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Offline PeFu  
#1 Posted : 22 February 2020 08:42:39(UTC)
PeFu

Sweden   
Joined: 30/08/2002(UTC)
Posts: 1,208
Well, this isn’t really a model railroad software request, however, the purpose is to use the result on the layout, so.... Cool

I have found this great sound, being the initial ”signal” part of Swiss station announcements:

https://freesound.org/pe...lankbeeld/sounds/381178/

Now, I’m looking for a Text-to-Speech (TTS) generator for Swiss German, spoken by a female. I want to use the TTS to generate (e.g. MP3, WAV) different station announcements, like:

”Schnellzüge aus Mattiasberg kommen jetzt auf Gleis 3 an”
”Achtung. Güterzüge fahren auf Gleis 2”

Has anyone seen such tool?

Once I have such sound files, it will be easy to add the Swiss signal, echo etc. I haven’t yet decided if I will go for the TrainController sound module for playing the sound, or test another solution.

Drool

Andreasburg-Mattiasberg Bahn is inspired by Swiss railways |Forum Thread |Track Plan |Youtube | C and K track | CS2 | TrainController Gold V10
Offline Unholz  
#2 Posted : 22 February 2020 12:25:37(UTC)
Unholz

Switzerland   
Joined: 29/07/2007(UTC)
Posts: 1,391
Location: Switzerland
Originally Posted by: PeFu Go to Quoted Post

”Schnellzüge aus Mattiasberg kommen jetzt auf Gleis 3 an”
”Achtung. Güterzüge fahren auf Gleis 2”

Sorry, no idea with regard to your specific question, but please allow me to point out that "Schnellzüge" and "Güterzüge" are the plural forms which would rather not be used. More typical announcements would be:

a) "Achtung, auf Gleis 3 Ankunft (or Einfahrt) des Schnellzuges aus Mattiasberg!"
b) "Achung, auf Gleis 2 Durchfahrt eines Güterzuges!"

And contrary to what Märklin seems to believe, the announcements would not be made in Swiss German dialect. Wink
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Offline PeFu  
#3 Posted : 22 February 2020 15:32:59(UTC)
PeFu

Sweden   
Joined: 30/08/2002(UTC)
Posts: 1,208
Originally Posted by: Unholz Go to Quoted Post
Originally Posted by: PeFu Go to Quoted Post

”Schnellzüge aus Mattiasberg kommen jetzt auf Gleis 3 an”
”Achtung. Güterzüge fahren auf Gleis 2”

Sorry, no idea with regard to your specific question, but please allow me to point out that "Schnellzüge" and "Güterzüge" are the plural forms which would rather not be used. More typical announcements would be:

a) "Achtung, auf Gleis 3 Ankunft (or Einfahrt) des Schnellzuges aus Mattiasberg!"
b) "Achung, auf Gleis 2 Durchfahrt eines Güterzuges!"

And contrary to what Märklin seems to believe, the announcements would not be made in Swiss German dialect. Wink


Oh, I thought platform announcements were in Swiss German... I must have mixed this with some in-train announcements I recall. However, this makes it a lot easier, I found e.g. the following sites:

https://texttospeech.io/
https://www.naturalreaders.com/online/

Thanks Unholz, for your proposed announcemts!

How would you categorise railcars, like the Roter Pfeil or the RBe 4/4 in Switzerland? Triebwagen? Schienenbus? I’m trying to limit the number of announcements...

Blink
Andreasburg-Mattiasberg Bahn is inspired by Swiss railways |Forum Thread |Track Plan |Youtube | C and K track | CS2 | TrainController Gold V10
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Offline DaleSchultz  
#4 Posted : 22 February 2020 16:05:16(UTC)
DaleSchultz

United States   
Joined: 10/02/2006(UTC)
Posts: 3,997
In my layout control software, I call down in the Windows text to speech functionality.

I installed the German language pack on my English windows and I can then generate any speech in English or German. I do this for all my announcements.
I do not know if they have a Swiss-German voice, if they do, install Swiss German language pack.

Dale
Intellibox + own software, K-Track
My current layout: https://cabin-layout.mixmox.com
Arrival and Departure signs: https://remotesign.mixmox.com
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Offline Unholz  
#5 Posted : 22 February 2020 18:16:48(UTC)
Unholz

Switzerland   
Joined: 29/07/2007(UTC)
Posts: 1,391
Location: Switzerland
Originally Posted by: PeFu Go to Quoted Post

How would you categorise railcars, like the Roter Pfeil or the RBe 4/4 in Switzerland? Triebwagen? Schienenbus? I’m trying to limit the number of announcements...

Definitely Triebwagen. The term Schienenbus is only common in Germany and perhaps also Austria.

Offline DaleSchultz  
#6 Posted : 22 February 2020 19:09:31(UTC)
DaleSchultz

United States   
Joined: 10/02/2006(UTC)
Posts: 3,997
BTW, I have the capability to generate the .wav files from text using the German female voice, if you want to send me a few samples, I'll generate them for you.

Dale
Intellibox + own software, K-Track
My current layout: https://cabin-layout.mixmox.com
Arrival and Departure signs: https://remotesign.mixmox.com
Offline DaleSchultz  
#7 Posted : 22 February 2020 19:14:39(UTC)
DaleSchultz

United States   
Joined: 10/02/2006(UTC)
Posts: 3,997
see this thread: https://www.marklin-users.net/forum/posts/t36139-Station-announcements

It has a link to a file I generated
Dale
Intellibox + own software, K-Track
My current layout: https://cabin-layout.mixmox.com
Arrival and Departure signs: https://remotesign.mixmox.com
Offline mike c  
#8 Posted : 22 February 2020 21:12:07(UTC)
mike c

Canada   
Joined: 28/11/2007(UTC)
Posts: 7,880
Location: Montreal, QC
There used to be a website that had some genuine recordings and some fakes and bits you could use to create your own. let me check through my archives and see if I can find it and whether it is still active.

Regards

Mike C
Offline PeFu  
#9 Posted : 24 February 2020 17:46:52(UTC)
PeFu

Sweden   
Joined: 30/08/2002(UTC)
Posts: 1,208
Originally Posted by: mike c Go to Quoted Post
There used to be a website that had some genuine recordings and some fakes and bits you could use to create your own. let me check through my archives and see if I can find it and whether it is still active.

I found some nice platform announcements in this clip:



I did some testings:

First, I used Notevibes Text-to-Speech features to create some MP3's. German "Anika" did the job, and I set the voice speed to 0.8. Then I downloaded a "MP3 Editor for Free" from Tucows, in which I open those MP3 files. I changed the pitch to 95. I also insert 1,8 seconds of silence, and then use the "Mix File" feature to add the SBB chime to the beginning. I also added an echo, preset "Elvis Right Channel" to the sound project. This is an example of the result:

Gleis 2. Abfahrt des Schnellzuges nach Mattiasberg Lugano Milano.wav (761kb) downloaded 66 time(s).
Andreasburg-Mattiasberg Bahn is inspired by Swiss railways |Forum Thread |Track Plan |Youtube | C and K track | CS2 | TrainController Gold V10
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Offline Minok  
#10 Posted : 24 February 2020 21:21:48(UTC)
Minok

United States   
Joined: 15/10/2006(UTC)
Posts: 2,310
Location: Washington, Pacific Northwest
Another option, if you know you dont need customized announcements based on whats on the layout, but just need a dozen or so fixed announcements you play back on demand, then I wonder if there is a "fiverr" sort of service where you could hire a swiss accent speaking german woman to record the announcements? Then you only need to add the 'large room' effect in audacity to get that echoie sound, and your golden.

Me, I'm going to be in Germany in August and plan to head down to Mannheim station with a boom mic and audio recorder and spend some time capturing audio for later use.
Toys of tin and wood rule!
---
My Layout Thread on marklin-users.net: InterCity 1-3-4
My YouTube Channel:
https://youtube.com/@intercity134
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Offline Unholz  
#11 Posted : 25 February 2020 08:28:46(UTC)
Unholz

Switzerland   
Joined: 29/07/2007(UTC)
Posts: 1,391
Location: Switzerland
Originally Posted by: mike c Go to Quoted Post
There used to be a website that had some genuine recordings and some fakes and bits you could use to create your own. let me check through my archives and see if I can find it and whether it is still active.


No, it is no longer active - you mean www....durchzug.....info, but please don't use this link now!

How about this YouTube collection of genuine recordings? [url]https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLQR396Cr222mkjXcUq]

Edited by moderator 27 February 2020 13:27:51(UTC)  | Reason: Do not use link !

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Offline hxmiesa  
#12 Posted : 25 February 2020 14:05:43(UTC)
hxmiesa

Spain   
Joined: 15/12/2005(UTC)
Posts: 3,519
Location: Spain
I use a software called "BALABOLKA" downloaded from the net.
It´s excellent, but I do not know if it has a swiss-german version.
-But it can definetly do all the other things you ask for.
Best regards
Henrik Hoexbroe ("The Dane In Spain")
http://hoexbroe.tripod.com
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Offline PeFu  
#13 Posted : 27 January 2021 14:33:39(UTC)
PeFu

Sweden   
Joined: 30/08/2002(UTC)
Posts: 1,208
As I’m into fine-tuning of the layout, I also got back into this subject again!

I found out that a much nicer German voice has been added to the text-to-speech generator Notevibes, i.e. ”Vicki”. Still not in Swiss-German, but being informed by forum friend Unholtz above, this is not a matter anymore. Also, I started to use a great - and free - sound editor, Audacity, for merging the voice with the initial ”SBB chime” and to add relevant effects to derive a nicer echo and megaphone sound. Attached, you will find a sample.

I can now use the TrainController feature of adding "virtual" loco functions to my engines, having the correct platform announcements depending on track number and direction. I'm adding a speaker behind the station building.

For me, this is a nice method to both enable sound to engines that have non-sound decoders, and to derive more ralistic platform announcements to the layout.

Cool

3S. Gleis 3. Einfahrt des Schnellzuges nach Mattiasberg Lugano Milano.wav (1,578kb) downloaded 63 time(s).


Andreasburg-Mattiasberg Bahn is inspired by Swiss railways |Forum Thread |Track Plan |Youtube | C and K track | CS2 | TrainController Gold V10
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Offline Unholz  
#14 Posted : 27 January 2021 15:59:55(UTC)
Unholz

Switzerland   
Joined: 29/07/2007(UTC)
Posts: 1,391
Location: Switzerland
Originally Posted by: PeFu Go to Quoted Post
I'm adding a speaker behind the station building.
For me, this is a nice method to both enable sound to engines that have non-sound decoders, and to derive more ralistic platform announcements to the layout.

A platform announcement speaker behind the station building is certainly a much better solution than Märklin's idea of placing it in the loco. ThumpUp And your announcement example sounds good and realistic, congratulations!
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Offline DaleSchultz  
#15 Posted : 27 January 2021 17:10:15(UTC)
DaleSchultz

United States   
Joined: 10/02/2006(UTC)
Posts: 3,997
sounds great!
Dale
Intellibox + own software, K-Track
My current layout: https://cabin-layout.mixmox.com
Arrival and Departure signs: https://remotesign.mixmox.com
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Offline mike c  
#16 Posted : 27 January 2021 17:48:49(UTC)
mike c

Canada   
Joined: 28/11/2007(UTC)
Posts: 7,880
Location: Montreal, QC
If the station on your layout is Mattiasberg, it would be unlikely that an announcement there would include it's own name as part of the announcement.

The only time the actual station would likely be included in an announcement would be something along the lines of:

"Mattiasberg, Ihre nächste Anschlüsse. Schnellzug nach Bellinzona, Locarno, Abfahrt 10:26, Gleis 4.
Regionalzug nach Schwyz, Arth-Goldau, Zug, Abfahrt 10:28 Gleis 2, Reisende nach Zürich oder Luzern sollten in Arth-Goldau umsteigen.
Regionalzug nach Erstfeld, Göschenen, Airolo, Abfahrt 10:32, Gleis 3
Eurocity nach Bellinzona, Chiasso, Milano, Abfahrt 10:36, Gleise 4. Reisende nach Locarno sollten in Bellinzona umsteigen."

or something to that effect.

Personally, I have no problem with station announcements being included in a locomotive sound decoder. I think that Faller, Kibri, etc should offer a station announcement decoder for their models as part of their selection.

I do find some of the announcements like "Zugdurchfahrt" a little amusing coming from a lok as it flies through a station...
Even funnier are the restaurant car conversations that in 1/87 can be heard from kilometres away... ;)

Roco, for example, went so far into reproducing all of the variants of the Re 4/4II, but all the models with OEM sounds have the same 4 announcements. You would think that the Re 4/4 TEE would have TEE announcements and the modern ones would have more S-Bahn and Regio announcements and the others would have big city destinations (Zurich, Geneva, etc) and international train announcements (Chiasso, Brig/Domodossola, Lindau-Munich, Singen-Stuttgart, Basel-Hamburg, etc).

The former website Durchzug.info used to have Do It Yourself Ansagen, which was pretty clever.

ESU has a number of basic announcements that you can download and install on Loksound decoders if you have the Lokprogrammer.

Here are some sounds to precede announcements:
5_Bahnhofjingle_SBB_1.mp3 (189kb) downloaded 18 time(s).
BLS-soundlogo 1.mp3 (214kb) downloaded 20 time(s).

Regards

Mike C
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Offline Unholz  
#17 Posted : 27 January 2021 18:55:11(UTC)
Unholz

Switzerland   
Joined: 29/07/2007(UTC)
Posts: 1,391
Location: Switzerland
Originally Posted by: mike c Go to Quoted Post
If the station on your layout is Mattiasberg, it would be unlikely that an announcement there would include it's own name as part of the announcement.

Sorry, not entirely correct. At least when I last used a train (before the Corona outbreak), it was for instance very common to hear something like: "Zürich HB, Ihre nächsten Anschlüsse/Verbindungen: ...", followed by a list of connections and their departure track numbers. Assuming of course that the announcement is made in/on an other station than Mattiasberg.

Example from Olten here:
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Offline PeFu  
#18 Posted : 27 January 2021 19:09:29(UTC)
PeFu

Sweden   
Joined: 30/08/2002(UTC)
Posts: 1,208
Originally Posted by: Unholz Go to Quoted Post
Originally Posted by: mike c Go to Quoted Post
If the station on your layout is Mattiasberg, it would be unlikely that an announcement there would include it's own name as part of the announcement.

Sorry, not entirely correct. At least when I last used a train (before the Corona outbreak), it was for instance very common to hear something like: "Zürich HB, Ihre nächsten Anschlüsse/Verbindungen: ...", followed by a list of connections and their departure track numbers. Assuming of course that the announcement is made in/on an other station than Mattiasberg.


...and adding to this, the announcement is at the Andreasburg station, from where trains can go to Mattiasberg (Lugano, Milano)

BigGrin

Andreasburg-Mattiasberg Bahn is inspired by Swiss railways |Forum Thread |Track Plan |Youtube | C and K track | CS2 | TrainController Gold V10
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Offline mike c  
#19 Posted : 27 January 2021 19:14:17(UTC)
mike c

Canada   
Joined: 28/11/2007(UTC)
Posts: 7,880
Location: Montreal, QC
Stefan. If you read the second sentence in my post, you would see that I explained the one situation where the announcing station would be included in the announcement.

In regards to the tones which I included with my above post. It is important to remember that the SBB tones consist of 9 notes, which represent SBB (German), CFF (French) and FFS (Italian). Announcements in each respective language would include the tones for that language. Multilingual announcements, often in German, and French and/or Italian and English would normally have just one set of tones at the beginning, for the first language. BLS routes use their own tone (included above).

I have heard a more generic tone used at certain stations, including Luzern HB.

Regards

Mike C
Offline mike c  
#20 Posted : 27 January 2021 19:16:21(UTC)
mike c

Canada   
Joined: 28/11/2007(UTC)
Posts: 7,880
Location: Montreal, QC
Originally Posted by: PeFu Go to Quoted Post
Originally Posted by: Unholz Go to Quoted Post
Originally Posted by: mike c Go to Quoted Post
If the station on your layout is Mattiasberg, it would be unlikely that an announcement there would include it's own name as part of the announcement.

Sorry, not entirely correct. At least when I last used a train (before the Corona outbreak), it was for instance very common to hear something like: "Zürich HB, Ihre nächsten Anschlüsse/Verbindungen: ...", followed by a list of connections and their departure track numbers. Assuming of course that the announcement is made in/on an other station than Mattiasberg.


...and adding to this, the announcement is at the Andreasburg station, from where trains can go to Mattiasberg (Lugano, Milano)

BigGrin



I have never been to either... I'm sure that they are nice places though ;)

MC

Offline mike c  
#21 Posted : 27 January 2021 19:19:15(UTC)
mike c

Canada   
Joined: 28/11/2007(UTC)
Posts: 7,880
Location: Montreal, QC
My station is a hybrid of Arth-Goldau, Immensee and Pfaeffikon, so it can host a mix of trains heading south to Italy but also heading to Chur/Austria as well as on the SOB.
One day, it will go from imaginary on the carpetbahn to an actual layout (perhaps). This winter, I had to scrap the parallel line, as it seems that a lot of my C-Track that I thought was safe has now succumbed to the defect.

Regards

Mike C
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