Gain More Control with VisionStory’s New “Preview Audio” and “Pause” Features

Jan 11, 2025

Preview audio and pause features for video content creation on VisionStory

Delivering high-quality video content often comes down to the smallest details—like how a word is pronounced or the timing of a dramatic pause. We’re excited to introduce two new features on VisionStory—Preview Audio and Pause—that give you more precision and flexibility before you use your credits to generate a full video.

Why Use Preview Audio?

Preview Audio is a game-changer for anyone who wants to ensure their text-to-speech (TTS) narration sounds just right before spending credits to create a video. Previously, you’d go straight from writing your script to generating the final product. While convenient, this left little room for fine-tuning—and if you noticed a small mistake, your credits were already used. With Preview Audio, you can:

  1. Check Pronunciation & Tone
    Listen to the entire audio track generated from your text and make sure it matches your intended style.
  2. Save Credits
    Catching an error in the audio before rendering a video helps you avoid unnecessary credit usage.
  3. Avoid Streaming Artifacts
    When audio is generated in real time to sync with video (a “streaming pipeline”), some AI voices may have slight volume inconsistencies at the start or end. By using Preview Audio first, you can avoid these issues and produce a more polished final result.

Common Pitfalls & Text Considerations: While TTS technology has advanced, some complexities can still be challenging. Pay extra attention to:

  • Specialized or Technical Terms: Medical, legal, or scientific jargon may need extra punctuation or spelling tweaks.
  • Abbreviations: Make sure TTS expands or pronounces them correctly.
  • Currencies & Numbers: The narrator might read numbers in an unexpected way or skip over currency symbols.
  • Heavy Punctuation: Periods, commas, and colons can affect how TTS handles intonation and pacing.

If you notice any issues, simply revise your text, run Preview Audio again, and confirm it’s perfect before clicking “Generate Talking Video.”

Introducing the Pause Feature

Sometimes you want to slow things down for dramatic effect, emphasize a phrase, or handle tricky words with precision. Our new Pause option—accessible via the “⏱ +0.5” icon—lets you insert a short break anywhere in your script. If you need a longer pause, just add multiple pause icons in your text. This manual pause can:

  • Improve Clarity: Break up long sentences so listeners can easily follow each part.
  • Enhance Emphasis: Build anticipation before a key statement or punchline.
  • Override Default TTS Pausing: If the text-to-speech engine doesn’t pause where you want—or adds an unintended break—manually adding pauses ensures the final narration flows the way you want.

Important Tips

Preview Audio uses a character-based quota, which resets daily according to your subscription plan. As a general guideline, 1 minute of speech is about 1,000 characters:

  • Pro: 10,000 characters (~10 min of audio per day)
  • Advanced: 50,000 characters (~50 min of audio per day)
  • Ultra: 100,000 characters (~100 min of audio per day)

Tips for the Stopwatch Feature:

  • Each stopwatch icon represents a 0.5-second pause. You can use them consecutively to create longer pauses, up to a maximum of 3 seconds.
  • Reminder: Avoid using more than two consecutive pauses within a single text segment, as this may cause the AI to produce unexpected sounds or artifacts.

Use Cases & Real-World Benefits

  • Marketing & Advertising
    Marketers love to spark curiosity with short, impactful lines—often followed by a well-timed pause. Now you can polish your brand messaging and preview different deliveries without wasting credits.
  • E-Learning & Instructional Videos
    Complex terminology or acronyms are common in educational content. Quickly preview how they’re read out, insert the right pauses, and ensure learners can easily follow along.
  • Storytelling & Narration
    Dramatic voiceovers rely on precise pacing. A perfectly placed pause can convey suspense or emotion—something the default TTS pacing might not always achieve.
  • Professional Presentations
    When you need to make a point—such as in financial reviews or business pitches—mispronounced names or numbers can undermine your credibility. Previewing and adding pauses helps ensure a smooth, professional vocal track.