diff --git a/server.py b/server.py
index 2c575e1..2445641 100644
--- a/server.py
+++ b/server.py
@@ -1974,7 +1974,7 @@ def _transcribe_audio(src: Path, settings: dict, backend: str = "configured") ->
             headers=hdrs,
             timeout=_STT_REQUEST_TIMEOUT,
         )
-    if resp.status_code in {400, 404, 422} and model != "whisper-1":
+    if resp.status_code in {400, 404, 422, 500} and model != "whisper-1":
         with src.open("rb") as f:
             resp = requests.post(
                 f"{stt_url}/v1/audio/transcriptions",
diff --git a/static/app.js b/static/app.js
index aa27df6..a51a417 100644
--- a/static/app.js
+++ b/static/app.js
@@ -8227,12 +8227,27 @@ $('s-import-voices-file')?.addEventListener('change', async function () {
   // ── Populate STT backends ────────────────────────────────────────────────
   async function loadConvSttBackends() {
     if (!sttSel) return;
+    const prev = sttSel.value;
     try {
       const d = await fetch('/api/stt-backends').then(r => r.json());
-      const avail = (d.backends || []).filter(b => b.available);
-      sttSel.innerHTML = avail.length
-        ? avail.map(b => `<option value="${escHtml(b.id)}">${escHtml(b.label)}</option>`).join('')
-        : '<option value="configured">Default (configured)</option>';
+      const all = d.backends || [];
+      if (!all.length) {
+        sttSel.innerHTML = '<option value="configured">Default (configured)</option>';
+        return;
+      }
+      sttSel.innerHTML = all.map(b => {
+        const icon = b.available ? '✓' : '✗';
+        const label = `${icon} ${escHtml(b.label)}`;
+        const disabled = !b.available;
+        return `<option value="${escHtml(b.id)}"${disabled ? ' disabled' : ''}>${label}</option>`;
+      }).join('');
+      // Restore prev selection or pick first available
+      const opt = sttSel.querySelector(`option[value="${CSS.escape(prev)}"]`);
+      if (opt && !opt.disabled) { sttSel.value = prev; }
+      else {
+        const first = sttSel.querySelector('option:not([disabled])');
+        if (first) sttSel.value = first.value;
+      }
     } catch(_) {
       sttSel.innerHTML = '<option value="configured">Default (configured)</option>';
     }
@@ -8241,10 +8256,22 @@ $('s-import-voices-file')?.addEventListener('change', async function () {
   // ── Populate TTS backends (reuse global _ttsBackends) ───────────────────
   function populateConvTtsBackends() {
     if (!ttsBkSel) return;
-    const avail = availableTtsBackends();
-    ttsBkSel.innerHTML = avail.length
-      ? avail.map(b => `<option value="${escHtml(b.id)}">${escHtml(b.label)}</option>`).join('')
-      : '<option value="">No TTS backend available</option>';
+    const prev = ttsBkSel.value;
+    const all = window._ttsBackends || [];
+    if (!all.length) {
+      ttsBkSel.innerHTML = '<option value="">No TTS backend available</option>';
+      return;
+    }
+    ttsBkSel.innerHTML = all.map(b => {
+      const icon = b.available ? '✓' : '✗';
+      return `<option value="${escHtml(b.id)}"${!b.available ? ' disabled' : ''}>${icon} ${escHtml(b.label)}</option>`;
+    }).join('');
+    const opt = ttsBkSel.querySelector(`option[value="${CSS.escape(prev)}"]`);
+    if (opt && !opt.disabled) { ttsBkSel.value = prev; }
+    else {
+      const first = ttsBkSel.querySelector('option:not([disabled])');
+      if (first) ttsBkSel.value = first.value;
+    }
   }
 
   // ── Fetch LLM models ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────