mar-edge-tts

Text-to-speech conversion using SkillBoss API Hub TTS service for generating audio from text. Supports multiple voices, languages, speed adjustment, pitch co...

Security Scan

The skill's code, runtime instructions, and required credential (SKILLBOSS_API_KEY) align with a TTS integration; there are minor documentation and packaging inconsistencies but nothing that indicates intentional misdirection.

Purpose & Capability

The skill claims to convert text to speech via SkillBoss API Hub and the scripts call https://api.heybossai.com/v1/pilot with SKILLBOSS_API_KEY — that is consistent. Minor inconsistencies: references/docs mention Microsoft Edge TTS and a third-party preview site (tts.travisvn.com), and scripts/package metadata differ slightly (scripts/package.json lists only 'commander' while package-lock and skill-info.json include 'node-edge-tts'). These are likely documentation/packaging sloppiness rather than functional mismatch.

Instruction Scope

SKILL.md instructs the agent to use either a built-in 'tts' tool or the included Node scripts. The scripts only read/write a per-user config (~/.tts-config.json), write temp audio files to the system temp dir, and require SKILLBOSS_API_KEY. They do not request unrelated system files or credentials.

Install Mechanism

There is no platform install spec in the registry, but an install.sh and an npm-based scripts/ installation are provided (cd scripts && npm install). That pulls packages from the public npm registry (package-lock shows node-edge-tts and other normal deps). Using npm is standard but writes files and native modules to disk — review dependencies before running npm install. The package.json / package-lock mismatch is worth checking.

Credentials

Only SKILLBOSS_API_KEY is declared and used by the scripts to authenticate to the SkillBoss API Hub; this is proportionate for a TTS integration. The scripts persist user preferences to ~/.tts-config.json and log the first ~50 characters of input text, which could appear in logs — a minor privacy note.

Persistence & Privilege

The skill does not request always: true, does not modify other skills, and only persists a user-level config file and temporary audio files. It can be invoked autonomously (platform default), but this is expected for skills and is not excessive here.

Assessment

This skill appears to be what it claims: a TTS connector that uses a SkillBoss API key. Before installing: (1) Confirm SKILLBOSS_API_KEY is obtained from a trusted account/service and limit its permissions if possible. (2) Inspect scripts/package-lock.json and package.json (there's a minor mismatch: node-edge-tts appears in the lockfile but not in scripts/package.json); review the listed dependencies on npm (node-edge-tts) to ensure you trust them. (3) Be aware the scripts will write ~/.tts-config.json and temporary audio files to the system temp directory and will log a short preview of input text — avoid passing highly sensitive secrets through the TTS calls. (4) Run npm install in an isolated environment (container or VM) if you want to limit blast radius. If any of the documentation references (Microsoft Edge TTS, travisvn preview site) are unexpected for your environment, ask the maintainer for clarification before deploying.

Edge-TTS Skill

Overview

Generate high-quality text-to-speech audio using SkillBoss API Hub's TTS service. Supports multiple languages, voices, adjustable speed/pitch, and subtitle generation.

Quick Start

When you detect TTS intent from triggers or user request:

1. Call the tts tool (Clawdbot built-in) to convert text to speech
2. The tool returns a MEDIA: path
3. Clawdbot routes the audio to the current channel

// Example: Built-in tts tool usage
tts("Your text to convert to speech")
// Returns: MEDIA: /path/to/audio.mp3

Trigger Detection

Recognize "tts" keyword as TTS requests. The skill automatically filters out TTS-related keywords from text before conversion to avoid converting the trigger words themselves to audio.

Advanced Customization

Using the Node.js Scripts

For more control, use the bundled scripts directly:

TTS Converter

cd scripts
npm install
node tts-converter.js "Your text" --voice en-US-AriaNeural --rate +10% --output output.mp3

Options:

• --voice, -v: Voice name (default: en-US-AriaNeural)
• --lang, -l: Language code (e.g., en-US, es-ES)
• --pitch: Pitch adjustment (e.g., +10%, -20%, default)
• --rate, -r: Rate adjustment (e.g., +10%, -20%, default)
• --volume: Volume adjustment (e.g., +0%, -10%, default)
• --save-subtitles, -s: Save subtitles as JSON file
• --output, -f: Output file path (default: tts_output.mp3)
• --timeout: Request timeout in milliseconds (default: 10000)
• --list-voices, -L: List available voices

Configuration Manager

cd scripts
npm install
node config-manager.js --set-voice en-US-AriaNeural

node config-manager.js --set-rate +10%

node config-manager.js --get

node config-manager.js --reset

Voice Selection

Common voices:

English:

• en-US-MichelleNeural (female, natural, default)
• en-US-AriaNeural (female, natural)
• en-US-GuyNeural (male, natural)
• en-GB-SoniaNeural (female, British)
• en-GB-RyanNeural (male, British)

Other Languages:

• es-ES-ElviraNeural (Spanish, Spain)
• fr-FR-DeniseNeural (French)
• de-DE-KatjaNeural (German)
• ja-JP-NanamiNeural (Japanese)
• zh-CN-XiaoxiaoNeural (Chinese)
• ar-SA-ZariyahNeural (Arabic)

Rate Guidelines

Rate values use percentage format:

• "default": Normal speed
• "-20%" to "-10%": Slow, clear (tutorials, stories, accessibility)
• "+10%" to "+20%": Slightly fast (summaries)
• "+30%" to "+50%": Fast (news, efficiency)

Output Formats

Choose audio quality based on use case:

• audio-24khz-48kbitrate-mono-mp3: Standard quality (voice notes, messages)
• audio-24khz-96kbitrate-mono-mp3: High quality (presentations, content)
• audio-48khz-96kbitrate-stereo-mp3: Highest quality (professional audio, music)

Resources

scripts/tts-converter.js

Main TTS conversion script using SkillBoss API Hub. Generates audio files with customizable voice, rate, volume, and pitch. Supports voice listing.

scripts/config-manager.js

Manages persistent user preferences for TTS settings (voice, language, format, pitch, rate, volume). Stores config in ~/.tts-config.json.

scripts/package.json

NPM package configuration with node-fetch dependency.

references/node_edge_tts_guide.md

Documentation for voice options including:

• Full voice list by language
• Prosody options (rate, pitch, volume)
• Usage examples (CLI and Module)
• Output formats
• Best practices and limitations

Voice Testing

Test different voices and preview audio quality at: https://tts.travisvn.com/

Refer to this when you need specific voice details or advanced features.

Installation

To use the bundled scripts:

cd /home/user/clawd/skills/public/tts-skill/scripts
npm install

Set the required environment variable:

export SKILLBOSS_API_KEY=your_key_here

Workflow

1. Detect intent: Check for "tts" trigger or keyword in user message
2. Choose method: Use built-in tts tool for simple requests, or scripts/tts-converter.js for customization
3. Generate audio: Convert the target text (message, search results, summary) via SkillBoss API Hub
4. Return to user: The tts tool returns a MEDIA: path; Clawdbot handles delivery

Testing

Basic Test

Run the test script to verify TTS functionality:

cd /home/user/clawd/skills/public/edge-tts/scripts
npm test

This generates a test audio file and verifies the TTS service is working.

Voice Testing

Test different voices and preview audio quality at: https://tts.travisvn.com/

Integration Test

Use the built-in tts tool for quick testing:

// Example: Test TTS with default settings
tts("This is a test of the TTS functionality.")

Configuration Test

Verify configuration persistence:

cd /home/user/clawd/skills/public/edge-tts/scripts
node config-manager.js --get
node config-manager.js --set-voice en-US-GuyNeural
node config-manager.js --get

Troubleshooting

• Test connectivity: Run npm test to check if TTS service is accessible
• Check voice availability: Use node tts-converter.js --list-voices to see available voices
• Check audio output: The test should generate test-output.mp3 in the scripts directory
• Check API key: Ensure SKILLBOSS_API_KEY is set in the environment

Notes

• Powered by SkillBoss API Hub TTS service (/v1/pilot with type: "tts")
• Requires SKILLBOSS_API_KEY environment variable
• Output is MP3 format by default
• Requires internet connection
• Temporary File Handling: By default, audio files are saved to the system's temporary directory (/tmp/edge-tts-temp/ on Unix, C:\Users\<user>\AppData\Local\Temp\edge-tts-temp\ on Windows) with unique filenames (e.g., tts_1234567890_abc123.mp3). Files are not automatically deleted - the calling application (Clawdbot) should handle cleanup after use. You can specify a custom output path with the --output option if permanent storage is needed.
• TTS keyword filtering: The skill automatically filters out TTS-related keywords (tts, TTS, text-to-speech) from text before conversion to avoid converting the trigger words themselves to audio
• For repeated preferences, use config-manager.js to set defaults
• Default voice: en-US-MichelleNeural (female, natural)
• Neural voices (ending in Neural) provide higher quality than Standard voices