Simple Voice Chat server setup
Simple Voice Chat server setup takes 5 steps, and the port in step 3 decides whether it works:
- Download the right file from Modrinth: the plugin for Paper, Purpur, Spigot or Folia, or the mod for Fabric, NeoForge, Forge or Quilt, made for your Minecraft version.
- Put it in the plugins folder, or in mods on a modded server, and start the server once. On Fabric, add Fabric API as well.
- Open a UDP port: 24454 by default. On a hosted server, ask your host for a second port and set
port=in voicechat-server.properties to that number. - Restart the server, so the voice chat starts on the new port.
- Join with the mod installed and press V. The first time, a short setup guide asks for your microphone, your speakers, and push to talk or voice activation.
To check one player's connection, run /voicechat test followed by their name in the game. Operators have the permission for it, voicechat.admin, by default. The makers also publish a small command line tool that pings the voice port from outside, because normal port checkers cannot test UDP.
What port does Simple Voice Chat use?
Simple Voice Chat uses UDP port 24454 by default. You change it with port in voicechat-server.properties, which is in plugins/voicechat on Paper and in config/voicechat on a modded server, never in server.properties.
The port has to be open for UDP, not only TCP. A rule for TCP alone does nothing for voice, which is why a Docker setup needs 24454:24454/udp instead of 24454:24454. Only the server opens the port: players connect out to it, just as they do to the game.
Setting the port to -1 makes the voice chat use the same number as the Minecraft server, but the makers strongly advise against it, because the server query also uses UDP on that number and it can crash the server. On a hosted server, your host decides which extra ports a server gets. Simple Voice Chat's wiki keeps setup guides for many hosts and sends you to your host's support if yours is not on the list, and Lodehost's port guide asks you to contact them for a second port and name the plugin.
Simple Voice Chat config: voicechat-server.properties
The Simple Voice Chat config on the server is voicechat-server.properties, and these 9 settings are the ones you are most likely to change:
| Setting | Default | What it does |
|---|---|---|
port | 24454 | The UDP port for voice |
max_voice_distance | 48 | How far away, in blocks, other players hear you |
whisper_distance | 24 | The same distance while you hold the whisper key |
enable_groups | true | Lets players create and join groups |
force_voice_chat | false | Kicks players who join without the mod |
allow_recording | true | Lets players record the voice chat |
spectator_interaction | false | Lets players in spectator mode talk to the others |
bind_address | Empty | The IP address the voice chat listens on; empty uses server-ip from server.properties |
voice_host | Empty | The address players connect to, for special setups such as a UDP proxy |
Leave bind_address and voice_host empty unless your host tells you otherwise. A wrong bind_address is the usual reason a server crashes at startup with Failed to bind to address, and the makers warn not to touch voice_host without knowing why.
Why does Simple Voice Chat say voice chat not connected?
Simple Voice Chat says Voice chat not connected, with a plug icon, when the game cannot reach the voice port, and 1 of these 5 causes is nearly always behind it:
- The UDP port is not open, or voicechat-server.properties holds a different number from the one the host opened. This is the most likely cause.
- DDoS protection in front of the server drops the voice traffic. Ask your host to turn it off for the voice port or to add an exception.
- A proxy such as Velocity or BungeeCord sits in front of the server without the Simple Voice Chat proxy plugin.
- Only one player cannot connect. Their internet provider may block UDP, which is common on mobile data, or a VPN is in the way.
- The server runs through a tunnel such as playit.gg, Essential or e4mc, which the makers do not officially support. ngrok does not carry UDP at all.
A server that crashes at startup with Address already in use has the opposite problem: something else already uses the voice port. Check that Geyser and the server query, set by query.port in server.properties, are on other ports.
Simple Voice Chat plugin on a Paper server
The Simple Voice Chat plugin runs on Paper, Purpur, Spigot and Folia, and one jar, version 2.6.24, covers Minecraft 1.8.8 to 26.3. Players still need the mod in their own game, for Fabric, NeoForge, Forge or Quilt, because the vanilla game has no voice chat of its own.
Players do not all need the same loader: the versions for Fabric, NeoForge, Forge, Quilt and Paper all work with each other. The one exception is that a NeoForge client cannot connect to a Forge server. For the RAM a modded server needs, see our guide to modded Minecraft hosting.
How do Simple Voice Chat groups work?
Simple Voice Chat groups let players talk to each other anywhere in the world, not only within the 48 blocks of proximity chat. Press V, choose Group and create a group with a name and, if you like, a password. Others join from the same screen, or through an invite from /voicechat invite. A group has 1 of 3 types:
- Normal: players outside the group cannot hear you, but you can hear them.
- Open: players outside the group hear you, and you hear them.
- Isolated: players outside the group cannot hear you, and you cannot hear them either.
If players see Groups are disabled on this server, set enable_groups=true and restart. You do not have permission to join groups means a permissions plugin took away voicechat.groups, which everyone has by default. And when someone can be heard from far away, they are still in a group: leaving it brings proximity chat back.
Simple Voice Chat commands
Simple Voice Chat has 5 commands you will use, all under /voicechat, and they only work in the game with the mod installed, not in the server console:
| Command | What it does | Who can use it |
|---|---|---|
/voicechat help | Lists the commands | Everyone |
/voicechat test | Tests the voice connection of the player you name | Operators |
/voicechat invite | Invites the player you name to your group | Everyone |
/voicechat join | Joins the group with that name | Everyone |
/voicechat leave | Leaves your group | Everyone |
The keys in the game are V for the voice chat menu, M to mute, N to turn voice chat off and H to hide its icons. Push to talk has no key until you pick one in the setup guide, and Group Management has no key of its own from 1.21.6 on, where it used to be G.
Does Simple Voice Chat work with Geyser and Bedrock?
Simple Voice Chat does not work for Bedrock players, with or without Geyser: it runs on Java Edition only, and its makers say a Bedrock version is impossible because of technical limits.
Bedrock players can still join a crossplay server that runs it and play as normal, as long as force_voice_chat stays false, because that setting kicks every player without the mod. Geyser and the voice chat each need a UDP port of their own, so give them different numbers. Our guide to Minecraft crossplay hosting explains how Bedrock players join.
Simple Voice Chat vs Plasmo Voice
Simple Voice Chat vs Plasmo Voice comes down to reach against audio features: Simple Voice Chat has over 73 million downloads on Modrinth, while Plasmo Voice, with about 4 million, adds noise reduction, 3D positioning and optional muffling of voices through blocks.
Both need the plugin or mod on the server and a mod in each player's game, and both send voice over UDP. Plasmo Voice uses the game's own port number for UDP by default, while Simple Voice Chat uses 24454 and advises against sharing. Plasmo Voice runs on Paper, Folia, Fabric, Forge and NeoForge. For most servers we would start with Simple Voice Chat, because modpacks such as Craftoria and Homestead already include it, so the players of those packs have it installed.