diff --git a/src/mcspeak/audio.py b/src/mcspeak/audio.py
index ac98150..11f31d1 100644
--- a/src/mcspeak/audio.py
+++ b/src/mcspeak/audio.py
@@ -238,6 +238,27 @@ async def _terminate_quietly(proc) -> None:
         await proc.wait()
 
 
+def _fire_ready_tone(ready_tone: Path | None) -> "asyncio.Task | None":
+    """Play the "go" cue WITHOUT blocking capture, so the person can talk over it.
+
+    The old behaviour awaited the tone before the read loop began, adding ~1s
+    of dead time. Firing it as a background task lets capture start immediately;
+    the tone bleeds into the recorded head but VAD skips it (pure tone !=
+    speech) and the min_speech_ms guard keeps it from ending the recording.
+    Returns the task (or None) so the caller can cancel it on cleanup.
+    """
+    if ready_tone is None:
+        return None
+
+    async def _play() -> None:
+        try:
+            await play_audio(ready_tone, expected_seconds=0.3)
+        except Exception:
+            pass  # the cue is optional — never fail a recording over it
+
+    return asyncio.create_task(_play())
+
+
 async def record_audio_until_silence(
     out_path: Path,
     silence_threshold_ms: int = 1500,
@@ -291,16 +312,13 @@ async def record_audio_until_silence(
         stderr=asyncio.subprocess.DEVNULL,
     )
 
-    # Cue the person only AFTER the mic is live (see warmup rationale above), so
-    # the first word isn't clipped by pw-record's stream startup. The beep is
-    # captured as leading audio but VAD skips it (pure tone != speech) and the
-    # min_speech_ms guard below keeps it from ending the recording.
+    # Warm up (mic live before the cue so the first word isn't clipped), then
+    # fire the "go" tone WITHOUT awaiting it and drop straight into the VAD
+    # loop — so the person can talk right over the tone instead of waiting ~1s
+    # for it to finish.
     if ready_tone is not None:
         await asyncio.sleep(warmup_ms / 1000)
-        try:
-            await play_audio(ready_tone, expected_seconds=0.3)
-        except Exception:
-            pass  # tone failure is non-fatal — keep recording
+    tone_task = _fire_ready_tone(ready_tone)
 
     pcm_buf = bytearray()
     leftover = b""
@@ -343,6 +361,8 @@ async def record_audio_until_silence(
             # The inner read returned no data — break outer loop
             break
     finally:
+        if tone_task is not None and not tone_task.done():
+            tone_task.cancel()  # don't let a short recording outlive by the tone
         await _terminate_quietly(proc)
 
     if not pcm_buf:
@@ -415,15 +435,12 @@ async def record_audio(
         stdout=asyncio.subprocess.DEVNULL,
         stderr=asyncio.subprocess.PIPE,
     )
-    # Cue the person only AFTER the mic is live so the first word isn't clipped
-    # by pw-record's stream startup (the beep bleeds harmlessly into the head of
-    # the WAV; Parakeet ignores it). The duration timeout starts after the cue.
+    # Warm up (mic live before the cue), then fire the "go" tone WITHOUT
+    # awaiting it so recording is underway immediately and the person can talk
+    # over it. The beep bleeds harmlessly into the head of the WAV.
     if ready_tone is not None:
         await asyncio.sleep(warmup_ms / 1000)
-        try:
-            await play_audio(ready_tone, expected_seconds=0.3)
-        except Exception:
-            pass  # tone failure is non-fatal — keep recording
+    tone_task = _fire_ready_tone(ready_tone)
     try:
         # pw-record never exits on its own — wait the desired duration then term.
         await asyncio.wait_for(proc.wait(), timeout=duration_seconds)
@@ -438,6 +455,9 @@ async def record_audio(
             pass
         await proc.wait()
         raise
+    finally:
+        if tone_task is not None and not tone_task.done():
+            tone_task.cancel()
 
     # pw-record's exit code on SIGTERM is non-deterministic: some versions
     # return 0, some 1, some -15. The reliable signal is whether the WAV
@@ -477,12 +497,11 @@ async def _record_fixed_stream(
         stderr=asyncio.subprocess.DEVNULL,
     )
 
+    # Warm up, then fire the "go" tone WITHOUT awaiting so capture is underway
+    # immediately and the person can talk over it.
     if ready_tone is not None:
         await asyncio.sleep(warmup_ms / 1000)
-        try:
-            await play_audio(ready_tone, expected_seconds=0.3)
-        except Exception:
-            pass  # tone failure is non-fatal — keep recording
+    tone_task = _fire_ready_tone(ready_tone)
 
     pcm = bytearray()
 
@@ -504,6 +523,9 @@ async def _record_fixed_stream(
             pass
         await proc.wait()
         raise
+    finally:
+        if tone_task is not None and not tone_task.done():
+            tone_task.cancel()
 
     if len(pcm) < 100:
         raise PlaybackError(