diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index cb4ad66..97342cc 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -64,8 +64,8 @@ The wrapper maps voice IDs (`sam`, `mary`, `mike`, `keith-bell`, `kerry-watson`,
 MSTTS variants), reads `VESKSLOP_TTS_VOICE`, `VESKSLOP_TTS_SPEED` (multiplier) and
 `VESKSLOP_TTS_PITCH` (semitones), starts Xvfb when `DISPLAY` is unset, and writes a
 48 kHz mono s16le WAV trimmed, faded and normalized to about -16 LUFS (-3 dBFS true peak).
-Flextalk voices ignore pitch (engine limitation) and are declared with the `no-pitch`
-flag; everything else maps as documented in `docs/TTS-DESIGN.md`.
+Speed and pitch apply to every voice (Flextalk's numeric settings must be `REG_DWORD`,
+which the setup script writes). Mapping details are in `docs/TTS-DESIGN.md`.
 
 ## Layout
 
@@ -84,8 +84,8 @@ flag; everything else maps as documented in `docs/TTS-DESIGN.md`.
 - `xvfb-run` is flaky on this host. `setup/run.sh` starts a persistent Xvfb
   (`:77`) instead; Wine needs a working X display because the runtime creates
   windows.
-- Flextalk ignores pitch entirely (byte-identical output at any pitch setting); use speed.
-  The host now leaves pitch/speed untouched unless passed, so voices use their own profile.
+- Flextalk numeric speaker settings must be `REG_DWORD` (the installer script handles
+  this); `REG_SZ` values cause a monotone buzz. Pitch and speed work on all voices.
 - The Flextalk archive lacks `data2.cab`; `unshield -O` extracts `data1.cab`
   but one tail file (`WatsonUNInstall.dll`) is incomplete.
 
diff --git a/docs/NOTES.md b/docs/NOTES.md
index a3ad793..618d3c8 100644
--- a/docs/NOTES.md
+++ b/docs/NOTES.md
@@ -33,7 +33,9 @@ From `msttsl/mstts.inf` (`[TTSReg]`):
   `HomographDictionary="1 ft_hgrap.dll"`, `ProperNameDictionary="3 ft_namsa.dll"`,
   `LetterToSoundDictionary="4 ft_l2s.dll"`.
 - Options: `...\FlexTalk\2.0\Options` `Gender=Male`, `SampleRate=11025`.
-- Speakers (per-voice settings; names come from these values):
+- Speakers (per-voice settings; names come from these values). **All numeric
+  values must be REG_DWORD**: with REG_SZ the engine reads garbage and
+  synthesizes a monotone buzz (pitch fixed at max, pitch control dead).
   - `{11260610-C84A-11ce-AEC4-0000C0E9CB87}`: Mode Name / Speaker Name
     "Keith Bell", Pitch 27, Speaking Rate 33, Head Size 46, Expression 59,
     Lowering 40, Prominences 17, Age 30, Volume 100.
@@ -71,6 +73,16 @@ final file `WatsonUNInstall.dll` is incomplete).
 - 32-bit engines require a 32-bit prefix (`WINEARCH=win32`).
 - `sudo` on this machine requires a password; installs are manual.
 
+## Engine units (measured)
+
+- speed: MSTTS range 30-450, Flextalk 50-390; the natural rate is about 150 for every
+  voice (duration at 100/200/300 fits a natural value near 140-150).
+- pitch: engine units, roughly linear in F0 near the natural point (~1.1 Hz per unit).
+  Natural values: about 100 (MSTTS), 106 (Keith Bell), 186 (Kerry Watson); Flextalk max 250.
+  Verified with the corrected DWORD registry: Kerry 0 st = 209 Hz, -6 st = 148 Hz,
+  +6 st = 250 Hz (clamped at max); Keith 0 st = 119 Hz, +6 st = 170 Hz.
+- The wrapper maps semitones as `natural * 2^(st/12)` and clamps to the range.
+
 ## Decompiled corpora (Ghidra)
 
 - `/mnt/ghidra/decomp/msttssyn.dll/` (786 functions, engine)
diff --git a/docs/TTS-DESIGN.md b/docs/TTS-DESIGN.md
index 63f6736..e5e3de3 100644
--- a/docs/TTS-DESIGN.md
+++ b/docs/TTS-DESIGN.md
@@ -267,7 +267,8 @@ record what the engine needs to interpret, add, or hide._
 
 ### Quirks the wrapper must hide
 
-- Flextalk reports default pitch/speed as maximum through `ITTSAttributes`.
+- Flextalk numeric speaker settings must be `REG_DWORD`; `REG_SZ` values make the engine
+  synthesize a buzz. `setup/setup-flextalk.sh` writes them correctly.
 - The mode list includes TruVoice names with no installed voice data; filter those out of
   `/voices` (or mark them `unavailable`).
 - Wine needs a working X display; the project helper starts a persistent Xvfb.
@@ -301,6 +302,19 @@ _Added 2026-09-15._
 - **Display**: the daemon does not export `DISPLAY` to TTS children. The wrapper must start or
   find its own Xvfb and set `DISPLAY` itself, as the project helper already does. Do not rely on
   the client's display.
+- **Engine selection**: the Speech settings and the TTS panel list every configured engine. The
+  command engine appears under `VESKSLOP_TTS_NAME` (default "custom engine") and is selectable
+  directly; Auto uses the command engine first. Selecting it hides the language row and shows the
+  `VESKSLOP_TTS_VOICES` list.
+- **Start engine**: the Speech settings have a **Start engine** button (`POST /api/audio/tts/warm`,
+  MCP `start_tts_engine`) that runs one throwaway synthesis to warm the command engine (Xvfb, Wine,
+  host). Keep the wrapper able to handle a short sentence; the warm-up uses "The quick brown fox
+  jumps over the lazy dog." and reports the elapsed milliseconds. Two-pass `loudnorm` must not fail
+  on that input.
+- **Lead-in silence**: Veskslop prepends a short silence at playback time (`VESKSLOP_TTS_LEAD_MS`,
+  default 150 ms) so Discord's voice pipeline is ready before the first syllable. It is added with
+  `adelay` in the player, not in the audio file. The engine needs no change and can keep its
+  5–10 ms edge fades.
 - **Voice declarations**: list only usable IDs in `VESKSLOP_TTS_VOICES`. Veskslop hides the
   espeak list while a custom command is set, so a missing declaration means an empty voice list,
   not a fallback. The list accepts commas or newlines, and the optional `no-pitch` flag tells the
@@ -308,5 +322,8 @@ _Added 2026-09-15._
 - **Flextalk pitch**: confirmed that pitch is a no-op for Keith Bell and Kerry Watson. Mark those
   entries `no-pitch` so users are not offered a control that does nothing. Speed applies to every
   voice and needs no flag.
+  _Engine correction (2026-09-15): the no-op was caused by the speaker registry values being
+  `REG_SZ`; with `REG_DWORD` pitch works and the voices are declared without the flag. See the
+  speed/pitch section._
 - **Licensing**: keep the engine DLLs and voice data local and out of any repository; Veskslop
   never bundles or redistributes them.
diff --git a/setup/setup-flextalk.sh b/setup/setup-flextalk.sh
index f3d5ac9..16dc6bc 100755
--- a/setup/setup-flextalk.sh
+++ b/setup/setup-flextalk.sh
@@ -62,30 +62,30 @@ REGEDIT4
 "SampleRate"="11025"
 
 [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\AT&T\Watson\2.0\FlexTalk\2.0\Speakers\{11260610-C84A-11ce-AEC4-0000C0E9CB87}]
-"Age"="30"
-"Expression"="59"
+"Age"=dword:0000001e
+"Expression"=dword:0000003b
 "Gender"=""
-"Head Size"="46"
-"Lowering"="40"
+"Head Size"=dword:0000002e
+"Lowering"=dword:00000028
 "Mode Name"="Keith Bell"
-"Pitch"="27"
-"Prominences"="17"
+"Pitch"=dword:0000001b
+"Prominences"=dword:00000011
 "Speaker Name"="Keith Bell"
-"Speaking Rate"="33"
-"Volume"="100"
+"Speaking Rate"=dword:00000021
+"Volume"=dword:00000064
 
 [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\AT&T\Watson\2.0\FlexTalk\2.0\Speakers\{000031CB-3699-551F-AED0-6B4893382D57}]
-"Age"="30"
-"Expression"="100"
+"Age"=dword:0000001e
+"Expression"=dword:00000064
 "Gender"=""
-"Head Size"="45"
-"Lowering"="40"
+"Head Size"=dword:0000002d
+"Lowering"=dword:00000028
 "Mode Name"="Kerry Watson"
-"Pitch"="65"
-"Prominences"="17"
+"Pitch"=dword:00000041
+"Prominences"=dword:00000011
 "Speaker Name"="Kerry Watson"
-"Speaking Rate"="32"
-"Volume"="100"
+"Speaking Rate"=dword:00000020
+"Volume"=dword:00000064
 EOF
 
 echo "== registry"
diff --git a/setup/vekslop-tts.sh b/setup/vekslop-tts.sh
index e115199..c0b9b73 100755
--- a/setup/vekslop-tts.sh
+++ b/setup/vekslop-tts.sh
@@ -20,8 +20,7 @@ export WINEPREFIX=${WINEPREFIX:-$HOME/.wine-microslopsam}
 export WINEARCH=win32
 
 # VESKSLOP_TTS_VOICES entries: id|Name|gender|language[|flags]
-# `no-pitch` marks voices whose engine ignores pitch (Flextalk).
-VOICES="sam|Sam|male|en,mary|Mary|female|en,mike|Mike|male|en,keith-bell|Keith Bell|male|en|no-pitch,kerry-watson|Kerry Watson|female|en|no-pitch,mike-telephone|Mike (for Telephone)|male|en,mary-telephone|Mary (for Telephone)|female|en,mike-hall|Mike in Hall|male|en,mike-stadium|Mike in Stadium|male|en,mike-space|Mike in Space|male|en,mary-hall|Mary in Hall|female|en,mary-stadium|Mary in Stadium|female|en,mary-space|Mary in Space|female|en"
+VOICES="sam|Sam|male|en,mary|Mary|female|en,mike|Mike|male|en,keith-bell|Keith Bell|male|en,kerry-watson|Kerry Watson|female|en,mike-telephone|Mike (for Telephone)|male|en,mary-telephone|Mary (for Telephone)|female|en,mike-hall|Mike in Hall|male|en,mike-stadium|Mike in Stadium|male|en,mike-space|Mike in Space|male|en,mary-hall|Mary in Hall|female|en,mary-stadium|Mary in Stadium|female|en,mary-space|Mary in Space|female|en"
 
 if [ "${1:-}" = "--voices" ]; then
     echo "$VOICES"
@@ -51,36 +50,38 @@ case "$VOICE" in
     *)              ENGVOICE="Sam" ;;
 esac
 
-# Engine units. Measured naturals: MSTTS ~150, Flextalk ~300 (words/min scale).
-# Flextalk ignores ITTSAttributes pitch (verified byte-identical output).
+# Engine units (measured). Speed is words/min, natural rate near 150 for every
+# voice. Pitch units differ per voice: the engine's natural pitch corresponds to
+# about 100 (MSTTS), 106 (Keith Bell) and 186 (Kerry Watson). Semitones scale
+# that natural value by 2^(st/12) and clamp to the engine range.
 case "$ENGVOICE" in
-    "Keith Bell"|"Kerry Watson") NAT_SPEED=300; SMAX=390 ;;
-    *)                           NAT_SPEED=150; SMAX=450 ;;
+    "Keith Bell")   SMAX=390; PMAX=250; NAT_PITCH=106 ;;
+    "Kerry Watson") SMAX=390; PMAX=250; NAT_PITCH=186 ;;
+    *)              SMAX=450; PMAX=200; NAT_PITCH=100 ;;
 esac
 SET_ARGS=""
 if [ -n "$SPEED" ]; then
-    S=$(awk -v m="$SPEED" -v n="$NAT_SPEED" 'BEGIN{printf "%d", n*m+0.5}')
+    S=$(awk -v m="$SPEED" 'BEGIN{printf "%d", 150*m+0.5}')
     [ "$S" -lt 50 ] && S=50
     [ "$S" -gt "$SMAX" ] && S=$SMAX
     SET_ARGS="$SET_ARGS -s $S"
 fi
 if [ -n "$PITCH" ]; then
-    case "$ENGVOICE" in
-        "Keith Bell"|"Kerry Watson") : ;;
-        *)
-            P=$(awk -v st="$PITCH" 'BEGIN{printf "%d", 100 + st*6.25}')
-            [ "$P" -lt 50 ] && P=50
-            [ "$P" -gt 200 ] && P=200
-            SET_ARGS="$SET_ARGS -p $P" ;;
-    esac
+    P=$(awk -v st="$PITCH" -v nat="$NAT_PITCH" 'BEGIN{printf "%d", nat*exp(log(2)*st/12)+0.5}')
+    [ "$P" -lt 50 ] && P=50
+    [ "$P" -gt "$PMAX" ] && P=$PMAX
+    SET_ARGS="$SET_ARGS -p $P"
 fi
 
 # The daemon does not export DISPLAY; keep a private Xvfb for the engine.
-if [ -z "${DISPLAY:-}" ]; then
+start_xvfb() {
     if ! [ -S /tmp/.X11-unix/X77 ]; then
         Xvfb :77 -screen 0 1024x768x24 >/dev/null 2>&1 &
         sleep 1
     fi
+}
+if [ -z "${DISPLAY:-}" ]; then
+    start_xvfb
     export DISPLAY=:77
 fi
 
@@ -102,32 +103,53 @@ if [ ! -x "$HOST" ]; then HOST="$ROOT/build/sapi4host.exe"; fi
 if [ ! -x "$HOST" ]; then echo "engine host not built" >&2; exit 1; fi
 if ! command -v ffmpeg >/dev/null 2>&1; then echo "ffmpeg not found" >&2; exit 1; fi
 
-# shellcheck disable=SC2086
-if ! "$HOST" -v "$ENGVOICE" -t "$(cat "$TXT")" -o "$RAW" $SET_ARGS \
-        >/dev/null 2>"$TMP/err"; then
-    head -c 400 "$TMP/err" >&2
-    exit 1
+run_engine() {
+    # shellcheck disable=SC2086
+    "$HOST" -v "$ENGVOICE" -t "$(cat "$TXT")" -o "$RAW" $SET_ARGS \
+        >/dev/null 2>"$TMP/err"
+}
+if ! run_engine; then
+    # A stale private Xvfb can break audio-destination creation; retry once.
+    if [ "${DISPLAY:-}" = ":77" ]; then
+        pkill -f "Xvfb :77" 2>/dev/null || true
+        rm -f /tmp/.X11-unix/X77
+        start_xvfb
+        if ! run_engine; then
+            head -c 400 "$TMP/err" >&2
+            exit 1
+        fi
+    else
+        head -c 400 "$TMP/err" >&2
+        exit 1
+    fi
 fi
 [ -s "$RAW" ] || { echo "engine produced no audio" >&2; exit 1; }
 
 SIL="silenceremove=start_periods=1:start_duration=0.05:start_silence=0.03:start_threshold=-50dB"
 PRE="highpass=f=40,$SIL,afade=t=in:st=0:d=0.008,areverse,$SIL,afade=t=in:st=0:d=0.008,areverse"
-LN="loudnorm=I=-16:TP=-3:LRA=11"
 
-# Two-pass loudnorm: measure first, then apply with the measured values.
-M=$(ffmpeg -hide_banner -nostats -i "$RAW" -af "$PRE,$LN:print_format=json" \
+# Fixed-gain normalization: single-pass loudnorm misbehaves on short lines
+# (LRA=0 causes heavy attenuation), so measure EBU R128 integrated loudness and
+# true peak, then apply one gain clamped by the -3 dBFS peak target.
+M=$(ffmpeg -hide_banner -nostats -i "$RAW" -af "$PRE,ebur128=peak=true" \
         -f null - 2>&1 || true)
-I=$(printf '%s' "$M" | sed -n 's/.*"input_i" *: *"\([^"]*\)".*/\1/p')
-TP=$(printf '%s' "$M" | sed -n 's/.*"input_tp" *: *"\([^"]*\)".*/\1/p')
-LRA=$(printf '%s' "$M" | sed -n 's/.*"input_lra" *: *"\([^"]*\)".*/\1/p')
-TH=$(printf '%s' "$M" | sed -n 's/.*"input_thresh" *: *"\([^"]*\)".*/\1/p')
-OFF=$(printf '%s' "$M" | sed -n 's/.*"target_offset" *: *"\([^"]*\)".*/\1/p')
-if [ -n "$I" ] && [ -n "$TP" ] && [ -n "$LRA" ] && [ -n "$TH" ] && [ -n "$OFF" ]; then
-    LN="$LN:measured_I=$I:measured_TP=$TP:measured_LRA=$LRA:measured_thresh=$TH:offset=$OFF:linear=true"
+I=$(printf '%s' "$M" | sed -n 's/ *I: *\(-\{0,1\}[0-9.]*\) *LUFS.*/\1/p' | tail -1)
+TP=$(printf '%s' "$M" | sed -n 's/ *Peak: *\(-\{0,1\}[0-9.]*\) *dBFS.*/\1/p' | tail -1)
+if [ -n "$I" ] && [ -n "$TP" ]; then
+    GAIN=$(awk -v i="$I" -v tp="$TP" 'BEGIN{
+        g = -16 - i;
+        lim = -3 - tp;
+        if (lim < g) g = lim;
+        if (g > 30) g = 30;
+        if (g < -20) g = -20;
+        printf "%.2f", g
+    }')
+else
+    GAIN=0
 fi
 
 TMPOUT="$TMP/out.wav"
-if ! ffmpeg -hide_banner -nostats -y -i "$RAW" -af "$PRE,$LN" \
+if ! ffmpeg -hide_banner -nostats -y -i "$RAW" -af "$PRE,volume=${GAIN}dB" \
         -ar 48000 -ac 1 -c:a pcm_s16le "$TMPOUT" >/dev/null 2>"$TMP/ff"; then
     head -c 400 "$TMP/ff" >&2
     exit 1