remove it from Terminal: sudo /Applications/Patch.app/Contents/Resources/uninstall.sh (add --remove-user-data to delete your settings and licence as well).

Updates

Patch checks for updates by itself and asks before installing. Or choose Settings, Check for updates…. App updates apply the next time Patch opens. Updates to the audio component wait until you stop a session, then show a banner: Update now pauses your Mac’s sound for a moment while it installs. Patch can’t start a session until a required component update is done.

Captions

Live captions are made on your Mac by macOS and never saved or uploaded. The first time, macOS downloads the caption language; that needs an internet connection once. If captions stop or say they couldn’t start, choose Try again, or turn them off and on. Some languages aren’t available on every Mac; Settings, Live captions lists the ones yours has. Captions affect only what you see, never what your call hears.

Do I need to be technical?

No. Patch asks what your call should hear, then walks you through the two things your Mac needs: adding Patch Mix and letting Patch hear your microphone and your app.

Which apps can I send audio into?

Any Mac app that lets you choose a microphone, such as Microsoft Teams, Webex or Slack. Patch includes guided setup for Zoom, Google Meet in Chrome, Discord and OBS.

How do I play music through my mic?

Add Music, Spotify or your browser as a source, turn on Send, and choose Patch Mix as the microphone in your call app. The call hears your voice and the music together, at the levels you set. Step-by-step guide

Can I send just one browser tab?

Not yet. An app source includes all its tabs and windows. Run the call in one browser and play clips from another.

What happens when trial time runs out?

The call stays up. After 20 minutes of a session, what the call hears drops out for one second every 20 seconds until you stop. What you hear yourself is untouched, and the next session starts clean.

Can I get a refund?

Yes. Email support@tonal.fm within 30 days of buying and we refund you in full. The refund ends the licence, so Patch goes back to the trial after its next licence check.

Does Patch record or upload audio?

No. Nothing is recorded and your audio never leaves your Mac. Captions are optional, made on device and never saved.

Will installing it interrupt a call?

Installing the audio component pauses your Mac’s sound for about a second. Do it between calls.

How do I remove it?

Settings → Uninstall removes the app, its audio component and the Patch Mix device.

Do I need BlackHole or Soundflower?

No. Patch installs its own audio component, which adds two devices: Patch Mix, the virtual microphone your call app listens to, and Patch Pass-Thru, a virtual speaker for apps that let you choose an output. BlackHole alternatives

What does Patch need?

A Mac with Apple silicon running macOS 26 or later, about a second of silence while its audio component installs, and permission to use your microphone and to record the apps you choose.

How many Macs can I use one licence on?

Three. Activate the same key on each. To move to a new Mac, deactivate on the old one first, from Settings in Patch.

Where is my licence key?

In the receipt email from Polar, our payment provider, sent to the address you bought with. Search your mail for “Patch”.

Do I need an account?

No. Patch has no accounts and no sign-in. Your key is the only thing to keep.

Does Patch work on an Intel Mac or older macOS?

No. Patch needs Apple silicon and macOS 26 or later, and the installer checks before it runs.

What is in a diagnostics report?

Versions, your settings, which apps you send and which apps are reading Patch Mix, and recent events. Never audio, captions, device names or your licence key. Patch doesn’t send it anywhere; you choose whether to attach it to an email.