Forum Discussion
Text to speech software recommendations?
Well Jonathon I am not sure if you are aware of costs between a TTS software and hiring somebody to do the voiceover, it costs a lot more and sometimes that's not the best quality either..
For someone who does not have English as first language many times a TTS software is the most cost effective choice.
just sayin' ;)
I get it... not taking a jab at you. sometimes you have to use what you can and get by with it (we all do).
I frequently see people discuss "robot voice" and it is usually followed with "not too bad" or "pretty natural sounding". Robot voice makes my ears hurt (as do poor voice overs) and I completely shut out the audio of courses when it is used. I would rather just read the text on screen if given the option (and think learners should have that option).
As training professionals we spend so much time trying to make a course "engaging" or "interactive" and in some cases we end up just giving the learner a headache with poor audio or visual quality.
It is just a general observation. A quality "human" voice-over can really make a difference in the learners experience and can be worth the extra effort and even cost.
I worry that people think "robot voice" is a good choice for a quality course. My opinion is it should be the last choice.
I get that in your situation it is the necessary option, and you are tyring to get the best robot voice possible, which I commend you for.
