voice-over speech output frequently interrupted in MacOS 13.5

Hi,

A few things..
1. Which voice are you using?
2. Are you using a say all command (i.e. CMD + A), or simply arrowing down?
3. Do you have any Commanders active, if so which?
4. What exactly do you mean by "interrupted"?
5. How soon does your display go to sleep? What screensaver (if any) are you using?
6. Any 3rd party apps running (i.e. Antivirus, etc)?

I look forward to your responses. 😃

The touch pad might be causing this. I found that with the recent update of MacOS it has become too sensitive, I am having this issue as well, so just switch off the trackpad commander and see. Also make sure the touch pad is clean, any dust can also cause this.

Disclaimer: Ventura is a buggy POS. True story. 🥺

Ok, I will try to work through this with you and hopefully we can resolve and/or find a work-around. 😅
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1. I primarily use Fred as I do not like to be distracted by irregularities of pitch, cadence, and rhythm. The interruptions happen with Fred, Nicky, Moira, and American Reid. As Moira gets interrupted the least, I have been using her for long articles. It does not matter if I increase or decrease the rate; interuptions still happen.
~> https://macpaw.com/how-to/fix-sound-on-mac
The above link has some common tips for fixing sound issues. There is also a free (and amazing) app you can try that can help fix issues with your system. I would add to the above tips by saying to check your Bluetooth settings, and if you do not need Bluetooth active at present, then just turn it off. The culprit could be Bluetooth paring/unparing to a device without your knowing.

2. Interruptions happen when say-all commands and arrows as well as VO+arrow keys are used.
~> Try switching to the Alex or Samantha voices, and try doing everything in step (2) that you mentioned above. I'm not asking you to keep said voices, but to give them a try and see what happens.

3. Keyboard commander is now the only active commander; track pad commander has since been turned off.
~> Good. 😝
~~> Also make sure that 'Mouse pointer' is set to 'Ignores VoiceOver' in the VO Utility, under Navigation. Furthermore, disable 'Enable Fast Searching'.

4. The speech will cut out and go to the next item. If navigating with arrows, verbosity instructions will then be said, and sometimes those are abruptly cut off. When executing a say-all command, it will cut off speech abruptly and skip to the next paragraph of text. I wish I could upload a recording…
~> Go to System Preferences/Settings > Accessibility > Spoken Content. You can get there easily by opening System Settings, then VO + M to access the Menubar, then navigating to View, then arrowing down through all of the options until you find Spoken Content. From here make sure the following are disabled (unchecked):
~~> Speak Announcements
~~~> Speak Selection
~~~~> Speak Items Under The Mouse Pointer
~~~~~> Speak Typing Feedback
>>> Note: You can record your screen with Command + Shift + 5. I believe there is another thread here on AppleVis about that.

5. My display goes to sleep after 3 minutes, and I have the standard Ventura screen saver… The display sleeps before the screen saver has a chance to show.
~> Always have your screensaver set to display BEFORE the screen sleeps. True story.

6. No third party antivirus is on the computer. It can happen with many or few apps open. The most common apps where this happens are Mail, Safari, and Preview.
I am also now on MacOS ventura 13.5.1.
~> Unfortunately this entire issue seems to be a Ventura issue. At least from what I have read via Google (All Hail Our Google Overlords! 🤖). Try some of the tips I have presented above and let me know how it goes. 😎

My VoiceOver has two voices. I could be using GarageBand, and Nikki would be reading out the voice for your facts on GarageBand, but then the same voice that you like currently on the button whilst the other voice is still speaking and it’s very unfriendly.

I had this issue when I was rocking Ventura. Below is how I resolved the issue. Hope this helps you as well:

1. Open VO Utility (VO + F8 -- may need FN also on Laptop).
2. Go to Categories > Arrow down to Speech.
3. VO right arrow over to the 'Customize language list table'.
4. Interact here and be sure the voice you want is selected, then click on 'Edit'.
5. Navigate to the right to 'Additional VoiceOver Options' (this will be a collapsable item).
6. Arrow to the right and change the options that are listed as either 'Default Voice' or some voice that is 'not' your preferred voice, and change them 'ALL' to your preferred voice.
7. Click 'Ok to the far right when done.
8. Toggle VO off and then back on. Should fix the 'dual voice' issue.
9. (Optional) Disable all the options under 'Spoken Content' as I mentioned above, to resolve any 'double speak' feedback.

HTH. 🤩