We’ve included a “Basic” version our CD-Recorder 4 (4.1) software to assist you recording audio, file management, file conversion, and CD burning. The included DART CD-Recorder 4 Basic does have some limitations (the “Producer” tools are not active, AutoUpdate doesn’t function and others). Whenever you attempt to access a feature that is not supported in the Basic version, you’ll see a notification onscreen.
To access information on using CD-Recorder 4, please use the CD-Recorder 4 product FAQ, found here. Be aware that this link is for a FULL version of CD-Recorder, so some information will not apply to Karaoke Studio users.
You can purchase Karaoke Studio CD+G online directly from us by clicking on the “Buy” link, underneath the CD jewel case image of DART Karaoke Studio CD+G (on the Home page). From there, follow the onscreen links to buy the version of your choice (CD-ROM or downloaded “unlockable” version). You can also purchase using one our many retailers, whose links can be found in the “Products” area of our page, in “Resellers”.
If you’d care to “try before you buy”, you can download and install a fully functioning, 30-day trial (available on our web page). As you try out the demo, you’ll have various options and opportunities to purchase either a CD, or downloadable version of the software. The full CD version ($199.99 US) includes the Guided Tour (a multimedia tutorial of CD-Recorder 4 Basic only) and an electronic version of the manual. The CD-ROM version is HIGHLY recommended.
We currently support only the following Microsoft Windows platforms: Windows 95, Windows 98 (and 98SE), Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000, Windows Me (Millenium Edition), Windows XP (Home/Professional). At this time, there are no plans to release for other software operating systems.
To install DART Karaoke Studio CD+G, insert the setup CD-ROM into your drive. In Windowstm 95, the installation procedure will launch automatically, but only if the automatic insertion feature for your CD-ROM is active.
To install DART Karaoke Studio CD+G manually, go to the Control Panel, click on Add/Remove Programs and choose SETUP.EXE on your CD-ROM drive.
The DART Karaoke Studio CD+G installation program will start, pausing only to ask in which directory you would like to install the program (we suggest that you use the default values) and the CD drive (or "CD installation path") where the setup CD is located.
To install DART Karaoke Studio CD+G, insert the setup CD-ROM into your drive. In Windowstm 98, the installation procedure will launch automatically, but only if the automatic insertion feature for your CD-ROM is active.
To install DART Karaoke Studio CD+G manually, go to the Control Panel, click on Add/Remove Programs and choose SETUP.EXE on your CD-ROM drive.
The DART Karaoke Studio CD+G installation program will start, pausing only to ask in which directory you would like to install the program (we suggest that you use the default values) and the CD drive (or "CD installation path") where the setup CD is located.
To install DART Karaoke Studio CD+G, insert the setup CD-ROM into your drive. In Windowstm Me, the installation procedure will launch automatically, but only if the automatic insertion feature for your CD-ROM is active.
To install DART Karaoke Studio CD+G manually, go to the Control Panel, click on Add/Remove Programs and choose SETUP.EXE on your CD-ROM drive.
The DART Karaoke Studio CD+G installation program will start, pausing only to ask in which directory you would like to install the program (we suggest that you use the default values) and the CD drive (or "CD installation path") where the setup CD is located.
To install DART Karaoke Studio CD+G, insert the setup CD-ROM into your drive. In Windowstm NT, the installation procedure will launch automatically, but only if the automatic insertion feature for your CD-ROM is active.
To install DART Karaoke Studio CD+G manually, go to the Control Panel, click on Add/Remove Programs and choose SETUP.EXE on your CD-ROM drive.
The DART Karaoke Studio CD+G installation program will start, pausing only to ask in which directory you would like to install the program (we suggest that you use the default values) and the CD drive (or "CD installation path") where the setup CD is located.
To install DART Karaoke Studio CD+G, insert the setup CD-ROM into your drive. In Windowstm 2000, the installation procedure will launch automatically, but only if the automatic insertion feature for your CD-ROM is active.
To install DART Karaoke Studio CD+G manually, go to the Control Panel, click on Add/Remove Programs and choose SETUP.EXE on your CD-ROM drive.
The DART Karaoke Studio CD+G installation program will start, pausing only to ask in which directory you would like to install the program (we suggest that you use the default values)
To install DART Karaoke Studio CD+G, insert the setup CD-ROM into your drive. In Windowstm XP, the CD's AutoPlay window will launch automatically, but only if the automatic insertion feature for your CD-ROM is active. Left-click on "Run Setup" when this window appears.
To install DART Karaoke Studio CD+G manually, go to the Control Panel, click on Add/Remove Programs and choose SETUP.EXE from the "Setup" folder on your Karaoke Studio CD+G CD. The DART Karaoke Studio CD+G installation program will start, pausing only to ask in which directory you would like to install the program (we suggest that you use the default values)
Most current “off the shelf” systems are MORE than fast enough to handle Karaoke Studio CD+G’s performance requirements. However, with all software, you’ll get a much better experience if you run it on a very fast system. The bare minimum requirements for using the software are:
Operating System: Windows 95 or higher (Windows 98, Me, etc.)
Processor (CPU): Intel Pentium 75MHz (or equivalent)
System RAM: 128MB Ram
Required Hard Drive Space: 16 MB for program files, extra space is needed to hold audio files
Video Card: 4MB PCI video card
Sound Card: full duplex soundcard with microphone input and speaker out or line out
Microphone optional, but highly recommended
CD-R/CD-RW drive optional, but highly recommended (Note: reading/writing CD+G requires use of a fully CD+G compatible CD drive. You can find a list of supported CD+G read/write devices in the "Supported Devices" section of our website at: http://www.dartpro.com/support/devices.asp)
A CD-R (CD Recordable) or CD-RW (CD ReWritable) isn’t required for utilizing the DART Karaoke Studio CD+G, but you will be missing out on SOME exciting features. If you have a CD-R/RW installed on your system, you’ll have the capability of creating your own audio CDs that feature YOU as the lead vocalist for your favorite hits! This process has been greatly enhanced by the addition of the included CD-Recorder 4 Basic version (A $50 dollar value FREE) to guide you in this process. You can make joke CDs for friends, CDs for creating special moments, practicing vocal arrangements, and just for fun. (Note: reading/writing CD+G requires use of a fully CD+G compatible CD drive. You can find a list of supported CD+G read/write devices in the "Supported Devices" section of our website at: http://www.dartpro.com/support/devices.asp)
The only thing required to take full advantage is a microphone and your attitude! We don’t recommend any particular microphone, but do have some basic requirements on their use. This is further explained here . You can also get more enjoyment and use from Karaoke Studio CD+G if you have a CD-R or CD-RW drive. You can even use the software just to create your own regular audio CDs. (Note: reading/writing CD+G requires use of a fully CD+G compatible CD drive. You can find a list of supported CD+G read/write devices in the "Supported Devices" section of our website at: http://www.dartpro.com/support/devices.asp)
No. We provide you with all of the software that you should need to be able to get audio tracks from a variety of sources, use them in building, or expanding your library, and then having a good time. However, make sure that your operating system (OS) is compatible with your software.
On the CD version, we provide a full “Guided Tour” multimedia tutorial (only for CD-Recorder 4 Basic) that lets you move at your own pace, and see each step explained. If this doesn’t help, read on...
All versions also include a project wizard that can assist you in becoming familiar with project creation and completion. In addition, there is also an extensive online help system and an electronic version of the full manual.
Completing a project from start to finish will vary on a few things. First, your level of proficiency with the software will determine how quickly you can build a good basic project.
Early on, it’s going to take a little time. Secondly, obtaining the audio and lyrics (either by typing or importing) will take a little bit of time. The more familiar you are with its tools and capabilities, the faster you’ll be able to take songs from beginning to end. DART Karaoke Studio CD+G provides you with the flexibility to create a song in a “quick and dirty” fashion, or be very exacting and detailed with respect to the placement of lyrics and their timing within the song. This means that if you’re the kind of person that wants it to be PERFECT, you can spend a lot of time tweaking a song. Fortunately, you can also obtain finished Karaoke Studio CD+G project files (.DKAs) from the Internet via other Karaoke Studio CD+G members…all you have to have is the audio file to make it work. The average start to end time for a user is about 30 minutes.
At this time, we don’t offer that exact feature. However, we can give you something even better…
Our included CD-Recorder 4 Basic will allow you to convert .MID (MIDI) files to .WAV (Wave) files so that you can use them in our software. You can find this command on the “List” menu or by clicking on the button of the piano keyboard keys. Refer to the CD-Recorder 4 Basic Help files for more information on converting MIDI files to WAVEs.
The CD+G is an important CD standard for Karaoke applications because it allows CD audio and special graphics to be stored on a five-inch standard disc, primarily for Karaoke players. CD+G formatted CDs require a special Karaoke player and a TV set to reproduce CD audio and graphics. Graphics in this case refer to Karaoke style word displays, where words to a song appear on a colored background and change color in synch with the music track to guide singers. A typical CD+G disc contains 4 to 18 songs. When these discs are played in regular audio CD players, the graphic information is simply ignored.
In addition to hardware devices, some software Karaoke players are also available, such as WinCDG by Steve J. Gray – see http://www.ryerson.ca/~sgray. Software players do not read the ‘.bin’ files that are on CD+G discs. They interpret special files (.cdg) which contain song lyrics and synchronization data only – the audio data should be provided in a separate wave or mp3 file.
If you have and Internet connection, you can email the DART Karaoke Studio CD+G project files (. DKAs) to friends and family. However, they will NOT be able to use them, unless they also have Karaoke Studio CD+G installed.
We also expect some number of project files to be available on the Internet. Check our web page (www.dartech.com) for info on this.
Indeed, you can. Our included CD-Recorder 4 Basic will allow you to compile a Playlist of your mixed vocal performance files. These are songs that have the original lead vocal removed and feature YOUR vocal in its place. You can create a CD with as little as 1 track or as many as 99 (up to 74 minutes worth, unless you have “Allow CD overburning” enabled in the “Options” menu in CD-Recorder 4 Basic).
No, we require Windows and many other accompanying files to be able to display your karaoke projects and playlist on the PC monitor. So, this would not be possible with Karaoke Studio CD+G.
Yes, and this is one of the most powerful features in Karaoke Studio CD+G. You can create .BIN files, which are used to create a custom CD+G disc that can be played in a standard-alone karaoke CD player. Karaoke Studio CD+G also allows you to control different aspects of how that karaoke track’s graphic data is displayed, including text font, size, color, and number of verses shown as well as other powerful options.
Generally, as long as you use the material for your own personal use and enjoyment…no. However, if you use the Karaoke Studio CD+G and the material for ANY kind of commercial purposes, then you might be breaking copyright laws. When in doubt, consult legal counsel to be sure that you’re within the law.
Assigning the ‘Default CD Reader’ drive by clicking on the “View” menu, selecting “Options” and then clicking on “Devices”. Click on the pull-down menu to select which CD drive you’d like to use to ‘grab’ audio CD tracks. Make SURE that the ‘CD Reader drive letter’ matches the selected drive.
Assigning the ‘Default CD-Recorder’ drive can also be done by clicking on the “View” menu and selecting “Options”. Click on the pull-down menu to select which CD drive you’d like to use to record your custom audio CDs. Note that you will be given an option to change this (and the record speed) later, prior to the actual burning process.
Start the CD-Recorder 4 Basic version and then insert an audio CD into your assigned ‘CD Reader’ drive.
NOTE: It is very important NOT to allow another CD player software program to attempt to “grab” the CD away from us. If another software ‘autostarts’ and begins playing the audio CD, make sure that you close that program before hitting the “Read Track” button in the process below.
Select the hard drive and folder where you want to store the new tracks. If you select the CD drive, the program will think you are trying to read tracks from a CD and store them on the SAME CD, which isn’t possible. So, you MUST select a valid, non-CD (fixed hard disk) drive to save the files into, prior to hitting the “Read Track” button.
If the audio track you want is on an existing audio CD, click on the "Read Track" button (it is the button that looks like a CD with music notes on it).
If desired, access the online CDDB (GraceNote) CD Information database to identify the CD and automatically insert the proper track and album info into our program.
Select the tracks that you want to record. If you are not sure which track you want, you can listen to the CD using the controls near the bottom of the dialogue box. The CD drive, that is ‘playing’ the CD, MUST have an internal audio cable connected from the CD-ROM drive to the soundcard for this audio to be audible.
After selecting the track that you want, click on the "Add" button. If all you are doing is copying the entire CD, you can click on the "Add All" button.
Before you begin to copy tracks from your CD, you should select the correct read speed of your CD-ROM drive from the drop down list labeled "Read Speed." For various reasons, we do NOT recommend that you read tracks faster than 1x or 2x. We have seen that slower speeds tend to proper better, more reliable track reading and better sound tracks.
You may want to change the file name prefix if you are recording from multiple sources so you don't get confused about which file is which. To do this, click on the "change" button, type in the appropriate name, and click "OK."
The program will now begin copying the CD tracks you have selected.
Repeat these steps until you have all of the songs you want to record. Remember that you have a limit of seventy-four minutes when you are recording on to CDs.
Yes. By clicking on “Add all” in the “Read Track” window, you can select the entire track contents of an audio CD to be transferred to the hard drive. Please note that this process can take some time, even at faster read speeds.
Yes. Within the “Read Track” window, you’ll have the option to play a file from the CD and listen to it prior to being read. Note that the CD audio cable must be connected from your ‘CD Reader’ drive to the soundcard for this feature to function properly.
Clicking on the “Change” button will allow you to choose the drive and name of the file. By default, transferred tracks are sent to the currently selected folder (in the File Panel) with the name format “trackXX.wav” (X is the track number). We suggest that if you want to grab entire CDs that you create new folders JUST for that audio, and name the folder after the album or recording.
Audio tracks from CDs are sent by default to the currently selected folder on the File Panel. The File Panel consists of the left and middle ‘window’ areas of the program. They should contain your systems folders (i.e. Windows, Program Files) in the left section and the contents of each folder (i.e. audio, text, or pictures) in the middle section. We suggest creating a folder on your computer in which you store ALL of your audio (preferably on it’s own hard drive), so that it’s easier to find, and not necessary to move should you need to reinstall our software.
You can alter the location where audio tracks from a particular CD will be sent by clicking on the “Change” button in the “Read Track” window.
Once you’ve recorded the audio to the system, it’s ready to use. Simply open the Karaoke Studio CD+G Author or Recorder/Player (if you already have a project file for the audio track) then move to the section on the Karaoke Author to find out how to open a new soundtrack.
You will want to use the outlined process below to read CD+G CD tracks to your system, such that will contain both the audio and graphic information. This would be done for the purposes of creating compilation CD+G CD tracks or playing the file using our "DART CD+G Player" utility.
Using the included CD-Recorder 4 Basic to read/write CD+G CD tracks as "BIN" (*.bin) files...for copying or creating custom compilations:
Start the included CD-Recorder 4 Basic software and insert your CD+G CD into your Plextor drive.
(Note: you will want to assign the CD drive that supports CD+G as both your CD-Reader AND CD-Recorder drive within our software. You can do this in the CD-Recorder 4 Basic by clicking on "View" / "Options" / "Devices". Make sure that the "CD-Reader drive letter" is the drive letter of the assigned "Default CD-Reader" drive).
Select your hard drive (not the CD drive where the CD+G CD is) and folder where you want the tracks that will be recorded to go on your system.
Note: We MUST copy the audio/graphic data to the hard drive first (and, in fact, it's 'safer' to do this anyway).
Once you've selected that, click on the "Read Track" button/icon in the toolbar. If you're asked to look up the CD on the Internet, just hit "No", for the sake of simplicity. (note: Most CD+G CDs won't be found by this system anyway.)
Select the track number that you want to get (by clicking on it) and then click "Add". If you want the whole CD, you can click on "Add all". Make SURE that you check the "Include graphics information" option below, so that both the audio *and* graphic data is read to your hard drive. We would also recommend that you select the "Add tracks to playlist" option, if it's not enabled already.
After that, click on "OK" at the bottom of the screen. Click "OK" on the copyright notice screen (but read it *and* understand it first.) You should see that the drive starts reading data to the hard drive, one track at a time.
By reading tracks in this manner, you'll be creating files on your hard drive called .BIN files. Those files contain both the audio and graphic data in one file. If you're interested in making CD+G CD 'compilation' CDs, make **very** sure that you rename your BIN files for each CD after you've read them (and prior to reading from the 2nd CD and so on).
The audio/graphic data will be read and stored to the drive and folder you selected earlier.
When this is done, you should see your ".bin" files on the far left. Put a blank CD-R into your assigned CD burner drive and then hit the "Write to Audio CD" button.
Make sure that you select a slower recording speed (1x, 2x, 4x, etc.) and uncheck ALL available options. Hit "Write".
Recording audio tracks from your computer’s soundcard:
First, you’ll have to be aware that recording from your PC soundcard will HAVE TO happen in the included CD-Recorder 4 Basic software. You’ll find additional info on using that to record audio below.
The first step you'll need to take to get started recording is to set up your sound card's connection to the "outside world." There are many different types of soundcards and audio cards on the market, so the information we provide here can only give you general guidelines on how your connections will be made. Please be sure to refer to your sound device's printed or online documentation when setting up to record from its inputs. More information on soundcard troubleshooting, as well as links to many major manufacturers' Websites, can be found in the support area of our Webpage (www.dartpro.com).
You will need to have a stereo patch cable, sometimes called a "Y" cable.
One end of the cable will be a single 1/8" DIN connector that plugs into the computer.
The other end will need to have Dual female RCA connectors to plug into the stereo.
A typical computer soundcard has the following types of physical inputs/outputs available:
One 1/8" DIN input jack for a microphone (Mic)
1/8" DIN "Line In", or similar audio (music) input jack
1/8" DIN "Line Out", or similar audio output jack
A 1/8" DIN output (or outputs) from the soundcard to the speakers
NOTE: Some soundcards now feature an additional input and/or output for digital signals (signals already converted from analog to digital). CD-Recorder V4 can also record from these inputs, assuming that you have set up the digital output to input (and vice versa, if necessary) from your external digital device (CD player, DAT machine or stereo receiver with digital output). You must also be certain that your soundcard has selected the digital input as being "active". Check your soundcard documentation for more info on setting this up.
Don't be too concerned if you don't see all of the possible input/output types available. The only ones that you NEED to have are the speaker output and the Line Input. Check your soundcard's documentation for more information on which jacks do which functions. Some users don't always get printed information, and in that case, your soundcard manufacturer's Website will also be a good resource for information.
Plug the single DIN connector on the patch cable into the audio input plug-in on the computer sound card.
Possibly. The great majority of Karaoke Studio CD+G users will get their audio files directly off of audio CDs, but if you choose to record from your soundcard, you’ll need to be able to connect your equipment to the “Line In” jack of the PC’s soundcard.
No, you don’t HAVE TO have a microphone. However, many of the product features can’t be used if you do not use a microphone along with the software. There are many users, however, that only wish to use the Player to display lyrics in time, and don’t care to record themselves or others. In this case, a microphone isn’t needed…so go ahead and just sing along!
This depends on what you’re trying to record. If you’re going to be recording audio soundtracks (songs to remove vocal tracks from), you’ll want to use the “Line In” jack and connect your external audio system to that input. If you’re going to be recording your own, or others’, vocals tracks you’ll want to record from the “Mic In”.
You should always use the PC soundcard’s “Microphone In” or “Mic In” for recording audio from the microphone. Microphone inputs on soundcard work at specific levels and this level must be maintained for a proper recording to take place.
After DART CD-Recorder V4 Basic is installed, you must set your input recording volume:
Double-click on the icon next to the clock that looks like a speaker. This will bring up the "Volume Control". If you don't see this control, you may also be able to access by going to "Start" / "Programs" / "Accessories" / "Multimedia" or "Entertainment" / "Volume Control"
Click on the "Options" menu and select "Properties."
Under "Properties" select "Adjust volume for" as "Recording" and make sure all of the volume controls are selected/checked on the bottom of the "Properties" dialog box. Click on "OK."
Now the "Recording Control" Dialog box will appear. Make sure that the proper line is selected (Usually "Line-In" or "Line"). The proper option must be selected or you will not be able to record any of the input. To select the proper line, you must make sure the correct "Select" option box is checked.
Use the vertical slider to adjust the input level of the source you are recording from to the proper volume. The proper volume would be when the DART CD-Recorder V4 can record a soundfile and there is no clipping of the sound while recording.
The most likely reason is the settings that the soundcard’s input section is using. See the answer above (#5) for more info on how to get to and adjust for the correct input settings.
There are other reasons for this, but that one is by FAR the most commonly reported. If this doesn’t help, contact our support professionals for more information and help getting configured.
Make sure that you have connected all of your stereo equipment properly, that you use quality cabling, and that you’re recording your audio as loud as possible without “clipping” the input. To get more information on setting proper audio recording levels, see the question/answer above concerning adjusting input volume for recorded audio.
DART Karaoke Studio CD+G DEMANDS that you use 44.1KHz, 16-bit stereo recordings. So, when you’re recording audio that will be used to create a karaoke song, you MUST use that setting.
This is recommended, but not absolutely necessary. We recommend, however, creating a folder on your hard drive (preferably the hard drive with the greatest amount of free space) that will hold all of your recordings, DeVocalized versions and new vocal recordings. This is makes it MUCH easier to find files that you’re looking for, and also means that you don’t have to move audio tracks around on your system, should you have to reinstall our software.
No, you do not. However, the job of finding lyrics to use, as well as finding MP3 files that you might want to use to create a song, will be much easier with a good internet connection available.
Yes, there are many. However, we don’t recommend any particular site. These are good places to start, but you can also find many audio files to use simply by using the search engine of your choice, such as Lycos, AltaVista and others.
That depends on your internet connection and what type of file it is that you’re trying to download. WAVE files (especially in CD format) are impractical to download due to their large file size. Most “average” MP3 files (a single song) will take 30-45 minutes with a solid 56k dial-up connection.
You should use CD-Recorder 4 Basic’s “MP3 to WAV” conversion capability to convert the MP3 file to a CD format WAVE file. When converting, make sure that you choose a sample rate of 44.1KHz, a bit depth of 16-bit, and convert to stereo. Then, the converted WAVE file will be completely ready to use in the Karaoke Author and Player.
NOTE: If you upgrade to the full version of CD-Recorder 4 (not Basic), then you can also further clean a file when using the Producer’s EQ. We have found that this can make a significant difference when DeVocalizing audio CD tracks (both before and after the DeVocal). It can also further suppress lead vocal/center channel audio signals by “masking” them with surrounding instrument frequencies and produce a better mix.
If you ABSOULTELY have to use an MP3 file, all we can say is…”tweak the settings to obtain the best possible results”. A great number of MP3s audio files do NOT lend themselves to quality DeVocalizing (unless they are well recorded originally AND are encoded to MP3 at 160kbs or higher). So, we will ALWAYS recommend that the best course of action is to convert the particular MP3 to a WAV file…if even temporarily.
We don’t support the ID3v2 tag for MP3s at this time. You can enter lyrics into a Karaoke Studio CD+G project file, but that information will NOT be saved with either an MP3 OR a WAVE file.
Karaoke Author:
Building your own projects (for *.bin or *.cdg file creation): An Overview
Many users have requested an overview process for how to complete a karaoke project using our Karaoke Author utility. Below, you'll find the steps needed to take your project from start to finish without use of the Karaoke Author's Wizard. You will likely find your own best (and fastest) personal style for building projects after you find out what works best for you. However, some steps are required in a particular order (such as having lyrics in place before being able to insert flags into your projects).
Note: Keep in mind this is only an overview of the process needed to build karaoke project files that will be ready to be built into either "*.cdg" or "*.bin" files. Even though it is just a 'roadmap', it should get you all the way through the necessary steps. Most every step listed here is described in greater details on FAQ.
Get your audio (via CD-Recorder 4 Basic, download from the Net, or recording via the PC's soundcard)
NOTE: If you are using MP3 files, it's recommended that you first want to use the "List" / "Decode Files" conversion process (from MP3 to WAV) in CD-Recorder 4 Basic. This will give you a much better format for the soundtrack
you're going to use, especially if you plan on using DeVocal. When possible, use of MP3 files is not recommended
over WAV files (which where never MP3 files first).
Launch the main Karaoke Author utility (with a new/empty project open).
Use the "Open Soundtrack" tool and select the newly made WAV file to open the WAV or MP3 file in the Author.
Type/Import lyrics for the project.
NOTE: To start typing in lyrics *without* the Wizard, just right click on the text/line area, at the bottom of the Karaoke Author window, and then left-click select "Edit". Then, type just as if you were using a typewriter or writing in Notepad/Wordpad. It is recommended that you keep your lines to a shorter length but feel free to experiment to see what works best for you.
NOTE 2: Do not leave an empty line within your project. Lines with no character entries are not allowed when setting timing flags.
You'll want to take the text section out of "Edit" mode by clicking on the text/line area, at the bottom of the Karaoke Author window, and then unchecking "Edit". Then, make sure that "Play and Show" (in the "Play" area) is NOT selected. Left-click on the first word of your song. Select the "All" button in the Play section and use the recommended "One-step" placement method to drop your word timing flags. Each time the singer starts a new word, hit your SPACE bar.
NOTE: To adjust the flags after they are set, left-click on a flag and "drag" it to the left or right. It is not recommended that you do this during playback but adjust a line-worth of word flags while using the "Window" (W) play mode.
Use the DeVocalizer to suppress the lead vocal. It will create a new WAV file, which you can switch to in the main Karaoke Author window. For this, select "Output file" in the DeVocalizer (but ONLY after it is done building that WAV file). You can also close the DeVocal tool and use "Open Soundtrack", then select the devocalized version of the WAV file.
Verify that the timing for the flags is correct (or very near it) by playing through the song a few times. When you do this, it is recommended that you have "Play and Show" turned on. This will let you "see" the timing of either "Lines" or "Words", depending on which synchronization mode you're set to use at the time.
Once you are happy with how the project looks and sounds, you'll want to use the "Generate CD+G track" feature, in the "Karaoke " menu, to build your ".bin" or ".cdg" file with the desired graphic settings.
NOTE: It is recommended that you use the DART CD+G Player to check your work to make sure that the .BIN file plays, sounds and looks correct. If necessary, go back to the "Generate CD+G track" tool and make changes and build the .BIN again. You'll want to do this until you're happy with how the .BIN file plays in the CD+G Player window.
Set that .BIN aside and work on your next project. Continue using the steps above until you have ALL of the .BIN files that will be burned on to the CD you're going to burn.
NOTE: You cannot add .BIN files to a CD after burning to it once. So, anything that will EVER be burned to the CD will have to be put there at one time.
Open the included CD-Recorder 4 Basic utility.
Build a playlist of your finished .BIN files and select "Write to Audio CD".
NOTE: ONLY .BIN files should be put into the playlist to create a "pure" CD+G CD. Our software can ALSO create a mixed format CD, where only SOME of the songs have graphic data and the rest will play as regular audio.
Select the speed to burn and hit "OK".
This process should get you through all of the steps needed to make either a *.bin or *.cdg file from 'scratch". You'll likely find that getting through an ENTIRE first song *can* take some time. To some degree, this is unavoidable. You are, after all, creating a karaoke masterpiece.
DART Karaoke Author allows you to synchronize the music with the song lyrics. Additionally it gives access to the remaining DART Karaoke Studio CD+G utilities, namely:
DART DeVocalizer (a tool which will allow you to suppress the vocal part of the original STEREO recording),
DART Karaoke Recorder/Player (a utility which can be used to play DART Karaoke files and to record your own vocal performance),
DART Karaoke Producer (allowing you to combine the devocalized soundtrack, extracted from the original recording, with your own vocal contribution)
DART Karaoke Playlist (allowing you to generate and manage lists of completed karaoke project files),
DART CD-Recorder 4 Basic (an application that will allow you to record from both analog and digital audio sources, and to create your own CD).
Generate CD+G track (allowing you to create .BIN files, used for CD+G CD production, or .CDG files, used with PC software CD+G or MP3+G players (only), as well as providing you with controls for the generation of graphic onscreen lyrics and background).
Within the Author, click on the “Soundtrack” menu at the top of the window, or click on the button of the open folder with the music note coming out of it (the fifth icon/button from the left). You should see a standard Windows “Open” dialog window. You can browse your folders/files from there to find the location of any files that you’ve recorded from your soundcard, or read from other audio CDs. Use the “up arrow folder” and/or double-click on folders in the main Open window to find the WAVE files or MP3 files that you want to use.
Our soundtrack “Open” dialog window should show you any WAVE files or MP3 files that may be in the currently selected folder. When you find an MP3 file that you’d like to use, just click on it one time and hit “Open” or simply double-left click on the file that you want.
It may be necessary for you to change the “Zoom” value in the upper right of the Author window to be able to “see” the entire song onscreen. To view the entire file, just click on the upper arrow until the value shown no longer increases. However, after working with the Author for any amount of time, you’ll come to realize that working at this zoom level is impractical. For most users, a zoom level of about 400 is a good place to start. Just use the “Zoom” control to move in and out as needed from that point. You can also simply click on the Zoom window and type in a value as well. See more on AutoZoom in the next section.
As of the release, you can NOT have more than one song open in a project at any one point in time. If you open a new soundtrack, it will replace the audio file that existed there before.
Play controls, Zoom/AutoZoom, Synchronization Level Controls and Frame settings:
Controls and buttons contained in the “Play” group allow you to select the playback mode (Play and Show) and range (All, From cursor, Frame, Window).
After opening an audio file you can play it in several different ways:
To start playback, click one of the buttons situated in the “Play” group or use the corresponding keyboard shortcuts.
To play the entire audio file, click the All button situated in the “Play” group or press A.
To play an audio file from the current cursor position, click the From cursor button or press C. The cursor position can be changed by clicking on the Overview strip or anywhere inside the Soundfile Window.
If you click Frame or press F, the contents of the green “Frame” around part of the audio will be played back.
Finally, if you click Window or press W, the playback will be limited to the current contents of the Soundfile Window.
(NOTE: changing the “Zoom” level in either direction after playback has started will NOT change the amount of audio played. The “current content” that will be played back is the audio onscreen when the Window key is pressed or a user presses W.
NOTE: Changing the cursor position during playback takes the playback to a new location.
You can stop playback in two different ways. If you click the Stop button (each play button turns into Stop when activated) or press S on your keyboard and the playback will be stopped and the cursor will return to its initial position. If you press the ESC key during playback, the cursor will stay in its last position.
To check synchronization results, in the Text window below or via the lyric flag/play cursor position, activate the Play and show option, by clicking on the corresponding box in the “Play” group. When the Play and show option is switched on, the currently playing verse or word is highlighted in the Text Window, in accordance with its Flag position.
IMPORTANT: At the initial stage of synchronization, switch the Play and show option off when dropping lyric verse or word Flags during playback.
NOTICE: Use the play buttons onscreen to audition audio files while editing current or additional text, as the corresponding keyboard shortcuts are disabled when you enter the Text Edit mode.
The "Zoom” box, displayed next to the Overview strip, allows you to change the plot resolution (audio zoom in/out level) and along with it - the length of the audio segment displayed in the Soundfile Window. You can use the up and down arrows (to view more or less audio, respectively) or you can type in any desired value.
Use the Preferences dialog available from the File menu to change the default zoom value associated with different synchronization levels (Verse or Word).
If you check the AutoZoom box (in the File / Preferences dialog), DART Karaoke Author will automatically change the zoom value to one which guarantees that all “word” Flags, belonging to the same verse, will be displayed in the Soundfile Window (only when synchronization level is set to Word). If the AutoZoom box is left unchecked, the zoom value will remain constant, unless you intentionally modify it or change the synchronization level.
Buttons from the Synchronization level group can be used to select between the different synchronization options (Verse or Word).
There are two levels at which you can synchronize the text with the music:
If you choose the verse level, by pressing the Verse button in the Synchronize group, you will be able to mark position of the beginning of each verse, that is, each line of the typeset text.
When you choose the word level, by pressing the Word button in the Synchronize group, you will be allowed to mark position of each word or phrase of the text (‘phrase’ is a sequence of linked words – see Typesetting rules in Text Window).
When the text file is synchronized with the audio file, the Flag corresponding to the selected item is automatically localized and displayed in the Soundfile Window and vice versa – each time a new Flag is activated the corresponding text item is marked.
How long it will take you to “finish” a karaoke project depends a lot on which synchronization mode that you use. Verse will not produce effects that are as professional, but it’s much faster. Word synchronization takes more time, since you have align individual words to the time that they should be sung. After working with this mode for a time, it is possible to become quicker when setting word-based lyric flags. Of course, how exacting you are also will have an impact on time required to produce a word-synced karaoke project.
The green “Frame” displayed on the Overview strip, and in the Soundfile Window, allows you to precisely select the playback range.
Depending on your preferences, the Frame may be window-constrained (i.e., always situated inside the Soundfile Window) or unconstrained. To switch between these options, use the Preferences dialog available from the File menu.
To play the `framed’ portion of the recording, click the Frame button, situated in the ‘Play” group. To stop playback, click the same button again. You can also press F and the contents of the green “Frame” around the audio will be played back.
The Frame can be modified in two different ways:
First, you can drag both frame edges displayed on the Overview strip to their new positions (note that if the Frame is set to be window-constrained the edge placement will be restricted to the Soundfile Window area).
Second, you can precisely control of the Frame position by switching to the Soundfile Window and placing the mouse pointer over one of the Frame corners – then depress the left mouse button and move the corresponding edge to a new position.
If the Frame is wider than the displayed fragment some or all of its corners may be not available.
Please note that you can drag the left frame edge over its right edge and vice versa. This feature can be very handy when working on consecutive fragments of the sound material.
The Text Window (the black area in the lower left) shows the lyrics that ought to be synchronized with the music. If you’re starting a brand new project, this window will be empty and completely black until you import lyrics or type in text directly. There are two methods to input lyrics into a new project. Input them by hand (typing) or importing a TEXT (*.txt) file into the lyrics editor. Both methods are described below.
To type in, or edit the text, select the Edit command from the Lyrics menu or click on the Text Window using the right mouse button and check Edit. As long as you stay in the editing mode, a yellow blinking cursor is displayed in the Text Window indicating the placement of new text.
To quit editing mode, uncheck Edit in the same way you checked it. You can type in the text while listening to the file play back. Using the various play options (All, From cursor, Frame, Window), audition specific fragments of the recording as many times as necessary to get the text right. Then, type it in and move to another fragment. Use the play buttons to audition audio files while editing the text, as the corresponding playback keyboard shortcuts are disabled when you enter the editing mode. Working in the editing mode you can: type in a new line or word, modify existing ones, remove verses and/or words, change division into verses and/or words, create phrases etc.
If, at the time of editing, the text is synchronized with the music, all changes you introduce will be accompanied by Flag changes – the corresponding Flags will split, merge, or entirely new Flags will be created. Quite obviously, all new Flags (including those created by splitting the existing ones) should be synchronized.
You can use lower case letters, upper case letters, numbers and all regular punctuation marks (“?”, “!”, “-“, etc.) within a verse of text.
We have noted that some website use extended ASCII character sets that are not allowed. It's recommended that you make sure to remove any extra space or unneeded formatting characters for your text (*.txt) files if you plan in importing copyed/pasted lyrics.
Yes, if possible, it may be easier to find and download the lyrics of a song from the internet, especially if it is a more popular song. You should look for lyrics as TEXT (*.txt) files, or save the information as a TEXT file, if you find the lyrics you want online. Then, after saving them, you can import them instead, which makes finishing a Karaoke Studio CD+G project MUCH faster (unless you’re a quick typist).
Yes, there are many, but we don’t recommend any in particular. Doing a search of the internet, using your favorite search engine, should yield lots of responses, from fan sites to official band portals, there’s lots of lyrics to be found out there. Usually searching for “ lyrics” (example: “Joe’s Band lyrics”) will yield excellent results.
Just save the web info as a TEXT file, or copy it by hand to a new TEXT file, using Notepad (which can be found in “Start” / “Programs” / “Accessories”). Name your TEXT file something descriptive (like the song’s title) and you’re ready to go.
To import an existing text file, press the IMPORT TEXT button (the folder with the “A” coming out of it) situated on the Toolbar, or select the Import command from the Lyrics menu. You should see a standard Windows “Open” dialog window. You can browse your folders/files from there to find the location of any lyric TEXT files that you’ve created by hand or downloaded from the internet. Use the “up arrow folder” and/or double-click on folders in the main Open window to find the TEXT file that you want to use.
The song lyrics are incorporated into your DART Karaoke Author files (*.dka). If you want to save the lyrics in a separate text file, use the Export command available from the Lyrics menu. Please note that DART Karaoke Author does not update the imported or exported text files – all changes you introduce while working in the text editing mode are saved in the corresponding *.dka files but are not saved in the original text files. Therefore, you should use the Export command to save/update such external text files whenever needed.
The typesetting rules are very simple: each verse, which corresponds to one line of a typeset text, should consist of a certain number of words and phrases separated by spaces. By ‘phrases’, we mean two or more words joined with underline signs – this is a simple way of linking words which are jointly pronounced but written down separately. Multiple spaces are ignored when you import a text but are not ignored if you work in the editing mode (to allow you to put a new word between the existing ones). Since the verses displayed in the Text Window are automatically numbered, please do not put any numbers at the beginning of each line of the typeset text.
The “Flags” displayed in the Soundfile Window are used as the synchronization marks. Depending on the selected synchronization level (see Synchronization level in the Help files), they show the beginning of the sound material that corresponds to a particular verse or word. Each Flag has a text banner, a flagpole and a base.
There are two general methods of setting your timing flags for Lines or Words.
The "One-step" method sets flags for your words on a word-by-word basis.
The "Two-step" method occurs when you set flags for an entire line first then switch to Word mode to further tighten and 'tweak' the flag positions.
Note: You won't find any sort of button or command for "One-step" or "Two-step" mode. These modes are dependent upon how you use the Karaoke Author.
One-Step method:
Once you have selected your audio and input all of the lyrics to be used, you're ready to start placing your timing flags. These flags determine when a Line/Word will be 'color wiped' when played. The One-step method allows you to place flags for a song a word at a time.
Make sure that "Play and Show" (in the "Play" area) is NOT selected.
Left-click on the first word of your song (Line 1, Word 1).
Select the "All" button in the Play section to start playback of your soundtrack.
Each time the singer starts a new word, hit your SPACE bar (recommended) or click the "Set Flag" button to set a timing flag at that position. This will take a bit of practice but after a song or two, you should be able to get good results quickly. Remember that you can always edit the position of timing flags after they have been set.
NOTE: If you need to do so, you can pause this process to fix a line of flags (by hitting ESC, you'll stop playback at the current location). You can then select the first word of the line on which you made a mistake and pick it up from there by hitting "C" (Play from cursor).
Two-Step method:
Once you have selected your audio and input all of the lyrics to be used, you're ready to start placing your timing flags. These flags determine when a Line/Word will be 'color wiped' when played. The Two-step method allows you to place flags for a song on a Line-by-line basis first, then do another pass to perform word timing.
Make sure that "Play and Show" (in the "Play" area) is NOT selected.
Click on the "Line" button in the lower-right corner.
Left-click on the first Line of your song.
Select the "All" button in the Play section to start playback of your soundtrack.
Each time the singer starts a new Line, hit your SPACE bar (recommended) or click the "Set Flag" button to set a timing flag at that position. This will take a bit of practice but after a song or two, you should be able to get good results quickly. Remember that you can always edit the position of timing flags after they have been set. NOTE: If you need to do so, you can pause this process to fix a line flag (by hitting ESC, you'll stop playback at the current location). You can then select the line on which you made a mistake and pick up the process from there by hitting "C" (Play from cursor).
When you reach the end of your song, stop playback and place a check in the "Play and show" option.
After the Line flags have been set, you will want to 'tweak' the position of those Line flags before moving to "Word" mode. Once your Line flags seem to be set correctly, click on the "Word" button in the lower right and perform the process again.
NOTE: You can move the position of a line flag by using your left-mouse button to 'drag' the flag forward or backward in time.
The best way to do this is to use your ears and eyes to see the cursor ‘roll over’ the flag at just the right time. This does take a little working with to get expert results, but very quickly, you should be able to get a good idea of what works and what doesn’t. In most cases, just getting a flag reasonably close is more than good enough…of course, this depends on how perfect of a karaoke song you want to create.
To move the synchronization Flag to a new position, place the cursor over the flagpole, left-click-and-hold then drag it to the newly desired location.
To fix position of a Flag, e.g. to prevent it from accidental displacement, click on its base. The base of a fixed Flag is filled with the Flag color. The other Flags cannot move the Flags that are fixed unless their status is changed back to `floating’ by clicking the Flag base again.
To fix positions of all Flags corresponding to a particular verse (including the word Flags), click on the checkbox displayed next to the verse number (if you fix all word Flags corresponding to that verse the box will be automatically checked).
If you click on the checked verse box, the status of the corresponding Flags will be changed to `floating’. Hence, to make all Flags (associated with a selected verse) ‘float’, click the verse checkbox twice – the first time to fix all Flags (unless they are already fixed) and the second time - to release them.
When you move a Flag to a new position the remaining ones will be pushed away to make a free space, if necessary (provided, of course, they are not fixed). The distance between the word Flags is limited from below by 100 milliseconds. You can change this value using the Preferences dialog available from the File menu.
Using the Karaoke Author to build Duet karaoke projects (with use of Duet Flags):
If your song is a duet, use Duet Flags to distinguish the parts sung by different singers and/or by both singers.
To mark the beginning of the part sung by the first singer, position the yellow cursor before the corresponding Line or Word Flag in the Soundfile Window and click the right mouse button.
Choose Insert Duet Flag - Singer 1 from the pop-up menu shown on the screen.
In the same way, you can insert Duet Flags corresponding to the second singer (Insert Duet Flag - Singer 2) or to both singers (Insert Duet Flag - Both).
NOTE: Each Duet Flag is active until another Duet Flag is encountered. You can check the type of a Duet flag by placing your mouse over it to see a 'hovering' name tag.
Duet Color assignment:
When a duet CD+G track/file is played, the lines marked as Singer 1, Singer 2 and Both are displayed in different colors.
To change the colors assigned to Singer 1 and Singer 2 (for the text and for the highlighted text) place the cursor over the corresponding Duet Flag and click the right button.
Then, select Duet Properties from the pop-up menu and adjust the colors (to change the background color, and the colors assigned to the parts sung by both singers, use the Generate CD+G track dialog, available from the Karaoke menu).
In the same way you can decide upon the way the duet lines will be displayed (left aligned, right aligned, centered).
The pop-up menu allows you also to change the Flag type (e.g. from Singer 1 to Singer 2, or to Both) and to remove the Duet Flag.
NOTICE: By default the text lines corresponding to the first singer are left justified, and the lines corresponding to the right singer are right justified. If you accept such settings, consider shortening the text lines corresponding to Singer 1 and Singer 2 as short lines form a better looking pattern after justification.
Using the Karaoke Author's "Edit" tools (Insert Silence, Cut and Shift Flags):
To insert a section of silence into a soundfile, use the Insert silence dialog, available from the Edit menu.
First, enter the length of the silence block in seconds.
Then, choose the insertion point. Insertion point can be placed at the beginning of the file (Start of file), at the end of the file (End of file) or it may coincide with the current cursor position (Cursor).
If you choose the Frame option, the entire contents of the frame will be muted.
Inserting silence is often used when using the "Producer" tool to mix two files together when one of them is your recorded vocal performance (created by "Recorder/Player"). We have noted that you should insert roughly 110-130ms (0.11 - 0.13) of silence to resolve offsets in the two files created by most PC soundcards.
To delete a selected portion of the recording, use the Cut dialog, available from the Edit menu.
You can use this function in three different ways:
To remove data from the beginning of the audio file to the current cursor position (From start to cursor)
To remove data from the cursor to the end of the file (From cursor to end)
To remove the contents of the frame (Frame).
You would want to use this tool when you have a bit too much audio at the start of your song. Note that you can also leave this extra bit of space in place and, instead, use the "Shift Flags" tool to keep the timing of synchronization flags correct with respect to your audio.
If you find that your karaoke timing flags seem to offset by a set amount (against your audio), you can easily resolve it by using the "Shift Flags" tool in the "Edit" menu. There are two methods to shift some/all of your timing flags.
Using the "Shift Flags" tool in "Edit:
Click on the "Edit" menu, then on "Shift Flags".
The "Cursor position" value shows you the current position of the yellow cursor. If you're shifting all of the assigned flags by the same amount, this position isn't important. If, however, you'd like to shift a group of flags at the start or end of the file, the cursor position does matter.
- If you need to shift flags to the right (later in time), you will want to place the cursor prior to the first flag that needs shifting.
- If you need to shift flags to the left (earlier in time), you wilil want to place the cursor to the right of the last flag that needs shifting.
Use the "Offset time" (measured in seconds) to set the amount of time that will be applied. This value is set as a decimal value. So, a setting of "0.5" would give you a 500ms (half a second) shift in one direction or the other. The amount of time you need to shift is something that will likely require some experimentation. Using the up/down arrows at the end of this control will raise/lower the time shift applied by 1/10th of a second (100ms).
NOTE: Negative values for this are not allowed.
Select the "Direction" that you need to move the flags.
- Selecting "Left" will move all flags to the left or will move flags which are located on the left side of the yellow cursor to the left by the assigned amount, depending on the assigned "Mode".
- Selecting "Right" will move all flags to the right or will move flags which are located on the right side of the yellow cursor to the right by the assigned amount, depending on the assigned "Mode".
Set your "Mode", which affects the flags that will be moved.
- If you choose "All", you will move every assigned flag in the same direction and by the same amount of time. (Note: This is similar to the results you will get by using the manual method described further below.)
- If you choose "From cursor", you will will only move flags located on one side or the other (left or right) of the yellow cursor position. You should use this mode if you need to move the first verse of lyrics earlier in time, for example, or to move the last set of lines later in time.
NOTE: If you want to want to shift a set of flags in the middle of the song, it will require two shifts to be performed. For example: If your song has three sections (Verse 1, Chorus, Verse 2), you would shift both the Chorus and Verse 2 by the same amount in a particular direction using "From Cursor" mode. Then, the second shift would move just Verse 2 back to where it should be (and was, prior to the first shift).
If needed, you can undo the flag shift by hitting "Ctrl-Z" after it's been done and try again until the timing appears to be correct.
Using a manual method (without use of the "Shift Flags" tool):
If desired, you can use a shortcut method to shift all flags. Note that this process will only apply to shifting all flags.
Place the yellow position cursor at the very start of the song, prior to any set flags.
Hold down your "Shift" key and left-click-and-hold on the first assigned Line or Word flag.
While holding down "Shift" and holding your mouse button, move your mouse to the left or right and all of your assigned Line/Word flags will 'slide' as you move your mouse.
If needed, you can undo the flag shift by hitting "Ctrl-Z" after it's been done and try again until the timing appears to be correct.
DART DeVocalizer is available after pressing the DEVOCALIZER button (the mouth with the yellow line through it) situated on the Toolbar or after choosing the DeVocalize command from the Karaoke menu.
You can use this tool for elimination, or near-elimination, of the lead vocalist’s performance from almost any regular stereophonic recording. This is like producing a Karaoke music track, except that the background music and background vocals are not an imitation – they are extracted from an original recording by means of digital processing of an audio signal. And…you don’t have to wait for someone to prepare it for you!
Basically, any stereo audio sources can be used: compact discs (usually yielding the best results), analog records, cassette tapes, stereo TV and Radio etc. The separation technique will not work on a monophonic source. Also, it usually does not work on recordings made before the mid-1960s.
As for what settings to use, that’s hard to say. All songs will require different treatment and MAY not produce desired results. This is a side effect of the process that must be used to produce the vocal suppression effect and varies from track to track.
To remove more of the lead vocal track, keep the Attenuation slider in its rightmost position. If you set the slider position further to the left, the vocal will start to return. Setting the slider all the way to the left means “no vocal removal”. The results you will get depend on the amount of reverberation present in the original recording. If there is a lot of ambient sound associated with the lead vocalist, the elimination will not be perfect. Even in this case, however, the remaining ‘echo’ should still be pretty faint.
The voice of the lead vocalist is often eliminated along with the sound of some of the supporting instruments. To minimize this effect, use the Bass retrieval slider. This will allow to leave the lower-end audio frequencies untouched by the DeVocal tool. While this can make your resulting music sound better, it tends to add a bit more of the singer back into the resuling devocalized audio file.
While listening to the results, increase or lower the bass cutoff by moving the Bass retrieval slider to the right or left, respectively. Stop right about the point where the vocal track becomes audible again or when the audio sounds the way you'd like.
Bass retrieval is usually worth the effort, as it can bring back some important elements of the accompaniment suppressed in the course of vocal elimination, such as percussion beats, bass guitar and generally all sounds that remain below the lead vocalist’s ‘bandwidth’.
The voice of the lead vocalist is often eliminated along with the sound of some of the supporting instruments. To minimize this effect, use the Treble retrieval slider. This will allow to leave the higher-end audio frequencies untouched by the DeVocal tool. While this can make your resulting music sound better, it tends to add a bit more of the singer back into the resuling devocalized audio file.
While listening to the results, increase or lower the treble cutoff by moving the Treble retrieval slider to the right or left, respectively. Stop right about the point where the vocal track becomes audible again or when the audio sounds the way you'd like.
Treble retrieval is usually worth the effort, as it can bring back some important elements of the accompaniment suppressed in the course of vocal elimination, such as piano/organ, guitar and generally all sounds that remain above the lead vocalist’s ‘bandwidth’.
For a majority of stereo recordings, the lead vocal is 'centered' on both the left and right channels. Should this not be the case, use the Channel Balance slider to improve the vocal suppression (move the slider to the left/right to find the position that guarantees the maximum attenuation). For example, if the lead singer is completely in one speaker or the other, move the slider position to that side to suppress this area of the stereo signal.
NOTE: If possible, using headphones when making this adjustment can help you to determine when you have the correct position selected.
Devocalization seriously degrades the stereo content of the processed (newly created) audio file. The sterophonic content of the devocalized recording can be enhanced (faked) by applying special digital signal processing techniques.
Stereo enhancement may occassionally raise the signal level to the point where clipping occurs.
Since clipping, indicated by the red clip light, results in audible sound distortions, it should be avoided. You can achieve this by reducung the level of the output signal (see below).
If you don't want to devocalize the entire recording, click the DeVocalizer ON/OFF control checkbox to launch the DeVocalizer ON/OFF Control Bar.
The blue ON/OFF bar, situated between the Soundfile Window and Text Window, allows you to select fragments that will not be devocalized. By default, the entire bar is displayed in dark blue, which means that the entire recording is scheduled for devocalization.
- The selected ('inactive') fragment will be displayed in white.
Using this technique you can mark all parts of the recording that should be preserved 'as are'.
After selecting a section of sound data, you will sometimes find that the start or end points are not exactly where you want them to be.
- To update the selection, simply grab the selection edge and drag it to a new position.
- To remove selection, move its front edge over the end edge and release the mouse button.
- To merge two neighboring selections, move the end edge of the first one over the front edge of the second one.
Use the Output level slider to control the output volume of the devocalized sound. When adjusting the volume, make sure that the clip indicator does not light up at any point in the song.
We refer to using the Audition feature as ‘on-line tuning’. This means that you can listen to the ‘before’ and ‘after’ of your edits to make sure they are right before saving them.
To start testing (auditioning) your changes, press the Play result button. DART DeVocalizer will play the results of the digital audio processing while you are changing the program settings. Each time you modify any of the settings, the red Ready light in the Audition group will turn off - it will be switched on again as soon as the results obtained under the new settings are available.
How quickly your PC is able to keep up with our on-line tuning depends on the CPU speed, amount of RAM, hard drive space and other factors. As always, faster PCs will yield faster results.
At any time during the test, you can press the Play source button to bypass filtering and listen to the original, unedited recording.
Select the processing range using the Range box. You can process the entire recording, starting from its beginning (entire file) or from the current position of the cursor in the Soundfile Window (from cursor). If you choose frame, all tests will be confined to a selected frame; and if you select window they will be confined to the content of the currently displayed window. In all cases listed above, processing is performed in a loop. Note that you can shift back and forth between DART Karaoke Author and DART DeVocalizer. This allows you to change the content of the signal Frame and/or Soundfile Window without closing the DART DeVocalizer dialog.
When tuning is finished, you can create your DeVocalized file by saving the results in a separate soundfile. To start saving the new audio file, press the Process button. To change the name of the output file to be created, press the Change button and type in a new name.
When the output (devocalized) file is produced, you can display it in the Soundfile Window by clicking the radio button situated to the left of its name.
Playing the devocalized soundfile in the Play and show mode you can perform a ‘dress rehearsal’ prior to using the DART Karaoke Recorder/Player.
NOTICE: When the Bass/Treble retrieval option is switched off, DART Karaoke Author creates a pseudo-stereo output file (the left channel is the reversed-phase version of the right channel). When the Bass retrieval/Treble option is active, the output file is truly stereophonic.
Using other Karaoke Author's "Karaoke" menu tools:
DART Pitch Shifter (available from the Karaoke menu) can be used to change the pitch of the recording without modifying its duration. The Pitch shifter dialog allows you to fit the key of the music to your needs. You can process both uncompressed (*.wav) and compressed (*.mp3) audio files displayed in the DART Karaoke Author Soundfile Window.
Pitch changes can be controlled by two sliders.
- The upper slider allows you to set the number of semitones (half-steps) by which the original pitch will be raised or lowered. The range is limited to +/-12 semitones, which is equivalent to one octave up or down.
- To fine tune above and below a semitone use the lower slider, scaled in cents (+/-50). One hundred cents is equivalent to one semitone.
NOTE: Pitch change can only be applied to the currently active "Soundfile", not to an incoming vocal recording. If you record your vocal using the "Recorder/Player" and select it as the "Soundfile" for your project, you can alter its pitch using the Pitch shifter tool.
The "Extract CD+G data from .BIN file" tool is used to 'capture' the graphic portion of a karaoke *.bin file (which contains both audio and graphic data). Generally, this would be used for creating a *.cdg file use with an MP3 file. This relates to making/using what has become know as "MP3+G" files (more on this below).
You will need to either read a *.bin file from an existing karaoke CD+G CD or create the *.bin file first using our software.
Once you have your *.bin file, you will need to do the following to extract the graphics data (only) to the new *.cdg file:
Click on the "Karaoke" menu, then select "Extract CD+G data from .BIN file".
Click on the "Change" button in the "Input file" section. Browse the file selection window to locate the *.bin file from which you want to read the graphic data. Once you find the *.bin file in this window, select it by left-clicking on it and then click on "Open".
By default, the software will automatically create an "Output file" (in *.cdg format) in the same location as the Input file. If desired, use the "Change" button in the "Output file" section to select a different hard drive and/or folder in which to save your *.cdg file.
Click on the "OK" button and your new *.cdg file will be created.
Using the DART CD+G Player utility
DART Karaoke Studio CD+G allows you to play both CD+G CD tracks (*.bin) and CD+G files (*.cdg).
NOTE: The current version of this player utility will NOT operate 'full-screen' nor is it in any way sizable. The only way to currently alter the size of the display window is to change the resolution size of your screen (via Control Panels / Display).
Playing CD+G tracks (*.bin files):
The "DART CD+G Player" can be used to preview CD+G tracks (generated by DART CD+G Author or extracted from the CD+G discs) prior to writing them to a CD+G disc. Previewing is highly recommended as it allows you to introduce changes (e.g., to select a different presentation mode, coloring mode etc.) if the results are not satisfactory.
NOTE: To play the CD+G disc you must copy its contents to the hard disc using DART CD-Recorder – it is not possible to play CD+G tracks directly from the CD+G disc.
Launch the DART CD+G Player utility via the "Karaoke" menu, the toolbar button (the PC monitor/TV button) or by starting it directly via the DART Karaoke Studio CD+G program group in the Windows "Start" menu.
Press the "Open" button and select the name of the file you would like to play (*.bin). Playback will be started automatically.
To stop playback, press the STOP button or to suspend playback at the current position, press the PAUSE button.
NOTE: When playback is terminated or paused, the PAUSE button is replaced with a PLAY button. Click the PLAY button again to start playback or resume it after pausing.
The FAST FORWARD (or CUE) button allows you to read the track at a faster rate. To speed up display, press the FAST FORWARD button during playback. When the audio track is cued its audio part is muted. To resume normal playback after cuing, release the FAST FORWARD button.
NOTICE: If you check the "Open the created file in DART CD+G Player" box, situated at the bottom of the Generate CD+G Track dialog, the CD+G file will be automatically previewed after creation.
Playing CD+G files (*.cdg files, a.k.a. 'MP3+G' karaoke support):
CD+G files (*.cdg) are special files that contain song lyrics, color/graphic and synchronization data only. Since CD+G files do not contain audio data, they are much smaller than *.bin files (CD+G tracks) and they are created faster.
However, this also means you will not hear the music when playing such files. You can use CD+G files to check the graphics part of CD+G tracks.
You will be able to hear audio along with your *.cdg file if (and ONLY if) you have an MP3 file with the exact same name located in the exact same location as the *.cdg file we create.
NOTE: DART Karaoke Author allows you to create CD+G files or to `extract’ them from the existing CD+G tracks (to extract CD+G file use the "Extract CD+G data from .BIN file" command, available from the "Karaoke" menu).
Launch the DART CD+G Player utility via the "Karaoke" menu, the toolbar button (the PC monitor/TV button) or by starting it directly via the DART Karaoke Studio CD+G program group in the Windows "Start" menu.
Press "Open" and select the file name (*.cdg). The playback will be started automatically.
To stop playback, press the STOP button or to suspend playback at the current position, press the PAUSE button.
NOTE: When playback is terminated or paused, the PAUSE button is replaced with a PLAY button. Click the PLAY button again to start playback or resume it after pausing.
The FAST FORWARD (or CUE) button allows you to read the track at a faster rate. To speed up display, press the FAST FORWARD button during playback. When the audio track is cued its audio part is muted. To resume normal playback after cuing, release the FAST FORWARD button.
NOTICE: If you check the "Open the created file in DART CD+G Player" box, situated at the bottom of the Generate CD+G Track dialog, the CD+G file will be automatically previewed after creation.
"MP3+G" (MP3G) is a term you'll hear used but there isn't a single-file format called an ".mp3g". This is really a colloquialism for the two files discussed below used together (and located in the exact same hard drive/folder).
The "DART CD+G Player" utility will play 'MP3+G' files and also the Karaoke Author can create the ".cdg" file needed to play this kind of karaoke. The other file needed, an *.MP3, will need to be created by another utility since we do not currently include an MP3 encoder.
You should only need to use our software's "DART CD+G Player" utility and hit "Open". Select the ".cdg" file that you'd like to play and the project should start.
NOTE: Both of the files must be located in the same folder and have identical names
Example: "song1.cdg" and "song1.mp3" (located on the same hard drive and in the same folder).
NOTE: Recorder/Player controls are represented in Bold, all capitals. Menu commands in Karaoke Author Playlist are in Bold, but are NOT all caps.
You can use DART Karaoke Recorder/Player to play audio files and watch the text at the time it is sung or spoken.
This feature can be very useful when learning foreign languages or trying to follow song lyrics in a language you don’t know very well.
To start playback, press the PLAY button at the bottom of the screen (the right-pointing triangle). To pause the playback, press the PAUSE button (the two vertical lines). To resume playback after pausing, click the PAUSE button again. Finally, to stop playback press the STOP button (the square).
If you want to play several audio files while in the Recorder/Player, open the Playlist dialog by pressing the PLAYLIST button (that looks like a clipboard) situated on the Toolbar or by selecting the Playlist command from the Karaoke menu. Use the Load button to open an existing playlist or use the Add, Remove, Move up, Move down and Clear buttons to arrange DART Karaoke sessions into a new playlist.
When ready, click the Play button to open DART Karaoke Recorder/Player and start playback. The name of the currently playing item is shown at the bottom of the Recorder/Player screen. To move to the next or previous item, click the NEXT or the PREVIOUS button, respectively (in the middle to the right of QUIT.
Finally, to display and/or to choose from the contents of the entire playlist, click the silver triangle situated at the bottom of the screen next to the current play item’s name.
At this time... no. We don’t currently have any plans, or timetable, to control the scroll speed of the text when playing in either the top, or bottom, lyric display sections of the Recorder/Player.
Different systems build and load our player software at different rates. The PC’s overall horsepower can have an effect load times. So, we recommend keeping other programs running in the background turned off, or at least minimize the number that are running. This can be done, in most versions of Windows, by using "Ctrl+Alt+Del" and selecting "End Task" for each listed item, except for "Explorer" and "Systray" (if you don't have "Systray" listed, don't worry about it).
This feature is not available at this time. We’ve had this suggestion from many users and may implement it in future versions. Monitor our website for the latest information on this.
At this time…no. We don’t currently have any plans, or timetable, to control the scroll speed of the text when playing in either the top, or bottom, lyric display sections of the Recorder/Player.
You can use DART Karaoke Recorder/Player to play audio files and watch the text at the same time it is sung or spoken. This feature can be very useful when learning foreign languages or trying to follow song lyrics in a language you don’t know very well.
To start playback, press the PLAY button at the bottom of the screen. To pause playback, press the PAUSE button. To resume playback after pausing, click the PAUSE button again. Finally, to stop playback press the STOP button.
You can adjust the current playback ‘cursor’ position by moving the circular “scroll-ball” underneath the main lyric window. Left-clicking-and-holding on the ball will allow you to ‘drag’ the playback position backwards or forwards in time, just as you’d use “rewind” and “fast forward” on tape cassette deck. The speed of this feature is dependent on the speed of your PC and can vary from system to system. The speed of the hard drive and the amount of RAM weigh heavily on how quickly this control can respond.
If you want to play several audio files, evoke the Playlist dialog by pressing the PLAYLIST button situated on the Toolbar or by selecting the Playlist command from the Karaoke menu. Use the Load button to open an existing playlist or use the Add, Remove, Move up, Move down and Clear buttons to arrange DART Karaoke sessions into a new playlist. When ready, click the Play button to evoke DART Karaoke Recorder/Player and start playback. The name of the currently played item is shown at the bottom of the Recorder/Player screen. To move to the next or previous item, click the NEXT or the PREVIOUS button, respectively. Finally, to display and/or to choose from the contents of the entire playlist, click the silver triangle situated at the bottom of the screen.
In order to record your own vocal track while listening to the music your audio card must be Full Duplex which means it should allow for simultaneous handling of the input and output data streams.
To record, do the following:
Connect the microphone to the MIC input of your audio card.
Connect headphones to the output of your audio card (if you used loudspeakers, in addition to your voice the microphone would also pick some amount of the background music).
Put on the headphones and press the RECORD button to start the recording session. When singing don’t hold the microphone too close to your mouth – otherwise you may introduce into the recording some low frequency breathing artifacts (‘air pops’). To pause recording, press the PAUSE button. To resume recording after pausing, click the PAUSE button again. Recording will be automatically stopped when the end of the input audio file is reached.
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