Questions about "Radio Automation Software"

[Guest streamingnewbie]

Since I am not making much progress on my Internet radio station business questions, maybe I can at least increase my knowledge on the technical side?!

 

First off, is there an acronym for "Radio Automation Software", e.g. "RAS" or not?

 

Second, if I wanted to run a for-profit Internet radio station, where would you typically host the RAS?

 

I have heard a lot of people say that they run it off of their local computer, but I see that as being problematic, because I live on the road, and if my hotel's Wi-Fi was slow or went down my radio station could go off the air?!

 

I was under the assumption that if I ran something like ProppFrexx, that I would need to buy a Windows-based VPS or dedicated server and host ProppFrexx from there, in addition to needing a stream provider which is yet another webserver...

 

Is that correct?

[GKIye]

I just made a reply to some of your questions in Your other thread.

 

If You are living on the road for reason of Your professional life I assume that You have a house / home.

The software and database can be on air from Your home and by using Teamviewer or AnyDesk You can access Your pc at home from any place at the World.

Most important is that at any time you use a second pc who makes backups in case the main stream pc fails.

As written earlier I'm not a tech guy, so the way to manage these things can asked and found to people who have the knowledge.

 

ProppFrexx is for sure one of the best current softwares.

The founder has created at their website also a forum who can be very helpfull in the follow up in case You have any problems.

I do have ProppFrexx at my place, however I only use it to make my voicetracks who are afterwoulds being uploaded to the server of the FM station were I have my Weekly show.

Its for sure a wonderfull piece of software and some (even free) 64bit VST plugins can achieve great results in de stream quality etc.

Most of the users are using Stereo Tools to manage the sound output.

At the forum of Stereo Tools a lot of their presets can be found to achieve a good untill better sound. If You found a great STS setup file You can tweak it yourself untill You created "Your sound".

However its sometimes better to create Your sound with help from some people You know. Stereo Tools gives great results but it ain't easy to tweak all settings in the right way during a first time use.

Edited March 15, 2020 by GKIye
Typo

[Guest streamingnewbie]

I just made a reply to some of your questions in Your other thread.

 

I see that, and just responded. Thanks!

 

 

If You are living on the road for reason of Your professional life I assume that You have a house / home.

 

Nope. I am a nomad, and go from state to state and project to project and live in hotels.

 

 

 

The software and database can be on air from Your home and by using Teamviewer or AnyDesk You can access Your pc at home from any place at the World.

Most important is that at any time you use a second pc who makes backups in case the main stream pc fails.

As written earlier I'm not a tech guy, so the way to manage these things can asked and found to people who have the knowledge.

 

What is unclear to me is this...

 

1.) Where does the actual music reside?

 

My laptop?

 

In ProppFrexx on say a Windows server I buy at my web host?

 

Or on the streaming provider?

 

 

2.) Does RAS just point to the actual songs and then tell the streaming provider what to play when?

 

Or does RAS actually have to create the actual stream you play and then forward it to the stream provider?

 

 

I was under the impression that I would need to get a 2nd VPS or dedicated web sever at my web host, install ProppFrexx on it, upload all of my music onto that server, and then program ProppFrexx to include, say, a 7-day playlist including commercials and breaks. Then this Windows web server would send that finalized "stream" to the actual streaming provider, which would then go out for the world to hear.

 

 

For a pre-programmed Internet radio station, if I could upload all of my music to someone like Live365, and then just send the "scripts/commands" to them, then in theory I could do that from my laptop in my hotel, especially if I could upload those instructions once to the Live365 servers and where it would reside.

 

But if you have to send the actual stream to Live365 (or whatever streaming provider) then there i no way I could do that over the hotel Wi-Fi.

 

 

ProppFrexx is for sure one of the best current softwares.

The founder has created at their website also a forum who can be very helpfull in the follow up in case You have any problems.

I do have ProppFrexx at my place, however I only use it to make my voicetracks who are afterwoulds being uploaded to the server of the FM station were I have my Weekly show.

 

Based on my preliminary research, ProppFrexx seems like the most "professional" of all RAS out there.

 

 

Its for sure a wonderfull piece of software and some (even free) 64bit VST plugins can achieve great results in de stream quality etc.

Most of the users are using Stereo Tools to manage the sound output.

At the forum of Stereo Tools a lot of their presets can be found to achieve a good untill better sound. If You found a great STS setup file You can tweak it yourself untill You created "Your sound".

However its sometimes better to create Your sound with help from some people You know. Stereo Tools gives great results but it ain't easy to tweak all settings in the right way during a first time use.

 

That went over my head, and is probably a later chapter in my learning!