Text to speech - How to fix the first word being cut off

Hi Stacy. I normally use the wireless Plantronic headphones (which seems to cause the lag) but I have tried with some wired Sennheiser headphones and it works fine. Hope this helps?

I too have found that the first few syllables (sometimes multiple words) cannot be heard and based on Paul's response about headsets. I tested it and indeed, when i didn't use my headset it was fine. I think there may be something with the lag that a headset is used. I am not a tech guru, but is there a difference between the plantronics headset receiver I use and if someone were to use wired/wireless headphones or earbuds?

Not being able to use a headset could prove problematic during this new era of literally exclusive telecommuting and having to rely on the use of a headset receiver while working. 

Hi Ren and Paul,

In our case, the issue was not related to earphones. It occured to all users regardless of what audio devices they used (the computer's speakers or headsets).

Hi Paul,

Thanks for chiming in with your troubleshooting steps! I'm glad you were able to narrow it down to your headphones. 

Have you tried a different set of headphones or publishing the course to Review 360 to test your file? You may also want to consider sharing the published course with colleagues to see if they come across the same experience.

Hi All.

This has been happening with me too (with text to speech) and I tried several methods to try and overcome it. However, the issue of the first word being cut-off was still occurring. It also happens with e-learning courses created within our organization using A360.

So I thought I would try something out...

I use headphones whilst working on audio and when I preview or play the course with headphones on (wireless connection), there is the 'lag' that cuts off the first word on initial play (replaying it works fine). However, I tried it without my headphones and listened through my laptop's speakers and there was no lag and the audio played perfectly.

Can anyone confirm that this may be one of the issues causing this? I hope this may help some of you?

Hi Amos!

Thank you for sharing these extra details! You do need an internet connection to use the Text-to-Speech feature so I can see how the connectivity could impact the quality of the audio clip. 

On the other hand, the audio clip can be played without an internet connection. Is it possible to check the connectivity prior to generating a Text-To-Speech recording?

Hi Chanda and Ren,

We were unable to fix this problem in our eLearning. It has caused several of our customers to complain.  I've found that it is intermittent and possibly happens when the internet connection or computer is sluggish.

My original suggestion (in one of my previous posts here) is that Articluate make a change to 'Text to Speech' such that an short (say 1 sec.) pause is inserted automatically at the start of each audio clip.

Hi Chanda,

Thanks for the details! I see you've shared this as well with Ronaziel and are continuing to troubleshoot.

By the way, it looks like you may have replied by email where your contact information came through. This Peek video will show you how to edit it out if you’d like!

Hi Chanda,

Thanks for reaching out, and great call to open a case! I see that my teammate, Ronaziel, has reached out with some questions and next steps. Be sure to review what she sent and feel free to upload your file if you need further help!

Hello Alyssa, I just wanted to echo the same issue that Amos is having. I am finding that the text to speech feature (while awesome) will not only cut off the first word of a sentence but the entire first phrase. For example:

Original Text: 5) If the laboratory’s submission for the repeat deficiency is different from the POC or AOC 

Closed Captioning will capture:  .....deficiency is different from the POC or AOC 

The entire first phrase will be spoken but missed in closed captioning:  5) If the laboratory’s submission for the repeat 

I tried copying and pasting from a MS Word document, using the Copy feature integrated into Text-To-Speech, and manually copying the text. It is happening with another developer within my company as well. This feature is crucial for us since 508 compliance is mandatory. The lessons we are developing are 100+ slides each (1,600 slide course). Having to validate each work in the closed captioning is extremely time consuming.  Any support you can offer is greatly appreciated.