5.1 Text-to-Speech Tools (Agent Vibes)
Philosophy: Audible narration frees your eyes for multitasking
Text-to-speech adds audio narration to Claude Code responses, enabling:
- Code reviews while multitasking (listen while reviewing diffs visually)
- Long debugging sessions (audio notifications keep you informed)
- Accessibility (visual impairment, eye strain, RSI)
- Background monitoring (alerts for errors/completion)
Tool: Agent Vibes (Community MCP Server)
Status: Optional integration (not official Claude Code feature) Cost: 100% free (offline TTS) Maintenance: Community-driven (Paul Preibisch)
| Feature | Value |
|---|---|
| Provider | Piper TTS (offline neural) + macOS Say (native) |
| Voices | 15+ (12 English, 4 French including 124 multi-speakers) |
| Latency | ~280ms (Piper medium), ~50ms (macOS Say) |
| Disk Space | ~1.3GB (Piper + voices + audio effects) |
| Installation | ~18 minutes (5 phases, interactive) |
When TTS Shines
| Scenario | Benefit |
|---|---|
| Code reviews | Listen to Claude's analysis while viewing code |
| Long-running tasks | Audio notification when tests/builds complete |
| Debugging sessions | Error alerts without constant screen checking |
| Learning mode | Dual-language narration (main + target language) |
| Pair programming | One person codes, both hear Claude's feedback |
Trade-offs
| Advantage | Limitation |
|---|---|
| 100% offline | No cloud-quality voices (vs ElevenLabs) |
| Zero cost | ~280ms latency (vs instant macOS Say) |
| Multi-language (50+) | ~1GB disk space for voice models |
| 124 voice variety | Installation requires Homebrew, Bash 5.x |
Quick Start
Installation: TTS Setup Workflow (18 min)
Basic usage:
bash
# In Claude Code
/agent-vibes:whoami # Check current voice & provider
/agent-vibes:list # List all 15 voices
/agent-vibes:switch fr_FR-tom-medium # French male voice
# Test
> "Say hello in French" # Audio narration playsMute temporarily:
bash
/agent-vibes:mute # Silent work
# ... focus time ...
/agent-vibes:unmute # Re-enableRecommendation
| Profile | Setup |
|---|---|
| Code reviewer | ✅ Install with fr_FR-tom-medium, verbosity: low |
| Focus worker | ⚠️ Install but mute by default, unmute for notifications |
| Battery-conscious | Use macOS Say provider (instant, lower quality) |
| Public workspace | ❌ Skip TTS (audio distraction to others) |
Complete Documentation
- Agent Vibes Integration Guide - Overview, commands, use cases
- Installation Guide - 18-minute setup procedure
- Voice Catalog - 15 voices with audio samples
- Troubleshooting - Common issues & solutions
Resources:
- GitHub: https://github.com/paulpreibisch/AgentVibes
- Voice Samples: https://rhasspy.github.io/piper-samples/