DEX (VOCALOID4)


 * This is an article about the Dex software for the VOCALOID4 engine.

History
In March 2015, Zero-G stated that they hoped to release an American male and female VOCALOID4 by the end of May.

In June, Syo commented that he had written the script for Dex, which was similar to the one used for Ruby. The reclist had been highly customized for the American accent.

On June 20th, VOCALOIDs Dex and Daina were introduced via livestream and panel at Anime Mid Atlantic. The announcement showcased short demo clips by Circus-P, Nostraightanswer (Kenji-B) and EmpathP (AkiGlancy). In the stream, Kenji noted that the VOCALOIDs were not final and that certain details were subject to change. It was also revealed that Zero-G was not able to create extra vocals due to financial reasons, but if Dex sold well, they may consider the option. There were additional phonemes for him, however, they do not allow multilingual capabilities as Zero-G focused solely on the English language.

A second stream was held to clear up issues that arose from miscommunication in the first one. Unlike many other VOCALOIDs, Dex was not recorded within a studio. His voice provider was a professional musician with a mic suitable for the task. His provider also came from within the fandom. The providers were recruited in December 2014 to help with the beta, along with Kenji-B and AkiGlancy.

As there were still work to be done, a July release was not possible for Dex. Barring any technical difficulties, he would have been ready for YAMAHA's approval in August.

Tests with distributors prompted an alternate design to be produced for Dex, removing his animal traits.

On July 27th, beta testing was reported as finished, with final touch-ups left in the hands of the programmers. Further promotions were to be handled by Zero-G, while design work was also handed to them for a final decision.

On September 4th, AkiGlancy reported that all work requirements for Dex and Daina were finished. She noted that Zero-G would be responsible to reveal the release date. Later, she explained that the voice providers were likely to be revealed around the months of November or February. This allows them to have their initial sales based solely off their software and to avoid any biased sales that may be accumulated through the reveal of their providers. It was unknown if Zero-G would announce this information on their own media (such as the products or website) or during a convention.

On the September 6th, AkiGlancy tweeted it was unlikely that Dex would be sold as a starter pack.

As of October 2nd, AkiGlancy clarified that Zero-G was waiting for YAMAHA's final answer in terms of the release dates. Dex and Daina were both ready to release and waiting for YAMAHA's approval was the reason for their continuous delays. On October 12th, Kenji confirmed that they would be released separately for the digital downloads.

On October 22nd, Dex and Daina were confirmed to have an alternative design with slight changes to the original, but still retain the theme of The Fox and The Hound. This was done to appeal to non Japanese-styled art fans.

AkiGlancy also briefly explained that Zero-G does not have a plan for the pair's physical copies due to several reasons. One major reason was that the company had observed that their VOCALOIDs tended to sell better as digital downloads and that it was far too costly to create physical packages. However, if Dex and Daina sold well, a physical release may be a future option. In the meantime, AkiGlancy planned to ask the company about "mock" boxarts, similar to what galaco had for her original voicebank. She felt that this would be much more beneficial to customers.

On November 2nd, it was confirmed that Dex was with YAMAHA for over a month and a half for testing. During this period, YAMAHA searches the voicebank for bugs and informs Zero-G about the issues that needed repairing. After repairs Zero-G needed to resubmit the vocals for additional check ups. It was later mentioned that YAMAHA may complete final compression on the week of November 9th or later. Once compression has been completed, Dex and Daina would be released shortly after. In addition, the voice providers would be revealed in February during Katsucon.

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