VocaTalk 1.0.22.0

VocaTalk 1.0.22.0 is launched to be a convenient as well as professional application that generates personal podcasts that sound like an audio documentary with sound effects and music and optional binaural beats in the background. You copy and paste any content, select music and effects, generate episode, and download to your iPod, Zune or any mp3 player. If the content is too large, VocaTalk will automatically split it into episodes of 50-60 minutes.

VocaTalk uses text-to-speech (TTS) technology to read the text aloud and digital signal processing (DSP) technology to massage the generated speech. Listening to a VocaTalk episode is much more comfortable and fun than raw TTS (text-to-speech) voice. 

Major Features:

1. SAPI 5.1 and 5.3 Support
   • VocaTalk supports the latest SAPI 5.3 (Microsoft Speech API) as well as the older 5.1 version. This means, you can find many voice engines that are developed by various vendors. High quality AT&T, Acapella InfoVox Desktop and Ivona voices have been tested and confirmed. Here's a 'Guide to voices supported by VocaTalk and their vendors'.
2. Digital Signal Processing
   • VocaTalk uses various DSP (Digital Signal Processing) technologies to enhance the speech output. Speech engines usually use 16Khz or 22Khz sampling rate. But VocaTalk's output is always at 44KHz (CD quality). The speech engines normally produce mono output. But VocaTalk's output is always stereo. VocaTalk applies various effects to the sound after resampling up to 44Khz, so the new sound has more details than the original
3. CD Ripping to use as Background Music
   • VocaTalk includes a CD Ripper tool embedded within the application UI. You can rip your CDs, create a library of albums, and put them as background music for an episode. By default, VocaTalk will shuffle and use all the music in your library. But you can chose what albums should be used. VocaTalk automatically adjusts the volume level of the music for a comfortable listening of the speech.
4. mp3 Importing to use as Background Music
   • VocaTalk can import mp3 music and save into your library to use in the background.
5. Album archival to manage a large collection of albums
   • VocaTalk allows archival of albums to save hard disk space. You can archive and deactivate some of the albums, and unarchive and activate them whenever you want to use them again. Archival of albums does not prevent you from selecting them as background music. When you select an archived album, VocaTalk will automatically unarchive it.
6. Effects for Fun
   • All effects are optional and can be selected per episode.
7. Sliding Depth and Echo
   • Voice is modified so that it'll smoothly vary between small-room echo to large-hall reverberation effects.
8. Sliding Voice Position
   • Voice moves from left to right smoothly. This creates the illusion of speakers actually walking around you as they read the text.
9. Sliding Voice Pitch
   • Voice pitch is smoothly modified from low to high frequencies effectively creating the illusion of more voices than you have installed on your system. So the number of voices appear to be virtually infinite.
10. Ambient White Noise
    • For people with Tinnitus, or for anyone who needs better isolation from environment, VocaTalk can put ambient white noise effect.
11. Effects for Learning and Relaxation
    • VocaTalk uses brainwave entrainment technology to embed special signals and effects into the generated mp3. These effects improve focus, memory and learning abilities or just relax the listener.
12. Binaural Beats
    • This is a special stereo signal that produces a slight frequency difference between left and right ears. For example, left ear hears a sinusoidal signal of 300 Hz and the other 310 Hz. As the brain constantly tries to adapt to this frequency difference of 10 Hz, a virtual sound is created that is not directly fed.
13. Cross-feed Modulation
    • This is another learning improvement technique based on scientific research and supported by VocaTalk. The spoken audio is smoothly shifted from left to right rapidly at about 1 cycle per second. You hear the voice coming from all around you rather than hearing it in the middle of your head as is the case with monoaural (single channel) sound. Some superlearning recordings employ this technique for improving memorization.
14. Local Podcasting Technology to integrate with iTunes, Zune and other podcatchers
    • VocaTalk can directly integrate with your iTunes and Zune and publish the generated episodes just like any other podcast that you subscribe. The only difference is, VocaTalk podcasts are on your local computer and not shared with others. iTunes and Zune do a pretty good job of managing podcast episodes and users are already familiar with those.