The Microsoft text-to-speech voices are speech synthesizers provided for use with applications that use the Microsoft Speech API (SAPI). There are client and server versions of Microsoft text to speech voices. Client voices are shipped with Windows operating systems; server voices are available for download for use with server applications such as Speech Server, Lync etc on Windows Server platforms.
Microsoft Sam is the default text-to-speech male voice in Microsoft Windows 2000 and Windows XP. It is used by Narrator, the screen reader program built into the operating system.
Microsoft Mike and Microsoft Mary are optional male and female voices respectively, available for download from the Microsoft website. Michael and Michelle are also optional male and female voices licensed by Microsoft from Lernout & Hauspie, and available through Microsoft Office XP and Microsoft Office 2003 or Microsoft Reader.
There are both SAPI 4 and SAPI 5 versions of these text to speech voices. SAPI 5 voices are only available on Windows 2000 and later Windows NT-based operating systems. While SAPI 5 versions of Microsoft Mike and Microsoft Mary are downloadable only as a Merge Module [1], the installable versions may be installed on end users' systems by speech applications such as Microsoft Reader. SAPI 4 redistributable versions are downloadable for Windows 9x, although no longer from the Microsoft website.
Microsoft Sam, Microsoft Mike and Microsoft Mary do not work on Windows Vista and later. Microsoft Sam is the default voice for Windows 2000 and Windows XP. Beginning with Windows Vista and Windows 7, Microsoft Anna is the default English voice. Microsoft Anna is a SAPI 5-only female voice and is designed to sound more natural than Microsoft Sam.[2] Microsoft Streets & Trips 2006 and later install the Microsoft Anna voice on Windows XP systems for the voice-prompt direction feature. There is no male voice shipping with Windows Vista and later. A Chinese voice called Microsoft Lili is available in Chinese versions of Windows Vista and later. It can also be obtained in non-Chinese versions of Windows 7 or Vista if the Ultimate Edition is used. [3] This replaces the earlier male SAPI5 voice "Microsoft Simplified Chinese".[4] Audio samples of both these voices can be heard on MDBG's site.[5]
Microsoft also provides server version speech platform which includes text-to-speech voices in 26 languages. [6] These voices can run on windows client and server.
In Windows 8, the upcoming version of Windows, there are three new client voices - Microsoft David (US male) and Hazel (UK female) and Zira (US female) which sound more natural than Microsoft Anna. Microsoft Anna is no longer included.
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