Broadcasting has changed - not our own voices anymore

[robinwillems]

We normally Broadcast in our house (7 devices, mini's and Hub and Sonos) and Say "He Google, Broadcast".

"Hey guys dinners ready, come down stairs (but then in Dutch)"

Since a week or two, instead of hearing our own voices, Google tries to translate this and speaks with the assistants voice. This is pretty annoying because he messes up most of the times (maybe we don't speak clearly to him/her).

How can we turn this of?

[MplsCustomer]

@robinwillems 

We don't use broadcast very often, but we get our own voices.  But if I test it, what you're reporting happens to us only if we try to broadcast any of the messages listed under "Broadcast a preset message" in the help topic below.  For these messages, Google Assistant seems to broadcast its own message in its own voice, with music. For example, I tried "Hey Google, broadcast it's time for bed". What Google Assistant did was to broadcast "It's time to get some shuteye" in a Google Assistant voice, along with graphics and a little music on the Nest Hub.

https://support.google.com/googlenest/answer/7531913

I don't know if these preset message are new or not, or whether it might explain what you're encountering.

[robinwillems]

Hi @MplsCustomer , i checked but all my personal routines (automations) are disabled. So the should not be the culprit. Also last week it looked like all our broacast were spoken by the Google Voice, even a simple "yes"

[MplsCustomer]

@robinwillems 

I was not referring to routines or automations, just to the fact that, for us--at least so far--we get our own voice on broadcasts unless we happen to say something like one of the preset messages that Google Nest lists.

However, I've seen a couple of other posts like yours.  Maybe this is some sort of change that Google Nest has made, and the updated firmware is not net pushed out to our Nest Hubs. Are your Nest Hubs by any chance on the "Preview Program", with preview versions of the firmware?  (Ours are not.)

[robinwillems]

Indeed, i was in the preview programs but removed myself from it a couple of days ago. Not sure how long it takes to be removed. This could be it.

[Doemsdagding]

I have the exact same (also Dutch) so maybe they changed it specifically for our country (don't know why as I preferred the old)

[robinwillems]

Do you have experimental features on or off? I first had it one but turned it off about a week ago (no change since then). 

[mkw037]

I read that you need web activity turned on then you can enable the option "Include voice and audio activity." in your Google account.

Not sure why this setting is nested under the requirement of having web activity enabled. I do not want Google tracking my overall web activity, but do want our own voices used during broadcasts. We had our own voices being used for years, now Google changed settings on us and use the assistant's voice. As you mentioned, the assistant gets the words wrong more times than not.

[robinwillems]

I have web activities on (and voice/audio), and they always were. To be honest, I have all settings on preferred. Never turned anything off. 

[mkw037]

Yeah, I turned on web activity and "Include voice and audio activity" just to see if mine started working and the results are completely inconsistent. We have 7 total speakers in our house. It seems like 50% of the time we hear out own voices during broadcasts, and 50% of the time it's the assistant's voice. So it this a device specific thing?

[clouds]

Same thing here, changed for no reason, and Google doesn't seem to care about having an answer to this problem which seems to be reported since 2017. 

[GlassFamily]

Same problem here. If it as widespread as the last "blinking lights issue" Google did another change without notifying its users. I'm seriously sick of it. 

[clouds]

https://www.computerworld.com/article/3703729/whats-going-on-with-google-assistant.html

[realjax]

Interesting article. Fortunately home assistant is working on a voice alternative which is coming along nicely. Now just find a way to jailbreak those google home devices and run it from there . And it ll be bye bye google hardware forever. 

[robinwillems]

I've been using this new "feature" now for the last couple of weeks and i can say that it PRETTY MUCH SUCKS!
Please disable it or give us the possibility to do it ourself, or just kill it with fire ASAP!

[BjörnIse]

Same problem here. [rant mode on] I've about had it with Google speakers and hubs, where they constantly change things without any information, and often the changes aren't working well. They'd better spend their time to fix some ongoing problems. [rant mode off]

[GlassFamily]

I think I'm going to file a complaint with the government. I've had it with Google changing things without notifying its users. 

[DJB31st]

We had a broadcast issue for about 6 months earlier in the year, they finally fixed this and broadcast worked for about a month.

Now 9 out of 10 times when we broadcast it doesn't use the recording and instead poorly attempts to replay it using the inbuilt voice, so annoying as its the main feature we use other than music

[clouds]

My guess is they'll wind up bricking our devices just like they are bricking Nest security systems. They'll want us to buy all new devices compatible with their AI. The common thread seems to be, just like search results, if it works, Google breaks it. Their phones used to be really good, not anymore.  It seems to be company wide dedication to en**bleep**tification.

[Saints09]

Same problem here.

Here we go with another scenario where it wasn't broke but Google decided to fix it.

[GlassFamily]

Same problem. Google performed another f***ing update. I'm filing a FTC complaint and/or will look at filing a Class Action lawsuit as Google continues to change things without notification to its users. 

[Acruz808]

I have the same problem. I have multiple devices and lately it will only broadcast in AI voice. It takes away the joy of hearing my 4 year old daughter broadcast “I love you daddy”. Now I just get AI doing all the broadcasts. It sucks

[Stepman]

We need this release flag set back to way it was before.. or at bare minimal you should allow us to personalize the setting to the way we prefer it to be, and not force it.

[DR21]

I have the same issue!!!! I hate it!! Not only are some of the words long, there is a delay!!! I uses this feature to announce many things, "like the bus is here!" and this delay is too long!!! I want it to go back now!!! 

[clouds]

Oh the delay yes, also awful and getting worse 

[YYYB]

The danged delayed AI voice is now not broadcasting the whole message either

[YYYB]

I'm going crazy! I've been trying to fix this broadcast delay and stop that AI voice. Now, it's not even broadcasting the whole message, just the beginning and then it cuts off. I'm so frustrated. My house is three floors:  I need this broadcast function to work like it used to 😭

[U238]

Google, can you please fix this? We want to hear our own voices again. Are any Google staff paying attention to this thread?

[clouds]

I think somewhere I saw one of them say it duplicates another thread so they were gonna close it and ignore us. 

[Lemmy]

Glad to see it's not just me.  I have 5 or 6 speakers. All doing the same thing other posters are talking about.  My accent is badly converted using GA voice and most of the message is misunderstood.  Absolute crap.

However, just got the new Pixel 8 pro yesterday, and on the same network it broadcasts using my voice to the other speakers as it should.

So why the inconsistency too?

[clouds]

Maybe they want us all to buy Pixel 8's to get our Assistants to work properly, that sounds like the logic of the company that bricks security systems. Sorry, I'm just so disappointed in what Google has turned out to be versus their potential to not, in fact, be evil.

[julialucio]

8 speakers here, my line of communication with the kids upstairs and now, Google totally broke it.  Entire reason I bought these was for the broadcast feature.  FIX IT NOW!!!!

[julialucio]

I own a small publication, looking at writing an article about this, could I interview some of you here?

[Lemmy]

Sure. Not sure you can dm on here can you?

[Acruz808]

I’m in

[DanPck]

Google need to fix this.

Broadcast is the primary reason for scattering these devices around our homes and offices and yet they have broken this functionality with no warning or response.  The devices are now largely worthless and have damaged my view of google.

[christophercamp]

Does Google not understand how this renders all my Googles useless? I wouldn't have bought 'em. Currently broadcasting with my voice only works from my phone.

[nkcs]

We need to leave a negative review on Google Nest Speaker etc, - stating the broadcast feature is no longer useful. This is the only way Google will fix it. 

[julialucio]

except we're an army of what?  37?

[YYYB]

Yes, that's a good idea to leave a *truthful* review on the Google Nest website.

People need to know:

• it no longer broadcasts a recording of the person's message (to the other nests).

• there is a very long delay before the broadcast goes through to the other nests.

• the person's message now gets interpreted and then broadcast to the other nests in the AI's voice. And your message often gets misinterpreted by the AI. So it's not even saying what you want it to say!