Newsgroups: comp.speech
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From: gern@AI.RL.AF.MIL (The Gern)
Subject: Re: speech chip
Message-ID: <gern.45.2E9AA57E@AI.RL.AF.MIL>
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Date: Tue, 11 Oct 1994 14:47:27 GMT


>>:      I'm looking for a speech chip that will convert hex-code to sound
>>:      based on a set of production rules developed by NRL. The chip was
>>:      a VOTREX SC-01A and was used in a project in a magazine over 10
>>:      years ago. I checked locally for the chip and cannot find it. 
>>:      I have called the company that made it but can't reach them.

>The SC-01A is no longer in production (if anyone knows of a stash, please
>let me know!).  Its successor, the SC-02, also known as the SSI-263,
>might still be in production.  (It will be sold as the SSI-263--no one
>will know what you mean if you use the original Votrax designation).  The
>manufacturer is SSI, and in theory, the part is (was) carried by some
>major distributors.  Note that I have never had a consistant idea from
>SSI what their plans are (were?) for this chip--it's old technology,
>and you get the idea they would rather not make it.

>I've seen the SSI-263 in a few back-pages ads, but none recently that I
>could point you to.  Ciarcia did some projects using this chip also (Byte
>magazine era); it is a bit fancier than the SC-01A, but seems to be
>picky about having all the parameters set well (and adjusted dynamically
>well) to sound decent.

The Votrax group of Federal Screw Works formed their own company Artic
Technogies.   Silicon Systems still makes the SSI-263A for them as
ARTIC-263 (be sure to get the fixed 'A' version if a SSI chip).  It is a 
neat chip and I have a working PC-bus prototype card and Text-to-speech
driver for it.   I plan to clean it all up and release it soon.

If you want, I can look up their phone number.  The IC is available 
in single quanity at $50.00 from them.

Cheers,
Gern 	

The world DOES revolve around Engineers - We chose the coordinate system!

