Converse

/voicemode:converse

Start an ongoing voice conversation with the user using the voicemode:converse MCP tool.

Implementation

Call the voicemode:converse MCP tool. Argument handling:

• $1 — optional voice name (e.g. af_river, samantha, nova). If non-empty, pass it as the voice parameter to the tool. If empty, omit voice so the tool uses its default.
• $2 — optional initial message. If non-empty, use it as the message to speak. If empty, let the tool / Claude choose an appropriate opener.
• To discover voices, read the voice://voices MCP resource; to speak in character, first read the persona at ~/.voicemode/voices/<voice>/README.md (index: ~/.voicemode/voices/PERSONAS.md).

All other parameters have sensible defaults.

Multi-agent turn-taking: in a session where more than one agent shares the voice channel, pass hold_conch=true when your next converse call will continue the thread (you're asking a question you'll answer, or speaking across several turns). It keeps the floor so other agents wait instead of cutting in at the turn boundary; the default false releases it after the exchange.

Examples

• /voicemode:converse — no args, default voice, Claude chooses opener
• /voicemode:converse af_river — use voice af_river, Claude chooses opener
• /voicemode:converse af_river "let's plan the day" — use voice af_river, open with the given message

If $1 is provided but doesn't look like a known voice name (e.g. it contains spaces or punctuation that voices don't have), assume the user meant it as a message and pass it as the message instead — don't fail silently on a typo.

If MCP Connection Fails

If the MCP server isn't connected or the tool isn't available:

1. Run the install command:

   /voicemode:install
   

   This installs VoiceMode CLI, FFmpeg, and local voice services.

2. Or install manually via CLI:

   uvx voice-mode-install --yes
   voicemode whisper service install
   voicemode kokoro install
   

3. Check service status:

   voicemode whisper service status
   voicemode kokoro status
   

4. Reconnect MCP server after install:

   voicemode reconnect
   

   One Bash call drives the whole /mcp reconnect dance on your own pane — survives the drop because Bash and tmux stay up when the MCP tools vanish. After it prints RESULT: reconnected, run the ToolSearch select:… line it echoes to reload the tool schema, then resume conversing. (Manual fallback: run /mcp, select voicemode, click "Reconnect", or restart Claude Code.)

Mid-session drop (voice was working, then -32000 Connection closed): you don't need to reinstall — just run voicemode reconnect. See the voicemode skill's "Reconnecting after a mid-session drop" section.

For complete documentation, load the voicemode skill.