Fisto
de4631fe54
The Veskslop integration copy had grown word streaming (VESKSLOP_TTS_STREAM, stream gain), 1990s crunch filters (VESKSLOP_TTS_CRUNCH[_BITS|_RATE]), echo timing/level, and first-class vox/hev voice IDs with preset-aware default metadata. Merge those back into the standalone repo, keeping the tuned VOX preset (pitch 0, rate 15, head size 34, lowering 50) in the preset and in the published defaults. Update the wrapper regression test to the tuned registry values, add __pycache__ to .gitignore, and document the new variables, voice IDs, placeholder set and the word-mode-over-VOX precedence in README, NOTES and TTS-DESIGN.
MicroslopSam
Run SAPI4 text-to-speech voices on Linux.
Primary approach: a Winelib host — a native Linux ELF that uses Wine's libraries to load the original 32-bit SAPI4 runtime and TTS engine DLLs.
Voice targets:
- Microsoft Sam / Mary / Mike — MSTTS engine (
msttssyn.dll+.vcedata) - AT&T Flextalk 2.1 — "Keith Bell" and "Kerry Watson" (
FlexTalk.dll)
Long-term: replace Wine-provided pieces with own shims (rehost) for a pure-native build, and keep a path to a fully portable engine.
Status (working)
- Winelib host builds and runs:
build/sapi4host.exe(launcher) +build/sapi4host.exe.so(native 32-bit ELF). - Voices enumerate and synthesize:
- MSTTS: Sam, Mary, Mike (+ telephone and effect variants)
- AT&T Flextalk: Keith Bell, Kerry Watson
- Test output:
build/test_sam.wav(22.05 kHz),build/test_Keith_Bell.wav,build/test_Kerry_Watson.wav(11.025 kHz).
Build
Everything in one command (idempotent; sudo only for system packages):
setup/install.sh
Manual steps, if needed:
sudo setup/install-deps.sh # Wine/Winelib/helpers
setup/setup-prefix.sh # prefix + SAPI4 runtime + MSTTS voices
setup/setup-flextalk.sh # Flextalk extraction + registry
# host build:
winegcc -m32 -O2 -o build/sapi4host-winlib host/sapi4host.c -Ithird_party \
-lole32 -luser32 -ladvapi32
i686-w64-mingw32-gcc -O2 -static -o build/sapi4host.exe host/sapi4host.c \
-Ithird_party -lole32 -luser32 -ladvapi32 -luuid
Configuration
setup/install.sh writes setup/microslopsam.env (generated, gitignored) with absolute
paths. Environment variables take precedence over the file, so anything can be relocated
without editing scripts:
| Variable | Default | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
MICROSLOP_ROOT |
repo root | project root |
MICROSLOP_BUILD |
$MICROSLOP_ROOT/build |
host binaries, samples |
MICROSLOP_PREFIX |
~/.wine-microslopsam |
wine prefix (exported as WINEPREFIX) |
MICROSLOP_ASSETS |
third_party/sapi4 |
SAPI4/MSTTS payloads (vendored) |
MICROSLOP_FLEXTALK_DIR |
third_party/flextalk |
Flextalk cabinet/extraction (vendored) |
MICROSLOP_SPEECH_H_DIR |
$MICROSLOP_ROOT/third_party |
speech.h include dir (vendored) |
MICROSLOP_DISPLAY |
:77 |
Xvfb display used for Wine |
MICROSLOP_WINE, MICROSLOP_XVFB, MICROSLOP_PYTHON, MICROSLOP_FFMPEG |
tool names | tool overrides |
Refresh the file after moving the tree: MICROSLOP_UPDATE_ENV=1 setup/install.sh.
Usage
setup/run.sh -l
setup/run.sh -v Sam -t "Hello." -o sam.wav
setup/run.sh -v "Keith Bell" -t "Hello." -o keith.wav -p 100 -s 150
Options: -v voice, -t text, -o output WAV, -p pitch, -s speed, -V volume
(volume is engine-specific; not used by the Veskslop wrapper).
Veskslop integration
export VESKSLOP_TTS_CMD="$PWD/setup/veskslop-tts.sh {out} {text_file}"
export VESKSLOP_TTS_VOICES="$(setup/veskslop-tts.sh --voices)"
The wrapper maps voice IDs (sam, mary, mike, keith-bell, kerry-watson, vox,
hev, plus the MSTTS variants), reads VESKSLOP_TTS_VOICE, VESKSLOP_TTS_SPEED (multiplier),
VESKSLOP_TTS_PITCH (semitones) and VESKSLOP_TTS_EXPRESSION (0-100, Flextalk voices
only), 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).
Speed and pitch apply to every voice (Flextalk's numeric settings must be REG_DWORD,
which the setup script writes). Expression is a Flextalk profile value applied at voice
load: the wrapper writes it to the Wine registry before synthesis. --voices marks those
voices with expression=NN, where NN is the registry default. Mapping details are in
docs/TTS-DESIGN.md.
VOX prosody (NetTTS-style, Flextalk voices): set VESKSLOP_TTS_VOX=1 in the
command environment (VESKSLOP_TTS_VOX_CLEAN=1 omits the \!wH1/\!wH0 stutter
wrapper). Line-leading /rate N and /pitch N controls are also handled by the
wrapper, so the WebUI does not need to implement them. See docs/TTS-DESIGN.md.
A short low-level leading hum (80 ms, 75 Hz, -48 dBFS) primes Discord's audio pipeline
so the first word is not gated; tune with VESKSLOP_TTS_HUM_MS (0 = off),
VESKSLOP_TTS_HUM_HZ, and VESKSLOP_TTS_HUM_DB.
Half-Life presets (Keith Bell): VESKSLOP_TTS_PRESET=vox applies the Valve VOX
profile (pitch 0, rate 15, head size 34, lowering 50) and enables VOX prosody;
VESKSLOP_TTS_PRESET=hev is a starting point for the HEV suit voice. The vox and hev
voice IDs select these directly. The VOX values were
tuned against the game's word assets with tools/vox_compare.py; details in
docs/TTS-DESIGN.md.
VESKSLOP_TTS_CRUNCH (hl90, hl90hq, telephone, adpcm, crush) adds 1990s lossy
character to the output; VESKSLOP_TTS_CRUNCH_BITS/_RATE override its bit depth and
sample rate. VESKSLOP_TTS_STREAM=1 makes word mode write the WAV as it goes (no
measurement pass; VESKSLOP_TTS_STREAM_GAIN_DB sets the gain). Echo timing and level are
VESKSLOP_TTS_ECHO_DELAY_MS and VESKSLOP_TTS_ECHO_LEVEL.
Layout
host/sapi4host.c— host: voice select, pitch/speed, text -> WAVsetup/install.sh— one-shot installer (runs all steps below)setup/install-deps.sh— Wine/Winelib/helpers (root)setup/setup-prefix.sh— prefix + SAPI4 runtime + MSTTS engine/voicessetup/setup-flextalk.sh— Flextalk files + registrysetup/inf2reg.py— INF AddReg ->.regconvertersetup/run.sh— run helper (prefix + Xvfb)setup/veskslop-tts.sh— Veskslop command-provider wrapper (post-processing included)setup/test-wrapper.sh— wrapper regression test (stubbed Wine/host, no prefix needed)setup/vox_parser.py— NetTTS-style VOX prosody encoder (Flextalk voices)tools/vox_compare.py— reference-vs-synthesis metrics for preset tuningdocs/NOTES.md— registry/CLSID facts, runtime RE notes, gotchasdocs/TTS-DESIGN.md— integration contract with Veskslop plus engine clarifications
Known issues
xvfb-runis flaky on this host.setup/run.shstarts a persistent Xvfb (:77) instead; Wine needs a working X display because the runtime creates windows.- Flextalk numeric speaker settings must be
REG_DWORD(the installer script handles this);REG_SZvalues cause a monotone buzz. Pitch and speed work on all voices. - Flextalk extraction needs
unshield -O(old compression). The installer is single-volume: the new decompressor reports a phantomdata2.cab, but-Oextracts all 450 entries with exact sizes and valid PE files (the original 1997 upload log listsdata1.cabonly).
Reference material
third_party/— vendored dependencies; seethird_party/README.md. Everything the tool needs is in the repo (SAPI4 runtime, MSTTS voices, Flextalk cabinet,speech.h, NetTTS parser source)./mnt/ghidra/decomp/{msttssyn.dll,speech.dll}/— decompiled corpora (external, optional)