Speech synthesizer internal port

[jrhodes]

As i understand it, a small number of speech synthesizers were made and sold with a internal port for expansion.

Would it be possible to mount a small bit of memory to that port and read/write it?

Assuming you owned or found a unit with the port in it, would it have any real value for resale? Could you eek out a extra $5 because it is a "rare" version of the speech synthesizer?

[+Ksarul]

The memory in that space is on the Speech Synthesizer's memory bus, IIRC, much like the built-in vocabulary words are. As to the value of the versions with the connector, they don't come up often at all--but as there are absolutely no cartridges that actually use the connector, I don't suspect there would be an extreme increase in value there. It would be more of a collector value thing than a practical one.

[HOME AUTOMATION]

I had one of the models with the connector built-in. It was basically a chopped down version of the cartridge connector. It didn't have many contacts. The connector made it difficult to reassemble the unit. I imagine it uses something similar to a Speak and Spell module.

[ti99iuc]

i brought my Speecy Synth with the connector and disassembled it at TI Vienna Meeting in 2016

here the pictures: http://www.ti99.eu/?page_id=1705&lang=en

[TheMole]

I had one of the models with the connector built-in. It was basically a chopped down version of the cartridge connector. It didn't have many contacts. The connector made it difficult to reassemble the unit. I imagine it uses something similar to a Speak and Spell module.

 

I remember reading somewhere that the speak & spell cartridges are indeed compatible with the speech synth, and that the vocabulary found in the cartridges is available in XB when plugged-in to the speech synth. Has anyone ever tested this?

[HOME AUTOMATION]

@ti99iuc WoW... When I clicked the link to your pics, I thought... I haven't seen one of these in decades. Almost seems like a figment of my imagination.

Surprise on me... to see a male connector soldered to the board with a plastic circuit strip!

Mine appeared to be its' counterpart. Similar in appearance to the consoles' cartridge connector exept that it had a flat cut backplane on one side. There was a slot on the speech synth board just like the one on the console.

Looking at your connector I recognize it as the very same backplane board but reconfigured in reverse.

The side with the contacts would have fit in the slot on the speech synth board. While the female cartridge connector would have been soldered in place of the plastic circuit strip.

cool!

 

@TheMole I have a speak and spell module, maybe someday I'll see if they are indeed compatible.

[+Ksarul]

I know a lot of Speak and Spell vocabulary files were extracted and added to the SNUG SPVMC's internal vocabulary by Michael Becker, so the data is definitely fully compatible.

[mglafond]

Has anyone ever created a homebrew version of the speech synth to work with the 99/4a?

[+Ksarul]

The only Speech options were the original Speech Synthesizer or the SNUG SPVMC card for the PEB.

 

Of course there are also several options that allow you to move the Speech Synthesizer to the PEB as well: Rave Speech Board, CorComp TripleTech, Berlin Speech Board, and several homebrew boards that circulated BITD.

[+helocast]

Has anyone ever created a homebrew version of the speech synth to work with the 99/4a?

Most of the code and schematics are here https://github.com/simoninns/TMS6100-Emulator even though it is for an Acorn Computer ... and the TI speech synth rom data is available.

It's just way down my priority list right now to build and adapt the micro's code.