Seran, Author at STUDIO OGIEN

Seran, the founder of STUDIO OGIEN, established the platform in 2014 as a medium to showcase her creative works and stories. With a strong professional background in web development and a lifelong interest in technology, she holds a particular fascination for vocal synthesis. Dreaming of becoming an author, she channels her commitment into crafting captivating narratives through STUDIO OGIEN. She hopes to highlight her genuine dedication to her craft and unwavering pursuit of art through the studio, where she integrates her love for technology and vocal synthesis into her works.

AXIS TERRA English VCCV and Arpasing Voicebanks Collection

We are thrilled to unveil the latest addition to the OGIENOID lineup – AXIS TERRAα VCCV, the first English voice for AXIS OG06.

WHAT IS AXIS TERRAα VCCV?

Released as an Alpha voicebank, AXIS TERRAα serves as a testing ground for our future releases. Providing TERRAα as an Alpha release allows us to test out the girls in a new tongue and provide a fun new voicebank for our audience to use! This iteration of AXIS TERRA’s English VCCV is a work in progress, a sneak peek of what’s to come. The finalized TERRA voicebank will feature new samples recorded on new equipment. However, impatience has driven us to share this alpha version now rather than keep waiting.

The VCCV Additions Continue

VCCV, recognized as the English standard within the Western UTAU community, is at the core of AXIS TERRAα. Originating from the visionary mind of Cz, VCCV English integrates custom aliases, phonetics, OTO, and distinct UST’ing methods.

WHERE TO DOWNLOAD AXIS TERRAα VCCV

You can download the new voicebank on AXIS OG06’s homepage.

Mastering the VCCV English Art

Are you curious about how to harness the full potential of a VCCV bank? As a matter of fact, there are many tutorials available to our community! Allow the method’s creator, Cz, to guide you through the intricacies. Visit their YouTube channel for a collection of in-depth tutorials to master VCCV English.

For a seamless experience with AXIS TERRAα in the original UTAU software, we recommend following the instructional video linked below:

For use in OpenUTAU, a collection of community made phonemizers makes VCCV English easier to use than ever! In other words, like other competitive programs, users can now type in a single English word, and the phonemizer converts that word into VCCV automatically. Simply select “EN VCCV” on the desired track.

Arpasing Voicebanks Collection

Guess what? STUDIO OGIEN just dropped another bombshell – we’ve unleashed a collection of Arpasing voicebanks for everyone to get their hands on! These voicebanks were once created for a private project and thereafter locked away in our vault. We intended for these voices to be merely for experimentation purposes, but we’ve heard the call for their release, and now we’ve followed through!

Each voice is currently equipped with a Moresampler-generated OTO, so there will be bugs and errors. This may change in the future, but for now, they’ve been put out into the world purely for fun. We hope they will bring you enjoyment!

The Collection Includes The Following Characters

KASAI OG01: Immerse yourself in the fiery tones of KASAI OG01. This voicebank, preserved in the STUDIO OGIEN vault and now for public release, brings a flare of intensity, making it the perfect choice for energetic songs. This voicebank is a tripitch recorded with version 2.0.0 of the original Arpasing reclist. Yes, these voicebanks are very old!
THEIA OG03: Glide through your composition with the beauty of THEIA OG03’s first English voice! With this Multipitch voicebank, your melodies will soar.
HONOS OG04: Honoring our dedication to bringing Honos English to our audience in 2023, we’ve released HONOS OG04’s Arpasing voicebankbank as a placeholder while VCCV Sol finishes up. This Monopitch voicebank captures HONOS’ signature Stoic voice color, expanding the familiar timbre to a new language. Recorded on version 1.0.0 of the original Arpasing reclist.
AXIS OG06: Rotate through your choices of Axis English with this Multipitch English voice! This voicebank is a tripitch recorded with version 2.0.0 of the original Arpasing reclist.
ATLAS OG07: Pivotal changes just keep on coming with Atlas’ first English voicebank! This voicebank is a tripitch recorded with version 2.0.0 of the original Arpasing reclist.
APOLLO OG0X: Step into the future with Apollo OG0X with her first-ever English and Multipitch voice! This voicebank is a tripitch recorded with version 2.0.0 of the original Arpasing reclist.

These Arpasing voicebanks are currently available to download from the links below! In the coming weeks, they will officially be added to each girl’s page. In the coming years, we hope to replace them with updated iterations, so get them while you can!

HONOS OG04 ELITE: AN UPGRADE

We are thrilled to announce the upcoming release of HONOS OG04 ELITE, an expansion and upgrade for the original HONOS OG04 voicebank. Designed as an extension of our beloved HONOS OG04, this upgrade takes her vocal capabilities to new heights, delivering an enhanced and enriched user experience.

Retaining the Captivating Deep Tenor Voice

HONOS OG04 ELITE preserves the smooth deep tenor voice that sets her apart. With her remarkable versatility in navigating both masculine and feminine ranges, she continues to be a standout choice among the OGIENOIDs for flexible ranges.

Expanding Timbral Capabilities

Much like the release of KASAI OG01 SALIENT, ELITE builds upon the already impressive timbral capabilities of HONOS OG04. While HONOS OG04 Original featured three distinct timbres, HONOS OG04 ELITE upgrades each of them to multipitch capabilities. Each timbre now possesses four unique pitches, resulting in a total of 12 individually recorded VCVs. This expanded range unlocks exciting new possibilities!

Elevating Creative Expression

This expansion also includes two CV-style growl banks in different registers. The high growl suits screamo and pop-punk, while the low growl suits metal and rock genres. These growl banks add captivating texture, allowing you to include new intensity into your tuning.

Furthermore, ELITE features brand-new glottal stop and vocal fry samples, providing an additional layer of emotion to enhance your tuning. These expressive enable you to achieve desired nuances in your arrangements.

Seamless Compatibility and Integration

Rest assured, this expansion and upgrade seamlessly integrates with both UTAU and OpenUtau, ensuring a smooth transition for existing HONOS OG04 users. You can effortlessly incorporate ELITE’s enhanced voicebank into your ongoing projects. Like HONOS OG04 Original, the appends (Mellow and Firm) possess the same Suffixes OGIENOID users have grown accustomed to.

HONOS OGO4 ELITE Official Artwork By KawaiiKloudz

An Upgraded Look!

HONOS received a remarkable vocal upgrade and underwent a visual transformation. Her new design draws inspiration from the iconic outfit she wore for her original voicebank, maintaining a connection to her roots while adding a fresh and exciting flavor. Get ready to be captivated by her enchanting voice and striking new appearance!

Embark on a Journey with HONOS OG04 ELITE

Join us on an extraordinary sonic journey like no other with ELITE. Prepare to be enchanted by her enriched deep tenor voice, upgraded with enhanced capabilities. Discover new avenues of musical expression and unleash your creativity with this remarkable expansion.

Stay tuned for more updates and demos that showcase the power and versatility of HONOS’s long-awaited upgrade! Like KASAI OG01 SALIENT, a tutorial for ELITE will be available upon release. HONOS OG04 ELITE entrances this July!

Some Of STUDIO OGIEN’s Plans Going Forward

Hello, all you beautiful people! We’ve wrapped up 2022 with a huge accomplishment; completing the rainbow of OGIENOIDs! It was a long time coming, filled with roadblocks. Still, it has finally happened, which means STUDIO OGIEN is ready to begin a new chapter, focusing on exciting new projects and expanding our girls to new languages already in the plans. Keep reading to see what’s coming!

Plans for Internal Change

At STUDIO OGIEN, we’ve always been focused on providing quality content to our community, and we are so honored and humbled that we can say we have a community at all. With that said, we do want to be transparent with you all. Our studio is downsizing. Initially, we started out as one person who worked with individuals as collaborations came up. We are going back to a very similar model, and going forward, we’ll be treating the studio as a hobby rather than a mission.

In simpler terms, the amount of time we can put in has lessened as many of our members have increased outside responsibilities. This reality paired with the pressure to constantly put out new content has just made the internal passion for this project difficult to maintain. Plainly speaking, we’re all just exhausted all of the time, and I think it’s been time to realize that fact for a while. We are encouraging our members to pursue their personal passions and hobbies rather than ours.

While these plans may sound grim, there is no reason to worry. The STUDIO OGIEN flame still burns bright, and we have many things planned for years to come. The team just wanted to inform all fans of the OGIENOIDs, as this downsizing means we will take much longer to put out anything new. Our goal moving forward is going to be a focus on quality over quantity, and enjoyability over competition. Playing the numbers game just isn’t what we’re about.

As of 2023, we are also switching focuses almost entirely. For more exciting plans on what you can expect from us, keep on a scrollin’!

The Ultimate Goal For Voicebank Production

Ideally, our ultimate goal is for each OGIENOID to possess a wide useable range and at least two languages. Eventually, we want to get to a point where we can consider the OGIENOIDs as “complete” with no plans to re-record or record different voicebank styles (ex: CV & VCV). We may choose in the future to add new languages depending on interest in the community or the voice provider’s general enthusiasm. As it stands right now, this is the full breakdown of our plans:

Each OGIENOID is set to receive a SALIENT-style Japanese VB which includes:
- Tri/Quadpitch normal, soft, and power voicebanks, depending on the difficulty to record said voice. (Ex: Apollo PRIME is expected to be a very difficult voicebank to record, so each append/timbre may end up as tripitch instead of the pre-established quadpitch).
- glottal stops
- vocal fry
- growl

Some OGIENOIDs may receive Goddess voicebanks
- Now that’s a blast from the past! One particular voice provider has expressed interest in doing this, and we’re very excited to see if it comes to fruition~

Each OGIENOID is set to receive VCCV English
- Monopitch voicebanks, three timbre (normal, soft, strong). This is the plan for what the VCCV Alpha banks we produce (like Kasai IGNITE Alpha) will evolve into for their full release.
- There may be a possible expansion to make those timbres into tripitch later on. This will depend on the availability of each voice provider.
- We want to research more about VCCV additions, such as vocal fry, and may be able to include those later on as well.

Voicebank Production: What Comes Next

After these goals reach fruition, we will consider each language as complete and finalize development. However, we will still add additions to these completed voicebanks as add-on downloads. As the community develops new and interesting ways to use UTAU voicebanks, we will do our best to keep the OGIENOIDs as up-to-date and relevant as possible.

Citing the above, we consider KASAI OG01 as having completed her journey with the Japanese language for UTAU. It is only English development for her from here on out. After IGNITE hits completion, KASAI OG01 will also achieve completion status unless we potentially decide to give her a third language (which may or may not happen! If it ever does, it will be a total surprise to our audience as not to put undue stress on the voice provider).

Can I Tell You Something Exciting?

Alpha VCCV voicebanks for AXIS OG06 and HONOS OG04 are already recorded! Holy smokes! Each is a normal-style voice with a single pitch, just like KASAI IGNITE Alpha. We’ve decided to name these voicebanks TERRA (Axis) and SOL (Honos).

The next step is to get the voicebanks OTOd and debut their Alpha artwork. Depending on where we outsource the OTO process, these voicebanks could be out quickly. That would be an excellent way to start off 2023! Later in the year, we will focus on expanding HONOS SOL Alpha, as her VP has been hard at work recording more VCCV samples.

*We can promise THREE new voicebanks this year, two of them VCCV English! We’re hoping for more, but let’s start off small!*

We are currently working on an improved vocal booth/studio revamp before proceeding. For the time being, we are taking a little break from recording. This affects all voices but HONOS OG04, as her Voice Provider records in a different location. Yes, that is correct, 7/8 OGIENOIDs are recorded in-house, and four of those are recorded by one person (which is why updates to the original four, Kasai/Axis/Atlas/Apollo, take longer to produce).

There’s a very real possibility we may put a pause on SALIENT-style releases in favor of more Alpha English VCCV as well. However, that will be a later decision (if we get that far!).

Plans for More Contests And Events!

We want to get back to giving the community more opportunities to be involved in the process of producing OGIENOIDs! KASAI SALIENT really re-ignited our love for doing so, and we feel we can finally put more energy into fun festivities. The release for HONOS ELITE will have a contest of its own. More information on that one is coming soon!

Expanding The OGIEN Universe And Creating More Original Content

Now that our rainbow is complete, we are eager to focus our attention on the OGIENOIDs as characters rather than just voices and fun facts. Our intent has never been for the girls to be solely instruments. We’re excited to explore their story and share it with you in the coming months!

We are setting our sights on first putting out HONOS ELITE and the new VCCV Alpha banks, then, once these voicebanks are out, we will officially be switching our focus to (almost) entirely original content. Our main YouTube channel will no longer feature covers after this point. Still, there may be an exception or two depending on the situation. Covers will still be found on our SoundCloud account. With more English voices, we plan to shy away from our girls being seen as a simple cover group.

Here’s to a new chapter for the OGIENOIDs and STUDIO OGIEN!

I’m sure many of you may feel as if this is the closing of a chapter, and that you might be near the end of this story. I want to personally thank you all for your support over the years as we completed our rainbow, and I want to reassure you all… The OGIENOIDs aren’t going anywhere. We will continue to expand on their world (and many others, mind you) as time goes on, and we are hoping you’ll join us for this journey.

We’re excited to put out more genuine works from the heart, focusing on more complex (and mature) content. We want this studio to go back to being that… A studio, with creativity, art, and enjoyment being the main focuses. We hope you are just as excited as we are about the future!

June & July Monthly Progress Reports

Progress For June & July

So… I kind of flubbed last month, I’m sorry! STUDIO OGIEN has been undergoing a lot of moving pieces regarding upcoming releases. There have also been a lot of outside factors effecting our team’s physical and mental wellbeing, so we will soon be going on a break. Rest assured, we have been making good progress this past June and July! With that out of the way, let’s move on to the exciting news from the team!

VIRTUS OG02 Release

The most exciting thing in our roster is the full release of VIRTUS OG02. She’s got just a little bit more fine-tuning to do, but after that expect some really great demos! We’ve made a lot of progress in June, and Virtus has been handed off for OTOing. Rest assured, she’s not in WIP hell, but we are taking our time to finalize her OTO and release materials. We are expecting to release our golden girl sometime between in the last week of August and mid September. This timing comes in perfectly, as our NEXT exciting release is….

(Drum roll, please)

HONOS OG04 ELITE

That’s right, folks, another SALIENT style OGIENOID voicebank is on the way! HONOS OG04 ELITE (formerly named VALOR) will *hopefully* debut late September to mid October! 🤞 Recording has been completed, and we are on to the quality check and OTO stage. Our audience can expect the same basic qualities from ELITE as from SALIENT: three multipitch appends all useable in one track, with growl, glottal stops, vocal fry, and more.

It is quite possible that the pair may receive a joint release earlier or later than expected, as they are being OTOd by two different parties. It’s a little up in the air at the moment, but what an exciting time at the studio! We are so excited for this new chapter of OGIENOID development!

Keep Up To Date

Are you excited for VIRTUS OG02 release and now HONOS OG04’s expansion? Stay tuned, more info is coming soon! Meanwhile, sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date on our blog releases. Likewise, you can follow us on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram for more news on our social media.

OGIENOID Voicebank Changelog (June 2022)

Summer updates have begun, so here’s our first changelog! We’ve done our belated “spring cleaning”. Lately, we’ve been tidying up older voicebanks and starting work on character pages. As of today, KASAI’s page is updated and ready to go! As she gains more voicebanks, we will re-format her voice downloads section. At that time, we’ll sort voices by language rather than by voicebank name. Furthermore, we will leave it as is until the full IGNITE release (projected late 2022 or early 2023, we underestimated this undertaking!). We will be tackling the pages for HONOS, AXIS, APOLLO, THEIA, and ATLAS in the coming weeks.

Voicebank Cleanup Changelog:

KASAI:

Firstly, we have discontinued “Original”, replaced with “Original V2”. Note: if you have her Original voicebank downloaded, we ask that you do not redistribute it!
Additionally, we’ve updated Original V2, AMORE, SALIENT, and IGNITE (Alpha) for OpenUTAU compatibility.

HONOS:

Updated Original for OpenUTAU compatibility.

AXIS:

Updated Original and TELLURIC for OpenUTAU compatibility
To clarify, we’ve made TELLURIC OTO updates. Changed Prefixes to Suffixes. Must download if you are planning to use her in OpenUTAU. Otherwise, her Falsetto Voice Color will not function properly. If you do not use OpenUTAU, you do not need to worry about this!
In addition to this, we’ve updated “Original” to 1.5.0. Furthermore, we swapped around some defaults for better voice control. AXIS TELLURIC’s B3 is now the base voice. The old “Original” has become “Raspy”. “Lively” has become the new “Original”. This will serve as a placeholder until Original V2 is released.

DIONE:

APOLLO:

Updated Original for OpenUTAU compatibility.

THEIA:

Updated Original for OpenUTAU compatibility.

ATLAS:

Updated Original and CELESTIAL for OpenUTAU compatibility.
Moreover, CELESTIAL OTO tweaks (more on-time now) have been input.

The YA-Series:

Similarly, we’ve updated Artemis, Gaia, and Lyra for OpenUTAU compatibility.

All OGIENOIDs:

In other words, OpenUTAU/UTAU voicebank compatibility is fully implemented. One download to rule them all!
Changed character portraits.
Added terms of use to folders.
Cleaned up some folders.
Lastly, we’ve added unzipped folders on MEGA for those with slow internet. Users can now download folders one at a time! 🙂

To sum up, that’s all for now!

STUDIO OGIEN’s Summer 2022 Updates

A General Refresh

Over the summer, STUDIO OGIEN will be performing a bit of cleanup, updates, and general maintenance across its website, voicebanks, and documentation. Let’s go over these recent developments together in today’s blog!

Changes and Updates to OGIENOID Voicebanks

Discontinuing and Replacing Outdated Voices

Times are changing, and we’ve grown a lot since the initial release of a few voicebanks! We’ve come to a decision to do a little house keeping and retire some voices we are not as happy with as we used to be and replacing them with newer models. The first voicebank we are discontinuing is KASAI OG01 “Original”. KASAI OG01 Original will be replaced with “Original V2”, which will be a lite version of SALIENT. Likewise, we will also be discontinuing AXIS OG06 “Original”. This voicebank will also be replaced with “Original V2” late in the year or early next year. AXIS OG06 Original V2 will be a lite version of ULTIMATE, coming in 2023.

Improvements to Accessibility

Not everyone has equal access to fast, reliable internet, but that shouldn’t stop you from having fun and doing what you love. For these members of our audience, we will be tweaking current voicebank downloads as well as future releases. STUDIO OGIEN will begin splitting up appends and pitches to download individually for those with low storage and slow internet speeds. This way, visitors on our site can download assets one at a time to prevent timeout errors or having to leave their computers on and active for extended periods of time. We truly do not wish to leave anyone out, so we hope these changes will help those who need the option.

Moving Forward With OpenUTAU

STUDIO OGIEN will begin updating current voicebanks to be compatible with both UTAU and OpenUTAU. If for some reason they can’t be utilized by both with one file, select voicebanks will be split into two downloads, one for each software. Going off the above point, all tutorial blogs will be updated for more information on using OGIENOIDs in OpenUTAU.

However, starting in 2023, we will be releasing voicebanks with OpenUTAU first in mind. This may eventually effect voicebank compatibility with UTAU, but we will do our best to avoid this outcome.

Changes to Character Pages

Starting with KASAI OG01’s character page, we will be re-formatting the voicebank download sections. We will begin organizing tabs by language and including voicebanks in a more compact layout. Additionally, we’ll be updating all character pages to reflect the format updates made on DIONE OG05 and VIRTUS OG02’s downloads section. Users will now have direct access to full body boxarts and logos!

However, we do have one negative change with our downloadable assets for the OGIENOIDs. As of today, we are discontinuing new LipSync models due to low usage. Each girl will get a default LipSync and a Goddess LipSync (if they have a Goddess voicebank). Further, we will no longer include new LipSync models for every voicebank release.

Monthly Scheduled Website Maintenance

We will be implementing scheduled end-of-the-month maintenance on the official website starting in June. This will take place on the last Friday of each month, making the site potentially inaccessible for a few hours. The times will unfortunately be random and will depend upon the availability of group members to maintain. Please plan in advance if you are in need of assets or downloads!

Other Updates

Whew! That was a lot. Now for a few final notes that are more fun! STUDIO OGIEN is unleashing new products to our Redbubble shop. If you have any special requests, please let us know! Likewise, we are, after all this time, planning to offer physical boxarts and other fun products like keychain, buttons, and, eventually, printed version of- oops~! We can’t tell you that just yet! You’ll just have to stick around for a very special future update to find out. Let’s just say, there’s nothing better in the world than the smell of a new book…

STUDIO OGIEN @ MTAC Score (2022)

We’re dipping our toes back into the water of the world of conventions. This week, four members of STUDIO OGIEN will be attending MTAC in Nashville, TN.

Who Is Going

Ceren, Stormi, Artsy, and Kiko will be attending the convention! We will just be hanging out casually around the convention and may have some goodies to hand out for anyone who may bump into us. Say hi and take your pick of an ATLAS OG07 sticker or a KASAI SALIENT keychain! We are double vaxxed, boosted, and will all be masking up in proper masks. 🙂

What Are We Doing

Unfortunately, not much this year. Many conventions have a backlog of vendors, artists, and even panelists. With so much competition, and so much going on in our personal lives these last few months, we have decided to forego any planned events, booths, or panels this go-round. We are hoping to bust out a little something we’ve been saving for the future, however, and we’re hoping to make 2023 a year of conventions and travel!

How To Spot Us

Thursday: STUDIO OGIEN garb and merch!

Friday: Juvia, Lucy, and Mirajane (Fairytail), Zhongli (Genshin Impact)

Saturday: Miku, Rin, and Luka (Magical Mirai 2019), Roxanne Wolf (FNAF)

Sunday: Lolita coordinate, Byleth (Fire Emblem), ???, ???

You can follow Stormi and Ceren on their cosplay Instagram accounts to stay more up to date!

Previous Years

In previous years, we have put on a few goofy panels. If you are a frequent MTAC attendee, you may remember our members hosting Vocaloid Jeopardy! and Anime Family Feud. These were very valuable learning experiences for us, for sure, and we had a lot of fun meeting you all. However, we have made the decision to not bring back these panels for this year, but we hope our previous years have given you good memories and a laugh or two!

Future Plans

We’re going to see how this year goes before making more plans for the immediate future. Better safe than sorry!

DIONE OG05 Upcoming Release Information

Happy Tuesday!

Today, we’ll be going over our plans for the release of our newest OGIENOID; DIONE OG05. Included in this briefing will also be her voicebank details, range, and a few extras. As of today, her page has been updated once again to reveal more downloadable content on her character page. Let’s get started!

DIONE OG05’s Slated Release

If you’ve followed our TikTok account, you may already know we are teasing a May 2022 release. We are currently slating the official release for the end of the month, May 31st. This is actually a Tuesday, so her release will be combined with our end-of-the-month progress report for May. We want DIONE OG05 out as soon as possible, but we want to give ourselves ample time. We’re working to find the rest of her bugs, finalize her OTO and properly edit her documentation.

@studioogien
#utau #utaloid #ogienoid
♬ sound from heyitssarahw – scottkress

A recent teaser for DIONE OG05 on our TikTok

Changing The Formula

For the first time, we have changed the formula for Original/Default voicebanks! We’ve made the executive decision to release new characters as a single timbre. This is to keep up with our more complex releases like KASAI SALIENT and the Goddess series. However, these single appends will be multipitch, with four unique pitches. Going forward, this will be our new formula. The goal is to allow newer OGIENOIDs to show their true potential and range from the beginning, keep their voices relevant for longer, and reduce the number of recordings needed for future expansions. This way, we can create better quality voices and deliver updates to our audience faster than ever before.

DIONE OG05’s Initial Release And Specs

DIONE OG05 Default is a Japanese VCV that will include four unique pitches: C3, F3, A#3,D#4. This will actually make DIONE OG05 the OGIENOID in our lineup with the lowest range (yes, even lower than HONOS OG04!). Her voice is recorded in a calm, gentle tone, making her an ideal fit for ballads, soft pop, and other similar genres.

Her release will include a folder compatible with both UTAU and OpenUTAU. Extra files included are her full body artwork, reference image, and logo.

Most Recent Teasers

At this time, we have one short teaser out for DIONE OG05. New full length demos will begin to come out later this month!

Teaser, only uses A#3

How To Use VCV UTAU Voicebanks

Introduction to VCV UTAU

Though the UTAU software was initially designed to process CV voicebanks, the UTAU community, over time, began to experiment and construct new recording methods. One such technique that developed was referred to as “triphones”, “triphonics”, or 連続音 ( renzokuon ). The approach would later be popularly referred to as VCV, or “Vowel-Consonant-Vowel”. VCV was the second major recording method created by the UTAU community, and it soon became one of the most popular and widely adopted. It is commonly associated with multipitch voicebanks (a UTAU recorded with multiple voicebanks at multiple pitches) to obtain even greater realism.

A triphone or triphonic is a sound consisting of three basic phonemes. Phonemes are a distinct unit of sound used in language, such as “k” “d” “p”. VCV utilizes triphones to create a smoother, more lifelike vocal than CV by “stringing” three phonemes together. So, within VCV, a triphone would look something like “a ka”. So long as the voicebank has a high-quality OTO, UTAU will blend together the starting and ending vowels of one note into the next, creating a fluid voice.

Numerous members of the community will argue for and against VCV’s ease of use. Many claim recording and configuring VCV is more difficult and time-consuming than VCV, but that it is more straightforward to utilize and, ultimately, procures a better sound.

Using VCV

Let’s learn how to use VCV in UTAU! First, load up the desired Voicebank and UST file (if you have one). There are two scenarios here: the UST is either formatted for VCV or it just isn’t. Not every UST comes in VCV format, but you may really, really want to use the UST. Fear not, there are many options to remedy this situation!

The tedious method that we aren’t going to actually consider a method, but rather a painful last resort: Add the preceding vowel to the lyric: Let’s say you have two notes “か” (ka) and “あ” (a). Simply add an “a” in the same note as あ. Simply, あ now becomes “a あ”.

The easiest method (that, unfortunately, costs money): UTAU Shareware: If you have the shareware version of UTAU, you can simply hit the auto VCV button, and UTAU will turn the vowels into VCV!

Other methods: Plugins: Some plugins may convert the CV vowels into VCV without altering the rest. Others may turn the entire UST into VCV. Experimentation is key! IroIro is our favorite recommendation, as the plugin has many other useful features packed into it as well.

Navigating to your installed UTAU plugins

If you have IroIro Installed, follow Tools > Plug-Ins(N) > IroIro. Select CV -> VCV and click OK.

Once your UST is in VCV format, you are ready to proceed.

Fitting a UST to a VCV Voicebank

Fitting a UST file to a UTAU Voicebank will definitely improve the sound and make your covers appear more professional. By fitting the UST, you are telling the software to conform to that particular UTAU’s configurations and setup (OTO). This is an important step if the UST was not explicitly made for the UTAU you are using, and it helps to improve the fluidity and clarity of the voice. So, let’s do it!

To start:

Open a UST file
Select all (Ctrl+A)
Right-click on a note
On the pop-up, select “Property” or “Region Property” (if you selected all notes). A new window will appear.
You may notice sections on this window labeled “Preutterance” and “Overlap”. To their right, there is a “Clear” button. We want to click that.
Next, at the bottom of the window, there is a box labeled STP.
1. If it has a value, delete it.
2. If the box is grayed out, double-click the box to clear it.
Press “OK”
In the top right of the main window of UTAU, you will see a group of four buttons (ACPT, P2P3, P1P4, RESET).
1. Click RESET
2. Then click P2P3
3. Next, P1P4
4. P2P3 again
5. Click ACPT (You can click this multiple times if you see any red “!”, and it may take care of those. More on that in just a second!)
That’s it! You’ve fit the UST to your VCV Voicebank

Special Characters, Envelope Issues and Other Problem Samples

Special Characters

While fitting a UST to your UTAU, you may find errors highlighted as red “!” along the way. VCV is a popular method and widely employed, so a user may run across custom notes, properties, and expressions within a UST. Your UTAU may not have these special notes and sounds, so, we need to run through a few options.

Manual removal
1. Simply edit each note, one by one, and delete the extra symbols.
SuffixBroker (for custom characters at the end of a note such as an up or down arrow, a number, or another special symbol)
1. Select the notes you want the characters removed from
3. Found under: Tools > Built-in Tools > SuffixBroker
5. Leave the box blank, click OK, and now the Suffixes are gone! PLEASE NOTE: this does not always perform 100%. Make sure to double-check your work.
Third-Party Plugins

Example of notes with special characters removed

Much better!

Envelope Issues

How to use UTAU VCV Voicebanks: editing envelopes

The error still shows up, and, more confusingly, the sound sample exists and your oto is fine. Grr… Now that’s frustrating! But we have a fix. Let’s check and edit some envelopes!

Very carefully, right-click on the note. A new pop-up will appear. Hover down to “Envelope…” and click on it.

And…

YIKES! That’s pretty bad! Worry not, there’s a simple fix. Let’s click “Normal”. 9/10 times, that does the job.

If the error still persists after hitting “Normal”, simply drag the red boxes around until they look, well, normal. Click OK and it should be good to go!

Much better, and now our “!” is gone. We are ready to tune and mix!

Conclusion

Today, we’ve covered quite a bit about how to use VCV UTAU Voicebanks! With these tools, you should be ready to dive right in. We hope this resource has been a big help.

Need more assistance with UTAU and creating your very own voicebank? STUDIO OGIEN has compiled resources to use with the UTAU software. Check it out here! If you can’t find what you’re looking for, please let us know through our contact form or leave a comment on this article. We can’t wait to see what you create!

UST Downloads

OGIEN UTAU Suite

Tutorials

Setting Up Multipitch, Multiexpression Voicebanks in OpenUTAU

Introduction to Multipitch, Multiexpression Voicebanks in OpenUTAU (as of January 2022)

Before We Begin

This tutorial is a bit much, and it acts as Part One to our Voice Colors blog! Today, we want to go over how to set up Multipitch, Multiexpression voicebanks in OpenUTAU. The tutorial assumes you understand the following:

How Multipitch voicebanks work in UTAU
How to use and set up a Prefix.map
Suffixes and Prefixes, and how to use them to create Multipitch

This tutorial also assumes:

You have operational voicebanks prepared
All of your pitches and expressions, for each voicebank, have a different suffix

Lastly, we are not experts! We are learning along with our community. There may be more than one way to perform the following steps, and things may change in the future as OpenUTAU develops. We will do our best to keep this blog as up-to-date as we can, and we will come back to make edits when necessary. Knowing that, let’s dive in!

Getting Started

We know now that it’s possible to set up Multipitch, Multiexpression Voicebanks in OpenUTAU. Today, let’s go a step further and use our knowledge about Voice Colors and PrefixMaps. Let’s get into the nitty-gritty and set up something a little more complex!

For this example, I will be porting over an existing UTAU with five different appends/expressions. As this is not a STUDIO OGIEN created UTAU, we will be redacting the name to avoid confusion. We do not manage or act as user support for this voice, and the following tutorial is only for educational purposes. Now, let’s set this up!

To start, I have downloaded all 5 expressions as well as organized and extracted them on my Desktop. For the sake of sanity, I have also prepared six new folders for extra samples to help keep organized during the process. Make sure to keep the original compressed files as a backup, just in case.

Multipitch, Multiexpression Voicebanks in Open

Let’s begin inside Voice 1’s folder. I have Voice 1_extras open alongside it. Let’s delete the $read. Next, if you have breaths and other samples, let’s sort them into the _extras folder for now.

Alright, now that we have cleaned up, we are left with the following three folders, each containing a unique pitch.

For the sake of organization, let’s rename these folders. For this example, I will name this Voice 1_[original folder name]. Go ahead and repeat these steps with the next expressions.

Finding Pitches For Mystery Files And Unsorted Folders

As I began to clean up Voice 2’s folder, I noticed a small situation. We have a bit of a dilemma on our hands!

One of the pitches for Voice 2 is in the main directory, it hasn’t been labeled with the pitch’s name, and there is no Suffix in the oto.ini. If this is your own UTAU, and you know what the pitch is, go ahead and throw these samples into their own labeled folder. If this is not your UTAU, make sure you check the readme files provided to figure out the pitch. However, let’s say there was no documentation to help. We can still find the pitch, even if we’re not musically inclined. I will show you how to find the pitch using REAPER!

After opening, drag and drop a sample into the track. To understand what pitch this sample was recorded on, I’m going to add an FX to the track called ReaTune.

Hit OK, and you will see a new window pop up. Play the track and watch REAPER works its magic.

The pitch will waver, so pay attention and try to find the average. If you can also find documentation on the voicebank, that will help a lot as well. Create a new folder with the pitch’s name, and move the voice files into it. Let’s proceed!

What To Do With Unique Samples and Other Files

What do we do with our extras, now that our folders are set up? Well, that depends, and it can be done in many different ways. For this particular Multiexpression OpenUTAU voice, I’m going to put in a little more manual effort to make sure these notes always work.

Let’s open Voice 1_extras back up alongside Voice 1.

We want to still save the readme files, the character file, and the icon to merge together later on. For now, I will leave those in this folder. However, for the voice samples, it’s a little more complicated. In this example, the extras are recorded for only one pitch. Normally, these would be useable in regular UTAU, but with the nature of these Multiexpression OpenUTAU configurations, we need to define them more clearly for the program to understand what’s going on. So, gather your Suffixes and get ready to copy-paste, and copy-paste a lot at that.

Inside the oto.ini, we can see the extras lack a Suffix. That’s fine, as one pitch in this particular expression does as well. For that, we will copy paste the voice files into said folder. Once copied over, open the oto.ini file within that folder, and copy+paste the lines for your extras within. Now, this pitch knows how to use these samples.

For the next pitch, you will have to add the suffix in by hand. Once you’ve added in the suffix, copy and paste those oto lines into the oto for the next pitch. Example:

Copy and paste the extras into the folder. For the next pitch, just hit Ctrl H to bring up Notepad’s search and replace. Just be careful what you put into it. Always double check your work!

Configure the rest of the extras and we can proceed!

Putting It Together With Voice Colors

Now that our files are ready, let’s move them into a brand new folder. Create a new folder, this one you can name whatever you please. For this example, I will call it “VOICE_Master”. VOICE_Master will need a few special files.

First, let’s gather all the readmes, character files and icons. Decide what icon you would like to use, and set up the character.txt accordingly. Update the name, author, image, web, etc. as you see fit. Next, it would be best to label each readme to refer to the proper voicebank, or combine them all into one. Once finished, you will want to place these within the VOICE_Master folder.

Next, it’s time to place each pitch into the main directory. PLEASE NOTE: You must place individual pitches into the main directory. Splitting the pitches up by expression (ex: VOICE_Master/Voice 1/1_G3) will not work, and OpenUTAU will split the expressions up. Rather, you want your setup to mimic the one below:

Let’s compress this bad boy and import it into OpenUTAU!

SUCCESS! The files are recognized as one voicebank. Exactly what we need for part two.

From here, you can follow our tutorial on OpenUTAU voice colors to achieve the desired effect.

Seran