Karaoke Forums

My topnotch karaoke machine is getting a little worn. I have decided to try to build something using my laptop. I read through the forums here to get some ideas. However, I am not clear on how to put everything together.

For software, I am going to try MTU.com video hoster.

I just do not know what I will need to connect my mics together with the system. Do I need a mixer for this? I have a nice Onkyo receiver system, can I use it for some part of this new system? Where is the best place to get songs for the software and what do they generally cost per song?


Best Regards

Ty

Yes, you would need a mixer to plug in speakers and microphones. You can use Hoster, lots of the KJs here on the forum really like it, but I use Winamp with plug-ins and it's much cheaper. It doesn't have all the toots and whistles, but it works for me. You can purchase CDGs from all different places and it effects the prices. New disks can be bought from many online companies or local stores like Wal-Mart. You may can find sets of disks in the local ads for cheaper. Most people here will tell you that Sound Choice sets and Chartbuster Essential sets are great collections to have to start with. After you buy the CDs, you have to rip them onto the computer and then convert their format to Mp3+CDG files. Then, you can use them with a program. There are also programs that help you with ripping and converting. Maybe this will help you get started. I'm sure others will offer advice soon also. Welcome aboard the forum!!

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It's called Karaoke Therapy...

Hoster has a proprietary format - .kma. No converting. Once you rip the disc with hoster it is ready to use. Advantage with hoster, too, is the fact that once your last disc is ripped, your book is ready to print.

As far as buying your music, you can google "karaoke CDG" and find all sorts of companies online that sell CDGs as well as sites that sell individual tracks. On the CDG sites, look at their "ON SALE" items. Check E-bay as well. Good deals to be found on there. Wal-Mart has good prices though their selection isn't as good as it once was.

Most on here will tell you to avoid using a home stereo system for karaoke - speakers won't take the punishment. So yes, a small mixer is required, and of course a small television or flatscreen for your lyrics to be displayed away from the computer display. Mics plug in to your mixer, as do your speakers, and you will need to connect your laptop to your mixer as well. Lots of options as far as mics and speakers - check previous posts for discussions about both.

Sounds like this is for home use? This will definitely influence the $$$ you want to spend as opposed to hosting in a bar/tavern/restaurant, etc. Keep asking questions...people are very willing to respond to queries on this forum.

Not entirelytrue, while they were designed primarily for their own program, there are a couple others that will actually play them as well & MTU makes a converter that will turn them into mp3g if you want to go with something else later down the line.


This is what I primarily like about Hoster is it is FULLY self contained from the player, ripper & song book maker.

Yes a small mixer would be recommended & even a small PA (or powered speakers) dedicated to the karaoke system over the home stereo. But if you are instant on using your home stereo, then still consider a small mixer like maybe the Yamaha MG82CX for your home. If this is for a business then drop the home stereo & get a real PA!

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Find the program that works for you. If i do private gigs ,where i also play music i use PCDJ-VJ. At my residency, which is high volume karaoke, i use sax n dottys ,a winamp plugin.

I have used most of the softwares out there. I have just started to use RoxBox which uses Winamp for it player just like Sax and Dotty's. The price is very reasonable. I like it because it was created by a KJ and the user interface reflects his desire for convienence. It has 2 players on it where Player 1 can be used for your Karaoke show while Player 2 can be filled with mp3 songs and you can set it to auto fade from one to the other which is great to eliminate dead air between singers. It has many other features that make for running a very smooth show. It does not rip files from your CDGs so I also had to get Power CDG for ripping.

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"Don't worry. It will feel better when it quits hurtin."

What I meant, Lonman, was once you rip your CDGs to hoster, they're ready to go in Hoster. I had never considered converting to another software but that's good to know if I ever have to. I'm very satisfied with Hoster at this point for the reasons I've included in this post.

Hoster is a good all in one software as it should be for the price.

Karen or Lonman would either of you know how to convert the Hoster KMA files to a .zip file so that the file maintains it's Title, Artist and Disk id info?

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"Don't worry. It will feel better when it quits hurtin."

If I were to get a PA system, could you recommend a model? This would be for a home setup and for parties. Is there a good USB interface to tie into the PA?

I agree!

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