Listen indicator Request

[fortymileswest]

[Feature Request] Visual indicator when VoiceMode is actively listening/speaking

Description

When using VoiceMode in Claude Code (VS Code terminal), there is no visual feedback to indicate when the system is actively listening for speech input or processing audio. After typing converse, the terminal appears idle with no indication that recording is in progress.

This makes it difficult to know:

• Whether VoiceMode is actually listening
• When it's processing/transcribing speech
• When it's generating or playing back TTS audio
• When it's ready for the next input

Suggested Solution

Add a visual indicator in the terminal during active voice states. Some ideas:

• Waveform visualisation — a simple ASCII waveform or level meter showing mic input levels (e.g. ▁▂▃▅▇▅▃▂▁)
• Animated spinner/icon with state label — e.g. 🎙️ Listening..., ⏳ Transcribing..., 🔊 Speaking...
• Colour-coded status line — green for listening, amber for processing, blue for playback

Even a minimal text-based indicator like a pulsing dot or [Recording...] would be a significant improvement over the current silent state.

Current Behaviour

After initiating converse, the terminal shows no feedback during recording. The user has no way to confirm VoiceMode is actively capturing audio until the transcription result appears.

Environment

• OS: Linux (Fedora)
• Client: Claude Code in VS Code terminal
• VoiceMode version: Latest via uvx

[mbailey]

Quick response before bed:

• do you have chimes enabled? They play before and after recording.

• do you have sound fonts enabled? They play before and after every tool use so you never get more than a second or two of silence and can hear the machine working away in the background.