I'm new to the Karaoke world and I am setting up everything on a hard drive. I tried to work with winamp as my hosting software, but I'm having a problem with displaying the lyrics on the tv without intefering with the singer.
What I'm currently viewing is me working to sort the songs and this is interfering with the display on the tv. I want to make sure I have this... Once I purchase a "dual display graphic card" this will alow me to sort, prepare the next singer,prepare the next with interfering with main display? I can operate the two monitors separately?
Thank you for taking the time. Also, I just purchased a toshiba satellite laptop if this helps at all.
You definitely need a dual display graphics card to display your work area on one monitor and the singer's screen on another. I don't know if Winamp supports dual display like most of the karaoke "hoster" applications do.
This helps a lot. Thank you. Would you happen to the best place to purchase a Dual Video Card? and what would be your recommendation for the hosting software that supports Dual Video?
Would you happen to the best place to purchase a Dual Video Card? and what would be your recommendation for the hosting software that supports Dual Video?
To get the best price on a graphics card you should search on one of the price comparison sites like www.nextag.com . Do a search on "dual display graphic card" and look for one with at least 64MB memory. Prices start at about $60.00.
There are several good karaoke hosting applications around and I wouldn't want to recommend any particular one. The "Hoster" software by www.mtu.com is very popular. I have a listing of other popular programs here.
Would you happen to the best place to purchase a Dual Video Card? and what would be your recommendation for the hosting software that supports Dual Video?
To get the best price on a graphics card you should search on one of the price comparison sites like www.nextag.com . Do a search on "dual display graphic card" and look for one with at least 64MB memory. Prices start at about $60.00.
There are several good karaoke hosting applications around and I wouldn't want to recommend any particular one. The "Hoster" software by www.mtu.com is very popular. I have a listing of other popular programs here.
I would add the winamp front ends as well. We all know that it is a myth that the more a software costs the better. RoxBox is what I use and swear by as the easiest to use of the front ends for winamp. In my search for software that would meet my tight requirements: Ease of use, Ability to do dj as well as Karaoke chores, compatability with a number of computers already set up for my needs from a Pentium II 366 MHz laptop running windows 98SE to a 1ghz celeron rackmount computer running windows XP Pro. RoxBox was the only one that met all my requirements. Only downside was Multiplex and Keychanger was inferior to both Swift Ultralite's and MTU's Hoster, Both failed my expectations - Ulttralite for total ease of use and Hoster for the harshest search engine I have ever seen. Both Sax & Dotty's and RoxBox use a search as you type format and database for easy access to your songs. RoxBox has the added feature of running twin players that you can use for Karaoke on one, backing tracks on the other or you can actually dj using both players.
Wiseguy and Dang2006. Thank you for taking the time to educate on something so new. I will continue my research. This gives me a lot to go on
Also, I was on Ebay the other day and a person was selling a hard drive full of karaoke music. 30,000 songs to be exact for $350.00. Can 30,000 songs fit on a 160gb hard drive?
About the dual card.. How do you know if it fits a laptop computer? it seems that each card is for a PC. Am I missing something?
The only way you can be sure to obtain the correct card for your specific laptop is to furnish the retailer with the make and model of your machine. Let them provide you with a listing of compatible devices.
Also, I was on Ebay the other day and a person was selling a hard drive full of karaoke music. 30,000 songs to be exact for $350.00. Can 30,000 songs fit on a 160gb hard drive?
Yes, you can easily fit 30,000 karaoke tracks on an 160GB hard drive. The problem with these "package deals" is that you will most likely end up with a bunch of duplicate songs. By this I mean the same song by the same artist but taken from various disc brands. Ask the seller to furnish you with a full catalog of the songs.
About the dual card.. How do you know if it fits a laptop computer? it seems that each card is for a PC. Am I missing something?
The only way you can be sure to obtain the correct card for your specific laptop is to furnish the retailer with the make and model of your machine. Let them provide you with a listing of compatible devices.
Usually a laptop basically has to come equipped with the card with the S-Video out as it is very hard to fit one in when there is no place to put the port in the skin of the laptop. Now this does not mean you can't do the karaoke off the laptop. As long as you can extend your desktop to your VGA port you can get an adaptor that will allow you to hook it to a tv or use a computer monitor for your singer display. Tiger Direct sells these scan convertors.
Also, I was on Ebay the other day and a person was selling a hard drive full of karaoke music. 30,000 songs to be exact for $350.00. Can 30,000 songs fit on a 160gb hard drive?
Yes, you can easily fit 30,000 karaoke tracks on an 160GB hard drive. The problem with these "package deals" is that you will most likely end up with a bunch of duplicate songs. By this I mean the same song by the same artist but taken from various disc brands. Ask the seller to furnish you with a full catalog of the songs.
The other issue is legality, if you don't own the discs that are on the drive then you would be running an illegal system. Ask them if it comes with the actual discs. One hint tht it does not come with the originals is the disclamor that you must erase any of the songs that you don't already have the discs for.
wiseguy wrote:You definitely need a dual display graphics card to display your work area on one monitor and the singer's screen on another. I don't know if Winamp supports dual display like most of the karaoke "hoster" applications do.
The plugin that handles the lyric screen has a box in it's configuration screen that gives you a choice of having it full screen display 1 or display 2. I use it as I run RoxBox which is a frontend that does the same jobs as the more expensive players that Karaoke-Tutor has on their site.
I wanted to thank you Dang2006 for your suggestion on expanding the desktop. It worked. I am now able to work on Win amp and Saxs Dotty without the customers looking at what I'm doing. No need to buy a video card.. Thanks again
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
