Deepgram Reference Architecture

Overview

Reference architectures for building scalable, production-ready transcription systems with Deepgram.

Architecture Patterns

1. Synchronous API

Direct API calls for small files and low latency requirements.

2. Asynchronous Queue

Queue-based processing for batch workloads.

3. Real-time Streaming

WebSocket-based live transcription.

4. Hybrid Architecture

Combination of patterns for different use cases.

Pattern 1: Synchronous API Architecture

+----------+     +------------+     +----------+
|  Client  | --> | API Server | --> | Deepgram |
+----------+     +------------+     +----------+
                       |
                       v
                 +-----------+
                 | Database  |
                 +-----------+

Best for:

• Short audio files (<60 seconds)
• Low latency requirements
• Simple integration

Implementation

// architecture/sync/server.ts
import express from 'express';
import { createClient } from '@deepgram/sdk';
import { db } from './database';

const app = express();
const deepgram = createClient(process.env.DEEPGRAM_API_KEY!);

app.post('/transcribe', async (req, res) => {
  const { audioUrl, userId } = req.body;

  try {
    const { result, error } = await deepgram.listen.prerecorded.transcribeUrl(
      { url: audioUrl },
      { model: 'nova-2', smart_format: true }
    );

    if (error) throw error;

    const transcript = result.results.channels[0].alternatives[0].transcript;

    // Store result
    await db.transcripts.create({
      userId,
      audioUrl,
      transcript,
      metadata: result.metadata,
    });

    res.json({ transcript, requestId: result.metadata.request_id });
  } catch (err) {
    res.status(500).json({ error: 'Transcription failed' });
  }
});

Pattern 2: Asynchronous Queue Architecture

+----------+     +-------+     +--------+     +----------+
|  Client  | --> | Queue | --> | Worker | --> | Deepgram |
+----------+     +-------+     +--------+     +----------+
      ^                             |
      |                             v
      |                      +-----------+
      +----------------------| Database  |
            (poll/webhook)   +-----------+

Best for:

• Long audio files
• Batch processing
• High throughput

Implementation

// architecture/async/producer.ts
import { Queue } from 'bullmq';
import { v4 as uuidv4 } from 'uuid';
import { redis } from './redis';

const transcriptionQueue = new Queue('transcription', {
  connection: redis,
});

export async function submitTranscription(
  audioUrl: string,
  options: { priority?: number; userId?: string } = {}
): Promise<string> {
  const jobId = uuidv4();

  await transcriptionQueue.add(
    'transcribe',
    { audioUrl, userId: options.userId },
    {
      jobId,
      priority: options.priority ?? 0,
      attempts: 3,
      backoff: {
        type: 'exponential',
        delay: 5000,
      },
    }
  );

  return jobId;
}

// architecture/async/worker.ts
import { Worker, Job } from 'bullmq';
import { createClient } from '@deepgram/sdk';
import { db } from './database';
import { notifyClient } from './notifications';

const deepgram = createClient(process.env.DEEPGRAM_API_KEY!);

const worker = new Worker(
  'transcription',
  async (job: Job) => {
    const { audioUrl, userId } = job.data;

    const { result, error } = await deepgram.listen.prerecorded.transcribeUrl(
      { url: audioUrl },
      { model: 'nova-2', smart_format: true }
    );

    if (error) throw error;

    const transcript = result.results.channels[0].alternatives[0].transcript;

    await db.transcripts.create({
      jobId: job.id,
      userId,
      audioUrl,
      transcript,
      metadata: result.metadata,
    });

    await notifyClient(userId, {
      jobId: job.id,
      status: 'completed',
      transcript,
    });

    return { transcript };
  },
  {
    connection: redis,
    concurrency: 10,
  }
);

worker.on('completed', (job) => {
  console.log(`Job ${job.id} completed`);
});

worker.on('failed', (job, error) => {
  console.error(`Job ${job?.id} failed:`, error);
});

Pattern 3: Real-time Streaming Architecture

+----------+     +-----------+     +----------+
|  Client  | <-> | WebSocket | <-> | Deepgram |
+----------+     |  Server   |     |   Live   |
                 +-----------+     +----------+
                       |
                       v
                 +-----------+
                 |  Storage  |
                 +-----------+

Best for:

• Live transcription
• Voice interfaces
• Real-time applications

Implementation

// architecture/streaming/server.ts
import { WebSocketServer, WebSocket } from 'ws';
import { createClient, LiveTranscriptionEvents } from '@deepgram/sdk';

const wss = new WebSocketServer({ port: 8080 });
const deepgram = createClient(process.env.DEEPGRAM_API_KEY!);

wss.on('connection', (clientWs: WebSocket) => {
  console.log('Client connected');

  // Create Deepgram connection
  const dgConnection = deepgram.listen.live({
    model: 'nova-2',
    smart_format: true,
    interim_results: true,
  });

  dgConnection.on(LiveTranscriptionEvents.Open, () => {
    console.log('Deepgram connected');
  });

  dgConnection.on(LiveTranscriptionEvents.Transcript, (data) => {
    clientWs.send(JSON.stringify({
      type: 'transcript',
      transcript: data.channel.alternatives[0].transcript,
      isFinal: data.is_final,
    }));
  });

  dgConnection.on(LiveTranscriptionEvents.Error, (error) => {
    clientWs.send(JSON.stringify({
      type: 'error',
      error: error.message,
    }));
  });

  // Forward audio from client to Deepgram
  clientWs.on('message', (data: Buffer) => {
    dgConnection.send(data);
  });

  clientWs.on('close', () => {
    dgConnection.finish();
    console.log('Client disconnected');
  });
});

Pattern 4: Hybrid Architecture

                                +---------------+
                           +--> | Sync Handler  | --> Deepgram
                           |    +---------------+
+----------+     +-------+ |
|  Client  | --> | Router | |    +---------------+
+----------+     +-------+ +--> | Async Queue   | --> Worker --> Deepgram
                           |    +---------------+
                           |
                           |    +---------------+
                           +--> | Stream Handler| <-> Deepgram Live
                                +---------------+

Implementation

// architecture/hybrid/router.ts
import express from 'express';
import { syncHandler } from './handlers/sync';
import { asyncHandler } from './handlers/async';
import { streamHandler } from './handlers/stream';

const app = express();

// Route based on request characteristics
app.post('/transcribe', async (req, res) => {
  const { audioUrl, mode, audioDuration } = req.body;

  // Auto-select mode based on audio duration if not specified
  let selectedMode = mode;
  if (!selectedMode) {
    if (audioDuration && audioDuration < 60) {
      selectedMode = 'sync';
    } else if (audioDuration && audioDuration > 300) {
      selectedMode = 'async';
    } else {
      selectedMode = 'sync'; // default for unknown
    }
  }

  switch (selectedMode) {
    case 'sync':
      return syncHandler(req, res);
    case 'async':
      return asyncHandler(req, res);
    case 'stream':
      return streamHandler(req, res);
    default:
      return syncHandler(req, res);
  }
});

Enterprise Architecture

                                    +------------------+
                                    |   Load Balancer  |
                                    +------------------+
                                            |
            +-------------------------------+-------------------------------+
            |                               |                               |
    +---------------+               +---------------+               +---------------+
    |  API Server   |               |  API Server   |               |  API Server   |
    |   (Region A)  |               |   (Region B)  |               |   (Region C)  |
    +---------------+               +---------------+               +---------------+
            |                               |                               |
            v                               v                               v
    +---------------+               +---------------+               +---------------+
    | Redis Cluster |<------------->| Redis Cluster |<------------->| Redis Cluster |
    +---------------+               +---------------+               +---------------+
            |                               |                               |
            v                               v                               v
    +---------------+               +---------------+               +---------------+
    | Worker Pool   |               | Worker Pool   |               | Worker Pool   |
    +---------------+               +---------------+               +---------------+
            |                               |                               |
            +-------------------------------+-------------------------------+
                                            |
                                    +------------------+
                                    |    Deepgram API  |
                                    +------------------+

Enterprise Implementation

// architecture/enterprise/config.ts
export const config = {
  regions: ['us-east-1', 'us-west-2', 'eu-west-1'],
  redis: {
    cluster: true,
    nodes: [
      { host: 'redis-us-east.example.com', port: 6379 },
      { host: 'redis-us-west.example.com', port: 6379 },
      { host: 'redis-eu-west.example.com', port: 6379 },
    ],
  },
  workers: {
    concurrency: 20,
    maxRetries: 5,
  },
  rateLimit: {
    maxRequestsPerMinute: 1000,
    maxConcurrent: 100,
  },
  monitoring: {
    metricsEndpoint: '/metrics',
    healthEndpoint: '/health',
    tracingEnabled: true,
  },
};

// architecture/enterprise/load-balancer.ts
import { Router } from 'express';
import { getHealthyRegion } from './health';
import { forwardRequest } from './proxy';

const router = Router();

router.use('/transcribe', async (req, res) => {
  // Find healthiest region
  const region = await getHealthyRegion();

  if (!region) {
    return res.status(503).json({ error: 'Service unavailable' });
  }

  // Forward request
  await forwardRequest(req, res, region);
});

export default router;

Monitoring Architecture

// architecture/monitoring/dashboard.ts
import { Registry, collectDefaultMetrics, Counter, Histogram, Gauge } from 'prom-client';

export const registry = new Registry();
collectDefaultMetrics({ register: registry });

// Metrics
export const requestsTotal = new Counter({
  name: 'transcription_requests_total',
  help: 'Total transcription requests',
  labelNames: ['status', 'model', 'region'],
  registers: [registry],
});

export const latencyHistogram = new Histogram({
  name: 'transcription_latency_seconds',
  help: 'Transcription latency',
  labelNames: ['model'],
  buckets: [0.5, 1, 2, 5, 10, 30, 60, 120],
  registers: [registry],
});

export const queueDepth = new Gauge({
  name: 'transcription_queue_depth',
  help: 'Number of jobs in queue',
  registers: [registry],
});

export const activeConnections = new Gauge({
  name: 'deepgram_active_connections',
  help: 'Active Deepgram connections',
  registers: [registry],
});

Resources

• Deepgram Architecture Guide
• High Availability Patterns
• Scaling Best Practices

Next Steps

Proceed to deepgram-multi-env-setup for multi-environment configuration.