docs(frank-tts): the contract table gains its Default voice row

#18 shipped DEFAULT_VOICE and #17 explained why the harness cannot name a voice from a setting, but the endpoint page still described voice resolution as if every request carried a name. One contract row, one paragraph in Naming a voice (a call that names nothing is the harness default shape, not a client bug), the env-file row now lists the default voice among its knobs, and the worklog records the rollout: both merges, the one-dispatch deploy with the 33/33 gate, the card flipping to up on the next checker tick, and the previously failing call returning 430124 bytes with the journal reading "speech voice=narrator1 (default)".

dankclaw/voiceservice/app.py

@@ -7,7 +7,10 @@ Consumers (the omp harness, OpenWebUI, open-notebook) speak the OpenAI
 directory under ``$VOICES_DIR`` and ``reference.wav`` inside it is what makes
 the name real. A name that has no reference is not a voice — the shim answers
 400 with the list that is, instead of silently narrating in a fallback voice
-(silent fallback is how a wrong-voice endpoint stays wrong for weeks).
+(silent fallback is how a wrong-voice endpoint stays wrong for weeks). A request
+that names NO voice at all takes ``$DEFAULT_VOICE``: that is a spoken choice in
+the env file rather than a surprise in the code, and the journal marks it
+``(default)`` so a name nobody asked for is never mistaken for one that was.
 
 Two backends sit behind the one surface, chosen by ``TTS_BACKEND``:
 
@@ -70,7 +73,7 @@ class Config:
 
     def __init__(self, voices_dir, backend, upstream, upstream_model, llama_bin,
                  llama_model, llama_mmproj, llama_lang, llama_threads, port,
-                 max_chars, timeout):
+                 max_chars, timeout, default_voice=""):
         self.voices_dir = Path(voices_dir)
         self.backend = backend
         self.upstream = upstream
@@ -83,6 +86,7 @@ class Config:
         self.port = port
         self.max_chars = max_chars
         self.timeout = timeout
+        self.default_voice = default_voice
 
     @classmethod
     def from_env(cls, environ=None):
@@ -100,6 +104,7 @@ class Config:
             port=_int(env, "SHIM_PORT", 7772),
             max_chars=_int(env, "SHIM_MAX_CHARS", 15000),
             timeout=float(_int(env, "SHIM_TIMEOUT", 600)),
+            default_voice=(env.get("DEFAULT_VOICE") or "").strip(),
         )
 
 
@@ -271,8 +276,13 @@ class SpeechHandler(BaseHTTPRequestHandler):
                                    "endpoint serves wav and mp3" % fmt))
             return
 
-        # `voice_id` is the alias the omp harness forwards for `voice`.
+        # `voice_id` is the alias the omp harness forwards for `voice`. A request
-        voice = body.get("voice") or body.get("voice_id")
+        # that names nothing takes the declared default — the harness has no
+        # setting that feeds a voice, so voice-less calls are the normal shape
+        # there, not a client bug.
+        requested = body.get("voice") or body.get("voice_id")
+        defaulted = not requested and bool(cfg.default_voice)
+        voice = requested or cfg.default_voice
         reference = resolve_voice(cfg.voices_dir, voice)
         if reference is None:
             available = list_voices(cfg.voices_dir)
@@ -297,8 +307,9 @@ class SpeechHandler(BaseHTTPRequestHandler):
 
         content_type = MP3_CONTENT_TYPE if fmt == "mp3" else WAV_CONTENT_TYPE
         self._bytes(200, audio, content_type)
-        self.log_message("speech voice=%s format=%s chars=%d -> %d bytes %s",
+        self.log_message("speech voice=%s%s format=%s chars=%d -> %d bytes %s",
-                         voice, fmt, len(text), len(audio), content_type)
+                         voice, " (default)" if defaulted else "", fmt,
+                         len(text), len(audio), content_type)
 
     # -- backends ----------------------------------------------------------
     def _speech_http(self, cfg, model, text, voice, reference):

scripts/frank-tts.env

@@ -57,6 +57,16 @@ TTS_BACKEND=omni-http
 TTS_UPSTREAM=http://frank-tts-engine:8880
 TTS_UPSTREAM_MODEL=voxcpm2
 
+# THE DEFAULT VOICE — what a request that names NO voice speaks. The omp harness
+# has no setting that feeds a voice to its speech device (`voice_id` is a
+# per-call argument; `speech.voice` belongs to the TUI's Kokoro speak-aloud and
+# never reaches an HTTP request), so a harness voiceover arrives voice-less and
+# would otherwise be a 400 for every caller that does not name one. An UNKNOWN
+# name still 400s with the list that exists — this covers the absent case only —
+# and the journal marks such a line `(default)` so an unrequested voice never
+# reads as a requested one. Any pack directory in /home/dank/voices is legal.
+DEFAULT_VOICE=narrator1
+
 # CLI-backend knobs, inert while TTS_BACKEND=omni-http. Empty means "not
 # configured": the endpoint answers a 500 that says so instead of running
 # `nice env -m ...` with an empty binary name.

serverAppConfigs-docs/Dankclaw/Frank TTS.md

@@ -35,6 +35,7 @@ render needs the app installed, not this endpoint.
 | Networks | `dankclaw_default` first (it owns the default route and the consumers), then `frank-tts-engine.network` (10.89.5.0/24, the bridge to the engine) |
 | Voice packs | `/home/dank/voices` mounted read-only at `/voices` — host state, never repo state |
 | Upstream | `http://frank-tts-engine:8880` (`scripts/frank-tts.env`, `TTS_UPSTREAM`) |
+| Default voice | `DEFAULT_VOICE` (`scripts/frank-tts.env`) answers a request that names none; the journal marks that line `(default)`, and an **unknown** name is still a 400 |
 | Rollback | `TTS_BACKEND=llama-tts-cli` runs a CLI binary per request and needs no upstream at all |
 
 ## Naming a voice
@@ -42,7 +43,9 @@ render needs the app installed, not this endpoint.
 A voice **is** a directory name. `voice=narrator1` resolves to
 `/voices/narrator1/reference.wav`, and that file — not a manifest, not a config
 entry — is what makes the name real. omp's TTS device may send `voice_id`; the
-shim accepts either.
+shim accepts either. A call that sends **neither** — the harness's normal shape,
+because no harness setting carries a voice for this transport — speaks
+`$DEFAULT_VOICE`; empty default makes it a 400 again.
 
 The usable shape is `^[a-z0-9][a-z0-9._-]*$`: lowercase, starting with a letter
 or digit, then letters, digits, `.`, `_`, `-`, at most 64 characters. No slash,
@@ -114,7 +117,7 @@ shows up as a failed synthesis, never as a down probe.
 | `dankclaw/voiceservice/Containerfile` | python 3.12-alpine pinned by digest + ffmpeg, uid 10000 |
 | `dankclaw/voiceservice/quadlet/frank-tts.container` | the unit: two networks, `Restart=always`, `HealthCmd`, `[Install]` |
 | `dankclaw/voiceservice/quadlet/frank-tts-engine.network` | the shared bridge, named after the engine unit and attached by both |
-| `scripts/frank-tts.env` | backend, upstream, port, limits — paths and numbers, no credentials |
+| `scripts/frank-tts.env` | backend, upstream, port, limits, and the default voice — paths and numbers, no credentials |
 | `tests/frank_tts_unit.bats` | the shim against stub engines over real sockets |
 | `tests/frank_tts_engine.bats` | the pair's wiring: generator output, planner, homepage, deployer |
 
@@ -154,17 +157,24 @@ The operator harness reaches this endpoint through
 `baseUrl: http://192.168.0.143:7772/v1`, `auth: none`, and the runner api
 `openai-speech` on the **model** row (naming a runner api at *provider* level
 fails the whole file's validation and disables every custom provider, which is
-how the fleet's chat endpoints disappear) — plus `config.yml`:
+how the fleet's chat endpoints disappear) — plus `config.yml`
-`modelRoles.speech: frank-tts (dankclaw)/frank-tts` and `speech.voice:
+`modelRoles.speech: frank-tts (dankclaw)/frank-tts`. Four laws, read out of the
-narrator1`. Three laws, read out of the harness bundle and measured the day of
+harness bundle and measured the day of the flip:
-the flip:
 
-- **The forwarded voice key is `speech.voice`, not `tts.localVoice`.** The
+- **The only voice the harness can send is the `voice_id` argument of the call.**
-  latter belongs to the local Kokoro backend and still carries `bm_george`; it
+  The transport builds `{model, input, response_format, voice?}` and adds `voice`
-  is what answered when the role pointed at `local/kokoro`. `speech.voice`
+  **only** when the caller passed `voice_id`; no setting feeds it.
-  becomes the request's `voice`, and this endpoint treats an unknown name as an
+  `tts.localVoice` is the *local Kokoro backend's* voice (it is what answered
-  error rather than a default — so a Kokoro-style revert has to move **both**
+  `voice=kokoro/bm_george, backend=local` in the control test), and
-  keys together.
+  `speech.voice` is the TUI's **speak-aloud** voice — its enum is Kokoro's list,
+  and it never reaches an HTTP request. So a harness call arrives voice-less by
+  default, which is exactly why the endpoint grew `DEFAULT_VOICE`: the declared
+  pack answers a voice-less request and the journal marks that line `(default)`,
+  while an **unknown** name still 400s with the list that exists.
+- **`speech.voice` must stay a Kokoro name.** Setting it to a pack name does not
+  select a pack; it hands the vocalizer a value outside its enum. (The first
+  draft of this section said the opposite and was reverted the same day, after a
+  fresh session's call came back `unknown voice None`.)
 - **There is no silent fallback.** An explicitly configured `modelRoles.speech`
   yields exactly one candidate, so a dead 7772 fails the speech device with
   *"No available speech model matches the speech role"* instead of quietly

serverAppConfigs-docs/log.md

@@ -2706,9 +2706,10 @@ every restart since the cutover.
   actually selects a voice. Engine-side ledger for the harness request:
   `TTFA 67.5 ms`, `Total 2158.8 ms`, `audio 3.76 s, RTF 0.574`.
 - **The harness `speech` role moved off Kokoro**: `config.yml`
-  `modelRoles.speech: frank-tts (dankclaw)/frank-tts` and `speech.voice:
+  `modelRoles.speech: frank-tts (dankclaw)/frank-tts`. No voice key moves with it.
-  narrator1`. `tts.localVoice` stays `bm_george` — that key belongs to the local
+  The bundle is unambiguous: the speech device forwards the call's `voice_id` and
-  backend, which is what answered in the control test.
+  nothing else, `tts.localVoice` belongs to the local backend (it is what answered
+  in the control test), and `speech.voice` is the TUI's speak-aloud enum.
 - Two harness laws learned by breaking it first (both now on [[Frank TTS]]): an
   explicit speech role has **no fallback candidate**, so a dead endpoint errors
   instead of degrading; and `models.yml` loads at process start while
@@ -2722,3 +2723,34 @@ every restart since the cutover.
   voice leg works; open-notebook itself is what is missing), the engine page's
   "Deploy order — nothing below has been run" is now a **Deploy record**, and the
   homepage card lost `wip: down` so the admin panel probes 7772 for real.
+- Corrected the same evening, by breaking it in a restarted session: a harness
+  call that names no voice reaches 7772 with **no `voice` key at all** — `400
+  unknown voice None; available voices: narrator1, narrator2, narrator3` —
+  because no setting feeds one. The earlier `Saved 180524 bytes
+  (voice=narrator1)` succeeded only because that run was *told* to pass
+  `voice_id`. The endpoint therefore grew `DEFAULT_VOICE` (its own PR): a
+  voice-less request speaks the declared pack and the journal line carries
+  `(default)`, while an unknown name still 400s with the list. Reverting the role
+  to Kokoro is one key, not two, and `speech.voice: narrator1` — briefly recorded
+  above as wiring — went back to `am_fenrir`: that key is the vocalizer's Kokoro
+  enum, so a pack name there breaks speak-aloud and does nothing for synthesis.
+
+## 2026-10-18 — the default voice shipped: a harness voiceover needs no voice
+
+- Merged **#17** (`b590695`) and **#18** (`7889a68`), then deployed both affected
+  services in one dispatch — `--service frank-tts --service homepage`, 159 s,
+  Playwright gate 33/33. The shim image rebuilt with the new handler; the
+  homepage checker took the card on its next timer tick: `frank-tts → up`,
+  probed for real rather than gated.
+- The call that had failed is the one that proves the fix. Same device, same
+  restarted session, **no** `voice_id`: `Saved 430124 bytes (model=frank-tts
+  (dankclaw)/frank-tts, voice=default, codec=wav)`. The façade journal says what
+  actually spoke — `speech voice=narrator1 (default) format=wav chars=148 ->
+  430124 bytes` — with the engine's ledger behind it (`audio 8.96 s, RTF 0.551`).
+  The harness prints `voice=default` because it never had a name to print; the
+  voice that answered is the operator's line in `scripts/frank-tts.env`, and the
+  journal keeps them distinguishable forever after.
+- The page gained a **Default voice** row in its contract table and
+  [[#Naming a voice]] now states that a call naming nothing is the harness's
+  normal shape, not a client bug — the misconception that produced the 400 in
+  the first place.

tests/frank_tts_unit.bats

@@ -183,6 +183,37 @@ assert 'voice_id' not in body, body
 PY
 }
 
+@test "a voice-less request speaks the declared default and marks the log" {
+    # The omp harness has no setting that feeds a voice to its speech device, so
+    # a voice-less call is its NORMAL shape rather than a client bug. With the
+    # operator's default armed the call must produce that pack's audio, and the
+    # journal line must say (default) — otherwise an unrequested voice reads,
+    # weeks later, exactly like one somebody asked for.
+    arm_omni
+    export DEFAULT_VOICE=narrator1
+    start_app
+    speech '{"model":"tts-1","input":"hello"}'
+    [ "$output" = "200" ] || { cat "$TEST_TMP/app.log"; false; }
+    cmp "$TEST_TMP/out.bin" "$TEST_TMP/upstream.wav"
+    python3 - "$TEST_TMP/capture.json" <<'PY'
+import json, sys
+body = json.load(open(sys.argv[1]))
+assert body['voice'] == 'narrator1', 'the declared default never reached the engine'
+PY
+    grep -q 'speech voice=narrator1 (default) format=wav' "$TEST_TMP/app.log" \
+        || { cat "$TEST_TMP/app.log"; false; }
+}
+
+@test "with no default declared a voice-less request stays a 400" {
+    # Strictness is still the code default: an endpoint that invents a voice
+    # nobody configured is exactly how a wrong-voice deployment stays wrong.
+    arm_omni
+    start_app
+    speech '{"model":"tts-1","input":"hello"}'
+    [ "$output" = "400" ] || { cat "$TEST_TMP/app.log"; false; }
+    grep -q 'narrator1' "$TEST_TMP/out.bin"
+}
+
 @test "an unknown voice is a 400 naming the voices that exist" {
     arm_omni
     start_app