NEC PC-6001 mkII & PC-6601 family

Japanese speech as a computer feature

The PC-6001 mkII and PC-6601 family brought dedicated Japanese speech synthesis into NEC home computers. The voice hardware is NEC’s µPD7752, a separate speech-synthesis device rather than the music generator. This exhibit covers the PC-6001 mkII, PC-6601, PC-6001 mkII SR, and PC-6601SR.

The original PC-6001 is different

The original PC-6001 should not be described as having the same standard onboard voice. Emulator hardware documentation distinguishes it from the four later models, which include the µPD7752. That distinction is important when buying a machine or identifying a motherboard: a familiar family name does not guarantee speech hardware.

TALK from BASIC

The family’s TALK facility made speech accessible from BASIC. Research by emulator authors documents both the µPD7752 and model-specific voice data. The sound depends on the speech engine, its supplied data, and the computer’s language routines working together; a chip’s presence alone does not define everything the computer can pronounce.

Speech alongside music

The earlier mkII and PC-6601 configurations pair the voice device with an AY-3-8910 music and sound generator. The SR models move their music hardware to the YM2203 while retaining µPD7752 speech. Keeping the two roles separate helps explain how a machine could play musical sounds and still have a dedicated electronic speaker for language.

A family worth hearing

These NEC machines expand the museum beyond the English voices common in American peripherals. They demonstrate another route to the talking computer: a manufacturer’s own speech chip integrated into its home-computer successors. Model-specific ROMs and software should be matched carefully when restoring or demonstrating one.

Specifications

Manufacturer

NEC

Period

1983–1984

Speech installation

Built-in on listed successors

Speech hardware

µPD7752