Axtell EASY-TALK User manual

1
EASY-TALK T.M.
Animatronic Puppet System
V2 – Aug 2021
Thank you for purchasing our EASY-TALK system. The product will allow you
control a puppet’s mouth movement with an audio signal while the head moves
automatically on its own. It’s never been easier to bring a character to life!
More information and videos at axtell.com/easy-talk
Your system includes:
• EASY-TALK (Puppet base with servo controller and aluminum stand with
servos)
• Two 1/8” Mono Cables (for audio routing and playback)
• Stereo to Mono / Mono Splitter (for playback of audio)
• Power Supply
• (You may need to convert the plugs for foreign use)
• Optional sheet of foam to cut out and fit around your puppet (see videos)

2
FITTING A PUPPET TO THE EASY-TALK
For fitting a puppet to your EASY-TALK system, we recommend you use
puppets that do not restrict the servo’s range of motion. If the puppet does not
allow the servos to freely move in their full range, the restriction would eventually
burn them out and void the warranty. Because the EASY-TALK was designed to
work with a variety of puppets, you will find that some fit better than others.
Make sure you EASY-TALK is powered OFF before fitting a puppet.
To fit a puppet onto your EASY-TALK, gently guide the head of the EASY-TALK
stand through the hand entry hole of the puppet, placing the mouth plates of the
EASY-TALK into the mouth of the puppet. (Make sure that you move any loose
neck fabric/liner fabric out of the way of the EASY-TALK mouth plates when you
are guiding the head through the puppet so it doesn’t get hung up on the cloth).
Be patient and careful during this process as it can take some time depending on
the puppet.
Optional foam can be cut into pieces from the sheet provided, to help give
stability and fill out any empty cavities that need support.
Foam pieces may be taped in place prior to putting the puppet on, or in some
cases stuffed in around the pole inside the body after it has been put on the
Easy-Talk armature.

3
BIRD PERCH ADJUSTMENT
If you purchased the Bird Perch model of the EASY-TALK, you can move the
wooden perch bar to the correct height by slightly loosening the screws on the
back of the wooden bar, then re-tightening in the correct position. You can also
add Velcro as well to the bar and to your bird’s feet to keep them secure when
the bird rotates as well.
POWER INFORMATION
To power the unit, plug the included wall adapter into the servo controller in the
base of the EASY-TALK using the LEFT hole. The unit will turn on (there is no
on/off switch when using the wall adapter).
If you purchased the optional battery pack, install 4 AA batteries and plug the
pack securely into the battery connector port in the back of the EASY-TALK
base, making sure to orient the plug so that the black wire is on the left side
of the plug and the red wire is on the right as seen in the photo above.
To power on the battery, flip the power switch on the pack to the “on” position.
WARNING: Do NOT power your EASY-TALK with the Wall adapter and
battery pack at the same time or this will damage the unit and void the
warranty. Please disconnect or remove the battery pack when not in
use. If you are using the battery pack, disconnect the wall power
adapter.

4
OPERATING THE UNIT
(Your EASY-TALK’s servo controller has already been calibrated. If you need
to make any adjustments, please contact [email protected]).
Make sure to power off your Easy-Talk for 10-15 minutes after
approximately 30 minutes of use to extend the life of the servos.
When the EASY-TALK is powered on, the head will automatically and randomly move on its
own. This motion is preset and becomes more active when the character is talking.
To control the mouth movement of the puppet, you will need to connect an audio source to the
audio in jack on the EASY-TALK base, using the included 1/8’ aux cable through the hole on the
right.
Any audio signal will cause the mouth servo to respond. There are two main ways to operate:
Using a pre-recorded track or using a microphone.
The mouth servo will respond to any audio signal (music OR voice) so for the best effect, make
sure the audio channel you are sending to the EASY-TALK is just the voice you want your
puppet to respond too. The other channel, going to your speaker, can have the voice (so
everyone can hear your puppet talking) as well as any background music or sound effects.
Note: It is normal for the servos to make noise/hum when the unit is operating. The body
of the puppet will help absorb the sound, as well as having your speaker volume loud for
when the character talks. You can also use background music!
PLAYING BACK PRE-RECORDED AUDIO
You can use a phone, laptop, or other media device to make your puppet talk. Simply use the
included headphone splitter (tip=left channel, ring=right channel on the splitter) and cables to
send the left audio channel to the EASY-TALK and the right channel to your sound system. The
left side should only have the voice on it, which will move the mouth. The right channel will have
the voice on it going to your PA so your audience can hear it, AND can also have any sound
effects or music on it too! (Audacity is a great free audio editing software that can be used to
record and set up routines with the Dinky voice on the left and the voice and music for the PA
on the right).
The volume level going to your EASY-TALK usually needs to be as high as possible (90-100%)
for best results on your playback device (phone, computer, soundboard, etc) You can always
turn down your speaker if the volume is too loud to listen to.

5
USING A MICROPHONE FOR LIVE AUDIO
To use a microphone to make your Dinky talk, you will need to plug in a microphone to a sound
board or mixer that allows you to increase the gain/signal so the audio is loud enough (a
microphone plugged straight into the DINKY-TALK will not have enough signal to move the
mouth). You would then split the output of the soundboard to go your DINKY-TALK as well as a
powered speaker or sound system. Depending on your soundboard, you can use an auxiliary
send to send audio to the Dinky and adjust audio to the correct volume, while using the main
output on the soundboard to send audio to the speakers.
Troubleshooting:
Mouth stays wide open during audio playback - If your character’s mouth is staying wide
open the whole time, this means the incoming audio signal is too loud…try dropping the volume
on your playback device or microphone a bit to get more movement.)
Mouth doesn’t respond to audio- If your character’s mouth isn’t moving at all, it could be that
the incoming volume is too low and needs to be boosted on your playback device or
microphone.
Make sure when you are recording voices or routines that your audio is loud and normalized,
and that your audio playback device has its output volume maxed.
Tech Support is available at [email protected].