Karaoke Forums

Looking to set-up a lap-top for smaller gigs , what's the best Ripping Software for KJ's and what is the Best Karaoke Program for running shows ? Ease of Operation ,
best features . all input is greatly appreciated .

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DJ-B's Sound Entertainment
Traverse City MI. 49684
Booking Info - 231-883-9900

You are going to get a lot of answers to the player question. My answer is JustKaraoke, because it is easy to use and has a lot of the features that most of the more expensive programs have. My second choice is Compuhost.
justKaraoke www.tricerasoft.com
Compuhost www.karaokeware.com
As to rippers, You can't go wrong with PowerKaraoke's CD+G Burner.
www.powerkaraoke.com

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The Line Array Experiment is over. Nothing to see here. Move along.

I going to say KARMA by Latshaw systems.
I've found it to be an overall great Karaoke Hosting software and a great value
Easy to Learn and operate and NO GLITCHES.

Asking this question is like going to an automotive forum and asking "Whats the best oil?". Everyone has a different opinion!

I am a big fan of Compuhost, but it may be way more than you need for smaller gigs. Your best bet is to download and trial them all until you find one you like.

All subjective to personal tastes & needs. I prefer MTU Hoster. Simple to use, all in one program (ripper, player, song book maker plus several extras).

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

So True!


This is the best advice you can get on this subject.

There are many different programs out there for a reason...not one best one for all KJs ...but there will be one best one for you.

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Music speaks to the heart in ways words cannot express.

I will agree with Lonnie: Simple to rip (down side: proprietary format), very easy to do searches, when you finish ripping your discs, your song book is ready to print; you can run a marquis on your screens to let people know information; the next 3-4 singers' names and song titles can be visible on the screen between singers....people can bring their discs in, you can upload them right to a temporary file then and there for the singer, then it's gone when they're done singing. Key change is good.

I'm not crazy about computers - I learn how to run the applications and I run them, so I don't like to get involved in programs that require a lot of intrinsic computer knowledge. You can also get a "lite" version of the program.

Compuhost, by far the best. I have tried just about all of them, and own MTU, JustKaraoke, and Siglos Pro.

I have to disagree with MTU searches being easy. They require exact text including spaces, and there is no find-as-you-type. Very 1980s.

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[color=#ffff55]Mickey J.[/color]
Alas for those who never sing, but die with all their music in them.
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

AUDIOGRABBER is a great ripping program

And regarding HOSTING SOFTWARE there is no "BEST" just personal preferences.
try all the free demos and see for yourself.

Have to disagree. Audiograbber is great for audio but their copying of the graphics portion leaves a lot to be desired. And it can't zip your songs for you like most made specifically for Karaoke ripping softwares can. If you want a free program then CDGRip by the makers of Compuhost is what you want but you get what you pay for.

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The Line Array Experiment is over. Nothing to see here. Move along.

How come you get what you pay for there, but not in hosting software?

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[color=#ffff55]Mickey J.[/color]
Alas for those who never sing, but die with all their music in them.
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

Some people just want to pay for the BELLS some for the WHISTLE and some for all the BELLS and WHISTLES.

It's about personal choice and needs.

People have run very succesful shows with just FREEWARE.

Because the quality of rips is just not there in Audiograbber. I know I tested the same song in audiograbber, PowerKAraoke, KJripnzip and only PowerKaraoke came up with a perfect rip.
JustKaraoke is an exception to the rule.

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The Line Array Experiment is over. Nothing to see here. Move along.

Aha, except for that.

Personally, owning both Compuhost and JustKaraoke, I have to disagree. Compuhost is way superior, and $150 difference -- for a working KJ, less than 33 cents per show amortized over 3 years -- makes Compuhost the better investment in my opinion.

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[color=#ffff55]Mickey J.[/color]
Alas for those who never sing, but die with all their music in them.
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

Some of us make hosting software just because we like to write code and no one is paying us to do so. Therefore, it's cheap or free. That doesn't mean it's bad.

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Okay, who took my pants?

But Justkaraoke has a lot of the same features as Compuhost.
Singer history
same style of rotation management as compuhost
and it has one Compuhost does not have and may never have:
built in Kiosk capabilities.
And still costs less than most Hosting softwares.
The only one that costs less is AutoKDJ, which is free.
Just so you know PowerKaraoke isn't that expensive at $39.99 either.
So for a hundred less than paying for Compuhost alone you can have everything you need to operate a karaoke business from the computer , not counting the music:
a hosting software
a ripping software
and a songlist maker.
This doesn't mean it's the right software for everyone.
Maybe most audiences need to have a ticker going to keep the show running, Mine doesn't.
Just remember that I said that CompuHost is my second choice of software and I also said that a lot of people are going to chime in to push their software. I agree that the OP should download every demo and test them out to find out which one meets their needs.

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The Line Array Experiment is over. Nothing to see here. Move along.

It does not have the same fit and finish. It has less robust searching. It has fewer rotation management features. No one-key jump in history. No options for setting up different ways to play songs. It has no filler music player. It has no rotating promo messages, or scrolling marquee. It doesn't have the video bit support, nor the "insta tunes". The singer announcment feature is not continuous. The key changer is terrible.

There are many advantages of Compuhost over JustKaraoke. JustKaraoke may be good enough for some people. More power to them. But to say the two are equivalent is wrong. Compuhost is a higher-end system, and that just is a fact.

Even Tricerasoft tells you that, and has Swift Elite as its upgrade path. I can't speak to that one -- it may be just as good as CompuHost.

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[color=#ffff55]Mickey J.[/color]
Alas for those who never sing, but die with all their music in them.
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

You are incorrect on JustKaraoke not having a filler player. The latest version has these features:
Singer Rotation and Playlist
Singer Announcement
Singer History
Ambient Music List (w/ Auto Management)
Request Tool Server (works with Free Client and Super Remote Request Tool)
Single Player with Preview Screen
Two Output Screen Support
Key Control in Semi-Tones (Half-Keys)
Multiplex Options
Easy Search and Database Lookup
Quick Sound Effects
Hot Keys
Auto Recovery List (Recovers from a Power Failure)

They just named it differently.

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The Line Array Experiment is over. Nothing to see here. Move along.

Sorry, I have to jump in...

Danny, for you to imply that JustKaraoke's "Ambient Music List" is in anyway comparable to Compuhost's Fillertunes Player is...well...just plain ridiculous! As you already know, and have posted yourself in the past, you can easily host an entire dance set, complete with autofading between two distinct decks, manipulating playlists etc. with Compuhost's Fillertunes Player. Let's see you do that with a simple Ambience Player like found in Justkaraoke and a few others.

tbreen

I'm just trying to say that people should not sell JustKaraoke short on being a quality enhanced product. Different strokes for different folks. I'll gladly sacrifice the fading between two decks to eliminate books and slips. But that just may be me.
It may be just an entry level product but it has a lot of the features that other higher priced programs have and a couple that the higher priced ones don't such as the remote tool (kiosk). If they hadn't come out with that I would still be using CompuHost for my shows. Back to the OP's question, Again test them all and figure out what features you really want in a program. Then buy it. Don't be fooled about the saying that if it costs more it must be better because that is not true. I just found out doing it the hard way that not every program is going too provide the quality that I want when it comes to rippers. By the way, I hardly buy discs anymore because I got sick of getting duplicate songs for every single unduplicated song I get on a disc. Plus I can get just what is requested and not worry about it never getting sung.

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The Line Array Experiment is over. Nothing to see here. Move along.