Speech synthesis generates an artificial speech signal from a specified representation. Text-to-speech starts from writing, while a research synthesizer can instead take a phonetic specification or directly controlled acoustic parameters. The distinction separates the input representation from the mechanism producing the sound.
In a source-filter model of speech production, a researcher can set an excitation's fundamental frequency and independently adjust the filter's formants. Holding the first parameter fixed while moving a formant tests whether listeners' responses depend on the spectral change rather than a change in voice pitch. Gunnar Fant's work at KTH used synthesis to test hypotheses about speech production.[ref]
Human Speech and Communication at KTH. research history, synthesis as a test of production hypotheses
Generated stimuli permit controlled comparisons in speech perception, but intelligibility and similarity to a natural speaker are different outcomes. Recording the parameter settings makes a synthesis experiment reproducible. Articles by others on the same topic
Speech synthesis is the artificial generation of human speech by computer systems. It involves converting written text into spoken words using various techniques and technologies. Speech synthesis can be utilized in applications such as: 1. **Text-to-Speech (TTS)**: Where written text is converted into spoken voice output. This is commonly used in applications for people with visual impairments, virtual assistants, and navigation systems.