The showtime central

[bcowboysw]

Im new and just got this and i cant figure out how to add sequences to the sd card to make the show longer....it says the mp3 file isnt there but i have it so i must be doing something wrong. Please help.

[bcowboysw]

I am a newbie and need help. I got the shotime central which you add shows to an sd card....the sd card came with a few songs but i want to add some. How do i do this. I have tried to download some peoples free sequences with the mp3 files but everytime i try and add the sequence in the hardware it says the mp3 isnt there. All help is welcome with this. thanks

[Don]

You need to use the Simple Show Builder or the Hardware Utility (MP3 Tab) to create your 'shows' to go into the SD Card.

 

More info here and here.

[Orville]

I am a newbie and need help. I got the shotime central which you add shows to an sd card....the sd card came with a few songs but i want to add some. How do i do this. I have tried to download some peoples free sequences with the mp3 files but everytime i try and add the sequence in the hardware it says the mp3 isnt there. All help is welcome with this. thanks

Here's your issue, when you download a sequence and an MP3 file, provided you get the MP3, your file folder structure probably DOES NOT match the original sequencers file structure, therefore before you can add those sequences, you need to do the following:

 

Copy the sequence{s} you download into YOUR LOR Sequences folder.

Copy the Aufio file{s}/{MP3's} you download into YOUR LOR Audio folder.

 

Now that you have this completed, open the Sequence Editor {SE for short} and load the new sequence, chances are you will get an error message such as "Media File can not be found" and will show where the ORIGINAL AUTHOR of the Sequence had it located, click OK.

 

Click on Edit on the tool bar at the top of the SE screen, now click on "Media FIle", browse to where you placed the audio {MP3} file for this sequence in your Sequences directory and click on the MP3 file, this will add it back to the SE, go to View on the top tool bar and click View Waveform, I use "Full Height", now Save the sequence.   Now the Sequence when added via the Hardware Utility {HWU for short} will now find the audio file {MP3} when you add it to the Sequences list for the MP3 Director.

 

Any questions on the above, feel free to ask.   But it's really quite easy, most new folks using the MP3 Directors tend to make this mistake, they try and add the sequence WITHOUT doing any of the preliminary steps required to make it work.

 

Hope this clears it up and helps you get your downloaded sequences working.

[Guest Project86rocks]

I am looking at getting the showtime central but I am curious...can you hook up speakers to it as well as the fm transmitter? I want to be able to not have a computer run my show, but I also want to be able to hear the music without the radio

[Grinch]

Just get a Y splitter cable.  One end goes to the FM Transmitter and the other to your Powered Speakers

Edited January 19, 2014 by Grinch

[Orville]

Since IE11 won't work here for quotes or even copy/pasting now, ugh!  Thanks a lot Microsoft{jerks!} I can't quote or copy paste the OPs' info about using speakers with an MP3 Director.

 

But to answer, don't use a Y cable to go to amplified speakers, it will let you down in the long run of things.

 

What I use is an older FM Stereo receiver, I tune it to my FM transmitter and run wires from the receiver to the outdoor speakers, which may or may not be amplified, depending on the receivers output.   I do have an old modified PC speaker AMP between my receiver and the outdoor speakers, the receiver and amp are indoors, the speakers mounted outside and wire run through a window, door or small opening to the outside.

 

This way I could have my stereo receiver anywhere I wanted it because it picks up the FM signal from the transmitter and I wouldn't have additional wires coming from the MP3 director unit, or having to worry about changing batteries in amplified speakers that may/may not be suitable for outdoor use, and having the batteries go dead or corrode due to weather issues.

 

There are some expensive outdoor battery powered speakers out there that can be used, but I use an older outdoor speaker set that cost me around $20, fully weatherproof, not amplified, so no batteries inside.  They have been working very well for me now for 4 years and I have also used them in the off season to broadcast instrumental style music into my garden area. 

 

But using a separate stereo receiver as stated above may be a better alternative than amplified speakers and additional audio cables coming from the MP3 director unit.  I did try it out once with a Y cable, but seemed my audio deteriorated a bit, and as the batteries failed, sound quality in the speakers went out the window, so I started using a separate old stereo receiver, added an old PC amp that I modified for 2013 and haven't turned back since.  Only the transmitter would need to be plugged into the MP3 director.

 

But it's all up to personal taste and choice as to how you work it.

 

BTW: you can find some decent old working stereo receivers for $5-$20 in old thrift stores, places like Goodwill or Salvation Army stores are great places to check too.

[Grinch]

I used an old PC amplified speaker and had no problems and it had no batteries.  It plugged  into 120V,  it was an old Dell PC speaker they gave away free years ago.   Speaker sat outside in the rain and buried in the snow but it always worked.  Now I don't have it blasting, it is set to a low volume for any walk up viewers.  I saw no difference in the sound quality from the transmitter or speaker if they were separate or connected with the Y wire.    As Orville stated its a personal preference and what ever works for you.  Things would get boring around here if we all did the exact same thing.

[Orville]

Ain't that the truth Grinch!  

 

If using an adapter to power the speakers via the Y cable, make sure you also have ferrite coils at each end of the audio cable, otherwise the audio cable can transmit noise and erratic electromagnetic current that can affect your lights working correctly!   I used them about 1 inch from the male jack at each end of my audio cable when I tested the Y cable option, without the ferrite coils, they are also known as something else, but the name escapes me at the moment, 

 

Anyway when I tested the Y cable option without the ferrite coils on the extra audio cable. I did get some interference when the display was running, when I used them, that interference went away. 

 

You can also buy audio cables with them pre-installed, but most often if you get them from an electronics parts house, like Radio Shack, they don't have them.    Using them will give you a cleaner signal that won't interfere with the cat5e going to and from the director unit.

 

Now if I could just find a small hand-held portable AM/FM radio that could be powered via a cat5e cable from a controller and use my amplified set up in a housing, I could put my speakers and radio anywhere.

 

I also modified some indoor PC speakers for outdoor use by weatherproofing them, so I can have up to 4 speakers outside, 2 in front and 2 in another location.  Always kept low volume for walkers, bicyclists or joggers.

 

Again, it's all personal preference as to how YOU want to do and set up things in your display.

Edited January 23, 2014 by Orville

[Steven]

Now if I could just find a small hand-held portable AM/FM radio that could be powered via a cat5e cable from a controller and use my amplified set up in a housing, I could put my speakers and radio anywhere.

 

I use two 8Ω-to-1kΩ transformers connected to a small stereo audio amplifier to inject audio onto the unused pairs in the cat5 LOR cable. I use the same transformer in a weatherproof box connected to a weatherproof speaker in 2 different parts of the display. It's not as good as a car stereo, but it's fine for visitors on the sidewalk.

 

Then I have 2 other (rock) speakers driven by a PA amplifier using CVVS over small twisted-pair wires that I turn on from 6:00 to 9:00 for a little extra sound.