Sound f/x Cue Playback Software

I wanted to post this for those who are still searching for a playback solution.

A friend from graduate school developed a product called Canvas. It's a pretty cool platform that blends the engineering and artistic side of sound design. It's very visual in nature and allows you to build a system and design through building blocks.

I don't want to misrepresent his product too much, so please visit the website : https://avae.io/

There is a free trial and plenty of videos that show the features of the software. Please check it out!
 
In a small space, wondering how someone deals with background music vs live music.
I'm thinking lobby situations, so preshow background muzak of some sort that ends and unmutes live feed based on time of day so the music would automatically fade out at 8pm and show feed fades up.
Seems simple but probably isn't.
Any ideas?
 
Do you have a contract BGM supplier?

Edit ps: oops, I didn't see the topic before I hit send. You can do a couple of things: a pre show track whose start time is determined by the length, like a dead roll in radio - you start it to end at say, 7:30 curtain speech but don't turn it up until you open the lobby.

Back when I was actively mixing musicals I had a pre-show scene that re-routed signals so the lobby feed was fed directly from my playback device (a Sandisc MP3 player) and the PGM feed was disconnected from the lobby, hearing assistance, green room and dressing room feeds. This let me check mics, foldback, and SFX without it going everwhere. I had a "pre show completed" scene that restored the PGM feeds to everything and maintained the lobby preshow feed until I went to the curtain speech scene and the preshow faded out and was replaced with PGM.
 
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Maybe I'm over simplifying or over complicating. In reality, the switch could be done by hand, but too many times either sound check audio ends up in lobbies or program doesn't get turned up.

Hoping for something small because it's really just a programmable mixer and am hoping to be able to implement in a few different locations if they buy into it, but needs to be simple.
Could be a PC or dedicated auto mixer or some other box.
 
Hi all, just snagged myself an HS theatre director/instructor position at a public school in Mass., USA. My dept head tried to order the current Qlab from Figure 53, but we only use PURCHASE ORDERS to buy things in the district and they won't accept a PO.

Are there any resellers who would accept a Purchase Order to obtain advanced licenses? Kind of tearing my hair out here; Fig 53 won't budge and the district will ONLY purchase via PO (no credit card). It seems a little crazy to me.
 
How complicated of playback do you need to perform?
Older versions of Qlab are free for regular playback and available on the figure53 website under older versions.
I mostly use V2 because its the most simple for clients to install and do into music for awards etc.
 
How complicated of playback do you need to perform?
Older versions of Qlab are free for regular playback and available on the figure53 website under older versions.
I mostly use V2 because its the most simple for clients to install and do into music for awards etc.

I can't actually find any resellers, and my playback needs are not super complex, so I think I may just go with a previous version.
 
Any one who is willing to accept a PO from the school can purchase Qlab for you on business or corporate Credit Card. Set up your account with a starting Password, and account details you can pass off to your local audio house. Most companies/ Rental houses would be probably willing to accept a PO +10$ for being the middle man in the transaction.

A company out by me in NJ (Norcosto) is the go to source for "we need X widget" thing from amazon, here's a link." Norcostco will by it and invoice the school. They also deal in costume rentals, lamp/gel replacements and other theatrical consumable and equipment. But they will also operate as a middleman for nearly anything you would like, if you can tell them exactly what you want. Everything is a little more then you would purchase the stuff privately, but they are willing to accept PO and net 30/60/90 days payment, so they have niche slot in the world.

I'm sure there are similar companies locally in your area that would be happy to do this. Or give Norcosto a ring, as being in MA, you're not to far away. But the best would be to find a already school district board approved vendor.
 
Any one who is willing to accept a PO from the school can purchase Qlab for you on business or corporate Credit Card. Set up your account with a starting Password, and account details you can pass off to your local audio house. Most companies/ Rental houses would be probably willing to accept a PO +10$ for being the middle man in the transaction.

A company out by me in NJ (Norcosto) is the go to source for "we need X widget" thing from amazon, here's a link." Norcostco will by it and invoice the school. They also deal in costume rentals, lamp/gel replacements and other theatrical consumable and equipment. But they will also operate as a middleman for nearly anything you would like, if you can tell them exactly what you want. Everything is a little more then you would purchase the stuff privately, but they are willing to accept PO and net 30/60/90 days payment, so they have niche slot in the world.

I'm sure there are similar companies locally in your area that would be happy to do this. Or give Norcosto a ring, as being in MA, you're not to far away. But the best would be to find a already school district board approved vendor.


Hey, thanks very much for the tip. First, I'll check with our Lighting supplier who partners with A/V suppliers to see if they have any good referrals. If I come up empty again, I'll just contact Norcosto. Great tip--thanks. I'll update this thread if I work something out.
 
Any one who is willing to accept a PO from the school can purchase Qlab for you on business or corporate Credit Card. Set up your account with a starting Password, and account details you can pass off to your local audio house. Most companies/ Rental houses would be probably willing to accept a PO +10$ for being the middle man in the transaction.

A company out by me in NJ (Norcosto) is the go to source for "we need X widget" thing from amazon, here's a link." Norcostco will by it and invoice the school. They also deal in costume rentals, lamp/gel replacements and other theatrical consumable and equipment. But they will also operate as a middleman for nearly anything you would like, if you can tell them exactly what you want. Everything is a little more then you would purchase the stuff privately, but they are willing to accept PO and net 30/60/90 days payment, so they have niche slot in the world.

I'm sure there are similar companies locally in your area that would be happy to do this. Or give Norcosto a ring, as being in MA, you're not to far away. But the best would be to find a already school district board approved vendor.

Thanks. That looks like an option that might be useful for me.
 
I'm a Qlab user and love it, but my students all have chromebooks - so no downloading of any software, let alone mac-based Fig53 products (sadness).

Has anyone found or tried to create a simple, web-based playback system? A big feature plus for me would be the ability to play multiple cues at once, so students can experiment with environmental music or cues with effects cues played on top.
 
There are a few web based controls available. I've demoed the Lightshark gear, and it is pretty easy to wrap your brain around. The one I linked makes it totally web based with no hardware interface, but there are also control surfaces available. I haven't used it in a live environment, but it looks to be a good fit for what you're looking for.
 
There's a thread or a comment on one somewhere around here from a gent who is working on a web based cue player. I've commented on it; I'll see if I can find it.
 
There are a few web based controls available. I've demoed the Lightshark gear, and it is pretty easy to wrap your brain around. The one I linked makes it totally web based with no hardware interface, but there are also control surfaces available. I haven't used it in a live environment, but it looks to be a good fit for what you're looking for.
This link doesn't work and couldn't find anything with a search on Blizzard's page.
Was it a pre-release or existing software? I'm interested to try!
 

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