Open Source AI Voice Tool changed everything for me. I always wanted to build my own voice assistant and make my projects sound more human. For years, I wasted time and money on expensive software that didn’t work well.

Then I discovered these powerful free tools, and everything became easier. Now, I want to share what I’ve learned so you can save time and start strong.

How do I use open source AI voice tools?

Anyone can use, change, and share open source AI language tools for free. To work with human voices, they use AI, either to make computer voices that sound like people or to understand what people say when they talk.

I thought that open source AI language tools would be hard to use or sound robotic when I first heard about them. I was wrong all the way! A lot of these tools make voices that sound surprisingly real, and best of all, anyone can use them for free.

Why I Started Using Open Source AI Voice Tools

I was making a small radio project about two years ago. I needed to make intros and narration, but I didn’t have the money to hire voice actors or buy pricey speech software. After being upset for hours, a friend suggested I look into open source choices.

At first, I wasn’t sure. You might be wondering how good free voice tools could be. After using my first open source AI speech generator, I was shocked. The quality was great, and I could make it exactly what I needed. I have saved a lot of money and used these tools for dozens of jobs since then.

Popular Open Source AI Voice Tools I’ve Used

Here are some of my favorite open source AI voice tools that I use myself:

1. Mozilla Common Voice

I helped with this open source speech project for the first time. Different from other tools, Mozilla Common Voice is a collection of voice recordings made by people all over the world. This music helps teach AI voice programs how to speak.

I recorded sentences for a few hours and checked the accuracy of other people’s records. Knowing that my voice was making open voice technology better for everyone made me feel good. Many other open source projects use the information they made.

I love that Common Voice is open to everyone. They collect voices in lots of different accents and languages, which makes AI speaking technology easier for people who don’t speak standard languages to use.

2. Coqui TTS

Text-to-Speech (Coqui TTS) saved my life when I needed to make speech that sounded real for the beginning of my show. This open source tool turns written text into spoken text, and for being free, it does a great job.

I like the most about Coqui TTS is that it can be changed to fit my needs. I knew enough about computers to be able to change the voice to sound exactly how I wanted it to. Simply learning the basics took me a day, but the end result was worth it.

There are different voice models and speech styles available in the tool. I’ve made everything with it, from lively intros for podcasts to calm readings for meditation books. Every time, the voices sounded real and interesting.

3. DeepSpeech

When I needed to understand spoken words for a job, I used DeepSpeech all the time. With a high level of accuracy, this open source speech-to-text engine turns spoken words into written text.

I had to learn how to use DeepSpeech and test it for about two days, which was a little longer than other tools. I was amazed at how well it understood different accents and ways of speaking once I got it to work.

I’ve used DeepSpeech to type up interviews, make video subtitles, and even set up a basic voice command system for my computer. The best thing about it is that I can use it without an internet connection or worrying about my privacy.

4. Mimic3

I learned about Mimic3, an open source text-to-speech system, last year and it quickly became one of my faves. Mycroft AI made it so that assistants can have voices, but I’ve used it for a lot more than that.

The voices sound so real in Mimic3 that makes it stand out. Parents were shocked when I used it to make an app for kids that told stories. The sounds were made by AI. Thanks to the text, the voices can sound happy, sad, or excited, which is a great range of emotions.

It was easy to set up, and it took me about an hour to get everything up and going. I really liked how clear and helpful the documentation was, even though I’m not a skilled developer.

5: ESPnet

I started using ESPnet for bigger, more complicated projects because it is a more powerful open source speech processing toolkit. It can both recognize speech and make new speech, which makes it very flexible.

It really did take me almost a week to learn this one right. The others aren’t as detailed as this one. It takes a while to learn, but the quality and flexibility it gives are worth it. It helps me make a system that can quickly transfer my voice from English to Spanish.

The most amazing thing about ESPnet is how modern it is. It keeps getting better because the makers keep adding the newest AI voice technologies.

Actual Projects Where I Use Free AI Voice Tools

I have used these tools in the following ways in my own projects:

Making podcast episodes

For my show about history, I use Coqui TTS to read historical quotes aloud. I can have the AI make a voice that fits the time period instead of trying to copy famous voices myself. People who listen to my stories often tell me that the different sounds bring the stories to life.

The process is easy: I just copy the quote into the program, change the voice choices to fit the age and gender of the character, and play the audio. It only takes 5 minutes per quote, but it would take hours to find and hire voice artists.

Helping my nephew read by making a reading buddy

My nephew has trouble reading, so I used DeepSpeech and Mimic3 to make him a simple tool. The tool checks his pronunciation of words as he reads lines into the computer. Whenever he gets stuck, he can click on words to hear how they are pronounced.

It took me a weekend to finish this job, but it has restored his confidence and improved his reading skills greatly. They even want to know how they can get extra copies for other kids.

Make audiobooks for your local library.

Our local library had a lot of books written by people in the community, but they couldn’t afford to make audio versions of them. Open source AI voice tools are what I offered to help with.

I made audio versions of five community books using Coqui TTS and some unique voice models. To make it easy for people to tell the characters apart, I fine-tuned a different sound model for each one. With professional voice actors, the whole job would have cost a lot of money, but I did it for free by using open source tools.

How to Start with Open Source AI Voice Tools: My Advice

If you want to try these tools for yourself, here are the steps I took and what worked for me:

Step 1: Keep Things Easy

Use easy-to-use tools like Mimic3 or the less complex versions of Coqui TTS to start. These don’t take a lot of technical know-how and will help you stay motivated by giving you results quickly.

I tried to start with the most complicated tool right away, but I quickly got stuck. I learned the basics of the tools before going on to more complicated ones.

Step 2: Get Your Computer Ready

A computer with a good amount of processing speed is best for using most open source AI voice tools. A supercomputer isn’t necessary, though! My regular laptop works fine with most tools, but making sounds can slow it down a bit.

I suggest that you have at least 8GB of RAM and a system that isn’t too old. Some tools work better on Linux, but most of them also come in forms for Windows and Mac.

Step 3: Join the Communities

I learned the most from joining the online groups that talked about these tools. The developers and fans are very helpful on GitHub, Discord, and forums.

A community member spent an hour on chat with me to help me figure out what was wrong when I was having trouble setting up DeepSpeech. That’s what makes open source projects unique: help like that.

Step 4: Start Contributing

When you’re good at using the tools, you might want to help out with the projects. You don’t need to know how to code!

• Record your voice for files like Common Voice
• Help make the instructions better
• Report bugs you find
• Show off what you’ve made

At first, I recorded phrases for Common Voice. Next, I helped people who were just starting out on forums. I like knowing that I’m making these great tools better.

Challenges I’ve Faced with Open Source AI Voice Tools

I really like these tools, but I need to be honest about some problems I’ve had with them:

Needs Technical Knowledge

To use most open source AI voice tools, you do need to know some basic computer skills. You might have to use command line tools or run software that depends on other software.

I spent a lot of late nights reading documentation and watching lessons when I first started. Even though it was difficult at times, learning was worth it in the end.

Differences in Voice Quality

The sounds that are made by different tools and even between updates of the same tool are not always the same quality. For business projects, this lack of stability can be a problem.

Before using a new style in important work, I always make sure it sounds good to me first. I need to try a few different tools before I can find the right voice for a job.

Needs A Lot Of Resources

When you’re making longer audio files, some of these tools can be hard on your computer. When I’m working on longer voiceovers, my laptop fan often turns on for extra hours!

I started doing most of my voice-over work at night so that the slower computer wouldn’t get in the way of my daytime job.

The Future Of Open Source AI Voice Tools

The fastest that these tools are getting better is what gets me most excited. The speech quality has gotten a lot better in the two years I’ve been using them. Once-obviously artificial voices now often sound like real people at first listen.

I think open source AI voice tools will change a lot of fields by letting everyone use voice technology, not just big businesses. It will be very good for small companies, independent artists, and schools.

Since these projects are run by the community, they are always getting better and adding new languages and use cases. Join in now while the going is good!

Open Source AI Voice Tools: Last Words

I now do all of my artistic and technical work very differently thanks to open source AI voice tools. They have saved me money, given me more options for what I can make, and connected me with a great group of makers who share my interests.

You should try these open source choices if you’re interested in AI voice technology but have been holding off because of cost or technical worries.

When you use open source AI voice tools, the best thing is not the money you save or even the voices themselves; it’s the freedom to try new things, make changes, and make things without any limits. Take control of voice AI with these tools, whether you’re making the next big app or just wanting your computer to talk to you.

You can join the open source group by doing this. You never know what wonderful things you’ll make!

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