Voice Synthesizers

[Dave Hunt]

Terry

You're right about the Dec Express being poorly made.  For the outrageous
price, one would think Dec could make something in which the of-on-volume
switch would work through many cycles, without developing loose connections.
The same can be said of the power supply connector and internal speaker.

For about 1 fifth of the price, why not consider the Doubletalk L.T?  I have
one that has served me well for almost two years of trouble-free operation.
The speech isn't DEC quality, but is perfectly intelligible.  The unit can
be powered by either a 9-Volt battery, or an external power supply.  The
synthesizer end of the RS-232 cable is soldered directly into the unit.  The
other end is a female DB-9.  How common!  What application(s) do you have
for the synthesizer?  If screen reading is one, be sure your reader can
control the synth.

Cheerio,

Dave


-----Original Message-----
From: speakup-admin at braille.uwo.ca
[mailto:speakup-admin at braille.uwo.ca]On Behalf Of Klarich, Terry
Sent: Tuesday, September 05, 2000 4:56 PM
To: 'speakup at braille.uwo.ca'
Subject: Voice Synthesizers


Hello all:

Soon, I will be buying a new voice synthesizer.  I would like an external
serial device for it's flexibility.  Presently, it is a toss up between the
dectalk express and the acsent.  If anyone has an opinion concerning serial
voice synthesizers, I would like to hear it.

I personally like the dectalk express; but, it doesn't seem very well made.
And, DEC used those rj 45 connectors with the tab offset.  I have no idea
why DEC did this.  This type of connecter is on most of their terminal
servers, printers and other serial devices.  DEC are the only one's who use
this connector.  I guess this is why they can charge $15 for a cable.

Terry

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