TTS benchmark now counts audible audio, driving Gradium from 430ms to 214ms latency

mattturck · x · 2026-09-11

Benchmark org Coval found most TTS latency benchmarks stop the clock when any audio packet arrives — even if it's silence. After switching to time the first hearable audio, Gradium's latency jumped from 172ms to 430ms with zero model or infra changes: their audio arrived fast, but opened with up to 655ms of dead air.

Gradium used that signal to retrain their default model and now hits 214ms, about 170ms faster. Coval's advice: when comparing TTS providers on latency, check what the number actually measures.

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