Xref: utzoo sci.electronics:5640 comp.sys.ibm.pc:26436 comp.sys.tandy:1186 Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!csd4.milw.wisc.edu!bionet!agate!ucbvax!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!osu-cis!att!ihlpb!markb From: markb@ihlpb.ATT.COM (Mark Blumenthal) Newsgroups: sci.electronics,comp.sys.ibm.pc,comp.sys.tandy Subject: Re: Building a speech synthesizer for a pc... Summary: text-to-speech Message-ID: <9955@ihlpb.ATT.COM> Date: 22 Mar 89 23:08:44 GMT References: <76032JRA102@PSUVM> <1613@ncar.ucar.edu> Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories - Naperville, Illinois Lines: 130 This mail is in response to the recent inquiry about voice synthesis. Since several people have an interest in this subject, I'm posting this response (long). I built 2 voice synthesis projects. The first project I designed myself and interfaced to an Apple IIc serial port (or any RS232 by changing connectors). It used the SPO256-AL2 speech synth. chip sold at Radio $hack (Cat. # 276-1784), and a General Instruments AY-3-1015 UART clocked with a 555 timer running at 4.8 KHz. The UART does a serial to parallel conversion. I modified the microcomputer interface diagram that came with the SPO256-AL2 to include the UART, to not include the optional ROM, and cleaned up the use of some strobes/handshakes. With this circuit you will be required to do some minimal programming on your PC to build words from allophones. Through programs, and manually, I sent character strings (representing speech phonemes) out the Apple serial port to the voice circuit and amazed my family and friends. I sold the Apple before ever doing any serious programming. After graduating speech synthesis kindergarden, I moved on to bigger and better things; text-to-speech. For my second project I purchased a circuit board from RFJ Engineering in Florida (305 323-9039). This circuit uses the CTS256-AL2 text-to-speech chip (Radio Shack Cat. #276-1786) and the SPO-256-AL2 speech synth chip. I've attached mail with more details on the circuit board. NOTE- circuit board requires a slight modification to the power supply--see attached mail. With text-to-speech, an ascii word or phrase, such as "hello fred", can be sent out the PC's serial port to the voice circuit, and will be pronounced in English. Neat! I recommend this project because it was simple, cheap, and I spent more time on application and less time on design. Here at Bell Labs we use the "ctrm" communications software to log on UNIX machines from PCs. From UNIX with simple shell scripts, or from DOS with batch files, LOTS could be done here. ("Good morning Mark... It is Wednesday March twenty-second... eight-o-four a.m... You have mail.") My scripts are available to anyone upon request. Finally, after graduating from voice-synthesis jr. high, I moved on to the juicy stuff: My house is X-10 automated; lights, appliances, music, thermostat, etc. In addition to controlling these things from a wireless remote, any telephone in the world, automatic scheduling by PC, and table-top control centers, I can do the following: Me: Godfrey, B.I.B: May I help you? Me: Table lamp. B.I.B: O.K. Me: Off, please. B.I.B: As you wish. (BIB's voice responses randomly differ every time) B.I.B stands for "Butler-In-A-Box" and is also a hands-free duplex speakerphone and PIR alarm. Voice quality is superb. A voice- controlled tricked-out house will run ~$2K. And More fun than 8514 and super-VGA! Lastly, after scanning PC magazines for info on voice-mail, etc., I found this demo phone number for WATSON voice-mail products: 1-800-6-WATSON Gladly I will share advice/info including my own schematics and programs with any voice-synthesis hackers out there. Mark Blumenthal AT&T Bell Laboratories att!ihlpb!markb 312 979-3676 (2 attachments) __________________________________________________________________________ Date: Thu, 5 Feb 87 23:05:51 PST From: cmcmanis@sun.uucp (Chuck McManis) Subject: Text to Speech Chips Organization: Sun Microsystems, Inc. - Mtn View, CA A couple of people have mentioned that they are interested in using the text to speech chips that Radio Shack sells. Well it turns out a place called RFJ engineering in Florida sells a bare PC board that does everything you need. They advertise in Computer Shopper. The board has sockets for extra RAM (extended conversion buffer) and your own rule exceptions EPROM. I built it and it worked right off. There are level shifters for RS-232C operation but I have been using just straight TTL serial on my robot. This board makes a great diagnostic console on a mobile platform. -Chuck McManis uucp: {anywhere}!sun!cmcmanis BIX: cmcmanis ARPAnet: cmcmanis@sun.com These opinions are my own and no one elses, but you knew that didn't you. __________________________________________________________________________ >From sun!pepper!cmcmanis Fri Apr 10 22:56:12 1987 remote from ihnp4 To: ihlpg!markb Subject: Re: Text to Speech Mark the following is a followup message I posted to sci.electronics : Ok, I mentioned earlier a board that does this, here are the particulars : The company is called RFJ Engineering and their phone number is (305) 323-9039, their address is P.O. Box 4166, Sanford, FL, 32772. They sell a bare board for $24.95 that uses the radio shack (actually General Instrument) Text-to-speech and speech synthesis chips. This board has an RS-232C port on one side and an amplifier/speaker on the other. What ever ascii text goes in one side, comes out the other as spoken words. It also has a parallel port input which you could connect to a centronics port (with appropriate connectors of course). After collecting the parts it took me about an hour to assemble, your mileage may vary. I suggest that anyone who builds this *not* use the on board 5V regulator, and instead buy a radio shack wall bug power supply that supplies +5, +x and -y (where X and Y are greater then 3, these drive the RS-232 chips) and hook it up directly. Of course I have no financial interest in anyone mentioned, I built one I use and it was fairly simple. It cost *a lot* less than $1000. More like $50 including snacks and beverages. P.S. It does *not* need an EPROM. The EPROM is for 'exceptions' and can be left off. -- --Chuck McManis uucp: {anywhere}!sun!cmcmanis BIX: cmcmanis ARPAnet: cmcmanis@sun.com These opinions are my own and no one elses, but you knew that didn't you.