Adding AI Voice Links To Clocks & The Log - requires Myriad Playout v6.3.1 or higher

Modified on Tue, 24 Sep at 12:55 PM

Topics covered in this article:

Prerequisites

Overview

Does it cost anything?

Types of AI Voice Links

Adding goal driven AI Voice Links to Clocks

Adding script driven AI Voice Links to Clocks

Adding AI Voice Links directly to the Log

Prerequisites

In this article, we will see how to add AI Voice Links to your Clocks or directly to the Log. We will also look at the options for creating AI Voice Links. You will need the following:

Myriad Playout v6.3 or higher
Windows built in text to speech (with option to purchase additional voices from CereProc)
Optional AI script service subscription (OpenAI (known as Chat GPT) or Azure OpenAI)
Optional AI voice generation service subscription (Google TTS Service, Azure AI Voices or ElevenLabs)

In this article, we assume you have already setup optional subscriptions for AI script and AI voice generation, and configured Myriad Playout 6 to use these services as part of the AI Voice Link settings. If you have not completed these steps then please refer to the articles below.

Overview

The aim with AI Voice Links in Myriad Playout is to provide a mechanism to allow broadcasters to include automatically generated voice links within live or automated shows and to include information relevant to the content being played (recent and upcoming songs /artists etc) as well as generic information and time relevant content such as time checks and weather.

AI Voice Links have been designed to allow for automated variation in content, from a set of predefined parameters. This allows you to add AI Voice Links to Clocks that will produce different results each time they are scheduled.

If you have setup Myriad Playout to use an external AI script service (like OpenAI/ChatGPT etc) then variation can be enhanced further by allowing the AI script service to re-write some or all of your AI Voice Links.

Additionally, you can manually script AI Voice Links to follow a fixed format but also including special 'tags' to include 'live' content such as song titles, artists, weather, time etc.

Regardless of how the scripts are generated, Myriad Playout will use your selected voice generation service to render the AI Voice Link automatically a few Log items before the AI Voice Link is played out.

Does it cost anything?

AI Voice Links are included in Myriad Playout v6.3 (or higher) for most users at no additional cost, although some entry level subscriptions may not include this feature, so you should check your subscription details. However, if you want to use 3rd party services for AI script re-writing or AI voice services for audio rendering then you will need to take out an appropriate subscription directly with your selected service provider.

While we highly recommend using a 3rd party subscription for voice and/or script generation, it is important to fully understand the pricing models these services use and select an appropriate service level that will meet your needs

CAUTION: In testing, we regularly generated bills of several hundred pounds a month testing higher end options and heavily using AI Voice Links. It is recommended you place limits and warnings on your services to avoid unexpected bills!

Is there a free option?

Yes, AI Voice Links in Myriad Playout includes an advanced script generation process allowing the automated creation of link scripts what include advanced elements. You can combine this with the speech generation built into Windows to use AI Voice Links with no additional costs.

To use AI Voice Links with no extra costs:

Use the script generation built into Myriad Playout only (do not add a ChatGPT option)
Set the voice generation to "Local" to use the built in Windows voice generation.

The "Local" voices built into Windows do not use AI for generation and can sound robotic, but you can source additional voices from companies like Cereproc, although they may still be limited in their effectiveness.

This option is best used for short AI Voice Links (time checks etc) or simple weather reads.

When does it start to cost money?

If you use a 3rd party service to generate the voices, scripts or both, then the services may well require a paid subscription. We have built in support for different solutions so you can select the solution that meets your needs and budget best.

You will need paid subscriptions if you want to include the following in your AI Voice Links:

Use a AI based script generators (like ChatGPT or Azure OpenAI) to re-write the scripts generated by Myriad Playout.
Generate your AI Voice Link audio using advanced AI based voice services such as ElevenLabs

CAUTION: We would recommend ensuring you place cost alerts and caps on supported services to avoid unexpected bills.

Types of AI Voice Links

To make AI Voice Links as flexible as possible, we have developed two different types of link that you can include in your Clocks or insert into the Log.

Goal driven AI Voice Links - These AI Voice Links are given a set of goals about the type of content that the voice link should contain. These are then used by Myriad to generate a suitable script.
Fixed script AI Voice Links - These AI Voice links are manually scripted but they can also include 'live' events via 'tags' to make them more unique.

In general, goal driven AI Voice Links can be used for general content in shows. The nature means that you can use them in multiple Clocks without a high degree of repetition in the structure and content of the links. Additional variation can be added to goal driven links by using a 3rd party AI script service (i.e. OpenAI/ChatGPT) to rewrite the script generated by Myriad.

Fixed script AI Voice Links are intended for more specific links that must include key information or be used a specific points in the Log.

Adding goal driven AI Voice Links to Clocks

Let's start by adding a goal driven AI Voice Link to a Clock.

Open either Myriad Playout or the Myriad Schedule application.
Access your Clock Assignments Grid (Station Menu in Myriad Playout or left option tab in Myriad Schedule).
Open a Clock that you want to add some AI Voice Links to. Please note that this must be an Advanced Clock.
Select the Voice Link option in the All Items list on the left and drag it into the position in the Clock Items list on the right. If this option is not showing, then you should need to check that the feature has been fully enabled in Station Settings.
To edit the AI Voice link, click on the Voice Link field in the Clock Items list .
This will open the AI Voice Link window.
On the left hand side you will see the Script Content Options section which includes all the types of content that could be included in your AI Voice Link.
To the right of this you will see a grid with a selection slider for each content type. You can select from Never, Occasionally, Sometimes, Frequently or Always. Select the frequency of occurrence for each content type of content by sliding the indicator from left (never) to right (always).

In the example above, the generated scripts will include the following content:

Current Time	Occasionally
Station Name	Always
Station Strap-line	Frequently
Current Weather (from SmartInfo)	Never
Previous Song Name / Artists	Always
Previous Song Year	Sometimes
Songfacts For Previous Song / Artist	Sometimes
Previous Song Name / Artists	Always
Previous Song Year	Sometimes
Songfacts For Previous Song / Artist	Occasionally

Here are four examples of AI Voice Link scripts generated by these goals:

It's Five minutes to Four on Hot FM - "Faded" by Alan Walker. Here comes "Modern Way" by Kaiser Chiefs.

Alan Walker and "Faded". "Songfacts.com says: Alan Walker wrote in a Genius attribution: "I would describe 'Faded' as a happy yet emotional song, appropriate for both sad and/or uplifting occasions. It's about searching for someone, something or somewhere lost. Or just feeling lost! One of the things I like the most about its lyrics is that the meaning can be interpreted freely by the listener." Here comes Kaiser Chiefs and "Modern Way" from nearly 20 years ago, playing here on Home of the hits, Hot FM.

Hot FM : Home of the hits - First released in 2015, that's Alan Walker. Here comes "Modern Way" by Kaiser Chiefs.

Hot FM - Alan Walker and "Faded", which first came out 8 years ago, in 2015. Right now, Kaiser Chiefs and "Modern Way", which first came out nearly 20 years ago.

If you have setup your system to allow the option to use an external AI script generator to 'rewrite' AI Voice Links, then you can switch the Create an enhanced script by using AI GPT option.
You can also add additional 'Presentation Style' keywords that will influence the way the AI rewrites the script. You will have already set some station default keywords but you can override them here.

Here are some examples of scripts rewritten by Azure OpenAI:

Well, there you have it folks, that was "Faded" by the talented Alan Walker, bringing us some of his signature EDM vibes. Did you know, according to songfacts.com, Alan Walker is an EDM producer and DJ who was born in Northampton, England and raised in Bergen, Norway? Quite the international journey, wouldn't you say?

Now, we're just about five minutes to four here on Hot FM, your home of the hits. We've got a great lineup for you this afternoon, including a track from the one and only Billie Eilish coming up a bit later. But first, we're going to keep the music flowing with "Modern Way" by Kaiser Chiefs. So sit back, relax, and let the hits keep coming.

Well, there you have it folks, that was the mesmerizing "Faded" by Alan Walker, a hit that's been echoing in our hearts since 2015. Now, as we inch closer to four o'clock, here on your favorite station, Hot FM, the home of the hits, we're keeping the music flowing.

Before we dive into our next track, let's take a moment to appreciate the dedication of the artists who create these hits. Speaking of dedication, here's a little tidbit from songfacts.com about our next artist, Ricky Wilson of the Kaiser Chiefs. When he made his debut as a coach on BBC1 talent show The Voice back in 2014, he said, "I love my band and I want our new record to get noticed. I know that everyone is going, 'He thinks he's going to sell more records and more tickets.' And that is why I'm doing it. I'm not a... idiot."

Well, Ricky, we're glad you did what you did, because it's given us some great music to enjoy. Speaking of which, let's not keep you waiting any longer. Up next, we've got "Modern Way" by the Kaiser Chiefs. So sit back, relax, and let the music take over.
Myriad Playout will use these settings to generate a script for the link, a few Log items before the AI Voice Link is due to play. If you would like to force the system to generate a script now, you can click on the Create a script based on these settings button.

This will generate a script for review.
Once the script has been generated, you can also force the audio to be generated by clicking on the Generate Audio button.
The resulting AI Voice Link will be displayed at the bottom of the window. You can review the link in isolation by clicking on the Play button. You can also remove the generated audio using the Delete Existing Audio button.
You can also review how the AI Voice Link will sound in the Segue Editor. The video below shows the AI Voice Link embedded into the previous and next songs. Note how Myriad has automatically positioned the link to be embedded into the end of the previous track so there music is playing underneath the AI Voice Link throughout.

Adding script driven AI Voice Links to Clocks

If you want to control the content of your AI Voice Links, you can use a script driven link instead of a goal driven link.

Open either Myriad Playout or the Myriad Schedule application.
Access your Clock Assignments Grid (Station Menu in Myriad Playout or left option tab in Myriad Schedule).
Open a Clock that you want to add some AI Voice Links to. Please note that this must be an Advanced Clock.
Select the Voice Link option in the All Items list on the left and drag it into the position in the Clock Items list on the right.
To edit the AI Voice link, click on the Voice Link field in the Clock Items list .
This will open the AI Voice Link window.
Click on the Create A New Empty Script button.
To add a simple fixed script, type the script into the script area, or you can use the Add example template drop down at the top to create an example link that includes some more advanced features.
You can also select an alternate Language and Voice as well as a Custom Rate (speed) for the Link.

In the example above, the AI Voice Link will use a female voice (not the station default), and the link will be generated at +15% speed.
Now let's add some 'tags' to make the AI Voice Link more engaging and reflective of the content surrounding the link. To insert tags into the script, use the Tag Dropdown to select a tag from the list.

In this example, we have already added a tag for 'next song title and we are about to add another tag for next artists. For more information on placeholder tags see - Myriad AI VoiceLinks - Using placeholder 'Tags'

You can also insert a "pause" from the Special option at the bottom of the menu. These insert a pause into the speech. For example [pause(4)] will insert a pause of around 4 seconds.

Note: It is down to the voice provider to interpret this instruction and you may find that some providers insert slightly shorter or longer pauses than you are requesting, so you should experiment with settings to get the best result.

The resulting script would look like this.

When Myriad generates the AI Voice Link, it will replace the tags with information from the Log so the final script would be something like this:
Let's add a second script block. Click on the Add Script Block button to add a new script block. This will add a new blank script block.

Note: not all voice providers support this feature - for example ElevenLabs does not allow mixing voices within an AI Voice Link so the script must all be in a single block.
Let's say we wanted to bring in a second voice to read the weather, take a look at the script below.

The second script block as a different voice selected and short script introducing the weather. We are then using the [weather] tag to insert the weather summary from the same source that SmartInfo uses.
To finish this AI Voice Link, let's tell Myriad to start the next Song and then add a third script block for the presenter to introduce the next song. To add a trigger for Myriad to play the next item in the Log, click on the Next Item button.

This indicator to start the next item is a guideline to help Myriad position the link in an ideal position. Myriad will try to use this to help start the next item at the correct time, but if the remaining speech will not fit within the intro of the next item then it will automatically adjust the timing to avoid "crashing the intro".
Then add a new script block and type in the final part of the script.
You can use the Generate Audio button to generate the audio for the script and listen to it in isolation using the Play button.

You can also delete existing audio using the Delete Existing Audio button.
But to hear how the AI Voice Link will sound 'on air', you can preview the AI Voice Link in the SegueEditor. The video below demonstrates how the link will sound.
In addition to tag, you can also include Scripts Text Files in your AI Voice Link scripts. You can use the Script Files button to browse the script text files in your Myriad scripts folder.

Script Files work the same as tags.

This variation to the middle script block has added two new elements, the time (using the time as words tag) and the contents of the Headlines.txt file. As AI Voice Links are not generated until just before they are needed, you can schedule this type of AI Voice Link well in advance and update the Headlines.txt file with the latest headlines each day to keep your news up to date.

Here is how it would sound 'on air'.
The top bar on the AI Voice Link window also has some options for access pre-built example scripts as well as resetting to goals and even rewriting your script using your selected AI script service.

Please note that using the Rewrite using AI GPT feature will result in a single script block, removing the ability to have multiple voices or trigger next Log Item.

Adding AI Voice Links directly to the Log

Whilst AI Voice Links are probably most useful in Clocks, they can also be manually inserted into the Log just like any other Log item.

Right click on the item in the Log that you want to be playing at the end of the AI Voice Link.
Click on Insert before this item.
Select AI Voice Link from the list. You can also use the Insert option on the Edit ribbon if preferred. If this option is not showing, then you should need to check that the feature has been fully enabled in Station Settings.
This will open the AI Voice Link window to allow you to set the Goals or Scripts for your AI Voice Link (see previous sections).