Karaoke Forums

Hi all,
I am new to KJ and wants to start doing it. I want go with a PC based system partly becuase of cost. I am thinking about going with a rack mount PC. Does anyone use such a system and are there any known draw backs? I saw the Cavs jb-199 which appears to me to be just a regular rack mount pc with buttons. I am thinking about going with Roxbox software.

Any advice, insight or help will be greatly appreciated.
S.

Be very selective about a case A 2 unit works but you have to tie all the pci boards in place. The weight is a factor and get one 17" or less in length. Consider a laptop..

If you plan on KJ and DJ both or a combination RoxBox works fine. I would suggest you download all the demos and find the one that suits your purpose.

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Thanks karyoker,
I will bring the audio into a mixer where the djing will be done. Are you suggesting a 17 inch because of the weight thing?

I was turned on by Roxbox becuase I read they have a product that can convert my dead cavs jb 199 hand down files from ncg or mcg to something else so I am not tied to cavs. I am afraid that a laptop will freeze often although my concern with the rack mount is that it may be noisy, but I have to experience in these areas so I dunno.

I am running karaoke on a laptop since January and have never had it freeze on me. I was originally running a rackmount but quit because of the weight of it. I have run RoxBox on a laptop that had only 333mhz in processor speed without it freezing up.

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I am using a rack mount PC that is 4 units tall (7 inches), 19" wide and 18" deep

I have it mounted in a portable 8 unit SKB Plastic case. The reason I went with an 8 unit case (abt. 14 inches inner height) ; I have enough space on top of the PC (3 units) to store my 17" LCD Monitor. Below the pc there is enough room (1 unit) to store the cords which I leave connected to the PC during transport ( LCD cord, secondary monitor, Audio, and power cords for both the PC and LCD. Obvously I need to be gentle with it during transport because of the loose monitor inside.

It is one heavy mother! Over 60 pounds!

But

Using A Full Size PC case has given me the room to to build the most powerfull Computer I have ever put together. It almost seems ashamed that I will only use it for karaoke

I started out last fall using my Desktop PC (litterially, right off my desktop). after 3 months of that, I got a nice laptop which worked just fine for me. But I just didn't feel good about using it. I wanted a real nice audio card, large stable power supply, faster processor, and too much RAM along with good cool air flow around the motherboard.

So I built the "Behemith" The weight is managable once you get the knack of how to hold it. I carry it up 2 flights of stairs, and in & out of the back-seat of my ford Tauris twice a week.

You have to be real carefull when choosing the rack-mount case. Most cases are just a little to deep to fit into the portable cabinet. I found one that "just fit" at Fry's.

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THanks Dynomyk,
Do you mind sending me the specs on the unit you have? I propbably will start off with Roxbox running on a 1.8 Ghz laptop with the usb video/sound card thingy I have seen somewhere on this forum.

Thanks everyone for the input I think I have come to the right place for info becuase there is a wealth of experience for a green horn like myself.

I have two laptops I carry to a gig which weigh a total of 15 pounds (not including cases).

I have found that for the cost of one rack-built PC I can just about buy two laptops. Any modern laptop is sufficient to run any karaoke program, and if you get the Realtek sound chip in it the sound is decent. (A USB sound card could be had as well, but I have found no need.)

The second laptop is a nice backup for the first. With CompuHost, the best program out there in my experience, I can install it on both and just move the dongle from place to place. We have two dongles available. (One is only used on Saturday night) so if I did lose one I would have an emergency replacement.)

I saw a usb sound card that I want to get somewhere on this forum but don't remember where I saw it. Anyone know where it is or the name of it or better yet; the best usb video/sound to get?

I agree with mcky57 - The laptops are affordable and if you are just running for Karaoke you can buy 2 !!!. And with todays built in sound cards or PLUG IN soundcards ...very easy to haul and set up

Mickey is absolutly right about a laptop being more Than sufficient to run a show.

The realtek is a very good sound chip.  You can use a usb sound card if you feel the need.  Creative even makes a special laptop sound card http://us.creative.com/products/product ... duct=16642 

If you even have a second laptop for back-up, you are set

I used Compuhost for the first time in my show last week and I really like it!

The thing is that sometimes I like to overdo things (well...most of the time actually ).

I build PC's as a hobby, for myself, friends, and family.  Iv'e gotten pretty good at being an amature geek I was able to put together my system for around $800.  If you tried to buy it allready put together it would cost much more I will gather the spec's and post them in this thread just to show what I have got.

The laptop you have refered to will serve you well

I like to live by the sometimes self-destrucive motto:
"Too much isn't Enough"

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This doesn't include the sound card, PC case, and Cabinet. The shopping cart is from infotechnow.com

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Pc Case http://shop1.frys.com/product/3931208

Sound Card http://us.creative.com/products/product ... duct=16770

Rack Case http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/ ... sku=544581

Also I forgot to add 2 Gig's of RAM into the previous post.

I guess the whole mess cost a bit more than $800... especially when you include the Monitor and OS

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That looks owesome. Thanks.

I borrowed my Dad's laptop over the weekend & did not care for the sound of the onboard 1/8" jack, not sure what model sound card is built in but it's an HP so i'm betting it's a RealTek. I picked up a Lexicon Alpha USB sound interface & the difference was night & day at the speakers. It is actually designed for recording but it works perfectly as a sound card.
I can use it for recording as well, already dumping some of my old cassettes that aren't available on cd over. Comes packaged with Cubase & a Lexicon reverb plugin package.

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I am sure the Lexicon is awesome, I love their reverb. I might look at that. What kind of output connectors?

HP uses a lot of NVidia chips, and prior to that ESS. No Realtek that I know of.

Oh I thought I had a link to the unit.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/ ... sku=245507

It use2 TRS 1/4" outs & 2 RCA outs. Has 2 TRS 1/4" inputs. 1 XLR input. 1 1/4" instrument input on the front & a 1/8" headphone on the front.

My HP tower uses RealTek for the soundcard.

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When you are buying a rackmount computer case, make sure you buy an aluminum one, not a steel one. The reason? Heat dissipation.

Aluminum will conduct heat much better than steel, which tend to trap it inside. Cooler system runs better with less possibility of trouble.

I have a 3U rackmount I use for my system and inside of the rack is pretty tight, not much room for air to flow around. And the fans in the back don't do much since most computer cases are 22-24", which will not fit in the rack. If you find a 18.5" deep case, like I did, the end of the case buts right against the back wall of the rack, depends on your rack of course.

So, I paid extra to get the aluminum case so the heat will radiate out from the case so the fans don't have to do all the work.

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Thanks for the information. Hey Dynomyk what software do you use and do you like it?

I'm using vista for the operating system. I think XP is a better OS, but I went with Vista because I'm stuck on Microsoft and right now vista is what they are shoving down our throats As long as you are using recently produced hardware and programs vista works pretty well. Most of the problems people talk about are because of compatability with older stuff ( in the Computer world older can mean even a year, sometimes 2 years is a fossil ) There are definatly options other than vista, which may be better, but, that is what I'm using

I just started using compuhost to run my show and I like it. I can't say it's the best because I havn't used the others. There is a lot of information and spirited debate on this forum about the best software to use. My advise is to read it all Then try out some trials. Before Compuhost I simply used Winamp as a stand-alone player and that worked very well for me, but I wanted more bells and whistles, Compuhost has provided that.

I ripped my CDG's using WINCDG Pro from Tricerasoft. I have decided that I don't like any Tricerasoft products for various reasons. Thats just my opinion I'm sure there are better choices. Again, Read all the info you can here and try a trial or two.

There is a lot of experience in this forum as far as songbook making and other aspects of the business go. So read on (that's what I do)

Even though I am not currently using WinAmp, I love the player! I have been a huge fan of WinAmp for many years. It kicks the Llama's a$$

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Thanks Dynomyk. I was playing with a friend's Cavs JB 199 and see that her sound is ripped 128 but her system sounded okay. What is the recommended rate to rip? Had I been asked before seing it I would have gussed a minimum of 192.