The bulk update request #6763 is pending approval.

create implication kagamine_rin (46) -> crypton_future_media (2)
create implication kagamine_len (49) -> crypton_future_media (2)
create implication megurine_luka (43) -> crypton_future_media (2)
create alias meiko_(vocaloid) (30) -> meiko_(piapro) (0)
create implication meiko_(piapro) (0) -> crypton_future_media (2)
create alias kaito_(vocaloid) (36) -> kaito_(piapro) (0)
create implication kaito_(piapro) (0) -> crypton_future_media (2)
create implication hatsune_miku (858) -> crypton_future_media (2)
remove implication hatsune_miku (858) -> vocaloid (1146)

Reason: There was another BUR for this a while back but I wanted to make an updated one that's more accurate. This is part 1, it only deals with Crypton Future Media.

All of these characters are owned by Crypton Future Media and also are no longer on the VOCALOID engine. They should instead just imply Crypton, since a post could depict a character cosplaying Miku's Piapro Studio design (Crypton's own internal engine and the home of these characters now).

The bulk update request #6764 is pending approval.

create implication ia_(vocaloid) (4) -> 1st_place_co. (1)
create implication gakupo_kamui (4) -> internet_co. (1)
create implication megpoid_gumi (19) -> internet_co. (1)
create implication otomachi_una (0) -> internet_co. (1)
create implication oliver_(vocaloid) (1) -> powerfx_systems (1)
create implication seeu (3) -> sbs_a&t (1)
create implication kizuna_akari (8) -> vocalomarkets (0)
create implication yuzuki_yukari (37) -> vocalomarkets (0)
create implication fukase_(vocaloid) (0) -> yamaha (28)

Reason: Part 2. Implying other vocal synths to their developers. Like the above, a lot of these are on other engines now such as Synthesizer V and CeVIO so it's best to not imply them to VOCALOID.

I like the idea of this in theory but it feels weird to completely take these characters away from the Vocaloid tag considering they are all associated as flagship Vocaloid characters and still exist in official Vocaloid media as Vocaloids - like the Project Diva games for example

I think that considering how to tag this is definitely a good idea hence the upvote as the "Vocaloid" characters are all owned by different companies for copyright but I also think that removing the association with the Vocaloid tag would make them unreasonably difficult to search

vubbyshark said:
I like the idea of this in theory but it feels weird to completely take these characters away from the Vocaloid tag considering they are all associated as flagship Vocaloid characters and still exist in official Vocaloid media as Vocaloids - like the Project Diva games for example

I think that considering how to tag this is definitely a good idea hence the upvote as the "Vocaloid" characters are all owned by different companies for copyright but I also think that removing the association with the Vocaloid tag would make them unreasonably difficult to search

That's fair, I'm also very hesitant. Though at the same time Miku is the only one currently implying VOCALOID and I can't see them returning any time soon as Crypton has torched their over-a-decade long partnership with Yamaha and have made their whole own software. VOCALOID is a sinking ship at this point, most of the major voicebanks have moved to other platforms.

I wonder if maybe a "vocal synth" tag akin to vtuber would be useful to at least keep them all together without potentially resulting in something like, a Miku NT picture or a Synth V design of a former VOCALOID being tagged VOCALOID via implication.

Project DIVA isn't really a VOCALOID product. It's a Crypton Future Media product. That's why it primarily features their characters.

nimphia said:
I wonder if maybe a "vocal synth" tag akin to vtuber would be useful

Personally I think this is a fanatastic idea, considering that the fandoms for all of these IPs is kind of "venn diagram that is a circle"

As someone who is very active in that particular fandom (I've made some covers myself using the software) I've also noticed an uptick in recent years using the term "vocal synth" to refer to all of them collectively, so I would argue that it's also a recognizable term for people who may want to search for these characters

I imagine the term "vocal synth" will also become more used with time since as you said, Vocaloid is a sinking ship and what is and isn't a vocaloid is becoming more confusing by the year.

This is definitely one of those situations where tagging by actual copyright holder vs fandom terms gets sticky. In short, I agree with using the vocal synth tag as a primary means of sheparding all of them into one easily searchable category

Project DIVA isn't really a VOCALOID product. It's a Crypton Future Media product. That's why it primarily features their characters.

You're very right, and the fact that I as a long time fan can get this mixed up is further proof of how complex all of this crap is lol

Was looking to see if I can find any examples of characters associated with certain software being depicted as their design from a different software already and found:

post #4119119

Kasane Teto doesn't imply UTAU, so this wasn't an issue to change. The white ribbon is exclusive to her design as a Synthesizer V voicebank.

post #2480649

This shouldn't have the VOCALOID tag - this is Hatsune Miku NT, a voicebank exclusive to Piapro Studio.

The bulk update request #6789 is pending approval.

create implication vocaloid (1146) -> vocal_synth (0)
create implication utau (683) -> vocal_synth (0)
create implication voiceroid (69) -> vocal_synth (0)
create implication synthesizer_v (9) -> vocal_synth (0)
create implication voicevox (51) -> vocal_synth (0)
create implication piapro_studio (2) -> vocal_synth (0)
create implication chipspeech (1) -> vocal_synth (0)

Reason: Just a proposal for a "Vocal Synth" umbrella tag, similar to vtuber. This would allow to tag characters who are between multiple softwares accurately without removing the ability to find voice synthesizers in one place, as the overlap between these softwares is so common.

(Ideally the characters that are between multiple softwares would then just imply vocal_synth and their owner, rather than a specific software like VOCALOID or UTAU?)

But at the same time I do understand if people are wary about this idea because of things like video_games in the past. I don't think this would be comparable, as unlike the medium of video games, the characters in vocal synthesis often aren't tied to any particular software and can be found on multiple engines, but I do understand the potential concern regardless :P

At the end of the day this is just an idea!

TIL vocaloid is the name of a specific software and not just a generic name for these character voices...

cloudpie said:
TIL vocaloid is the name of a specific software and not just a generic name for these character voices...

I think a lot of people have that misconception, since VOCALOID was the leading software on the market for a good handful of years. But yeah, VOCALOID is a specific software developed and owned by Yamaha. It's a super interesting rabbit hole (to me at least), VocaDB is a pretty handy resource.

cloudpie said:
TIL vocaloid is the name of a specific software and not just a generic name for these character voices...

It's pretty confusing even as someone part of the fandom because there ARE still people who call them all "Vocaloids" and generally they aren't corrected. So if you call Miku NT a Vocaloid you're not confusing anyone - specifically for the purpose of tagging on e621 where copyright is king for media/fandom tags, we have to get down in the dirt a bit

Bump

sounds too much like its referring to the type of software itself, and/or its result (e.g. a webm video with vocal synth speech or singing), rather than a character known for their vocal synth performances.

watsit said:
vocal_synth sounds too much like its referring to the type of software itself, and/or its result (e.g. a webm video with vocal synth speech or singing), rather than a character known for their vocal synth performances.

I would agree with you there, but it's what the wider fandom uses, and I think virtual_singer would get confused with vtubers since a lot of them also sing.

nimphia said:
The bulk update request #6789 is pending approval.

create implication vocaloid (1146) -> vocal_synth (0)
create implication utau (683) -> vocal_synth (0)
create implication voiceroid (69) -> vocal_synth (0)
create implication synthesizer_v (9) -> vocal_synth (0)
create implication voicevox (51) -> vocal_synth (0)
create implication piapro_studio (2) -> vocal_synth (0)
create implication chipspeech (1) -> vocal_synth (0)

I do like this a lot better than the vocaloid and utau implications! It is also more specific than virtual_singer since these characters technically belong to instruments and not singers. My only suggestion would be to consider using the full vocal_synthesizer rather than vocal_synth. Regardless, I am a fan.

I'd prefer them to be aliased, honestly. I have a feeling too many people will just tag the synth a character is associated with in their memory, even if the character isn't exclusive to that synth (e.g. people will still tag vocaloid for Hatsune Miku despite her not using Vocaloid anymore), and at least for characters that are still "in use" (or can be revived), there's nothing stopping them from switching synth engines so we could never be sure a character will be exclusive to some synth enough to tag it. And since most posts of the character won't feature the synth itself at all (either some visual/UI element, or what it produces in an audio track), it doesn't seem appropriate to tag it. This would be like tagging gordon_freeman with source_engine or game_engine, regardless of whether the post is hand-drawn, 2D, or using a game engine for any 3D renders.