Can text to speech be recorded internally on an iMac

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Level 2

284 points

Can text to speech be recorded internally on an iMac

Dear All,

I'm working with Pages Text to Speech, or with the Text2Speech app for OS X (and am willing to update to the Pro version) to read a lengthy play from text to spoken format. That all works fine, but I'm wondering if it's possible to record the spoken version internally on the iMac while it's being read so that I can provide an audio file of the play for people who will be performing it -- so that they can listen to it. I can hold a recorder up to the speaker and record it that way, but I'm wondering if there is some way to record internally while the words are being spoken...maybe through Garage Band or iTunes? Anyone out there have any thoughts?

I'm working on an iMac 5K Retina running El Capitan 10.11.5.

Thanks much.

iMac with Retina 5K display, OS X Yosemite (10.10.3)

Posted on Jun 3, 2016 7:03 AM

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Answer 1

Barbara Smits Author

Level 2

284 points

Jun 3, 2016 8:00 AM in response to VikingOSX

Dear All,

Thanks much, but I have accomplished it much more easily. In your Pages document, highlight the text you want to speak. Then go to the Pages dropdown menu, go to Services, and the Add to iTunes as a spoken track option will appear. Choose that option and a text to audio file box appears asking you to choose the voice you want and it will save it as a Text to Speech file in your Music folder. You can then go to iTunes and play the recorded file or move the recorded file to another folder to work on it for editing or sending out. it appears as an m4a file. This works for me!

Thanks much for your help. I'm working with El Capitan on a 5k Retina, so maybe these options aren't available on older computers with older OS X operating systems.

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Answer 2

VikingOSX

Level 10

123,458 points

Jun 3, 2016 7:42 AM in response to Barbara Smits

You can capture selected text via an Automator service and it will generate an audio file where you direct it. You can choose the specific voice to apply, and the quality of the captured audio. If you use iTunes Plus (256 kbps 44.1 Khz AAC) versus High Quality (128 kbps 44.1 Khz AAC) — then you will produce audio files roughly twice the size of the High Quality setting (which I use). These are .m4a (MPEG) audio files. Audio is not played as the text is captured to the audio file.

The main paragraph of your post today is 150 KB using iTunes Plus, and 78 KB using High Quality when captured to an audio file.

Here is how you do this:

Close your Pages document(s), and Quit Pages.
Launch the Automator application (Launchpad : Other : Automator)
1. New Document
2. Service
3. Choose
Select the following:
1. Music Library : Text to Audio File action (one up from the bottom of the action list)
  Click on Text to Audio File action and drag/drop into the larger workflow window.
2. Music Library : Encode to MPEG Audio action (roughly sixth item down in the action list)
  Click on Encode to MPEG Audio action and drag/drop into the larger workflow window below the previous action.
3. Look at the following screen shot from my configuration. You can change the particulars to your preference. Note that any text from any application can be captured to audio as I have configured. Click on the following image to enlarge it.
Save your Automator Workflow as something obvious (I call my Text2Voice)
1. This file is written into your home/Library/Services folder
2. You can edit it by launching Automator and opening recent items
Quit Automator
Launch Pages and open a document.
1. Select some document text content.
2. From the Pages application menu : Services : Text2Voice (or whatever you named yours)
3. The selected text will be captured in an audio file that can be played, paused, and resumed by single-clicking the audio file icon.

Done.

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Answer 3

VikingOSX

Level 10

123,458 points

Jun 3, 2016 8:32 AM in response to Barbara Smits

Yes, you could do it via iTunes, and if that works for you great. My solution simply avoids iTunes altogether, and immediately makes the audio file available to the Share menu via a right-click on the icon.

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Answer 4

Barbara Smits Author

Level 2

284 points

Jun 3, 2016 8:52 AM in response to VikingOSX

Dear Viking,

I do have another question, however. If I want to change character voices during the reading, is there any way to pause the iTunes recording to change voices, or will every pause be recorded as a different audio file...that would be WAY too many files. I wonder if the Pro Version of Text2Speech offers a pause...or perhaps Mac's Text Edit -- I'm experimenting right now to see what happens and if I can pause and change voices and continue on with the same recording. Thanks again.

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Answer 5

Barbara Smits Author

Level 2

284 points

Jun 3, 2016 10:24 AM in response to VikingOSX

Dear Viking,

That's what I thought. I wonder if any of the "pro" text to speech programs would offer such an option? Otherwise, I guess I could record entire sections using different voices and then edit them together in my audio editing software -- more of a job, that's for sure, but still possible. Thanks.

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Answer 6

Barry

Level 9

60,023 points

Jun 3, 2016 12:05 PM in response to Barbara Smits

Hi Barbara,

Using Add to iTunes as text to voice, you can place two copies of the voice file (using different names) into iTumes—one using a female voice, the other usings a male voice.

Export both files in a format that can be read by Audacity (or another audio fie editor).

Open the first file in Audacity, then Import the second audio file. It will become a separate track in Audacity.

Choose one track as your 'master'.

Select and Copy segments in the other track, then select the same segment in your 'master' track and Paste. The copied segment will replace the selected portion of the 'master' track.

NOTE: the segments will not likely start at the same time point in both tracks.

When all voice replacements have been done, delete the 'other' track, then use File > Export to save the 'master' track in the format you want.

Regards,

Barry

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Answer 7

Barbara Smits Author

Level 2

284 points

Jun 3, 2016 12:14 PM in response to Barry

Dear Barry,

Yes, I understand the process -- I am a video editor and have done many of this type of project and have Adobe Premiere Pro, Audition, etc., etc., so I have all of the tools to do the job. I'm finding that Adobe's Audtion might be the best answer, because it allows you to make each voice a separate file that is automatically pasted into the master track (Audition has it's own text to speech converter), and it works rather well. However, I'm finding out that the Apple voices may be copyrighted and not available for commercial use, so that may pose a problem in the long run -- I may have to find other voices. I've sent an email to Apple's legal department for clarification, as their legal statements are a bit confusing. Thanks much for your help.

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Answer 8

VikingOSX

Level 10

123,458 points

Jun 3, 2016 10:01 AM in response to Barbara Smits

I believe that once you start recording in a voice, that you are committed to that voice for the duration of that recording session, and a pause would still be considered part of that recording.

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