VOX Hangs when initialising

[Adam_WMids_UK 0]

Hi All

I've used VOX for many years now and have worked around a whole host of issues over this time to keep it working. This latest one has me stumped though...

When I click the green enable button to start VOX, I hear the voices being tested and then the message "7.42 initializing....." remains showing, but nothing happens after this. In the past I have had fatal errors and have been able to identify the issue and work around or resolve it, but this isn't throwing a fatal error.... simply hanging.

I'm running on a high end PC, windows 10, P3Dv4.5, Vox 7.42

The error log is showing the following:
 

Quote

 

Log Start 05/03/2020 15:15:13

FSUIPCInt init Start
FSUIPCInt init End
0 Ins Text set : Initializing
0 Prompt Text set : 
15:15:13.4103335 Current Position = 46.9131737609655 7.50114797298871 1677.64057363903
$$$$ Thread time overun : 
   at System.Environment.GetStackTrace(Exception e, Boolean needFileInfo)
   at System.Environment.get_StackTrace()
   at com.intworkings.voxatc.ThreadCheck.Sleep(Int32 milliSecs)
   at com.intworkings.voxatc.FSUIPCInt.ProcessSimconMessages()
   at System.Runtime.Remoting.Messaging.StackBuilderSink._PrivateProcessMessage(IntPtr md, Object[] args, Object server, Object[]& outArgs)
   at System.Runtime.Remoting.Messaging.StackBuilderSink.AsyncProcessMessage(IMessage msg, IMessageSink replySink)
   at System.Threading.ExecutionContext.RunInternal(ExecutionContext executionContext, ContextCallback callback, Object state, Boolean preserveSyncCtx)
   at System.Threading.ExecutionContext.Run(ExecutionContext executionContext, ContextCallback callback, Object state, Boolean preserveSyncCtx)
   at System.Threading.QueueUserWorkItemCallback.System.Threading.IThreadPoolWorkItem.ExecuteWorkItem()
   at System.Threading.ThreadPoolWorkQueue.Dispatch()
15892109 Ins Text set : 7.42 Initializing.
15892187 Ins Text set : 7.42 Initializing..
init synth start
init synth end
15892343 Ins Text set : 7.42 Initializing...
Exception while initializing Asti : Could not load file or assembly 'file:///F:\Program Files\Internal Workings\VoxATC P3D 4\AstiInt.dll' or one of its dependencies. The system cannot find the file specified.
   at System.Reflection.RuntimeAssembly._nLoad(AssemblyName fileName, String codeBase, Evidence assemblySecurity, RuntimeAssembly locationHint, StackCrawlMark& stackMark, IntPtr pPrivHostBinder, Boolean throwOnFileNotFound, Boolean forIntrospection, Boolean suppressSecurityChecks)
   at System.Reflection.RuntimeAssembly.InternalLoadAssemblyName(AssemblyName assemblyRef, Evidence assemblySecurity, RuntimeAssembly reqAssembly, StackCrawlMark& stackMark, IntPtr pPrivHostBinder, Boolean throwOnFileNotFound, Boolean forIntrospection, Boolean suppressSecurityChecks)
   at System.Reflection.RuntimeAssembly.InternalLoadFrom(String assemblyFile, Evidence securityEvidence, Byte[] hashValue, AssemblyHashAlgorithm hashAlgorithm, Boolean forIntrospection, Boolean suppressSecurityChecks, StackCrawlMark& stackMark)
   at System.Reflection.Assembly.LoadFrom(String assemblyFile)
   at com.intworkings.voxatc.Asti.GetAstiIntAss()
   at com.intworkings.voxatc.Asti.Init()
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
init synth start
init synth end
15911155 Ins Text set : 7.42 Initializing....
15911187 Ins Text set : 7.42 Initializing.....
init recog start

 

I have tried a range of things so far and can't seem to get any other result:

1. Uninstalling any scenery added since it last worked fine

2. Reinstalling VOX

3. Regenerating the index after the above

4. Trying with several different aircraft and at several different airports, including combinations which I know have worked fine previously.

5. Clearing the sim scenery index and having the sim rebuild it, then generating the VOX index again.

6. Checked my sim's addons.cfg, exe.xml and dll.xml files in program data and appdata folders for anything new in those which might be running in the back ground

7. Trying with and without a route loaded into the sim's flight plan

8. Screaming helplessly at my PC in frustration.

My other sim software still all functions fine. I haven't (and won't) roll back any recent windows updates... but I would assume that if one of these had broken something, then somebody (or several others) on here might have already have posted...

Any ideas would be gratefully received!

Kind regards

Adam

Edited May 3, 2020 by Adam_WMids_UK

[jabloomf1230 2,445]

All the text above int recognize start are normal (at least for VOXATC). You hear the test test test so the US English language is default. I'm guessing that the microphone is non-functional.

[Adam_WMids_UK 0]

Cheers for the reply!

I have just checked and VOX has accessed my mic today - interestingly, not in the last few times I have tried it... but then, I have had this issue about 5 days now!

Screen snipping below shows VOX can access the mic and has done today (apologise about the size of the image... not resize controls on the forum!):

I did find the allow applications to take exclusive control was ticked though, so just trying again now with it unticked.... I have set up several web conferencing applications recently so maybe one of those changed it. If not, it is the same mic I have always used successfully and is set as the default input device.

Will report back!

Adam

Edited May 3, 2020 by Adam_WMids_UK

[Adam_WMids_UK 0]

Nope.... sadly, changing the mic setting to turn off applications can take exclusive control made no difference. 

Don't suppose anybody knows what would normally come next in the log file after "init recog start "?

My log shows nothing after that line. That is where it stops. If I know what comes next normally it might give me an idea of what might be hanging!

Cheers

Adam

Edited May 3, 2020 by Adam_WMids_UK

[jabloomf1230 2,445]

Adam,

I assume that your mic works in the Windows speech calibration and also the VOXATC flightplan calibration. If it does in both, it probably isn't the mic. You should also check that the voice control option in P3d is off.

[Adam_WMids_UK 0]

Hi!

I double checked the speech calibration in Windows and that worked. When I tried to generate a training session from a flight plan it failed to generate the session for some reason, hanging with the bar part way full.

I've now uninstalled VOX and have noticed it leaves a whole load of stuff in app data, so I've deleted that too. and am about to try a complete new install. I'm trying reinstalling Voxpop too. I've already uninstalled and reinstalled my headset for good measure, but it is working with everything else and always worked with VOX in the past.

Just curious... what made you think it could be mic?

Cheers

Adam

Edited May 4, 2020 by Adam_WMids_UK

[jabloomf1230 2,445]

1 hour ago, Adam_WMids_UK said:

When I tried to generate a training session from a flight plan it failed to generate the session for some reason, hanging with the bar part way full.

Well, we're making slow progress. At least we know that P3d is not interfering with VOXATC. But there's definitely something amiss with the speech setup. The trick is to isolate whether it's hardware or software. Do you have more than one sound card enabled? Most people either use the sound chip that's built into the motherboard or use the output from the video card. 

Anyway, the VOXATC flightplan trainer consists of two steps. The first is FlightPlanTrainer.exe. This utility asks you for the call sign, the flightplan and the aircraft type. It then creates a file and automatically runs VATrainer.exe. VATrainer.exe is just a shell for the Windows 10 built-in speech trainer. Both VOXATC speech utilities are really simple, so first take a look in:

C:\Users\<USERNAME>\AppData\Roaming\Internal Workings\VoxATC P3D 4

for the file that FlightPlanTrainer.exe creates:

flightspeech.txt

If the training process never gets to the second step, then this file will not exist. It's possible that some security setting is preventing the file from being written. It's always a good practice to log on to Win 10 as an administrator and if these kinds of issues crop up, also setting the properties for the exe file to "Run as Administrator".

Below is a copy of a flightspeech.txt file that I created with the trainer. See if you can copy it to the proper location and if so, run VATrainer.exe and see what happens.

oceanic center oceanic center oceanic center
zero one two thre four five six seven eight niner
one hundred two hundred three hundred four hundred five hundred six hundred seven hundred eight hundred niner hundred 
one thousand two thousand three thousand four thousand five thousand six thousand seven thousand eight thousand niner thousand
one zero thousand two hundred two zero thousand three hundred
alpha bravo charlie delta echo foxtrot golf hotel india juliette kilo 
mike november oscar papa quebec romeo sierra tango uniform victor whiskey xray yankee zulu
flight level one niner zero flight level two zero zero flight level three zero zero
altimeter two niner niner niner two altimeter two niner niner six
squawk three zero one three squawk one two zero zero
pass your message pass your message
go ahead go ahead
q n h one zero one three q n h one zero one five
q f e niner niner eight q f e one zero zero eight
going around going around
left tutn out vfr right turn out vfr leaving zone 
changing to enroute frequency changing to enroute frequency
altitude flight level zero one four
altitude three thousand feet
G P S runway one three approach Full I L S runway one three approach L D A runway two three approach Localizer runway one three approach
Localizer backcourse runway one three approach N D B runway for five approach N D B D M E runway one three approach R NAV runway one three approach     
S D F runway one three approach V O R runway one three approach V O R D M E runway one three approach  


 

 

[Adam_WMids_UK 0]

Hi!

My hardware configuration hasn't changed since I built this computer a year and a half ago. I have a number of devices for sound. I have a sound chip on my graphics card, onboard sound on the motherboard, a USB wireless dongle to a wireless headset with mic and a dedicated sound card which is my main device. When simming, I put most sound through my sound card to my speakers and put VOX only through my headset - using that mic. This set up has always worked fine in the past for me for both this PC and the PC I built previously.

I have now tried putting the sound purely through the sound card, using a plug in mic direct into the sound card to test that way too, ruling out the headset and other devices. Despite using a different device, I get the exact same result, so I don't think it is hardware related.

I checked in appdata\Roaming\Internal Workings\VoxATC P3D 4 for the flightspeech.txt and that hadn't been created. However I saw your next comment regarding running as administrator.... Well my account IS an admin account.... but for good measure I went to the exe files in the root folder for VOX and right clicked each one and set to run as administrator on the compatibility tab. I find now, having done that, that my flight plan trainer WILL function correctly. I got very excited at this point and tried launching my sim and firing up VOX.... only to find that it STILL hung on initialising after all that!

Another thing I have noticed is that VOX is opening the flight plan trainer window behind my sim window when I click the "enable" button. Not sure if it has always done this, I can't remember. However, I have found that if I click enable on the VOX prompt window, then switch to the flight plan trainer window and click the close button, while it is still hung on initialising, the "initialising message disappears and it replaced with:

"Cannot initialise voice recognition. Ensure that you have a US English compatible recogniser selected. See help file"

In addition to this, more lines appear in the error log after the ones already posted above:

Quote

Exception caught when initializing SAPI. This application may not run correctly.

System.IO.FileNotFoundException: Could not find file 'C:\Users\adami\AppData\Roaming\Internal Workings\VoxATC P3D 4\speechadapt.txt'.
File name: 'C:\Users\adami\AppData\Roaming\Internal Workings\VoxATC P3D 4\speechadapt.txt'
   at System.IO.__Error.WinIOError(Int32 errorCode, String maybeFullPath)
   at System.IO.FileStream.Init(String path, FileMode mode, FileAccess access, Int32 rights, Boolean useRights, FileShare share, Int32 bufferSize, FileOptions options, SECURITY_ATTRIBUTES secAttrs, String msgPath, Boolean bFromProxy, Boolean useLongPath, Boolean checkHost)
   at System.IO.FileStream..ctor(String path, FileMode mode, FileAccess access, FileShare share, Int32 bufferSize, FileOptions options, String msgPath, Boolean bFromProxy, Boolean useLongPath, Boolean checkHost)
   at System.IO.StreamReader..ctor(String path, Encoding encoding, Boolean detectEncodingFromByteOrderMarks, Int32 bufferSize, Boolean checkHost)
   at System.IO.StreamReader..ctor(String path)
   at com.intworkings.voxatc.HybridRecognizer.SetAdaptionData()
   at com.intworkings.voxatc.SqRecognizer.Initialize(String strIn, String cgfname)
13702844 Ins Text set : Cannot initialise voice recognition. Ensure that you have a US English compatible recogniser selected. See help file
VoxATC Ex
   at com.intworkings.voxatc.SqRecognizer.Initialize(String strIn, String cgfname)
   at com.intworkings.voxatc.HybridRecognizer.Initialize(String strIn, String cgfname)
   at com.intworkings.voxatc.SqRecognizer.Init(String fname, String cgfname)
   at VoxATCServer.VoxATCServer.InitVoxAtc()
 

I'm about to go and look into this error and to check what the "help file" has to say about it!

Cheers

Adam

 

[jabloomf1230 2,445]

Adam,

VOXATC itself is a bit quirky to use since there's no official support. But the kind of problem you are having is not a bug and should be correctable. It's probably something simple that we're both missing. Let me think about this some more, as I've never seen that error message about that specific txt file. In the meantime, trying running P3d as an admin. All its dlls including VOXATC will inherit the elevated permissions.

Jay

[Adam_WMids_UK 0]

Hi Jay!

I REALLY appreciate you working through this with me. I know this isn't an official support forum and I am very thankful.

I have been running P3Dv4 as admin since forever. I DID have English UK selected as my installed speech recogniser so have changed this to English US (after installing it) in windows, but this made no difference and it still throws the same error if I close the flight plan trainer after enabling VOX.

I have also discovered something.... if I create an EMPTY file called speechadapt.txt in the path the error log says it can't find one.... it DOESN'T fix the problem... BUT, if I then click the close button on the flight plan trainer, VOX initialises and my AI aircraft load!!

Annoyingly, I can't spend any more time on it right now to see if it then goes on to work correctly or not. But will try it more thoroughly later or tomorrow.

I do have some questions though which might help me make progress, but PLEASE, if you've had enough of this one, you've already been very generous with your time and I don't want to put on you, so just say!

1. Does your flight plan trainer start up when you enable VOX in the sim?

2. Do you get a logged error if error logging is on and you click close on the flight plan trainer after enabling VOX  in sim?

3. Do you have a speechadapt.txt in AppData\Roaming\Internal Workings\VoxATC P3D 4\?

4 If you do have speechadapt.txt, what does it contain?

Thanks again for your help and I fully understand if you don't have time to go exploring the above!

Cheers

Adam

[jabloomf1230 2,445]

24 minutes ago, Adam_WMids_UK said:

1. Does your flight plan trainer start up when you enable VOX in the sim? No.

2. Do you get a logged error if error logging is on and you click close on the flight plan trainer after enabling VOX  in sim? No.

3. Do you have a speechadapt.txt in AppData\Roaming\Internal Workings\VoxATC P3D 4\? No. My guess is that this is a temporary file that the Flightplan Trainer creates and then it gets deleted when the revisions to the Windows 10 speech dictionary are completed .

4 If you do have speechadapt.txt, what does it contain? NA

Just out of curiosity are you running VOXATC over a network? Also, make sure that your default Win 10 voice (not the voices in VOXATC) is a US English voice. You can also check in the Windows CP to make sure that the default speech recognizer is US English (ignore the red arrow).

BTW, I'm happy to help. I always learn something myself.

[Adam_WMids_UK 0]

Hi Jay

Odd that the flight plan trainer opens behind my simulator window (wouldn't know it was there unless I minimise the sim) when I start VOX - and it opens just at the point VOX hangs... AFTER the voices all said "Test".

VOX definitely seems to be waiting on the trainer, which is causing the hang. To give a clear, concise summary of the behaviour after hanging:

- If I just wait, it just hangs.
- If I switch to the flight plan trainer and click close, it gives the error message "Cannot initialise voice recognition. Ensure that you have a US English compatible recogniser selected. See help file".
- If I switch to the flight plan trainer and click "General Training" and complete the training, then close the trainer, it gives the same error "Cannot initialise voice recognition. Ensure that you have a US English compatible recogniser selected. See help file".
- If I create an empty text file called speechadapt.txt and put it in AppData\Roaming\Internal Workings\VoxATC P3D 4\, then enable VOX, switch to the flight plan trainer and click close, VOX completes initialisation and seems to run normally. The text file remains unchanged and is not deleted and is there for next time.
- If I create an empty text file called speechadapt.txt and put it in AppData\Roaming\Internal Workings\VoxATC P3D 4\, then enable VOX, switch to the flight plan trainer and complete the "General Training" and then click close, VOX completes initialisation and seems to run normally. The text file remains unchanged and is not deleted and is there for next time.

In all eventualities outlined above, the trainer reappears when I re-enable VOX, even after sim restart or windows restart.

In response to your question I checked and both my speech recogniser and default voice (Microsoft David Desktop) are set to US.

I DO run some of my addons over the network, such as ActiveSky, my VA's ACARS and Navigraph charts desktop. However, VOX is all installed locally. I don't even have the network server/client installed or setup.

I'm completely at a loss with this one.... what I really can't get my head around is why it suddenly started doing it. I can only put it down to a windows update I think, because I have uninstalled everything else I can think of that I may have added since it last worked! I'm beginning to wonder about the MS redistributable libraries/runtime environments for C++, or VB or something.... wondering if they have been updated in a recent update and are not working with VOX like they used to. What build of Windows 10 are you on? I'm on Windows 10 Pro, version 1909, OS Build 18363.778 (info from About your PC at the bottom - find it by searching for system information)

Thanks again!

Adam

 

[jabloomf1230 2,445]

I'm on Windows 10 version 2004, but that isn't completely rolled out globally yet. I think many of the people that post in this subforum are on version 1909, although I was also until recently and I had no problems with VOXATC. I have no idea why the FlightPlan Trainer would open on its own, unless it never closes and runs in the background. That is, until your run the sim and initialize VOXATC. Try checking to see if you can find it with the Windows Task Manager.

[Adam_WMids_UK 0]

Hi Jay

Thanks for the info. Very odd with how it has suddenly started doing it. At least I have a work around by leaving the empty text file there and just closing the trainer when it opens.

I've checked and the trainer isn't open by default. Even in the background. It fires up when Vox is initialising!

Appreciate your help on it!

Adam

[vadriver 247]

On 5/4/2020 at 12:31 AM, Adam_WMids_UK said:

I'm running on a high end PC, windows 10, P3Dv4.5, Vox 7.42

is that P3D453 ....??