fix(tui): interrupt in-flight TTS playback when starting voice recording

[wreed4]

Summary

The classic CLI (cli.py) calls stop_playback() before opening the mic on its Ctrl+B / record-key handler, so pressing the key while Hermes is speaking cuts off TTS and immediately starts listening. The TUI's voice.record RPC handler (tui_gateway/server.py) never had this call — pressing the record key while TTS was playing would start recording but leave the audio playing in the background, with no way to interrupt it short of exiting the session.

This adds the same stop_playback() call to the TUI's voice.record 'start' action, restoring parity with the classic CLI's interrupt behavior.

Root cause

• hermes_cli/voice.py::speak_text plays TTS audio via a subprocess tracked in tools/voice_mode.py's _active_playback.
• tools/voice_mode.py::stop_playback() terminates that subprocess.
• cli.py's Ctrl+B handler already calls stop_playback() before starting a new recording (see cli.py around the voice key binding).
• tui_gateway/server.py's voice.record method (used by the Ink TUI, the default interface) never referenced stop_playback or tools.voice_mode at all — confirmed via grep -rn stop_playback tui_gateway/server.py returning zero matches before this patch.

Fix

Added a stop_playback() call (best-effort, wrapped in try/except like the neighboring stop_continuous cleanup path) at the top of the voice.record 'start' action, before start_continuous() is invoked.

Test plan

• scripts/run_tests.sh tests/test_tui_gateway_server.py — 323/323 passed, no regressions.
• Manual mock verification: patched stop_playback and start_continuous, dispatched voice.record with action=start, confirmed both are called and the RPC still returns {status: recording}.
• Manually verified end-to-end in a live TUI session: TTS now stops immediately when the voice record key is pressed mid-playback.

[alt-glitch]

This was generated by AI during triage.

Related: #40025 covers the same record-start interruption UX through the broader stop_speaking path, including pending TTS. This PR directly stops active playback, so the approaches overlap but are not byte/mechanism-equivalent.

[teknium1]

Thanks for the focused TUI/classic-CLI parity fix. Current main confirms the premise: tui_gateway/server.py:13518-13561 starts capture without stopping audio, whereas the classic handler calls stop_playback() before recording at cli.py:14268-14276.

Problems

• The patch adds no regression coverage. The existing TUI record-start coverage at tests/test_tui_gateway_server.py:567-638 verifies recorder configuration but does not assert that playback interruption precedes start_continuous().

Suggested changes

• Add a focused RPC test that patches tools.voice_mode.stop_playback and hermes_cli.voice.start_continuous, dispatches voice.record with action: start, and asserts the required ordering.

Automated hermes-sweeper review.

[teknium1]

Please add a regression test for this ordering in tests/test_tui_gateway_server.py: patch stop_playback and start_continuous, dispatch voice.record with action: start, and assert playback interruption occurs before recording starts.

[GottZ]

This was generated by AI during triage.

Summary

Twenty PRs are associated with this three-issue complex: #40025 and #65192 address TUI PTT interruption, #49884/#50257 plus partial #50650/#51227 address quoted voice-beep booleans, and #64086 changes Python playback rather than the reported Desktop queue; the remaining diffs cover sibling config coercion, TTS cleanup/playback, or regex performance. The recorded best-fix set is #40025 and #65192 for #40010 and #49884 for #49883, while no recorded best fix addresses the Desktop cause in #63697.

Related pull requests

• fix(gateway/config): coerce quoted boolean values in config parsing #15334 [closed] related — (+64/-3) — n/a: Coerces three gateway boolean fields rather than any reported voice path; it remains relevant after closure because its commit was cherry-picked with attribution into merged fix(gateway/config): coerce quoted boolean values in config parsing #15387.
• fix(gateway/config): coerce quoted boolean values in config parsing #15387 [merged] related — (+64/-3) — n/a: Merged reference implementation of fix(gateway/config): coerce quoted boolean values in config parsing #15334's gateway boolean coercion, without changing PTT interruption, voice beeps, or Desktop TTS replacement.
• fix(config): coerce quoted-boolean config gates consistently #18220 [merged] related — (+115/-6) — n/a: Applies shared boolean parsing to display and skill gates, demonstrating the same coercion pattern as [Bug]: voice.beep_enabled treats quoted false-like config strings as enabled #49883 but not modifying either voice-beep reader.
• fix(tts): filter emoji characters from text-to-speech input #18598 [closed] related — (+17/-0) — n/a: Filters emoji in TTS preprocessing rather than interrupting playback or parsing beep configuration; it remains relevant after closure because comprehensive shared cleanup landed via feat(tts): unified spoken-text preprocessing + speed/instructions/provider tool params #73513 at merge 4aac89b.
• fix(skills_guard): pre-compile THREAT_PATTERNS at module load time #32712 [closed] related — (+154/-132) — n/a: Contains the same seven-file regex-precompilation and unrelated watcher changes as fix(core): pre-compile regex patterns across 5 files for performance #32713; it remains relevant after closure as that PR's explicit duplicate.
• fix(core): pre-compile regex patterns across 5 files for performance #32713 [closed] related — (+154/-132) — n/a: Mixes regex precompilation with unsafe watcher and tag-matching changes; it remains relevant after closure because the hot-path subset was salvaged with tests into perf(agent): precompile response and skill-scan regexes #69653.
• fix(tui): stop voice playback before recording #40025 best fix — (+440/-109) — n/a: Recorded best fix for [Feature]: Stop TTS output while pressing PTT button in TUI? #40010, stopping streaming and fallback TTS before recording while tokenizing queued work and handling recorder re-arm; its revised diff addresses the earlier keep-open review's queue-before-worker race.
• fix: play returned TTS audio path in CLI voice mode #43131 [closed] related — (+132/-19) — n/a: Selects returned TTS audio only when the requested MP3 is absent, not a playback-interruption or beep fix; it remains relevant after closure because its two commits were salvaged into fix(voice): CLI/TUI voice mode UX and environment fixes (15 items) #73520 at merge e04c2a9.
• fix(voice): respect false-like beep_enabled strings #49884 best fix — (+23/-2) — n/a: Recorded best fix for [Bug]: voice.beep_enabled treats quoted false-like config strings as enabled #49883, replacing raw bool coercion at both voice-beep readers and testing false-like strings on both paths; its keep-open review reports high salvageability.
• fix(config): use is_truthy_value for boolean config coercion across 10 files #50050 related — (+23/-16) — n/a: Sweeps ten non-beep boolean consumers, but its contributor keep-open review identifies changed explicit-null semantics, a stale kanban hunk, and missing consumer-level regressions.
• fix(config): use is_truthy_value() for config boolean parsing across 8 paths #50127 [closed] related — (+80/-11) — n/a: Changes eight non-voice configuration paths rather than either beep reader; it remains relevant after closure as a broader sibling coercion attempt despite its [Bug]: voice.beep_enabled treats quoted false-like config strings as enabled #49883 closing metadata.
• fix: parse voice beep_enabled with truthy helper #50257 [closed] fixes — (+79/-3) — n/a: Implements the same two-reader beep correction as earlier fix(voice): respect false-like beep_enabled strings #49884 and now tests both helpers; despite its keep-open review, the diff is duplicative and it remains relevant after closure as the complete duplicate of fix(voice): respect false-like beep_enabled strings #49884.
• fix: use is_truthy_value for config boolean coercion #50604 [closed] related — (+8/-6) — n/a: Corrects quoted booleans for timestamps, runtime footer, Bitwarden, and webhook settings; it remains relevant after closure only as a sibling coercion sweep.
• fix(voice): use is_truthy_value for beep_enabled config coercion #50650 [closed] partial — (+2/-1) — n/a: Changes only the standalone voice-beep reader, omitting the classic CLI reader and tests; it remains relevant after closure as an explicit subset duplicate of fix(voice): respect false-like beep_enabled strings #49884.
• fix(agent,gateway): use is_truthy_value for config boolean coercion #51147 [closed] related — (+9/-7) — n/a: Corrects curator, LSP, and active kanban watcher boolean parsing rather than the reported voice paths; it remains relevant after closure as a focused sibling implementation.
• fix: replace bool(config.get()) with is_truthy_value across codebase #51227 [closed] partial — (+55/-41) — n/a: Includes only the standalone beep-reader subset among a broad coercion sweep and contains malformed duplicate imports; it remains relevant after closure as a non-viable partial duplicate of fix(voice): respect false-like beep_enabled strings #49884.
• fix(config): use is_truthy_value() for config boolean parsing #54419 [closed] related — (+89/-15) — n/a: Changes agent, curator, LSP, footer-command, kanban, and webhook readers without touching voice beeps; it remains relevant after closure because the author replaced it with rebased fix(config): use is_truthy_value() for config boolean parsing #56446.
• fix(config): use is_truthy_value() for config boolean parsing #56446 related — (+89/-15) — n/a: Reprises fix(config): use is_truthy_value() for config boolean parsing #54419's non-voice coercion sweep, while its contributor keep-open review requires same-key runtime readers and production-path tests before salvage.
• fix(voice): interrupt current TTS playback when a new reply starts (#63697) #64086 related — (+12/-0) — n/a: Stops Python-wrapper playback when new speech starts, but the contributor keep-open review shows [Feature Request] Interrupt current TTS playback when a new reply starts #63697 originates in the unchanged Desktop auto-speak hook and requests a Desktop-scoped replacement test.
• fix(tui): interrupt in-flight TTS playback when starting voice recording #65192 best fix — (+12/-0) — n/a: Recorded best fix for [Feature]: Stop TTS output while pressing PTT button in TUI? #40010, directly stopping active playback before TUI recording; its high-salvageability keep-open review requires an RPC regression proving stop_playback precedes start_continuous, while fix(tui): stop voice playback before recording #40025 additionally covers queued and streaming work.

Duplicates

#15334 is the source duplicate salvaged as #15387; #32712 and #32713 have the same diff; #49884 and closed #50257 implement the same complete beep fix, with closed #50650 and #51227 as partial subsets; #54419 was replaced by rebased #56446. #40025 and #65192 overlap on #40010 but are not mechanism-equivalent: #65192 stops active playback, whereas #40025 also cancels queued, synthesizing, and streaming TTS and handles recorder re-arm.

Suggested consolidation

Keep #65192 open with a salvage path: preserve its focused active-playback stop and add the contributor-requested RPC ordering regression before any further disposition; this respects its recorded best-fix status and keep-open review rather than closing it behind the broader #40025. Keep #40025 open for its broader queue-safe cancellation path, retain #49884 as the focused #49883 salvage candidate, and use author action on #64086 to rebase or split into the Desktop auto-speak hook with a replacement regression; the already-closed #50257/#50650/#51227 need no further duplicate action.

Complex graph

flowchart LR
    classDef open fill:#dbeafe,stroke:#1d4ed8,color:#1e3a8a
    classDef merged fill:#dcfce7,stroke:#15803d,color:#14532d
    classDef closed fill:#e5e7eb,stroke:#6b7280,color:#1f2937
    classDef unverified fill:#f3f4f6,stroke:#9ca3af,color:#374151
    classDef best stroke-width:3px,stroke:#b45309
    classDef target stroke-width:3px,stroke:#4338ca
    I40010(["issue #40010 (open)"])
    P65192["PR #65192 (open)"]
    P65192 -->|best fix| I40010
    class I40010 open
    class P65192 open
    class P65192 best
    class P65192 target
    click I40010 "https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent/issues/40010"
    click P65192 "https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent/pull/65192"

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Graph: solid arrow = fixes / best fix, dashed arrow = partial or unverified (see edge label); boxed group = PRs duplicating each other; amber border = best fix; indigo border = target; gray node = closed (state tag in the node label).

Cross-PR triage: Reviewed 20 pull requests and 3 issues in this complex. Each diff was read against this issue; Assessment working set: 193 kB of PR diffs, 33 kB of issue/PR text, 16 kB of discussion (28 comments), 10 verify verdicts. verdicts reflect diff content, not PR titles. Part of an automated triage batch.