[DECtalk] DECTalk At High Speaking Rates

[joshknnd1982 at gmail.com]

Yes I use it sometimes with NVDA but I use it at around 350 or 300 because
it mumbles and could do better at high speeds using the sonic library from
NVDA to better achieve those high speeds.



-----Original Message-----
From: Dectalk <dectalk-bounces at bluegrasspals.com> On Behalf Of Brandon Tyson
Sent: Friday, October 28, 2022 4:20
To: DECtalk <dectalk at bluegrasspals.com>
Subject: [DECtalk] DECTalk At High Speaking Rates

Hello,

Recently with the work being done on DECTalk, and also just thinking about
DECTalk in general, I've been thinking about its use with screen readers.

I'm curious how many users on this list use DECTalk at high speeds with a
screen reader, say, above 460 words per minute. To me, by the point you get
it to about 470-480 or so it sounds very much like it's mumbling and a
friend and I described it as imitating how a person tries to speak fast
(it's very difficult to understand them).

If I use Eloquence at a high speed it's much easier for me to follow that.
I'm used to how both synthesizers sound and so I don't think it's due to not
having used DECTalk enough.

For those who use DECTalk with a screen reader, do you use it fast, say,
above 470-480, or do you use it slower?

And generally speaking, for those who use DECTalk in general, such as with
the Speak windows, is fast speech simply not a concern?

I feel that if DECTalk were to be used widely in the AT space that it could
really do a better job at high speeds.

And I'm not saying Eloquence is perfect either--it definitely isn't, but
it's far more intelligible for me at high speeds than DECTalk.

I was hoping that this message could perhaps start some conversation around
this aspect of the synthesizer as I've not seen this be discussed much, just
generally the speak windows and using DECTalk for other uses. Which don't
get me wrong I really think it's great that it can provide singing and other
such functions for those who need that. But it's just always seemed like it
doesn't perform well at extreme speaking rates.

Thank you very much for your time and I look forward to any input you may
have.

Sincerely,

Brandon Tyson
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