blaze audio

8/8/2019 Blaze Audio

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BlazeAudio

Karaoke

Sing-n-Burn

Manual

Copyright 2005 by Singing Electrons, Inc.


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Contents

1.0 Getting Started ............................................................................................3

1.1 Welcome to Karaoke Sing-n-Burn! .........................................................3

1.2 Features ....................................................................................................3

1.3 Learning to Use Karaoke Sing-n-Burn ....................................................3

1.4 Quick Help ...............................................................................................4

1.5 Requirements ...........................................................................................4

1.6 Installation................................................................................................4

2.0 Exploring Karaoke Sing-n-Burn.................................................................5

2.1 Configuring Karaoke Sing-n-Burn ..........................................................5

2.3 Opening Files ............................................................................................72.4 Playback ....................................................................................................7

2.5 Monitoring Lyrics .....................................................................................7

2.6 Monitoring Playback.................................................................................9

2.7 Adjusting Tempo, Key, and Volume ........................................................9

2.8 Track Control ..........................................................................................10

3.0 Performance Controls ................................................................................11

3.1 Introduction to Performance ..................................................................11

3.2 Saving Files............................................................................................11

3.3 Performance Playback ...........................................................................11

3.4 Clearing a Performance..........................................................................12

3.4 Opening Performance Files....................................................................12

3.5 Recording a Performance.......................................................................12

3.6 Saving a Performance ............................................................................12

3.7 Monitoring Your Vocals ........................................................................12

4.0 Burning a CD............................................................................................13

5.0 Technical Support .....................................................................................14


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1.0 Getting Started

1.1 Welcome to Karaoke Sing-n-Burn!

Karaoke Sing-n-Burn is a one-of-a-kind MIDI and Karaoke orchestration program that lets you play karaoke

files, record and save your own karaoke performances, then burn those performances directly to CD. You can

change the instrumentation, the mix, the key, and the tempo of your songs, and if lyrics are present in the file,Karaoke Sing-n-Burn displays them on the screen, cuing you when to sing. You can adjust the size of the

lyrics window and even change the font and colors used. With Karaoke Sing-n-Burn you can download yourfavorite songs from the internet, invite your friends over for Karaoke parties, then send them home with

souvenir CDs.

1.2 Features

Ability to play both MIDI (.mid) and Karaoke (.kar) files, both of which are widely available on theinternet

Ability to record a performance, play it back, and burn it directly to CD

Ability to record your voice with a user-adjustable echo

Adjustable tempo and key

Ability to change the instruments used for each track (i.e. Emphasize keyboards, remove strings,etc.)

Separate volume slider for each track

Ability to set an instrument for solo modeIndividual track mute

Visual display showing both time elapsed (in minutes and seconds) and bar/beat/tick information

LED-like display showing the current output level for each track

Lyric display window showing you which words to singAdjustable lyrics window size, font size and color, and background color

Ability to save your changes (to the instrumentation, key, etc.) to disk

1.3 Learning to Use Karaoke Sing-n-Burn


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The best way to learn how to use Karaoke Sing-n-Burn is to go through the topics in sequential order. If you

would like quick help with a particular button or display, try our Quick Help feature.

1.4 Quick Help

For quick help, click on the appropriate area of the screen (such as the button whose function you are trying

to determine).

1.5 Requirements

Karaoke Sing-n-Burn requires a PC running Windows 95, 98, Millennium, 2000, or NT; a sound card with a

MIDI synthesizer; and speakers. To use the performance feature, you will need some type of microphone.You can order high quality microphones, cables, connectors, and convenient desktop microphone stands

from www.blazeaudio.com. An external USB audio device such as the AudiMax will give studio quality

sound which can be affected by the interior noise any computer generates.

1.6 Installation

To install Karaoke Sing-n-Burn, run the installation file that you downloaded or received on disk and thenfollow the on-screen instructions. If you need help with this please consult your computer manual or send an

e-mail to [email protected].

2.0 Exploring Karaoke Sing-n-Burn

2.1 Configuring Karaoke Sing-n-Burn

Before using Karaoke Sing-n-Burn the first time, you need to take a few minutes to do two things to makesure that when you begin singing youll sound as good as you are!

A. Select the proper processing mode. The Processing Mode Window allows you to choose between two

modes of Monitoring: Software Processing and Hardware Pass-Through. This step was included becausecertain computers have what are called latency problems. By following these easy directions, youll be able

to make sure that your computer is operating at its optimum audio capacity.


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Go to File -> Preferences. A dialog box opens which will allow you to adjust 4 settings:

Lyrics: Check this if you wish to enable non-English character support.

Voice Processing Mode: In order to be sure that your vocals are in perfect sync with the music, youmay need to change the processing mode. Karaoke Sing-n-Burn has made that easy:

ClickChange Processing Mode. The Choose Processing Mode dialog box appears. You will chooseSoftware Processing orHardware Pass-Through depending on your needs. (Each choice has anexplanation of its functions.) For most users, you will choose Software Processing by clicking the button

that says Configure and Test. Another dialog box appears with instructions on using the slider to achieve

the least amount of delay. When you have adjusted it to your preference, clickOK.

MIDI Device: ClickMIDI Device Synthesizer to see the MIDI Synthesizer in use.

Synchronization: ClickSynchronize Vocals to see 2 sliders. You adjust the first slider if your

vocals and music are not in sync when you start playback. You adjust the second if the forward orrewind music position slider causes vocals to lose sync.

B. Use the Auto Configuration Wizard. This guides you through the process of setting up your computer

for optimal audio performances with Karaoke Sing-n-Burn.

Go to Help and clickAuto Configuration Wizard. Make sure your speakers are on at normal listening

volume and clickNext.

Following the onscreen directions, use the Master Volume Slider to make sure that your speakers are

functioning properly. After testing, clickNext.


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Step 2 lets you test your computers MIDI output. Follow the onscreen directions to make sure that your

computers MIDI output is properly configured. Then clickNext.

Step 3 allows you to configure the recording level for your microphone. Follow the onscreen directions to

properly set the level at which your voice will be recorded. ClickNext.

Step 4 configures your computers Wave output volume. Testing and setting this properly according to the

onscreen directions will ensure that your vocals will be heard at the proper level when they are played backas saved performances. When you are satisfied, clickNext. In order to save the changes you have made,

clickYes, Configure Processing Mode Now, and Finish.

The Processing Mode Window

In Karaoke Sing-n-Burn, Monitoring allows you to hear the microphone input in headphones during

recording. This is a tiny speaker icon right to the recording volume slider in the recording panel on Main UI.

The Processing Mode Window allows you to choose between two modes of Monitoring: Software

Processing and Hardware Pass-Through.

Due to problems with latency on certain computers, we have provided an option to bypass software

processing of microphone input entirely and do a simple hardware pass-through.

Karaoke Sing-n-Burn opens with Software Processing as the default processing modeAfter the initial session, it will open with the processing mode which you last used.

If hardware processing is not available because it is not supported by the user's mixer, then the Hardware

Pass-Through radio button will be disabled.

Software Processing Mode

In Software Processing Mode, Microphone input is processed by the program and an echo effect added if

the echo slider is on. This is the best mode for users with PCs that don't have problems with latency.

Those users who continue to use software processing have the option to Configure and Test to adjust the

effect of delay (in Wave and MIDI Playback) so that they can fine-tune Karaoke Sing-n-Burn to run best ontheir machine.

When the user presses Configure and Test, a separate Configure Software Processing window appears.

Pressing Test Now begins processing microphone input and playback into the speakers, as if actually

recording a performance.

Change the slider position so that your vocals and their playback are well synchronized.

When Hardware Pass-Through is selected, the Configure and Test button is disabled.

Hardware Processing Mode

In hardware processing mode, microphone input is passed straight through the mixer to the speakers so thatthere is no latency (delay).

The echo slider is set to the Zero position during recording in the Hardware Processing Mode.

This feature will be available only on mixers that have a source of type microphone on the output side of themixer destinations.

2.2 Starting Karaoke Sing-n-Burn

To start Karaoke Sing-n-Burn, click its icon in the Start Menu (the icon will usually be located underStart -

> Programs -> Blaze Audio -> Karaoke Sing-n-Burn, assuming that you selected the default icon location


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when you installed the program) or run the file mm.exe in the directory where you installed Karaoke Sing-n-

Burn.

2.3 Opening Files

You can open three kinds of files with Karaoke Sing-n-Burn -- standard MIDI files (.MID files), standard

karaoke files (.KAR files), and performance files (.PFC files) created in Karaoke Sing-n-Burn. To open a file

for playback or modification, choose Open from the File menu or hit Control-O. In the window thatappears, select the type of file you wish to view (optional), navigate to the file you wish to open, and clickOpen.

As a shortcut, you can also bring up the Open File window by clicking the folder button in the playbackpanel. The button looks like this:

Please Note: Karaoke Sing-n-Burn will notplay MP3 files, CD+G Karaoke disks, or Wave files; only .MID,

.KAR, and .PFC files are supported.

2.4 Playback

Once you have opened a file, you use the standard playback buttons to listen to your song:

These buttons: Rewind, Fast-Forward, Play, Pause, and Stop (in the order that they appear in Karaoke

Sing-n-Burn, from top to bottom and left to right) function in exactly the same way that they do on a standard

CD or tape player. Use the Play button to commence playback and the Stop button to stop playback andreturn to the beginning of the song. Pause may be used to halt playback temporarily during the song; to

resume playback press the Pause button a second time, or the Play button. Use the Rewind and Fast-Forwardbuttons to move rapidly through the song. Each press of one of these buttons will move youapproximately 22 seconds forward or backward in the song.Please Note: The song must be playing for these

buttons to function. Also note that these buttons will not function if you 'hold them down', as you might with

a CD player.

These buttons behave somewhat differently when playing a performance -- please see the PerformancePlayback topic.

2.5 Monitoring Lyrics

If your song contains lyrics (all .KAR files should contain lyrics, and many .MID files contain them as well)

then Karaoke Sing-n-Burn has the ability to read these lyrics and display them in the Lyrics Window located

at the top of the Karaoke Sing-n-Burn screen:


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While your song is playing back, Karaoke Sing-n-Burn will scroll the lyrics and highlight whichever words

match the music at that particular time. All you have to do is follow along and belt out those high notes!

Font and Color Options

Karaoke Sing-n-Burn gives you the ability to change the font face, font color, font size, and background

color used in the Lyrics Window. To do so, select Font from the Lyrics menu, or click the A at the top ofthe Lyrics Window. (You can also click either+ or- at the top of the Lyrics Window as a quick shortcut for

making the font larger or smaller).

Similarly, you can change the background color by selecting Background Color from the Lyrics Boxmenu or by clicking the Paint Bucket button at the top of the Lyrics Window.

Experiment with different fonts and background colors to see which best suits your preference.

Lyrics Window Size

If you want to be able to read the lyrics from farther away, its easy to do. You can expand the Lyrics

Window to medium or large size. From the Lyrics menu, choose Maximize for a medium size screen, orFull

Screen to have the Lyrics Window entirely fill your screen. These options also have corresponding shortcut

buttons at the top right of the Lyrics Window. We recommend size 72 lyrics on a full screen Lyrics Windowfor the best visibility during karaoke parties.

Full Screen Mode

Medium Size:

2.6 Monitoring Playback

Playback may be monitored with the amber displays located above the Playback Buttons.The top display shows the elapsed time in terms of bars, beats, and ticks:

The bottom display shows the elapsed time from the beginning of the song, in minutes and seconds:


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The File Loaded display tells you what type of file is currently in memory: MIDI Karaoke (a regular .MID or.KAR file) or Performance (a .MID or .KAR with your recorded sound):

2.7 Adjusting Tempo, Key, and Volume

Karaoke Sing-n-Burn makes it easy for you to adjust the tempo, key, and/or volume of a song during

playback. To do so, you'll use the panellocated in the middle of the screen on the left hand side:

Tempo

The top slider in the box controls the tempo (speed) of playback. Hold the clicker down while moving the

thumb (slider button) to the left to decrease speed and to the right to increase the tempo of playback. (Please

Note: Unlike Key and Volume, Tempo cannot be adjusted while music is being played or recorded.)

Key

The middle slider controls the key of playback. Moving the slider from the left to the right affects whether

you hear playback in a higher or lower key.

Volume

The bottom slider controls the overall volume of Karaoke Sing-n-Burn. Use this to determine and set the

loudness of the entire song. (If you wish to control the volume for individual tracks, you should use theindividual controls described in the section Track Control). Note that you may also wish to control the

volume using your computer's mixer panel, which can usually be accessed by double-clicking the speaker

icon located in the lower right hand corner of your screen (in the System Tray).

2.8 Track Control

Each track (instrument) in a song can be individually controlled with Karaoke Sing-n-Burn. Karaoke Sing-n-Burn gives you the power to adjust the volume of individual tracks, completely change the instrument used in

different tracks, mute certain tracks, and have a track play back as a solo. All of these controls are found in

the Track Control portion of the Karaoke Sing-n-Burn window:


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Tracks are arranged in Karaoke Sing-n-Burn as a series of vertical bars, set next to one another, running from

the left side of the screen to the right:

Mute

The blue button (at the top) gives you the power to mute tracks. Press again to remove mute from the track(which will enable you to hear the track once more).

Solo

Pressing the amber button places the track in solo mode, which mutes all other tracks. This is a great way to

monitor what the different tracks sound like all by themselves. Only a single solo button may be pressed at

one time.

Instrument

The Instrument button (which looks like a musical note) gives you the ability to change the way this

particular track sounds. For example, you could change the piano track in a song to a xylophone or to atelephone ring.

Output Level Display

The series of vertical LEDs below the Instrumentbutton light up during playback to indicate the output

level for each particular track. More lit LEDs indicate a higher output level.Please Note: This display showsthe output levels as saved in the MIDI file -- the levels will notadjust to reflect changes in the individual

track volumes (see below).

Volume Control


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Each track's vertical slider allows you to adjust the volume individually for that particular track. Think the

piano is too loud? Turn it down. Want to add more drums? Then turn them up.

Voice Track

The far left track is a bit different - it represents your voice, and is used with the performance function. Onceyou have recorded a performance, this track works just like the other tracks: you can mute or solo it, and

control the volume using the volume slider. The output level display will show you how loud you are both as

you are recording and during playback. Please Note: You will only be able to use the Instrument button tochange the volume of your voice.

3.0 Performance Controls

3.1 Introduction to Performance

With Karaoke Sing-n-Burn you can record yourself singing along with your favorite songs and then playback the performance to hear yourself sing. You can save your performance files to disc so you can listen to

them later, or e-mail them to friends. Best of all, you can burn CDs of your own greatest hits!

All of the performance controls are located in the light gray section of the Control Panel that displays the

microphone image:

The red button in the top left begins recording.

The echo slider allows you to adjust the echo applied to your voice during playback, and during

recording if you're in Software Mode.The Save button allows you to save your performance to disk.

The Clear button clears a bad performance from memory.

The Monitor button controls whether or not you can hear your voice through the speakers as you recorda performance.

3.2 Saving Files

If you have made changes to a MIDI or Karaoke file, such as changing the tempo, key, or instrumentation,

you may save your changes to disc. To do so, select Save orSave As from the File menu.

3.3 Performance Playback

Once you have recorded a performance, you can listen to it using the standard playback buttons. You can

adjust the output volume of your recorded voice using the far left track in the Track Control portion of theKaraoke Sing-n-Burn window. You can also mute or solo the voice track during playback.

3.4 Clearing a PerformanceAfter you have saved your performance, or if you decide to delete the performance and try again, press Clear

to remove what was recorded, leaving the plain .MID or .KAR file open. You can now record again.

3.4 Opening Performance Files


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To open a performance file, choose Open from the File menu or hit Control-O. In the window that appears,

select Performance files as the type of file to view, navigate to the file you wish to listen to, and clickOpen.

3.5 Recording a PerformanceTo record a performance, open a standard MIDI (.MID) or Karaoke (.KAR) file and press the red Record

button. The song will begin to play and Karaoke Sing-n-Burn will record your voice through your computer's

microphone. Now begin singing. You can monitor the volume of your voice during recording by watching

the output level shown on the far left track in the Track Control Panel. Adjust the recording volume by

moving this track's volume slider up or down; you don't want to record your voice so quietly that you can'thear it, but you don't want to introduce distortion by recording at too high a level, either. In general, try to

keep the levels mostly out of the red zone.

When you are finished, press the Record button again (or the Stop button) to stop recording.

Echo Delay

The echo delay slider controls how much echo is added to your voice as you are singing and when you areplaying back your performances. Move it up for a more pronounced echo with a longer delay (the time

between your voice and the echo) or down for less echo. When the slider is all the way down, no echo at allwill be added. Move this slider around as you play back your performances to get a sense of what level of

echo sounds best.

Adjusting the Tempo, Key, and Volume

You can adjust the tempo, key, and volume of a song for the performance, though the tempo can only be

adjusted before you begin to record.

Microphones & Other Hardware

Your computer must have some way of picking up sound in order to use the performance function. It helps

to have a good quality microphone to sing into, though the free microphone that comes with most computerswill work also. You can purchase high quality microphones, cables, connectors and convenient desktop

microphone stands from www.blazeaudio.com. An external USB audio device such as the AudiMax will

give studio quality sound which can be affected by the interior noise any computer generates.

3.6 Saving a Performance

To save your performance, either click the Save button in the light gray performance control panel, or selectSave orSave As from the file menu. Performances are saved as .PFC files which will only play in KaraokeSing-n-Burn Karaoke.

3.7 Monitoring Your Vocals

The Monitor button allows you to choose whether or not you want to hear your voice through the speakers

as you sing. If the Monitor button is on (the green light will be lit), you will be able to hear your vocals as

you sing. If the Monitor button is off(the green light will be off), you will not be able to hear your vocals.

Please Note: If you're experiencing problems with feedback, turning off the Monitorbutton should solve

the problem.

4.0 Burning a CD


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ClickSave As to choose whether to save your performance as Wave or MP3. (Please Note: For a higher

quality recording, you will want to use Wave. However, Wave files take up more space on your hard drive

and will take longer to convert.)

To burn a CD of your Karaoke performance, clickBurn CD button.

Dialog box appears asking if you wish to save your performance in the format youve chosen (Wave or

MP3). ClickYes.

Save As dialog box appears. Select location where file will be saved. (If you do not select where it will be

saved, it will be saved in Kar file by default.) Name file by typing name into File name window. ClickSave.

Dialog box appears telling you the MIDI file is being converted to PCM format. This will take a few

moments, depending on the size of the file. When conversion is complete, dialog box appears. ClickOK.

Burn Performance dialog box appears. The buttons that appear in this box and their functions are explained

below:

Add Track:

To add a track (Wave or MP3) to the burn track list, press Add Trackin the lower-left corner of the Burn

Performance window.

This will display a dialog box in which you can locate any song on your hard drive for inclusion on the list.You can add Wave files (*.WAV), or MP3 files (*.MP3).

Remove Track:

To remove a song from the burn list, simply select it and then clickRemove Track.

This will not remove the file from your hard drive; it will only remove it from the Burn Queue. If you would

like to remove all the tracks on your list, simply clickClear List.

Clear List:

Clear List removes all the entries from the burn list.


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Preview:

To play back a song in your burn list, you must first select it by clicking on it, then pressing Preview in the

lower-middle part of the BurnPerformance window. To stop the Preview, press Stop.

Stop:

When the Preview playback of a selected track is on, just press Stop to end playback.

Save Burn List:

To save the current burn list, press Save Burn List, and the program will open a Save as dialog box, point it

to the save location, and save the burn list. A file with extension .bl is saved.

The name and path for all the songs that are in the burn list are saved in this file.

You can reopen this file again, by pressing Open Burn List and pointing it to the saved burn list location.This is the proprietary format of Blaze Audio Karaoke Sing-n-Burn.

Open Burn List:

To open an already created burn list just press Open Burn List and point it to the saved burn list location.All the tracks in the burn list will be displayed in the burn user interface.

Preview On Selection:

Check this option to start the Preview automatically as you select tracks from the burn list.

Burn CD:

When you have finished adding tracks in the burn list and are ready to begin burning the CD, put a blank CD

in your computers CD tray. Press Burn CD.

You will be asked to choose the writing speed. Select the speed you prefer. Unless your computersspecifications indicate otherwise, select Default as your burning speed. ClickOK.

The Audio CD dialog box appears. It tells you that Windows can perform the same action each time youinsert a disk or connect a device with this kind of file: What do you want Windows to do? Select the

desired action. If you are not certain, select Copy Music from CD using Windows Media Player. Click

OK.

When the process is complete, it also presents a dialog box which says: Burn Cd is successful.

Copy Options box appears. Select appropriate choice. ClickNext.

Exit:

Click this to terminate the Burn user Interface of program and is the preferred method to end the program.

5.0 Technical Support

Stuck? Have a question that the help files don't answer? Here are some additional resources that are

available:

The readme.txt file that came with this installation (look in the directory where Karaoke Sing-n-BurnKaraoke is installed)

Online support at our website: http://www.blazeaudio.com/support/


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If these don't do the trick, Blaze Audio offers free e-mail based technical support for all of our customers.

Send an e-mail to [email protected] fully describing the nature of your problem, and we'll get back to

you as soon as we can.

Contacting Us

General Inquiries: [email protected]

Technical Support: [email protected]

Website: www.blazeaudio.com

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