Hello, I have seen conflicting descriptions of the vowel sounds.

@d13579
Beginners should learn the formal pronunciations. In casual usage there are some variations you may notice...A is like the “ah” sound in “father”. Casually it can sound more like “cup” sometimes. (but never like “apple”).
i as in “machine” or “beet” is correct. Ending “i” sounds will sometimes sound like “e” sounds, for example, “lalaki” may sound like “lalake”.
O as in “sold” and “old” is correct. As in the first o in “octopus” is wrong. Sometimes an ending “o” can sound more like “u”. (Ex: youtu.be/lajnSJZpI34 timestamp 1:40, “at tinuruan mo ang puso ko na umibig na tunay”, “puso” sounds kind of like “pusu”).
U as in “rude” and “moon” is correct. As in “book” is wrong. These sounds can also vary in combination...”ay” sounds like the “i” in “like,” for example. There may be some others I’m missing.

Thank you for taking the time for answering me. So second list was better except for A. Originally i was trying to use Spanish vowels but the “cut” for A threw me off. Would you happen to know how much vowels are the same or different as Spanish vowels? Also do you hear the I come out as an “i as in Mitt” i cant tell if thats my untrained ear or if that is a variation of I for some words. I heard it it GAmit.A father
E bed
I machine
O sold/old
U rude/moon

@d13579
Sure...”i” can sound more like “i” in “sit” or “e” as in “set” sometimes...It might be helpful to use the Youtube videos here for self research, too. There’s a search function where you can search through 150+ hours of Youtube transcribed text in a natural context, to listen to natural pronunciations of words for self research. For example there are tons examples in that audio if “pancit” and “gamit” you can review.
Quick link:
www.tagalog.com/list ening-practice/searc h_transcripts.php

Tbh you are supposed to exagerate the “I” sound panseeet , kapateed, however just like any language (especially English) when multiple words are combined together in “connected speach” you drop the exageration .