OK, HERES WHAT I GOT; JBL 15" POWERED SPEAKERS, RSQ KARAOKE PLAYERS (2, 1 FOR BACK-UP), PEAVEY 3 CHANNEL MIXER (MAY HAVE TO UPGRADE), AN HP PAVILLION NOTEBOOK(IF NEEDED) I WANT TO USE A DESKTOP THOUGH SO I CAN MOUNT THE TOWER IN MY RACK CASE. I KNOW I NEED A MONITOR & KEYBOARD IF DESKTOP IS USED, I AM THINKING COMPUHOST AS A HOSTER BUT AM OPEN TO SUGGESTIONS, THEN I KNOW I HAVE MY WORK CUT OUT DOWNLOADING ETC. BUT ANY ADDITIONAL EQUIPMENT I'M FORGETTING?
ALSO, MY DISCS HAVE BEEN AROUND A WHILE AND MORE THAN LIKELY NEED RESURFACING, IS DISC DR. A DECENT REMEDY?
THANKS FOR READING YET ANOTHER, "WHAT DO I DO" POST!
KEVIN
SAME OL' SAME OL' WHAT DO I NEED? DISC TO PC
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cowboydarryl
- Posts: 40
- Joined: Thu Mar 22, 2007 9:27 pm
- Location: Hartford wisconsin
Hi Kevin
I also run my computers rackmounted, with wirerless keyboard & mouse(less wires to hook up) and a 17" LCD. Ill address this first how are you going to rackmount your desktop?? As is, a desktop is not rackmount friendly. To solve this problom I went with a 2U server case(rackmountible) It comes with a PCI riser (because of the short case (2U) any vidio or sound card will not fit plugged into the motherboard) this allows them to be mounted parallel to the motherboard. http://www.plinkusa.net/web2015SF.htm# You would need to trasfer you computers components to this case. This will give you an Idea.
compuhost, vidiohoster are both good,Im not sure if they come with the software to convert CD+G to MP3+G maybe someone else can answer that. I use Roxbox by KJamp the Karaoke suite comes with the CDG & super CDG converter software and song book generator.
Yeah upgrade the mixer!! I run 16 channel mixers with DSP effects. You should get 10 channnel min. I like the 16 because it to, is rack mountible(everything can remain plugged in) makes setup much easyer and wireing stays protected!!
As for Equipment missing. Mic's? I run 4 cordless mic's(I just overloaded your mixer) LOL. A small TV? A TV stand? A floor audio monitor(not a must have) but there are going to be times when depending on your setups that it is very nice to have! Fender makes a very small powered 100 watt 10" monitor a little pricey at $260.00 but the size & output make it worth it! Power condtioner(a must have) Most have 8 outlets this allows you to run all your eqip. through it.
Well that should get you started. Did I miss anything guys?? you can add more toys as you go. Subs, compreser, lights, smoke machine ect. Hope this helps
I also run my computers rackmounted, with wirerless keyboard & mouse(less wires to hook up) and a 17" LCD. Ill address this first how are you going to rackmount your desktop?? As is, a desktop is not rackmount friendly. To solve this problom I went with a 2U server case(rackmountible) It comes with a PCI riser (because of the short case (2U) any vidio or sound card will not fit plugged into the motherboard) this allows them to be mounted parallel to the motherboard. http://www.plinkusa.net/web2015SF.htm# You would need to trasfer you computers components to this case. This will give you an Idea.
compuhost, vidiohoster are both good,Im not sure if they come with the software to convert CD+G to MP3+G maybe someone else can answer that. I use Roxbox by KJamp the Karaoke suite comes with the CDG & super CDG converter software and song book generator.
Yeah upgrade the mixer!! I run 16 channel mixers with DSP effects. You should get 10 channnel min. I like the 16 because it to, is rack mountible(everything can remain plugged in) makes setup much easyer and wireing stays protected!!
As for Equipment missing. Mic's? I run 4 cordless mic's(I just overloaded your mixer) LOL. A small TV? A TV stand? A floor audio monitor(not a must have) but there are going to be times when depending on your setups that it is very nice to have! Fender makes a very small powered 100 watt 10" monitor a little pricey at $260.00 but the size & output make it worth it! Power condtioner(a must have) Most have 8 outlets this allows you to run all your eqip. through it.
Well that should get you started. Did I miss anything guys?? you can add more toys as you go. Subs, compreser, lights, smoke machine ect. Hope this helps
Hey, Thanks for the info. I already have a standing gig at a local casino, so I have the monitor/stand, mikes, mike stands, speaker stands, lights, etc. The thing is it's time to move to pc instead of discs. I am going to follow your advice and check into the items you mentioned and see what I come up with. Thanks Man! I didn't want to sound completely lost as to what I needed. You helped out a lot. Kevin
I run CompuHost and have run it since Februrary 2008. Before that I was running RoxBox. I like CompuHost much better. For ripping I suggest getting PwoerKaraoke's CD+G Burner as it rips with the same quality of Video Hoster but in the MP3+G zipped format. Making books is easy with Compuhost if you also get FAst Tracks. The basic edition will do. all you do is export your database from Compuhost and import it into fast tracks using the import from csv file.
One thing though. going desktop or rackmount is going be heavy as heck to carry. I went with a laptop for that very reason. It was also the reason I switched from RoxBox to CompuHost because at the time they were reporting issues with Winamp and Vista at that time. They've solved that recently though. But I won't go back to RoxBox for running shows now that I have experienced how easy CompuHost is
One thing though. going desktop or rackmount is going be heavy as heck to carry. I went with a laptop for that very reason. It was also the reason I switched from RoxBox to CompuHost because at the time they were reporting issues with Winamp and Vista at that time. They've solved that recently though. But I won't go back to RoxBox for running shows now that I have experienced how easy CompuHost is
I had the rack Vs laptop debate and I tried really hard to talk myself into a rack mount computer. I ended up with laptops (2). The reason is simple. I now own a back up everything. Including monitor, battery backup, keyboard, mouse, OS, video and audio cards. The laptop weighs 7 pounds. And I can swap it out in 10 miuntes. That's how long it will take to replace anything that goes wrong. How much does the rack mount weigh? And do you plan on having back up rack case and monitor Etc? One piece of equipment fails and you go home empty handed. And what if it's a $15,000 wedding and you have no way to finish? Can you afford to pay the bride and groom $15,000 for ruining the entire day?
Anyone doing computer karaoke without a back up computer is an idiot. Too many variables. A back up computer is an insurance policy to protect your reputation.
Anyone doing computer karaoke without a back up computer is an idiot. Too many variables. A back up computer is an insurance policy to protect your reputation.
I will echo Bigdog's comments on having backups on hand. Just Saturday night my mixer/amplifier went on me. Thank god I had my back up Amplifier already mounted in the rack and the backup mixer in the car. Took me five minutes to change out the bad amp and the mixer. But I should have known something like this was going to happen because I wanted to use the broken mixer amplifier as a mixer and hook it into my more powerful Power Amp.
Git the mixer/amplifier because it offered more setting controls on it for finer adjustments than the mixer I am now forced to use until I earn enough money to replace it with a better mixer.
Git the mixer/amplifier because it offered more setting controls on it for finer adjustments than the mixer I am now forced to use until I earn enough money to replace it with a better mixer.
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cowboydarryl
- Posts: 40
- Joined: Thu Mar 22, 2007 9:27 pm
- Location: Hartford wisconsin
As for a backup I have all the software instaled also on my laptop if by chance my rack mount fails its just a matter of unpluging the USB of the audio interface and plug onto my laptop and external hard drive. no need to remove the rackmount. Yes it does make the rack weigh more, but I think a rackmount is more reliable tha a laptop they seem a little prone to overheating probloms(even with a laptop cooler) and other failures
I have my laptop mounted in a box on a sliding shelf. I use a cable lock connected to the laptop to keep someone from walking away with it. This configuration allows me to keep every wire/cable connection permantently plugged in to the computer to save wear and tear on the laptop connectors. My spare "everything" is carried in a suitcase. Laptop, hard drives, video processor and power adapters for each.
I've gone back and forth on the RackMount vs Laptop debate. I started with a rackmount because the laptop I had tried spilled a lot of hard drive noise into the sound card. Also I run with two sound cards so it was easier to install those in a standard PC style case than on a laptop.
A little over a year ago I switched to a laptop and I don't think I'll be going back. It takes up less space than having the seperate monitor, keyboard and mouse, is one less item I need to install in my rack (giving me more room for outboard equipment like digital effects processors, EQ's, etc) and it of course is lighter and easier to carry than the monitor and stuff to go with a rackmount PC. The new laptop I bought doesn't have the noise issue on the Sound Card and I bought a USB sound interface to handle the need for a second interface.
I think this is one of those choices that just comes down to preference and personal experience. I'm not sure there's really one that is better than the other. Both have the advantages and disadvantages, you just need to decide what is most important for you in your shows.
A little over a year ago I switched to a laptop and I don't think I'll be going back. It takes up less space than having the seperate monitor, keyboard and mouse, is one less item I need to install in my rack (giving me more room for outboard equipment like digital effects processors, EQ's, etc) and it of course is lighter and easier to carry than the monitor and stuff to go with a rackmount PC. The new laptop I bought doesn't have the noise issue on the Sound Card and I bought a USB sound interface to handle the need for a second interface.
I think this is one of those choices that just comes down to preference and personal experience. I'm not sure there's really one that is better than the other. Both have the advantages and disadvantages, you just need to decide what is most important for you in your shows.
I have 2 indentical laptops. It's real nice knowing I have a complete back up of everything right at my fingers. To make the swap requires unplugging 3-USB plugs, the power adapter, the VGA monitor plug (this goes to the video processor) and the headphone jack. Literally minutes. Plug all the wires back in to the new laptop and turn it on. Check to make sure the system recognised the drives and they are named correctly and start the hoster program. 15 mintues tops. Even if you had to reimport all the data to the hoster would only add 5 minutes. The owner won't be trying to cut my pay. Just play 15 minutes longer (to make sure they have nothing to complain about) and get full money without an argument.
It's the same thing if a drive would go down on. It would take about that long to reimport the data.
All that extra backup only weighs 2 1/2 pounds for a drive and 7 pounds for the laptop. With everything I carry as a backup tops out at 20 pounds in one neat suitcase.
It's the same thing if a drive would go down on. It would take about that long to reimport the data.
All that extra backup only weighs 2 1/2 pounds for a drive and 7 pounds for the laptop. With everything I carry as a backup tops out at 20 pounds in one neat suitcase.
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cowboydarryl
- Posts: 40
- Joined: Thu Mar 22, 2007 9:27 pm
- Location: Hartford wisconsin
Like Tony mentioned it realy comes down to personal preference. I run 17" LCD monitors so space used is very close to that of a laptop.
Bigdog arn't bar owners great!!!
heaven forbid you have a failure! About 3 weeks ago at my sat. show (this was the 2nd gig that day had a wedding earlyer so im pretty tired) about mid show, Boom!!! that was the sound out of my speakers as the power shut down in the center section of the bar( it has 3 sections) bar owner runs in first thing out of his mouth, yep you guessed it. what did you do!! Its been a long day I realy need this. Ok lets see same setup, same equipment that ive been using for a year. Yet my speakers were still on(they are powered and plugged into different outlets) after 10 min. of running around the basement the owner gets the power back on.Turns out a main breaker tripped. Now he's on me how long!!! Im thinking $!*%T I hope every thing still works! Not to mention the 30 songs I had loaded into the play list. As it turned out the songs were saved so my down time was just a matter of restarting comp and prorgams. then he has the *#@LLs to say your going to stay later arn't you?? Like its my fault he has #@TY wiring in his bar!! Gotta love em
Bigdog arn't bar owners great!!!
heaven forbid you have a failure! About 3 weeks ago at my sat. show (this was the 2nd gig that day had a wedding earlyer so im pretty tired) about mid show, Boom!!! that was the sound out of my speakers as the power shut down in the center section of the bar( it has 3 sections) bar owner runs in first thing out of his mouth, yep you guessed it. what did you do!! Its been a long day I realy need this. Ok lets see same setup, same equipment that ive been using for a year. Yet my speakers were still on(they are powered and plugged into different outlets) after 10 min. of running around the basement the owner gets the power back on.Turns out a main breaker tripped. Now he's on me how long!!! Im thinking $!*%T I hope every thing still works! Not to mention the 30 songs I had loaded into the play list. As it turned out the songs were saved so my down time was just a matter of restarting comp and prorgams. then he has the *#@LLs to say your going to stay later arn't you?? Like its my fault he has #@TY wiring in his bar!! Gotta love em
