My idea is to use a Laptop PC, and a simple outboard sound card with a microphone. I actually have already purchased a set of wireless mics that got decent reviews. I am excited about getting it going. I want to get somewhat into my rig, I don't know all about how to do it all, but I know that I want to learn and i want my setup to be ready for me to grow.

So I am coming here to hopefully find what is going to work best for my budget and convenience. Right off the bat, I notice that there seems to be no software application that does it all. Meaning...something that plays the karaoke songs back and hosts the microphone with level controls. In addition, one would think that at least one all-in-one package would exist that could do that, and have some control over a little reverb and delay if not more. So the first thing I am hoping for is that I am wrong!

Aside from that, the only way I can see to go is to use my Sonar software in conjunction with any one of the various players out there (paid or free) to pull it off. But I find that kind of a hack for something that should clearly be available as an all-in-one so if it exists..lemmie know. Thanks.

There is an entire "sticky" thread of this subject.

Go here: viewtopic.php?f=1&t=22248

I read it and it does not have my answer. Links to every piece of software are all over Google. I am trying to come here to get some answers from people who know something about Karaoke software and can make recommendation based on my three simple criteria listed in this post. Have I come to the wrong place?

My idea is to use a Laptop PC, and a simple outboard sound card with a microphone. I actually have already purchased a set of wireless mics that got decent reviews. I am excited about getting it going. I want to get somewhat into my rig, I don't know all about how to do it all, but I know that I want to learn and i want my setup to be ready for me to grow.

So I am coming here to hopefully find what is going to work best for my budget and convenience. Right off the bat, I notice that there seems to be no software application that does it all. Meaning...something that plays the karaoke songs back and hosts the microphone with level controls. In addition, one would think that at least one all-in-one package would exist that could do that, and have some control over a little reverb and delay if not more. So the first thing I am hoping for is that I am wrong!

Aside from that, the only way I can see to go is to use my Sonar software in conjunction with any one of the various players out there (paid or free) to pull it off. But I find that kind of a hack for something that should clearly be available as an all-in-one so if it exists..lemmie know. Thanks.

It would just seem a glaring need for this undustry to have an all-in-one solution with the AISO drivers and mic hosting with effects in the same application and control surface.

Okay....that makes sense. Yes, I also do sound mixing and recording as my other hobby. I was able to fire up Sonar (a multi tracking, mixing, mastering solution) add a track to a project, engage to recording and auditioning of the track then minimize it and leave it in the background. Then I can use anything from JustKaraoke to WinCDG 3.0 to get the rest of the job done. It would just seem a glaring need for this undustry to have an all-in-one solution with the AISO drivers and mic hosting with effects in the same application and control surface.

That's okay though, i just wanted to make sure I wasn't doing it all the hard way.

The problem is that to run any kind of a karaoke show, even a home one, you still need the functions of live sound. If you have a PA system -- I'm assuming you don't want to blow your home theater by playing live vocals through it -- then you typically need a line-level output to drive it. Add in the normal effects function, monitor function, eq function, and the need to do all that in real time, a software interface is not well-suited for it. A mixer that does that on a basic level is less than $200.00, and a gig-ready one is less than $350.00.

Basically the market that includes very tech-savvy people who want to avoid a few dollars in hardware cost is miniscule. The lack of software targeting it would seem to bear that assessment out.