Vintage Digital DECTALK 70 29613 01 Speaker for Speech Synthesizer *Speaker Only For Sale

Vintage Digital DECTALK 70 29613 01 Speaker for Speech Synthesizer *Speaker Only
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Vintage Digital DECTALK 70 29613 01 Speaker for Speech Synthesizer *Speaker Only:
$20.00

Used Tested & Working Vintage DecTalk Mono channel SpeakerThe unit is not very loud if plugged in to a smartphone, because it would normally be plugged in to a sound card or device that has some audio amplification (approximately 0.5 - .75 watt) such as an older isa Sound blaster 16 or 32. The device can be plugged in to a auxiliary port / headphones jack and you can hear sounds if you put your ear up close to the speaker with the volume at max. I have owned this Dec-talk speaker since 1999.
Interesting Note notable user of a device like this was Stephen Hawking, who was unable to speak due to a combination of severe disabilities caused by ALS as well as an emergency tracheotomy. Hawking used a version of the DECtalk voice synthesizer for several years and came to be associated with the unique voice of the device. In 2011, Hawking\'s research assistant Sam Blackburn said Hawking still used a version of DECtalk identified on its board as the \"Calltext 5010\" manufactured in 1988 by SpeechPlus, Inc.**Freebie info .... If you would like to create something that sounds like Stephen Hawking\'s voice open up Notepad, then add some text or a story, then open up Windows narrator and it will read it in a robotic voice. Windows narrator can read the visible text of most applications & websites. Windows narrator is free and has been included in Windows xp 7 8 and 10 located under the accessibility options on the start little history on Digital Corporation & DecTalk... (sources Wiki & other websites)AboutThe first DECtalk units were seen in 1984. They were standalone units that connected to any device with an asynchronous serial port. These units were also able to connect to the telephone system by having two telephone jacks. One connected to a phone line, the other to a telephone. The DECtalk units could recognize and generate any telephone touch tone. With that capability the units could be used to automate various telephone-related tasks by handling both incoming and outgoing calls. This included acting as an interface to an email system and the capability to function as an alerting system by utilizing the ability to place calls and interact via touch tones with the person answering the phone.Later units were produced for PCs with ISA bus slots. In addition, various software implementations were produced, most notably the DECtalk Access32. Certain versions of the synthesizer were prone to undesirable characteristics. For example, the alveolar stops were often assimilated as sounding more like dental stops. Also, versions such as Access32 would produce faint electronic beeps at the end of phrases.In the final years of DEC, early/mid-2000,[6] the DECtalk IP was sold to Force Computers, Inc. In December 2001, the IP was sold[7] from Force Computers, Inc, to Fonix Speech, Inc. (now SpeechFX, Inc.), which offers DECtalk as a small-footprint TTS system.[8]
In technology and culture The DECtalk engine was notably used in the US National Weather Service\'s first \"Console Replacement System\" (CRS) installations in the late 1990s for NOAA Weather Radio. As of 2003 it had all but been replaced by a far more modern engine called Speechify. The so-called \"Perfect Paul\" voice (a DECtalk \"preset\" for a default understandable male voice) still does Station identifications on many NWR stations.[9]
One of the early uses was a \"text to voice\" system that read an individual\'s emergency medical information (medications, allergies, doctor, insurance and contact info stored in a database) to hospitals telephoning in about patients presenting at emergency rooms. The company, Med-Fax, created by David Grober in 1986, used the DECtalk on an IBM platform, making it one of the early cross platform applications (DEC to IBM).
DECtalk had a number of built-in voices which were identified by the following names: Perfect Paul (the default voice), Beautiful Betty, Huge Harry, Frail Frank, Kit the Kid, Rough Rita, Uppity Ursula, Doctor Dennis and Whispering Wendy. In addition the voices were editable by adjusting various parameters (such as throat size, crossover frequencies, etc.)
DECtalk understood phonetic spellings of words, allowing customized pronunciation of unusual words. These phonetic spellings could also include a tone indicator which DECtalk would use when enunciating the phonetic components. This allowed DECtalk to sing.
In addition, all the electronic voices in the movie Back to the Future II were created by personnel from the Digital Equipment Corporation\'s San Diego office, using the DECtalk TTS system.
DECtalk can be used as part of a speech generating device for those unable to speak. A notable user was Stephen Hawking, who was unable to speak due to a combination of severe disabilities caused by ALS as well as an emergency tracheotomy.[10] Hawking used a version of the DECtalk voice synthesizer for several years[11] and came to be associated with the unique voice of the device. In 2011, Hawking\'s research assistant Sam Blackburn said Hawking still used a version of DECtalk identified on its board as the \"Calltext 5010\" manufactured in 1988 by SpeechPlus, Inc.,[12] because he identified with it and had not heard a voice he liked better. The CallText 5010 was still listed on Hawking\'s site as of 2015.[13] A team from Cambridge (UK) and Palo Alto eventually emulated the workings of the CallText 5010 on a Raspberry Pi, which Hawking used from January 2018 to his death in March of that year.[14]
The character \"Dee Klatt\" from Chipspeech was based on data from this device.[15]
In the sixth episode of Tales from the Darkside, Mookie and Pookie, the voice of Kevin \"Mookie\" Anderson is created with a DECtalk.------------------------The Impressive (and Tragic) History of DEC in Computing

DEC’s story begins in 1957 with two men at MIT who had a theory and an idea for a business. It ends in roughly 1998 with the selling of the company to Compaq. Here is DEC’s journey.

1957

While working together in the Lincoln Laboratory at MIT, Ken Olsen and Harlan Anderson came up with the idea for DEC. They took notice of how popular the interactive computing machines were with students who visited the lab, as opposed to the batch processing machines that users couldn’t input data into or use for real-time response.

Olsen and Anderson also knew that these interactive machines could be made and sold cheaper, which would be another major draw for researchers and scientists who were craving the technology.

After creating their original business plan, Olsen and Anderson were advised to shift the focus of their company from one around “computers” to instead one focused on “equipment.” There were just too many concerns from investors about the future of computing, and so that’s what they did. The plan for Digital Equipment Corporation was finalized and they received $70,000 to launch their new company.

In sticking with the theme of keeping expenses light (not only for customers but for the company as well), they set up shop in an old wool mill in Maynard, MA.

1958

The first product DEC created and sold was its Digital Laboratory Module. Staying true to its business plan, the initial product lines DEC focused on were modules, or electronic components, that were mounted to circuit boards.By the end of that year, DEC sold $94,000 worth of its first product.

System Building Blocks logo, RTC/ Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0)1960

DEC began selling its first computer at the end of 1960. But it was aware of people’s reluctance to invest in “computer” technology at the time, so it named the computer a “programmable data processor”, or PDP. The first iteration of this product line (PDP-1) sold for $120,000 that year.

Throughout the remainder of the decade, DEC created over a dozen PDP variants.

1962PDP-4 at the National Archives Auditorium, 1964

DEC began the process of creating “new” models of the PDP that could be sold for much less than the original. For example, the PDP-4 was similar in most ways to the PDP-1, but it was slower and packaged differently, which is what enabled DEC to sell it for $65,000.

1964

While continuing to release new PDPs into the market, DEC also charged forward in its delivery of new modules. The Flip Chip came out in 1964 and was meant to convert the PDP-4 to the PDP-7. Many of its subsequent module releases served a similar purpose: helping users convert their old computers to upgraded versions.

1965

It was in this year when DEC released the PDP-8, which is widely recognized as the first successful commercial minicomputer. Part of this is due to the improvements made to this model, but a large reason for its commercial success was the price tag of $18,500 and the 50,000 customers they sold it to.

1970

In the interim, DEC came up with a revamped version of their PDP line and released the PDP-11 minicomputer. Not only did it bring major upgraded features to their computing machines, it also was easier to use. By the time it stopped selling it in the 1990s, DEC sold over 600,000 of them, making it one of the most popular minicomputers ever.

PDP-11 by Don DeBold/ Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

In addition, the design of the computer, as well as its operating system, turned out to be immensely popular with other computing companies, that eventually ended up using it as inspiration for their own work.

1971

DEC made its first move into the European market in 1971, setting up manufacturing in Ireland.

1974

DEC became recognized as a Fortune 500 company.

1978

After widespread success with its PDP-11, DEC made the move into high-end computers and launched the Virtual Address eXtension, or VAX. This new 32-bit minicomputer (or supermini) line aimed to provide users with a wide array of computing resources that would be more affordable, powerful, and smaller than what companies like IBM could offer at the time.

1982

The Rainbow 100 was created and was DEC’s first attempt to enter the personal computing space.

1984

DEC continued to stay busy during this time, regularly putting out new models of the VAX. The VAX 8600 came out in 1984 and became an instant bestseller.

1985

DEC registered dec.com.

1988

DEC was recognized as one of the premier leaders in computing when it was named the second largest computer company, just behind IBM. At the time, it had generated over $11 billion in revenue and had over 120,000 employees.

1990

DEC reported its first quarterly loss.

1991

DEC reported its first annual loss.

1992

Founder Ken Olsen retired.

1994

DEC released Alpha AXP, which was a 64-bit microprocessor created to solve the overly complicated circuit designs of its VAX computers and to ultimately speed up processing times.

1995

DEC launched AltaVista, one of the first ever search engines for the Internet. It became incredibly popular with users. During the first day of its launch, AltaVista received 300,000 visits. Two years later, it received 80 million hits every day.

Altavista in 1998. Brent Payne/ Flickr. CC BY 2.0

Although Altavista persisted long past the end or, more accurately, the acquisition of DEC, it was eventually sold to Yahoo in 2003. By the time 2013 rolled around, it was gone.

1997

Other computer companies began to make moves for the flailing DEC. Intel was the first to step in when it purchased DEC’s microprocessor plant in Hudson. But even that $1.5 billion wasn’t enough to save the company.

1998

The official end of DEC as a standalone company came in 1998 when it was acquired by Compaq for $9.6 billion. Unfortunately, Compaq didn’t know what to do with DEC’s overseas business, and so it was inevitable that neither DEC nor Compaq would exist for much longer. That day came in 2002 when Hewlett-Packard acquired Compaq.

What Is the Lesson Here?

It’s been many decades since the world was first introduced to DEC, and tech history buffs still enjoy talking about it.

Why? First, because it left such a lasting imprint on computing as we continue to know it, whether it was its contributions to computers, software, microchips, or even the internet itself.

Second, because there is an important lesson here that every computer company should carefully study if they don’t want to fall victim to the same fate.

In a Quora thread that asked the question “”Why did digital fail? it was interesting to see so many previous DEC employees and members of the MIT community speak up about what they noted during their tenure there. Almost unanimously, they supported the theory—also commonly held by experts—that the failure of the company ultimately fell to the leaders who were unable to foresee what was coming in personal computing and were not able to take decisive or quick enough action in time to save the company.

DEC VT-100, NoRud/ Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Perhaps the saddest thing about this is that DEC had long been considered the “best” and the inspiratioan for what so many after them set out to do. It’s not like it hadn’t made an attempt at personal computing when they released their Rainbow 100. So, how did it fail to see that the future of the mid-market minicomputer was waning and that a full shift over to personal computers was needed in order to ensure the company’s longevity?

According to Clayton Christensen, a professor at Harvard Business School, it wasn’t a lack of trying that took down DEC. It was the inflexibility of the business model they had so long relied upon:

“Digital Equipment Corp. had microprocessor technology, but its business model could not profitably sell a computer for less than $50,000. The technology trapped in a high-cost business model had no impact on the world, and in fact, the world ultimately killed Digital. But IBM Corp., with the very same processors at its disposal, set up a different business model in Florida that could make money at a $2,000 price point and 20% gross margins—and changed the world.”

Regardless of why it happened or how the leadership behind DEC allowed it to happen, the legacy of this company will live on as it was willing to step up and introduce affordable and powerful computing solutions during a time when others were too afraid to.




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