Main interface page
From the main page, you can monitor the various sources and the audio output in real time.
This is also where you can configure the main settings.
This part of the interface allows you to monitor your various sources in real time, including their format, audio bitrate, status, and audio levels in dB.
You can also monitor the audio output.
By default, the decoder operates in “Automatic” mode, which means that if there is an issue with the Main Source, it will switch to Backup Source 1.
If Backup Source 1 is also affected by a problem, it will switch to Backup Source 2.
You can force playback of a specific source by clicking the "Force Source" button below the VU meter for that source.
The white bars on the VU meters (disabled by default) are indicators that show the maximum dB level reached by the source.
| Sources Status | Description |
|---|---|
PLAYING |
The source is the one currently being played by the decoder and heard through the audio output. |
READY TO PLAY |
The source is functional but not currently in use. It can be played at any time, if necessary. |
BUFFERING... |
The decoder is currently attempting to connect to the source. |
SILENT |
The source is considered silent. The decibel levels are below the configured loss threshold. |
UNREACHABLE |
The source is unplayable. This can mainly occur with an IP stream if the streaming server is down or if there is a loss of network connection. |
FILE NOT FOUND |
Appears if the source type is "Local File" or "Backup Audio Directory" and the backup file cannot be found at the specified path. In this case, make sure you have correctly specified the path to your file. |
NOT CONFIGURED |
The source has not been configured and will therefore never be used automatically. |
STOPPED |
The source has been intentionally stopped by the system. This status may indicate an error with the audio engine. |
The "Now Playing" bar displays the currently playing stream or the type of source being played (if the selected type is not "IP Stream").
The name of the currently playing song is displayed in parentheses, if it is included in the IP stream's metadata.
This is where you can configure the main source as well as the two backup sources.
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
Type |
Allows you to choose whether to configure the source as an IP stream, an RTP stream (via SDP file and MPEG-TS encapsulation), an audio device input, a local file (backup loop stored on the host computer), a file located in the "Backup Audio Files" directory, or a test tone. Depending on your choice, you will be asked to provide information specific to the source type. |
Input Gain (dB) |
Allows you to decrease or increase the audio gain (in decibels) of your source. This is useful if you feel that the source volume is too loud or too soft. |
Buffer Size (KB) |
Allows you to specify a buffer size in kilobytes. In general, the default value (1024) works just fine. Only change this value if you know what you're doing. |
Enable "Currently Playing" Metadata Export |
Available only when "IP Stream" type is selected. Exports the "Currently Playing" information from the IP stream metadata, if available, as a text file on the host machine, or via ASCII over TCP to feed an RDS encoder. |
Enable Method |
Available only when "IP Stream" type is selected. Exports the "Currently Playing" information from the IP stream metadata, if available, as a text file on the host machine, or via ASCII over TCP to feed an RDS encoder. |
Export Path |
Appears only when the "Currently Playing" export feature to text file is enabled. Allows you to specify the path where you want to save the text file containing the current song title. (Example: D:\streamer-main.txt) |
Export only when played |
Appears only when the "Currently Playing" export feature is enabled. Enable text file generation only if the source is currently playing. This is useful if you want to use the same path for all sources. |
Normalize letters with accents |
Appears only when the "Currently Playing" export feature is enabled. Replaces accented letters with unaccented letters. This is useful if you want to use the text file in a software that does not support accented letters. |
Convert all letters to uppercase |
Appears only when the "Currently Playing" export feature is enabled. Replaces all lowercase letters with uppercase letters. |
Limit to 64 characters for Radiotext (RDS) |
This option limits the text file so that it never exceeds 64 characters, which is the technical display limit for the Radiotext feature (RDS - Radio Data System). Truncation will occur starting at the 61st character, and " ... " will be added from that point onward. |
Radiotext+ tags for Stereo Tool (Artist/Title) |
This allows you to format the text file to include the Radiotext+ "Artist" and Title" tags compatible with Stereo Tool (Created by Thimeo). For instructions on how to feed a Radiotext with this type of file, please refer to the Stereo Tool documentation. |
Format used by source metadata |
Appears only when the "Radiotext+ tags for Stereo Tool" feature is enabled. Specify the text format used in your IP stream's metadata: either "Artist - Title" or "Title - Artist". This determines the placement of Radiotext+ tags. |
Separator used between artist and title |
Appears only when the "Radiotext+ tags for Stereo Tool" feature is enabled. Specify the character used to separate the artist name and title in your IP stream's metadata. This determines the placement of Radiotext+ tags. |
Send email alerts when... |
Enables the sending of alert emails if an anomaly is detected on the specified source. For this option to work, you must have configured the sending account and the list of recipients in "SMTP Settings". This source is silent -> When this box is checked, an alert email will be sent as soon as the source is detected as silent, based on your silence detector settings. This source is unreachable -> When this box is checked, an alert email will be sent as soon as the source becomes unreachable (due to a streaming server outage for example). |
When the selected export method is "Raw ASCII over TCP", you can configure this service by clicking the "Configure ASCII over TCP Output" button.
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
Target IP Address |
In this field, indicate the IP address of your RDS encoder. |
Target Port |
In this field, specify the port to use for sending the ASCII transmission to your RDS encoder. |
Prefix Format |
Select the prefix to use based on the brand of your RDS encoder. If your RDS encoder's brand is not listed, you can specify a custom prefix. |
This section allows you to configure the audio output, gain, and buffer.
It also lets you adjust the silence detection thresholds, as well as the recovery thresholds used to determine when a silent source is functional again.
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
Output Device |
Allows you to select the device you want to use for audio output. The list is sorted alphabetically and by audio engine type (e.g. MME). |
Output Gain (dB) |
Allows you to decrease or increase the gain (in decibels) of the device used for audio output. |
Output Buffer (ms) |
Adjust this setting if you want to decrease or increase the latency (in milliseconds) on the audio output. Increase this value if you experience issues such as crackling or audio dropouts. The default value (1000) is generally ideal, striking a balance between reasonable and safe latency. |
Loss Threshold (dB) |
This is the threshold (in decibels) that the silence detector will use to determine whether a source is silent, while taking into account the "Loss Timeout" value. The default value (-45.0) is generally ideal for detecting the absence of audio while avoiding false positives. |
Loss Timeout (s) |
This is the amount of time (in seconds) that the silence detector will wait before determining that a source is silent, if the dB levels are below the loss threshold, and taking the necessary actions based on the rules specified by the user. The default value (10) is generally ideal for reliable detection while avoiding false positives. |
Recovery Threshold (dB) |
As soon as the levels of the previously silent source exceed this threshold, the silence detector considers the source to be functional again, while taking into account the value specified in "Recovery Timeout". The default value (-35) is generally ideal for reliable recovery detection while avoiding false positives. |
Recovery Timeout (s) |
This is the amount of time (in seconds) that the silence detector will wait before determining that the previously silent source has recovered, while taking into account the value specified in "Recovery Threshold". The default value (5) is generally ideal for reliable recovery detection while avoiding false positives. |
An example of an alert email sent when no audio is detected on a source:
Then, the next email indicates that the source is recovered:
