DAINA

Daina is an English VOCALOID to be developed and distributed by Zero-G Limited.

History
In March 2015, Zero-G stated that they hoped to release an American male and female VOCALOID4 by the end of May that year. This release date was later pushed back to June, then summer of 2015.

Syo commented in June that he had written the script for Daina, which was similar to the one used for Ruby.

On June 20th the name, voice and designs of these two Vocaloids were revealed via a livestream and panel at Anime Mid Atlantic. The announcement showcased short demo clips by Circus-P, nostraightanswer (Kenji-B) and Empath-P.

Kenji noted that nothing is final with either Daina and Dex, and certain details are subject to change.

In the stream it was revealed that Zero-G is not financially able to create extra voicebanks like Crypton Future Media, Inc., but if Daina sells well they may consider the option. Zero-G gave no additional phonetics to her or extra languages, because their company focuses on English only.

A second stream was held to clear up miscommunication in the first. Unlike many other Vocaloids, Daina was not recorded within a studio because her voice provider had a suitable mic for the task already. Her provider came from within the fandom. The reclist had been highly customized for the American accent. The provider's were recruited in December 2014 to help with the beta, along with Kenji-B and EmpathP. At the time of the livestream, Daina was still being adjusted to remove some raspiness on her lower ranges.

Due to much work still needing to be done, a July release was deemed impossible. Barring any technical difficulties, Daina would be ready for Yamaha's approval in August 2015.

Tests with distributors and other companies prompted an alternate design to be produced for Daina, removing animal traits.[7]

On the 27th of July 2015, beta testing was reported as finished, with everything now left in the hands of the programmers. Further promotions would be handled by Zero-G, while design work was also handed to them for a final decision.

In an email response to a fan, Dex and Daina were said to be more likely to release in September.

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

On the 6th of September, AkiGlancy tweeted that Daina would most likely not be sold as a bundle with the V4 engine.

On the 17th of September, Zero-G replied to a fan's email and said that Daina and Dex would be released around 3 weeks from then. As of 2nd of October, AkiGlancy clarified that Zero-G was waiting for YAMAHA's final answer in terms of the release dates.

Concept
Dex and Daina were given the theme 'Fox and the Hound', at the suggestion of Kenji-B. They are both focused on the pop genre. They are intended to be counterparts which complement each other. Kenji-B stated that he felt Daina was what Zero-G wanted to achieve with SONiKA. Kenji also noted before their unveiling that Dex and Daina are a pair, but not twins. When asked about the aims of both Dex and Daina, the pair were described as aimed at fans, and designed to give producers with no voice the voice they needed. EmpathP chose red hair and the colours blue and white for Daina. The theme of "fox and hound" was one of many suggestions put forward, but one the group became fond of, after initially being taken as a light-hearted concept. The design was chosen after the team adored the primary sketches of the pair from Steel.

Etymology
According to Kenji-B, he was the one who proposed her name, in both writing and pronunciation. Daina's name was also chosen because it sounded whimsical. AkiGlancy and the staff members of Zero-G thought it was a reference to Alice and Wonderland and Alice's cat, Dinah. However, it wasn't Kenji-B's original intention. Her name is currently subject to change.

Appearance
Daina is a kemonomimi and is modeled after a fox. The choice was made to give a twist of the popular Nekomimi design seen in SeeU and Nekomura Iroha.

EmpathP said they knew many would not like the designs, and focused instead on the vocals. The animal traits were added to make the designs unique, and to bring something unseen before in Vocaloid.

Relations
Dex: A with masculine vocals.

Trivia

 * Dex and Daina were the first counterparts of VOCALOID4.