Chrona

Local text-to-speech and MP3 conversion for everyday documents.

PySide6 Offline TTS v1.0.0


Chrona is a lightweight desktop text-to-speech utility that reads local TXT, DOCX, and PDF files aloud, exports them as MP3, or does both in one pass through a compact desktop interface.

What is Chrona?

Chrona is a desktop utility built around one simple workflow: choose a document, extract its text, and convert it into speech or an MP3 file.

It is designed for local use and keeps the entire text-to-speech pipeline on the user’s machine instead of relying on a web service or cloud API.

The goal is not to be a giant accessibility suite. It is a focused tool for turning documents into spoken output quickly, with a small interface and a predictable workflow.

Features

Document Support

Reads .txt, .docx, and .pdf files through dedicated text extraction handlers.

Speak, Export, or Both

Supports three output modes: speak only, MP3 only, or a combined mode that performs both in one run.

Voice Selection

Exposes available system voices through a dropdown so playback can be adjusted without touching the code.

Speech Rate Control

Includes a speed slider for tuning playback rate directly inside the application.

MP3 Export

Converts spoken output into MP3 files and stores them in a dedicated Chrona folder inside the user’s Documents directory.

Status Logging

Reports conversion progress, output paths, and errors directly inside the application UI.

Why Chrona Exists

Chrona was built around a very straightforward need: turning written material into spoken output without depending on an online service or bloated software stack.

  • Pick a document
  • Extract its text
  • Choose a voice and speed
  • Speak it aloud or export it as audio
  • Keep everything local and repeatable

Instead of stretching into a full productivity suite, Chrona keeps the scope narrow and focuses on making that workflow easy.

Installation

Select the installation method appropriate for your platform.

yay -S chrona-bin
curl -fsSL https://github.com/Cypher-Monarch/Chrona/releases/download/v1.0.0/install.sh | sudo bash

Installer

Standard Windows installation experience.

Download Installer

Portable

No installation required.

Download Portable

How It Works


Document File
    ↓
TXT / DOCX / PDF Reader
    ↓
Extracted Text
    ↓
Voice + Speed Selection
    ↓
TTS Engine
    ↓
Speech / MP3 / Both

Chrona loads a supported document, extracts its text using the appropriate parser, applies the selected voice and speech rate, and then either speaks the result aloud, exports it as MP3, or performs both operations in sequence.

File Locations

~/Documents/Chrona
  • Generated MP3 exports are stored here
  • Temporary WAV files are created during MP3 conversion
  • Chrona uses this directory as its default audio output location

Technical Details

Desktop Stack

  • PySide6 for the GUI
  • pyttsx3 for text-to-speech
  • pydub for MP3 conversion/export
  • PyPDF2 for PDF text extraction
  • python-docx for DOCX parsing

Application Flow

  • Loads a file through a desktop file picker
  • Routes it through the correct document reader
  • Applies selected voice and speed settings
  • Runs speech output, MP3 export, or both
  • Logs results and errors inside the application

Output Handling

  • Creates a Chrona directory under Documents if needed
  • Uses a temporary WAV as part of MP3 export
  • Exports the final MP3 and removes the temporary file
  • Keeps the entire workflow local and file-based

Quality-of-Life Features

  • Advanced options toggle for output mode selection
  • Confirmation prompt before conversion begins
  • Status panel for progress and error feedback
  • Basic update check against the GitHub version file

Final Note

Simple on purpose.