FAC-FACodec: Controllable Zero-Shot Foreign Accent Conversion with Factorized Speech Codec

Yurii Halychanskyi, Cameron Churchwell, Yutong Wen, Volodymyr Kindratenko

Keywords: accent conversion, voice conversion, diffusion models, pronunciation modification

TL;DR: We present the first foreign accent conversion framework with an explicit control knob that lets users trade off stronger pronunciation conversion against speaker identity preservation.

Abstract: Previous accent conversion (AC) methods, including foreign accent conversion (FAC), lack explicit control over the degree of modification. Because accent modification can alter the perceived speaker identity, balancing conversion strength and identity preservation is crucial. We present an AC framework that provides an explicit, user‑controllable parameter to adjust the strength of pronunciation-level accent modification. Results show performance comparable to recent AC systems, stronger preservation of speaker identity, and unique support for controllable accent conversion.

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Submission Number: 35