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[JackHughs]

Hello.

I'm a potential purchaser of MC.  But first, I would like to know if MC is actually the correct application for my project.

First, I need a Multi-Zone audio player that can play a .wav file through the on-board sound chip and simultaneously play another .wav file through a seperate PCI or USB soundcard.

I also need to know if there are any known issues in using MC with Windows XP's Remote Desktop application.

Here is my setup:

The host PC is an older 2.4 gig P4 machine running XP SP3.  This PC is connected to a wired LAN.

The host PC currently runs remote montoring software for an SPL meter.  I can observe instantaneous SPL samples as well as a graphical representation of time varying SPL readings.

The host PC also runs WMP 11.  WMP 11 currently outputs environmental sound (rain, surf, waterfall, etc.) through the onboard sound chip to a stereo  amplifier and speakers.

I can control both the SPL application and WMP 11 from other PC's on the LAN via Remote Desktop.

What I want is a multi-zone player that will allow the SPL application to continue to run, play the environmental sound through the on-board chip, and simultaneously play a musical selection through a seperate PCI or USB soundcard.

I have to be able to select environmental and musical progams and, be able to control volume through Remote Desktop.

Is MC the correct application for this purpose?

Thank you.

JackHughs 

 

[DarkPenguin]

Yeah.  Try the demo.

[JackHughs]

OK.

[DarkPenguin]

If there is weirdness please let us know.  But it doesn't sound like there should be an issue with your application.

[JackHughs]

Thanks.

Once I have things set up, I may have more questions.  It seems that my application might involve about 2 percent of MC's capabilities. 

In any event, I'll let the board know how everything works out.

JackHughs

[JackHughs]

So far, so good.

I loaded the demo onto an older Windows 2000 machine I use for test purposes, installed an additional sound card, fumbled with the menus for awhile, and eventually got two zones functioning.

Now to do a little fine-tuning and climb up the learning curve a bit.

JackHughs

[Matt]

Glad to hear you've got it working.

Cheers.

[JackHughs]

It's probably right in front of me, but I can't see it.

Is there a way to toggle between zones other than going through the Tools menu?

And, is there a way to open multiple panes so that that I can view the operation of two or more zones simultaneously?

Thanks

JackHughs

[graham131]

It's probably right in front of me, but I can't see it.

Is there a way to toggle between zones other than going through the Tools menu?

And, is there a way to open multiple panes so that that I can view the operation of two or more zones simultaneously?

Thanks

JackHughs

CTRL T i believe

[Alex B]

It's probably right in front of me, but I can't see it.

Is there a way to toggle between zones other than going through the Tools menu?

In addition to using Ctrl+T you can add the Zones button to the top toolbar. Right-click the toolbar area to access the Customize Toolbar window.

And, is there a way to open multiple panes so that that I can view the operation of two or more zones simultaneously?

There isn't. Only the active Zone is displayed in the Playing Now list.

[DarkPenguin]

An oddball way of doing it is to just make a shortcut to

c:\windows\system32\mc13.exe 10011, -1

and toss it in the quick launch area of the windows task bar.

(10011 is the toggle zone command, -1 means toggle forward.)

I had to create a bunch of short cuts like that so that my wireless keyboard could control MC.  (The software that came with the keyboard was pretty limited.)

[JackHughs]

Thank you all for the suggestions.

I added a "Zone" button to the toolbar and that eases workflow quite a bit.

But now, I have a real problem.

So far, I've been able to successfully map the output of two zones to two seperate soundcards.

However, one of those is a 5.1 soundcard and I've been trying, with no success at all, to map the output of Zone 1 to the front speaker output and map Zone 2 to the rear speaker output.

The configuration options in the Zone Manager lead me to believe that this is possible but so far - no happiness.

The card is an inexpensive Diamond ExtremeSound 5.1.  The card is installed correctly and the driver is up to date.

Am I uselessly beating my head against a wall, or am I just missing something?

Thanks

JackHughs
   

[Alex B]

It should work if you are using the Direct Sound playback mode and the analog outputs. It works for me with a 5.1 Terratec sound card and also with a 5.1 motherboard sound device.

(A digital SPDIF output can transmit only two separate channels. It can transmit more than two channels only if all channels are encoded in a single stream using a compressed multichannel format like Dolby Digital or DTS.)

EDIT

Have you verified that the sound card driver and Windows speaker settings are set to 5.1? Can you play a multi-channel file correctly when Zones are not used?

If you need test files you can find some here: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/howto/articles/Multichannel.aspx#link6

[JackHughs]

Alex.

I checked all the settings and everything is set for 5.1 playback.

I downloaded the Microsoft test file and each jack on the sound card outputs the correct material.

However, I'm playing the Microsoft test in MC Zone 1 which is set to output to the front right and left speakers.  I don't believe I should be hearing the rear speaker information with this setting.

JackHughs

PS -- After a little more research, it seems that not all 5.1 cards are capable of outputting independent stereo pairs.  The problem could be as simple as having a minimally featured soundcard.  After all, it only cost $21.00 in a local store.

 

[JackHughs]

It appears that the Diamond ExtremeSound 5.1 sound card does not support, either in hardware or in drivers, independent stereo pairs.  In order to output different programs in zone 1 and zone 2 using one soundcard,  I have to set aside the Diamond 5.1 and buy another card.

So, the question boils down to this; which currently available consumer level soundcards do support independent stereo pairs?

Thanks

JackHughs

[DarkPenguin]

I'm not sure.  Sounds like the 5.1 Terratec card AlexB mentioned is a good one.  I believe the multi zone thing works on Matt's M-Audio card.

Here's a thread ..

http://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php?topic=48706.msg334107#msg334107

[JackHughs]

I gave up.

After much research, I've concluded that trying to do multi-zone playback with one "inexpensive" sound card is just not a productive use of time.

However, multi-zone can be done quite nicely on the cheap using a $21.00 soundcard for Zone 1 and the onboard audio for Zone 2.

So now that the two Playback Zones are up and operating, it's time to discover, and attempt to figure out, how to best use the Input capabilities of MC.

I like MC.  However, working with it is a lot like working with Rubik's Cube.

JackHughs