tts

The saved excerpt is a snapshot from when this skill was listed. The external source remains the complete and most current version.

---
name: tts
description: "Use this skill whenever the user wants to convert text into speech, generate audio from text, or produce voiceovers. Triggers include: any mention of 'TTS', 'text to speech', 'speak', 'say', 'voice', 'read aloud', 'audio narration', 'voiceover', 'dubbing', or requests to turn written content into spoken audio. Also use when converting EPUB/PDF/SRT/articles to audio, cloning voices from reference audio, controlling emotion or speed in speech, aligning speech to subtitle timelines, or producing per-segment voice-mapped audio."
permissions:
  - network
  - filesystem
metadata: {"openclaw": {"primaryEnv": "NOIZ_API_KEY"}}
---

# tts

Convert any text into speech audio. Supports two backends (Kokoro local, Noiz cloud), two modes (simple or timeline-accurate), and per-segment voice control.

## Triggers

- text to speech / tts / speak / say
- voice clone / dubbing 
- epub to audio / srt to audio / convert to audio
- 语音 / 说 / 讲 / 说话


## Simple Mode — text to audio

`speak` is the default — the subcommand can be omitted:

```bash
# Basic usage (speak is implicit)
python3 skills/tts/scripts/tts.py -t "Hello world"          # add -o path to save
python3 skills/tts/scripts/tts.py -f article.txt -o out.mp3

# Voice cloning — local file path or URL
python3 skills/tts/scripts/tts.py -t "Hello" --ref-audio ./ref.wav
python3 skills/tts/scripts/tts.py -t "Hello" --ref-audio https://example.com/my_voice.wav -o clone.wav

# Voice message format
python3 skills/tts/scripts/tts.py -t "Hello" --format opus -o voice.opus
python3 skills/tts/scripts/tts.py -t "Hello" --format ogg -o voice.ogg
```

Third-party integration (Feishu/Telegram/Discord) is documented in [ref_3rd_party.md](ref_3rd_party.md).

## Timeline Mode — SRT to time-aligned audio

For precise per-segment timing (dubbing, subtitles, video narration).

### Step 1: Get or create an SRT

If the user doesn't have one, generate from text:

```bash
python3 skills/tts/scripts/tts.py to-srt -i article.txt -o article.srt
python3 skills/tts/scripts/tts.py to-srt -i article.txt -o article.srt --cps 15 --gap 500
```

`--cps` = characters per second (default 4, good for Chinese; ~15 for English). The agent can also write SRT manually.

### Step 2: Create a voice map

JSON file controlling default + per-segment voice settings. `segments` keys support single index `"3"` or range `"5-8"`.

Kokoro voice map:

```json
{
  "default": { "voice": "zf_xiaoni", "lang": "cmn" },
  "segments": {
    "1": { "voice": "zm_yunxi" },
    "5-8": { "voice": "af_sarah", "lang": "en-us", "speed": 0.9 }
  }
}
```

Noiz voice map (adds `emo`, `reference_audio` support). `reference_audio` can be a local path or a URL (user’s own audio; Noiz only):

```json
{
  "default": { "voice_id": "voice_123", "target_lang": "zh" },
  "segments": {
    "1": { "voice_id": "voice_host", "emo": { "Joy": 0.6 } },
    "2-4": { "reference_audio": "./refs/guest.wav" }
  }
}
```

**Dynamic Reference Audio Slicing**:
If you are translating or dubbing a video and want each sentence to automatically use the audio from the original video at the exact same timestamp as its reference audio, use the `--ref-audio-track` argument instead of setting `reference_audio` in the map:
```bash
python3 skills/tts/scripts/tts.py render --srt input.srt --voice-map vm.json --ref-audio-track original_video.mp4 -o output.wav
```

See `examples/` for full samples.

### Step 3: Render

```bash
python3 skills/tts/scripts/tts.py render --srt input.srt --voice-map vm.json -o output.wav
python3 skills/tts/scripts/tts.py render --srt input.srt --voice-map vm.json --backend noiz --auto-emotion -o output.wav
```

## When to Choose Which

| Need | Recommended |
|------|-------------|
| Just read text aloud, no fuss | Kokoro (default) |
| EPUB/PDF audiobook with chapters | Kokoro (native support) |
| Voice blending (`"v1:60,v2:40"`) | Kokoro |
| Voice cloning from reference audio | Noiz |
| Emotion control (`emo` param) | Noiz |
| Exact server-side