Kaiwa Panel
See the assembly manual
Sino Vox
It generates speech from plain English or Chinese by reading files on the microSD card.
Timing
Real-time
The various voice parameters are applied just before triggering the speech and are ineffective while speaking.
They are applied to the next utterance. The best is to fiddle a bit with the knobs for the desired effects.
While playing with the interface, the display shows the parameters changes.
Firmware
SD card
Here are some text files to test the various voice options (including text in Chinese Pinyin)
MIDI
You can use a midi sequencer to store letters as MIDI notes.
(C#6 is letter a) The speech starts when Sinovox receives the “.” character (MIDI note A#1). The space character is the MIDI note G#0
Pitch bend can be used to set the pitch from 0-10.
The MIDI clock is present on the Busy jack.
You can use a custom MIDI track in Ableton live to ease the process of “typing” text.
Ableton MIDI rack
Media
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Robovox
Robovox’s design is inspired by the Patent “System for and method of synthesizing singing in real-time” filed on 03.05.90 by Florian Schneider, Gert Joachim Ott, and Gert Jalass.
It describes a musical instrument that can produce a speech and sing in real-time via MIDI controls.
A magical speech synthesizer chip lives at the heart of the instrument: the Votrax SC-02 invented by Richard T. Gagnon.
The Votrax SC-02 chip can generate speech by stringing phonemes together.
The Votrax SC-02 contains registers that allow software control of the speech rate, pitch, pitch movement rate, amplitude, articulation rate, vocal tract filter, and of course, phoneme selection.
Most of these functions are implemented in the MIDI control software.
In Robovox, we also implemented an undocumented function of the chip: the internal audio carrier can be replaced by an external one to produce vocoder-like effects.
The result is simply excellent. You can also use this feature as an effect to apply to the carrier! Check this demo where I play with the pitch of the external carrier with a Genki ring (@ 0:48) (sorry for the lousy audio -video sync)
Specifications
Hardware
- Add-on board to fit on Kraftor, Emy or Emy Terminal via the MikroBUS port
- Host the vintage SC-02 Votrax speech chip
- Audio carrier input for vocoder like effect
Midi controls
- MIDI note ON note OFF mapped to the SC02’s phonemes
- Velocity
- Pitch (coarse control by clocking the chip)
- CC2 Note Pitch (fine control using the chip inflection/pitch register)
- Mod Wheel mapped to filter
- CC 64 sustain ON/OFF to choose between the internal and external carrier
Emy / Terminal EMY Firmware
The code runs on Terminal or Emy. It comes in 2 versions, depending on how you want to sequence it. You can drive it either as a USB MIDI instrument or via a classic MIDI serial TRS connector. The code also allows CV controls so it can be used in a Eurorack setting
Sequencing the chip
VST-Plugin
The chip is quite easy to sequence with the help of a plugin that works almost like the original Atari software used by Kraftwerk.
Ableton MIDI Effect Rack
You can also sequence the chip by sending phonemes from the piano roll (here: UH R A N E U M ) 
I made a MIDI effect rack for Ableton to simplify the introduction of text
Media
Here are a few Kraftwerk covers made by Andrew Shaw. These are astonishing variants of the original ones: respectful to the original songs but with their specificities or identities.
Andrew is using the Robovox precisely as Kraftwerk used to do: first by finding the correct phonemes to be uttered, then launching them in perfect timing and duration, and finally tuning the pitch to have the chip sing in tune!
( all parameters sent live to the Robovox from within the DAW)
Terminal
The casing allows adding any of the Vox modules inside just by removing four screws.
As with Emy, Terminal can be used in a CV-controlled environment or act as a MIDI instrument.
You can install the various firmware on the SD card before powering the device.
A pair of shunts allows the user to connect Terminal either as a MIDI USB unit or as a host for a USB keyboard for text entry.
On request, a serial TRS jack MIDI Type B connector can also be added.
(note: not all firmware are supporting MIDI yet. MIDI support is under development)
Please check this page for more information: https://www.polaxis.be/
Features :
100 % Emy compatible, including adding additional voices
USB port for power or MIDI or USB connection
Optional TRS jack MIDI Type B connector
USB host connector for computer keyboard
Shunts (must be removed when connecting a keyboard, otherwise, they must be placed vertically)
Line in & out stereo jack 1/4″ (line in only used for the Robovox module)
Trimpot to adjust the audio level input (only used for the Robovox module)
Terminal in action
Emy Blank Panel
See the assembly manual
VAX vox
What is Dectalk
Dectalk was a speech synthesizer and text-to-speech technology developed by Digital Equipment Corporation in 1984, mainly based on the work of Dennis Klatt at MIT.
The Dectalk Express what connected to the serial port and would speak what was being “printed.”
The synthesizer can process text and produce speech with nine different voices. The Dectalk engine includes a parser that gives users fine control over the synthesized speech’s quality, pitch, and intonation. Dectalk can also be programmed to play phonemes and sing with quite a realistic expression.
[hxae<300,10>piy<300,10> brr<600,12>th<100>dey<600,10> tuw<600,15> yu<1200,14>_<120>]
[hxae<300,10>piy<300,10> brr<600,12>th<100>dey<600,10> tuw<600,17> yu<1200,15>_<120>]
[hxae<300,10>piy<300,10> brr<600,22>th<100>dey<600,19>xdih<600,15>rdeh<600,14>ktao<600,12>k_<120>_<120>]
[hxae<300,20>piy<300,20> brr<600,19>th<100>dey<600,15> tuw<600,17> yu<1200,15>]The command syntax for musical coding sequences is:
[phoneme<duration, pitch numberTiming
Latency
There is a latency of 200 ms between the trigger and the start of the speech. This latency is very consistent, allowing the speech to stay in the tempo even if not precisely on the beat. The firmware uses the gate going down to stop the speech, preparing the chip for the next utterance, so when sequencing some stutter-like speech in a loop, they still fire up in sync with the tempo.
Real-time
The various voice parameters are applied just before triggering the speech and are ineffective while speaking. They are applied to the next utterance. The best is to fiddle a bit with the knobs for the desired effects.
Firmware
Vax Firmware 82.59 KB 12233 downloads
<iframe src="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vRFPTD7IZa6LTllEF1t8CG9W-ElWvVldzN8lV7fzbhOAP0ufKlmD3N8Zy6aMXTGe_iwAE3ItMIzO_xz/pubhtml?gid=1359627519&single=true&widget=true&headers=false" width="600"...
DECtalk user guide 1.08 MB 8316 downloads
A very useful guide to help you using the DECtalk command and building your own very...Text files
Apollo 11 complete transcript 709.93 KB 8322 downloads
Credits here I modified the script so the various callsigns use differents DECtalk...
Designing Voices 0.73 KB 5053 downloads
Load this file to learn how to design your own voices by tweaking the various voice...
Spell mode demo 2.71 KB 7880 downloads
2 files to show how to use the spell mode : one with a list of three letter acronym...
Isaac Asimov's "Three Laws of Robotics" - pseudo singing mode demo 0.00 KB 42 downloads
Isaac Asimov's "Three Laws of Robotics" First 3 lines in normal text to speech mode,...
Oblique Strategies 3.58 KB 6117 downloads
Brian Eno's Oblique Strategies Original 1975 version (113 lines) ...Songs
Media
Emy Panel
Kaiwa Alternative Voice : F4 (Kaiwaii cute female)
Kaiwa Alternative Voice : M6 (male)
Kaiwa Alternative Voice : F1 (slow female)
Emy Kit
See the assembly manual
Mea vox
Firmware
Mea Firmware + MIDI USB 62.44 KB 418 downloads
Firmware load : Option 1 Saving the "firmware.bin" on the SD card and restart Option...Login is required to access this page
Mea Firmware + MIDI TRS 62.44 KB 16 downloads
Please note that when using MIDI from the TRS jack on Terminal, the front switch...Login is required to access this page
SD Card
(if you need to get started with a new SD card)
Extras
Citroen / Renault 25 vocabulary for MEA vox
6 file(s) 163.27 KB
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MIDI
The firmware has a MIDI function :
– MIDI note assigned to 39 phonemes.
– Velocity and Pitch bend supported.
– Can hold the note for singing effect.
Ableton MEA vox MIDI effect rack 40 12.07 KB 2557 downloads
Midi notes are named to match Mea's 40 phonemes. (See MIDI mode in the manual) ...Login is required to access this page
Use with a microcontroller
The hardware is compatible with the mikroBUSTM standard, allowing rapid prototyping and easy integration into existing projects.
The onboard class-d amplifier can drive a small 8 ohms speaker.
This vox board was designed to be used with EMY and its appropriate firmware. (in this case, the audio signal is forwarded via the “PWM” pin – the jack is not used with Emy)
It can also be used in robots, toys, or any other retrocomputing speaking devices you may think of.
Thanks to the popular mikroBUS™, this board can be instantly connected to multiple different platforms like the Arduino, the STMT32 of the Clicker2.
The onboard amplifier is quite powerful and is just waiting for the speaker to be plugged in!
Breadboard Connection
Code
The code is available here
Text to Speech
The chip can string phonemes to produce quite realistic speech (although with a French accent). It can also sustain notes for a nice singing effect. Here is how the Arduino code looks like :
dire("/bonj+w_r");
delay(400);
dire("&l&kt€Ronik miwzik");
delay(400);
dire("i$ b+i-n ka+I+n -ma/$=+_ine");
delay(400);
dire("+?je pE ossi murmur*?");
delay(400);
dire("je suis un arduino qui parle"); // à corriger ;-)
delay(400);You will find more information about the various phonemes and the prosodic markers in the following manual.
Hardware User Manual
Media
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