# Speech quality evaluation > Perceptual and task-based evaluation for recognition, synthesis, translation, enhancement, and spoken dialogue systems. [Speech & voice AI capability](https://admas.net/capabilities/speech/index.md) ## The challenge Aggregate word error or mean-opinion scores can hide failures in names, dialects, semantic accuracy, speaker similarity, prosody, intelligibility, or downstream task completion. We select measures that match the product decision and pair automated metrics with calibrated listeners where human perception or meaning is decisive. Results are segmented by language variety, speaker, acoustic condition, content type, and user impact rather than reported as one average. ## How Admas works 1. **Define the decision:** Specify system variants, populations, conditions, quality dimensions, harm areas, thresholds, and required statistical confidence. 2. **Design the evaluation:** Create controlled and natural samples, listening protocols, task measures, rater qualification, calibration, and quality controls. 3. **Analyze failure structure:** Compare segments, uncertainty, preference, semantic and acoustic errors, and recommend model, data, or product changes. ## Typical outputs - Speech evaluation design and sampling plan - Calibrated listening and task protocol - Segmented results with uncertainty - Error analysis and system recommendations ## Frequently asked questions ### What is speech quality evaluation? Perceptual and task-based evaluation for recognition, synthesis, translation, enhancement, and spoken dialogue systems. In practice, the work is bounded by a defined product or model decision, named audiences and locales, representative inputs, and acceptance criteria that can be reviewed. ### When does a team need speech quality evaluation? Aggregate word error or mean-opinion scores can hide failures in names, dialects, semantic accuracy, speaker similarity, prosody, intelligibility, or downstream task completion. The useful starting point is the smallest representative flow that can expose the cause, impact, and ownership of the problem. ### What does a speech quality evaluation engagement include? Define the decision: Specify system variants, populations, conditions, quality dimensions, harm areas, thresholds, and required statistical confidence. Design the evaluation: Create controlled and natural samples, listening protocols, task measures, rater qualification, calibration, and quality controls. Analyze failure structure: Compare segments, uncertainty, preference, semantic and acoustic errors, and recommend model, data, or product changes. ### What should we provide before speech quality evaluation starts? The most useful inputs are target languages, dialects, and speaking contexts, audio or model access, speaker and consent requirements, acoustic conditions and devices, product tasks, scripts, prompts, and and quality thresholds. Admas can begin with a partial package, but missing context, rights, access, owners, or acceptance criteria will be made visible in the plan rather than treated as harmless assumptions. ### What does Admas deliver for speech quality evaluation? Typical outputs include speech evaluation design and sampling plan, calibrated listening and task protocol, segmented results with uncertainty, and error analysis and system recommendations. Deliverables are adapted to the team that must use them, with decisions, evidence, limitations, owners, and next actions made explicit. ### How is the quality of speech quality evaluation evaluated? Quality is measured against the real task and risk. Relevant evidence can include intelligibility and naturalness, task and recognition accuracy by cohort, pronunciation and prosody, speaker and acoustic coverage, latency, and accessibility and failure recovery. Sampling, severity rules, reviewers, adjudication, and pass or fail thresholds should be agreed before the result is used as a release decision. ### Can AI replace the human work in speech quality evaluation? Speech models can draft transcripts, synthesize candidates, segment audio, and surface likely errors. Native listeners, phoneticians, voice specialists, conversation designers, and engineers are still needed to judge pronunciation, prosody, intelligibility, demographic coverage, and real interaction failures. The right allocation depends on consequence, content stability, available references, language coverage, reversibility, and the cost of a plausible but wrong result. ### How much does speech quality evaluation cost? The estimate changes with recording or evaluation hours, languages, dialects, and speaker profiles, studio and equipment needs, transcription and annotation depth, model or integration work, and quality and consent controls. Pricing should distinguish setup and discovery, repeatable units, specialist or engineering time, independent review, management, and external costs. A low unit price is not comparable if it excludes the QA cycle or shifts rework back to the buyer. ## Related speech & voice ai services - [Speech data programs](https://admas.net/capabilities/speech/speech-data/index.md): Speaker, prompt, recording, transcription, and validation systems for multilingual speech development. - [Text-to-speech development](https://admas.net/capabilities/speech/text-to-speech/index.md): Language design, pronunciation resources, voice evaluation, and product QA for natural synthesized speech. - [Speech recognition evaluation](https://admas.net/capabilities/speech/speech-recognition/index.md): Language-aware ASR testing, error analysis, and improvement plans across speakers, accents, domains, and environments. - [Conversational voice-agent localization](https://admas.net/capabilities/speech/conversational-voice-agent-localization/index.md): End-to-end localization of spoken agent experiences, from recognition and dialogue policy to synthesized voice and repair. ## Start a project - [Build a project brief](https://admas.net/start-a-project/index.md?focus=speech): Tell Admas what you are building, which modalities and languages matter, and where progress is blocked.