Using VoiceOver with Personal Voice

While we look for a better solution:

would it help to temporarily pause VoiceOver whenever you wish,

(Eg: Pause at the end of a sentence or two) ... and then resume when ready:

To pause or resume speech on your Mac, do one of the following:

• Press the Control key.
• When the VoiceOver modifier is the Caps Lock key, press that key.
• When the Trackpad Commander is on tap with two fingers on the trackpad.

Above comes from: Pause or mute VoiceOver on Mac - Apple Support

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Re: What am I missing?

Am wondering which MacBook Pro model you are using,

(If needed: How to: Identify your MacBook Pro model - Apple Support)

and

which MacOS version is installed. (Above article lists the "Newest Compatible MacOs version")

Eg: If appropriate: you might want to try updating the current version, or upgrading to a later MacOS version, if a compatible version for your Mac Model is available.

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Re: Speaking rate adustment:

• Wondering if Siri can help: Eg: How to change Siri volume and speaking rate - Apple Support

• Also: There's info on the VoiceOver modifier & the speaking rate settings in the article below:

(You can choose the correct MacOS version at the top of the article for accurate info.)

For MacOS 14: Change VoiceOver voice settings on Mac - Apple Support

Hi fabs64,

welcome to the Apple (user-to-user) Community!

Re: "Using VoiceOver with Personal Voice :

I've set up my Personal Voice but that doesn't seem to be available for VoiceOver" .

Am no expert in this area, yet your question surely deserves some response

Wondering if Apple Support's online article may help:

Change Personal Voice settings for accessibility on Mac - Apple Support

Eg: says:

"Personal Voice can be used only with Live Speech and with third-party apps that you allow, such as Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) apps".

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Re: I'd like to use VoiceOver on my MacBook Pro but it talks very fast no matter what I set the speed to.

Apple support has an article: Customize VoiceOver with VoiceOver Utility on Mac - Apple Support

or

Wondering if you have seen the useful VoiceOver User Guide for Mac

VoiceOver User Guide for Mac - Apple Support

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For help with Apple's Accessibility features:

You may want to contact Apple's Accessibility Support Team:

How to contact Apple for accessibility support - Apple Support

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To provide feedback about an accessibility feature on an Apple product, you can email the Accessibility team: accessibility@apple.com.

All the best :-)

Sometimes restarting Mac can restore order if things are not working as expected:

Apple Menu > Restart : wait for Mac to restart, and then log back in.

(Eg: Deletes temporary files, re-establishes connections, may update recent changes)

Re: I still can't understand why VoiceOver speaks so fast no matter which speed I set it to.

Wondering which settings you are using to set the speed:

Eg: Try checking : Apple Menu > System Settings > Accessibility > Spoken Content

You may need to experiment with adjusting the slider gently in small increments:

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Re: "I'm also unable to add apps to allow them to use personal voice as nothing happens when I click "+" "

You may use personal voice with Live Speech already ... seems it's the only Apple app.

To have apps available that you could add: You would need to have downloaded some third-party apps such as Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) apps.

To allow those apps to use the Microphone (and maybe Camera too ?)

Apple menu > System Settings > Privacy and Security > Microphone : turn on

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Also: Those third-party apps may need to request ("ask"), or be given permission (allow") in Safari to use your Mac's microphone (and maybe camera too?):

Eg: Safari > Settings > Websites > Microphone (also : same with Camera if needed)