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SmallTalk — $2495

The Smalltalk anti-stuttering device immediately reduces stuttering, while training you to no longer need the device.

It's the smallest anti-stuttering device that provides both delayed auditory feedback (DAF) and octave-scale frequency-altered auditory feedback (FAF). Combining DAF and FAF reduces stuttering 70-80%, without training, speech therapy, mental effort, or abnormal-sounding or abnormally slow speech. The user hears his or her voice in his or her ear delayed slightly and shifted lower in pitch.

Over time the SmallTalk trains carryover fluency so the user needs the device less and less. A study of nine adult stutterers found that using our School DAF thirty minutes per day for three months resulted in 55% less stuttering when not wearing the device.

Combining a SmallTalk with stuttering therapy can increase effectiveness closer to 100%. Your speech-language pathologist can adjust the controls to induce slow, relaxed speech in the speech clinic, and then you can adjust the controls for normal-sounding speech in conversations.

The SmallTalk works with all standard headphones and microphones. We recommend using the device with the provided Sennheiser PC131 full-size headset.

The full-size headset gives you the best sound quality and maximizes the SmallTalk's effectiveness. By using the full-size headset on telephone calls, in speech therapy, and in stressful conversations such as public speaking, you'll maximize carryover fluency and not need to use the device for lower-stress conversations. When you show the full-size headset to listeners and say that you're using an anti-stuttering device listeners will want to try the device to hear what it sounds like. Then they'll ask you questions about stuttering and you'll discover that there's no reason to be ashamed or embarrassed about your speech.

The SmallTalk also works with wired cellphone earsets, including the provided Plantronics MX100S binaural (two ear) earset.

And the SmallTalk works with Bluetooth wireless cellphone earsets. A Jabra BT5020 Bluetooth earset is included.

The miniature earsets are comfortable and inconspicuous, however, the sound quality isn't as good as the full-size headset so your speech won't be as good. Also if you try to hide your stuttering you'll increase your fears and anxieties and possibly make your speech worse.

The SmallTalk is the only anti-stuttering device that works in noisy environments, such as classrooms or restaurants. The Sennheiser PC131 headset has a noise-canceling microphone to eliminate noise at the source. Then miniature earsets pick up background noise but electronic circuits in the SmallTalk filter high-frequency noise above your vocal range and boost your voice while reducing the volume of background noise. Lastly, the SmallTalk has a push-to-talk button that completely eliminates background noise anywhere. The push-to-talk feature is ideal for a student in a classroom who is mostly listening to the teacher and only is called on to talk occasionally, or if you go out to dinner with friends and spend more time listening than talking.

The SmallTalk plugs into telephones. You hear your voice and the caller's voice in both ears; the caller hears your normal voice. Leave your SmallTalk plugged into your telephone and practice speech therapy on every call. About fifteen states provide the SmallTalk or other Casa Futura Technologies anti-stuttering devices free to qualified residents who stutter. (Not compatible with Nokia cellphones.)

Technical Specifications

• DAF range 30 milliseconds to 200 milliseconds. User-adjustable.
• FAF range: +0.8, +0.6, +0.4, 0, -0.4, -0.8, -1.2 octaves. User-adjustable.
• Binaural (two ear) or monaural (one ear) sound. Binaural sound is 25% more effective than monaural sound and is recommended for severe stutterers; mild stutterers may be able to use monaural sound.
• 35-7500 Hz frequency range clearly reproduces all vocal frequencies of adults and children.
• Rechargeable battery lasts about 25 hours. Charges like a cellphone.
• Gray case, with belt clip. For the fashion conscious, special order a SmallTalk in one of four translucent colors: red, blue, green, or gray. The translucent cases don't have belt clips.
• Two 3.5mm jacks for any standard microphone and headphones. One 2.5mm jack for any standard cellphone earset.
• 3" x 2.25" x 0.75" (7.5 x 6 x 1.75 cm). About the size of an iPod Mini.
• 2.8 ounces (80 grams).

Included Accessories

• Sennheiser PC131 binaural (two ears) lightweight headset
• Plantronics MX100S binaural (two ears) earset
• Jabra BT5020 Bluetooth wireless earset and GN1110 Bluetooth wireless transmitter
• Telephone cable
• Small screwdriver for adjusting controls
• Battery charger (110- or 220-volt)
• Micro belt case
• No Miracle Cures: A Multifactoral Guide to Stuttering Therapy book with video