v2.1.0 - Gapless Audio & Continuous Conversation

Major Features

🎵 Gapless Audio Playback

• Implemented persistent stream sessions for seamless multi-chunk audio
• Filler audio flows directly into response chunks with no gaps
• Works with both Teddy Ruxpin (44.1kHz) and Squawkers McCaw (48kHz)

💬 Continuous Conversation Mode

• Multi-turn dialogues without requiring wake word for each turn
• Natural back-and-forth conversation flow
• Configurable conversation timeout

⚡ RVC Warmup

• Pre-loads RVC models during startup
• Eliminates first-use delay for voice conversion
• Faster initial responses

🚗 New Kitt Personality

• K.I.T.T. from Knight Rider with RVC voice conversion
• Custom voice model integration
• Complete with character-appropriate responses

⚙️ Configurable Filler Audio

• New ENABLE_FILLER_AUDIO environment variable
• Option to disable filler phrases for faster responses
• Maintains backwards compatibility

Improvements

• macOS Audio Fixes: Resolved audio playback hangs and stream timeout issues
• RVC Index Feature: Enabled index_rate for better voice quality (fixed faiss/PyTorch OpenMP conflict)
• Transcript Validation: Prevents responses to empty or meaningless speech (um, uh, etc.)
• Audio Recorder: Enhanced reliability for continuous conversation mode
• Documentation: Updated setup and configuration guides

Bug Fixes

• Fixed CoreAudio stream abandonment strategy on macOS
• Resolved audio recorder restart issues in continuous mode
• Fixed multiple playback timing and buffer management issues
• Corrected buffer drain timing to prevent stream close timeouts

Technical Details

New APIs:

• AudioPlayer.start_playback_session()
• AudioPlayer.write_session_chunk()
• AudioPlayer.end_playback_session()

Backwards Compatibility:

• All changes are backwards compatible
• Existing play_stereo() API maintained for single-shot playback
• No breaking changes to configuration or personality files

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Full Changelog: v2.0.0...v2.1.0