ElevenLabs Evaluate: Sounds Wonderful — However Not Good

Ever really feel like your content material is lacking that particular one thing? Like your phrases are simply… falling flat?

Within the age of TikTok and podcasts, audio is king. However let’s face it — not all of us are blessed with a voice that might soften butter. And hiring voice actors? That is an entire different headache (and expense) most of us would fairly keep away from.

And that’s why AI text-to-speech companies are rising in popularity. ElevenLabs appears to be the following in line in AI audio era. As somebody who’s examined extra AI instruments than I care to confess, I used to be skeptical. However I wished to present it a strive, and let me let you know, I preferred it. Quite a bit.

So, what made me change my thoughts? Let’s speak about it.

What’s ElevenLabs?

Ever wished you would have Morgan Freeman narrate your grocery listing? Effectively, ElevenLabs may not get you that far (but — although they do have Deepak Chopra), however they’re actually pushing the boundaries of what is attainable in AI-generated speech. We’re speaking about an AI firm that’s making content material accessible in any language, with any voice you may think about.

ElevenLabs is extra than simply enjoying round with robotic voices. Their analysis crew has AI fashions that may create (or extra appropriately, voice out) reasonable and context-aware speech throughout 32 languages.

Their most important function is their text-to-speech fashions (which we’ll speak about intimately later) however additionally they have fashions for altering your voice, sound results, and audio isolation. They’re additionally giving API entry to their fashions if you wish to use it for content material creation and combine it with different apps.

Who’s ElevenLabs For?

For those who’re a content material creator who’s uninterested in listening to your personal voice or making faceless content material, ElevenLabs must be a terrific different to hiring voice-over actors. It doesn’t matter for those who’re on YouTube or TikTok, ElevenLabs gained’t copyright strike you for utilizing one in every of their voices.

But it surely’s not only for content material creators. Recreation builders and indie filmmakers might additionally profit from utilizing ElevenLabs. Think about having the ability to prototype character voices with out hiring a single actor, or localizing your recreation into 32 languages with out breaking the financial institution.

And for those who’re an creator or journalist, ElevenLabs might additionally flip your articles or books into professional-sounding audiobooks. College students may also use ElevenLabs to make their shows and movies extra attention-grabbing.

How Does ElevenLabs Work?

I’ll be sincere — I haven’t actually used any audio AI fashions earlier than ElevenLabs, however I didn’t actually wrestle utilizing their platform. This speaks lots (no pun supposed) to their user-friendliness. 

Right here’s how their text-to-speech software program works:

You simply want an enter script — stuff that you really want the robotic to say. Actually something underneath the solar. However since I don’t actually have a script available, I’m going to make use of ChatGPT to jot down a brief true crime story excerpt. 

Now, I’m simply going to repeat that and paste it into ElevenLabs’ text-to-speech subject.

All it is advisable do now could be choose a voice that you just like most from their choice (there’s lots they usually additionally embody a brief notice of what the voices are finest for) and press “Generate Speech.”

Right here’s a fast pattern of what it appears like. 

Utilizing their settings, you can even select how steady you need the output to be (extra steady sounds extra robotic, much less steady is extra emotive however can generally sound glitchy), similarity, and elegance exaggeration. By tweaking a few of these settings so as to add some exaggeration and emotion, I feel I’ve hit the candy spot on this model utilizing these settings.

Oh, and after I say that you are able to do all types of issues, I imply it. I’ve been attempting their voices out all day and I’ve been having enjoyable testing them in several situations. Right here’s an ASMR pattern.

Right here’s a dungeon grasp introducing his new steampunk-themed world.

Or possibly I might curiosity you with an audiobook narration?

And like I stated, it’s multilingual, so you may feed their mannequin scripts in several languages (French, Italian, German, Filipino, Spanish) and also you’ll nonetheless get a high-quality recording.

The extra I take advantage of ElevenLabs, the extra I prefer it. Don’t get me mistaken — their outputs nonetheless have that “uncanny valley” feeling to extra discerning ears, however for most individuals, I don’t assume they’ll have the ability to differentiate it from common audio system, particularly if there’s ambient sounds and background music enjoying.

Options of ElevenLabs

Textual content-to-Speech

ElevenLabs’ Textual content-to-Speech function is not your on a regular basis TTS. With 32 languages and greater than 40 voices to select from, it creates eerily human-like performances. It isn’t simply studying textual content — it is bringing it to life with tone and cadence. Good for turning blogs into podcasts or giving voice to your newest story.

One factor I seen although is that it generally cuts the primary phrase of the immediate. This appears to be a glitch because it solely occurs round 50% of the time in my expertise.

Voice Changer

Need to sound like actually anybody else? ElevenLabs’ Voice Changer can do this for you. It is like having a vocal shapeshifter at your fingertips. Content material creators can voice a number of characters with out hiring a forged. Newbie filmmakers can create a complete animated sequence solely utilizing this. There’s lots of potential in utilizing this function.

Or so they are saying. So, I examined it. Right here’s my very own voice:

And right here’s the output utilizing one in every of ElevenLabs’ voices:

One factor I like about it’s that it doesn’t simply change your voice, it utterly captures the context of what you’re saying and makes use of that to affect how the output sounds with out straying away from the way you stated it.

Sound Results Creator

Like I stated, there’s a bit of little bit of one thing for everybody with ElevenLabs. For sound designers, the Sound Results function creates customized results in seconds. No extra Wilhelm Scream and no extra trying to find hours on finish for the appropriate audio. Now you can let ElevenLabs create it for you as an alternative.

For every immediate, ElevenLabs will generate 4 totally different results so that you can select from. That is my favourite utilizing the immediate “creepy footsteps from afar.”

I’ll say although — out of all the things ElevenLabs has to supply, this one left me probably the most unimpressed. It’s good for brief prompts, however after I tried utilizing a immediate with a number of context or one thing that’s already layered, it ended up ignoring some components of my request. Right here’s one I made for “the sound of waves on a crowded seaside.” 

Voice Isolator

For those who don’t have the cash for knowledgeable mic setup, this one’s for you. ElevenLabs’ Voice Isolation function removes the background noise from an audio enter. As somebody who’s been utilizing Adobe Premier’s audio clean-up options for video enhancing, I can actually say that ElevenLabs’ shouldn’t be solely simpler to work with, but additionally lots cleaner.

As soon as once more, and I apologize for this, right here’s my voice:

And right here’s its remoted audio:

ElevenLabs’ Pricing

I’m going to reply the query that I’m certain is already in your thoughts: sure, there is a free tier. It is fairly restricted — but it surely does provide you with 10,000 credit to work with. So, how does ElevenLabs’ credit work? I’m not too certain with their voice isolator and changer (for reference, a 6-second clip prices 93 credit) however for the opposite options:

• Textual content-to-speech: one credit score per character.
• Sound results: 320 credit per immediate.

For the extra severe customers, right here’s an summary of what they provide per tier:

The Execs and Cons of ElevenLabs

So, What’s The Verdict?

As somebody who’s new to the AI audio era world, I had lots of enjoyable utilizing ElevenLabs. It’s efficient, fast, user-friendly, and inexpensive — what extra are you able to ask for?

Seems, the reply to that query is perfection. 

Right here’s the factor: if this was launched 4 years in the past, I’d haven’t any points with it. However we’re now residing in an period the place AI is an on a regular basis factor, a lot in order that we’ve grown accustomed to it. We all know what’s written by AI or not, what’s drawn by AI or not, and (because of hundreds of hours of faceless TikTok content material) what’s stated by AI or not.

ElevenLabs’ audio high quality is close to human, but it surely’s simply not there but. And we, as people, can inform. 

So, must you use ElevenLabs? By all means. In any case, like I stated, it’s fairly wonderful. However in case you have entry to sources that permits you to rent an individual as an alternative, that can at all times be the higher choice. No quantity of AI development can substitute human emotion and expertise.