How to Use Kotoba-Speech v0.1: Your Guide to Japanese Text-to-Speech and Voice Cloning

April 21, 2024

Kotoba-Speech v0.1 is a powerful 1.2B Transformer-based speech generation model that enables fluent text-to-speech generation in Japanese and allows for one-shot voice cloning through a speech prompt. In this guide, we will walk you through how to use this innovative tool, ensuring you harness its full potential for your projects.

Getting Started with Kotoba-Speech v0.1

Before we dive into the usage instructions, it’s essential to understand the underlying architecture of Kotoba-Speech. Think of the model as a high-tech translator that speaks for you. Just as a skilled interpreter listens to your words and translates them into another language, this model captures the essence of your text and transforms it into spoken Japanese.

Step-by-Step Usage

Accessing the Model: First, you can try out the Kotoba-Speech model through our HF Spaces demo. Here, you can interact with the model without any setup!
Prepare Your Text: Since the model supports Japanese, ensure your text input is in this language to achieve the best results.
One-shot Voice Cloning: For voice cloning, provide a speech prompt that represents the voice you wish to clone. This prompt acts as your starting point.
Generate Speech: Hit the generate button, and watch as the model converts your text into fluent speech or clones the chosen voice!

Understanding the Model Architecture

Kotoba-Speech is built on the Transformer architecture, a technology that underpins many modern AI applications. Imagine it as a sophisticated musical orchestra, where different instruments (or components) work together harmoniously to produce beautiful music (in our case, generated speech). The model processes information in layers, much like how the conductor coordinates the musicians to ensure a perfectly synchronized performance.

Troubleshooting Tips

While using Kotoba-Speech, you might encounter some issues. Here are a few troubleshooting ideas:

No Sound Output: Check your volume settings. Ensure that your device’s audio is on and not muted.
Inaccurate Speech Generation: Verify that your input text is correct and free of typos, especially since the model works best with standard Japanese.
Voice Cloning Not Working: Ensure that the speech prompt used for cloning is clear and recorded with minimal background noise.

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Model Details

The Kotoba-Speech model is designed to provide seamless and efficient speech generation:

Model Type: End-to-end transformers.
Language(s): Japanese.
Library: We will release the training code soon.
Inference and Model Code: Largely adopted from MetaVoice.

Acknowledgements

A special thank you goes to the MetaVoice team for open-sourcing their code, which has greatly assisted in our developments.

Conclusion

At fxis.ai, we believe that such advancements are crucial for the future of AI, as they enable more comprehensive and effective solutions. Our team is continually exploring new methodologies to push the envelope in artificial intelligence, ensuring that our clients benefit from the latest technological innovations.