Display

[Strait]

Hi

I am having problems to see the Lyrics in microstudio

Just getting a black square but no lyrics if i try to play them of the Hard Drive.

Thank You

[jaddams]

Strait,

You may not have any lyrics to see. Which CDROM do you have?

Please read the following post and perhaps you can answer some of the questions listed there:

http://forum.mtu.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2157

Regards,

Jon

[jahern]

Are these files saved to the hard drive? If you are playing the files from the hard drive, (as you say) then the cd-rom is not important. How did you get the files onto the hard drive?

Microstudio does not play wave files so if you are indeed playing from the hard drive and going dark, then we have a problem. There is all kinds of information about Direct x and video cards etc., that you might have to become acquainted with.

If you are playing audio from the cd-rom you will see a list of tracks and you will have the button TOC refresh (table of contents) If that is really how you are playing, then it is very possible that the cd-rom might not be the right kind.

Another issue on playing files:

Since cdg files can be copied to disc, as files only, and discs put in cd-roms, then one might think that these files are played by choosing the cd-rom option but actually these files are played by accessing the Hard Drive option and following the cd-rom like it was just another folder on the hard drive.

[jaddams]

Jahern,

Since he is using MicroStudio, I am assuming (I hate using that word : ) that Strait extracted the song from a CDG (in which case, the CDROM makes a difference.)

Perhaps he got it from a friend or through other sources, but for that song to end on a hard drive, someone has to use a CD Burner. I don’t know of any other way. Is there another way?

There is no much one can tell from reading his post that why I gave him that link. You would be surprised how much easy things become when a post includes all pertinent information.

Best regards,

Jon

[George]

It cannot be said Microstudio will not play .WAV files. It WILL play a .WAV file directly from the cdr/cdrw drive. You get the audio and a black screen.

This is kinda far out, but you can also import a .WAV file through Microstudio as a CDG and get exactly the same results, play the audio with blank screen. In that manner Microstudio can be fooled into playing a .WAV from the hard drive.

Sounds like a non compliant burner issue, but agreed a lot more info is needed.

George

[jahern]

I keyed in on the fact that Strait said he was playing from the hard drive. It may surprise some Microstudio users to know that once cdg files are on the hard drive, and they can get there in some ways without a compliant burner, Microstudio will play the files just fine. It doesn't matter if the current burner is compliant or not. (or even if there is a burner or even if there is a cd-rom)

What I didn't take into account was whether there was actually music being heard in addition to the black screen.

Possibilities

BLACK SCREEN AND
No music:
I got this effect when I tried to play a disc with files on it (not audio disc) using the cd-rom option I used a disc full of PERFECT cdg files being played by a COMPLIANT CD Burner Although I had several files, the TOC refresh button showed me 1track of about 58 minutes.

BLACK SCREEN AND
Music:
I get this effect when I am playing a non-cdg disc using the cd-rom option. I don't know about playing a disc with a non-compliant burner. I have two burners, one compliant and one not. I cannot select the non-compliant one to play with.


I find nowhere in the play scheme where I can choose Wave files. The only choice I see anywhere is cdg files.

[George]

It doesn't say "KARAOKE" or "CDG" on the play screen either, simply "USE CDROM DRIVE" or " USE HARD DRIVE". You can play a cdg or a wav from the use cdrom option. We mostly all just assume it will only play cdg.

I never have figured why there isn't a .WAV/.cdg play option, since you have the choices on the import, custom assembly, and duplicate disc tabs, and you can play a .WAV from the cdrom drive, but not the hard drive.

You figure

George

[jaddams]

We haven’t heard from Strait since his original post, and we still don’t know how he got the files into his hard drive.

To troubleshoot a problem, we must have certain information. This information will prevent second guessing!

How about it Strait? Did you use MicroStudio to import the song in question, and IF so which CD burner did you use?

Thanks,

Jon

[jaddams]

Jahern, George,

You guys are good! So good that you have me completely confused!

It appears to me, that we’re so fixed, in trying to prove who’s better at diagnosing problems that we lose all tracks of the problems presented by those seeking help.

This is no good, because in doing so, we tend to confuse the issues rather than to help solve the problem.

This thread was started by Strait with the following;

Hi, I am having problems to see the Lyrics in microstudio Just getting a black square but no lyrics if i try to play them of the Hard Drive.
Thank You

A simple problem, right?

No! No so simple, as Strait didn’t give any clue as to what type of file he was trying to play in MicroStudio. All he stated was that “he was having problems to see lyrics in MicroStudio, and he was just getting a black square but no lyrics.” He didn’t tell us whether he was hearing music or not.

That problem, immediately points to a CDG being extracted with a non-compliant CD Burner. With that in mind, I answered Strait with the following:

Strait,
You may not have any lyrics to see. Which CDROM do you have?

Please read the following post and perhaps you can answer some of the questions listed there:

http://forum.mtu.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2157

Regards,

Jon

In my opinion, we should have waited for Strait’s answer as He was the only one that could tells us how the song or songs he was trying to play got into his hard drive. Instead of waiting, we decided to come up with all kinds of possible alternatives, all without value, because we didn’t know where the song, or songs, originated.

It doesn’t matter diddle squat how he got the songs into his hard drive, what matter is that for one to extract a CDG song from a karaoke disk, one must have a CD burner capable of extracting both, the music and the graphics on that song, hence the importance of the CD burner.

posted by Jahern Are these files saved to the hard drive?

He already said he was trying to play the song from the hard drive. They MUST have been saved there first, don’t you think?

Let me continue for a bit with Jahern’s first quote...

If you are playing the files from the hard drive, (as you say) then the cd-rom is not important. How did you get the files onto the hard drive?

Good question Jahern, How did he get that song into his hard drive? Was the ripping CD Rom karaoke compliant?

Continuing Jahern’s Microstudio does not play wave files so if you are indeed playing from the hard drive and going dark, then we have a problem.

Of course he has a problem, that why he posted in the first place.

The rest of the quote is meaningless because. In this case, his problem has nothing to do with DirectX or video card. Everything begins with the song being extracted with a karaoke compliant CD burner.

Originally posted by George It cannot be said Microstudio will not play .WAV files. It WILL play a .WAV file directly from the cdr/cdrw drive. You get the audio and a black screen.

I am sorry George, but to the best of my knowledge, MicroStudio, DOES NOT play WAV files directly from the CDR/CDRW drive!

When you place a regular CDROM disk on your CD player or burner, whether it is a regular CD or a Karaoke CDG. MicroStudio will play it. But, YOU ARE NOT playing a WAV file. All CD Disks use the extension CDA which means “Compact Digital Audio,” which MicroStudio, reads with no problems, however CDA IS NOT WAV.
WAV is nothing but a format for storing audio files. This format was created by Microsoft and IBM so long ago, that it was incorporated in Windows 95. WAV is a short name for “waveform” which is a digital representation of an analog waveform.

IF YOU EXTRACT a CD soundtrack, using MicroStudio, as a WAV file, and then burn JUST the WAV file into a CD, you could play THAT CD using Windows Media Player, BUT if you try to play it with MicroStudio, you will get a blank screen AND nothing else. No music, nada, zilch, zero!!!!!!!!

In short, MicroStudio will play the soundtrack of a regular CD, karaoke or otherwise, but it will no play JUST a WAV file, at least not in my computer.

Let me insert here a quote from the MicroStudio manual:

The Play Tab button does not function if the tracks are WAV files (WAV Button selected). The Play Tab only plays Karaoke CDG files.

Initially posted by Jahern I keyed in on the fact that Strait said he was playing from the hard drive. It may surprise some Microstudio users to know that once cdg files are on the hard drive, and they can get there in some ways without a compliant burner, Microstudio will play the files just fine. It doesn't matter if the current burner is compliant or not. (or even if there is a burner or even if there is a cd-rom)

How can you get both “music and lyrics” into a hard drive, without a complaint CD Burner? I’d love to hear the answer to that one. We are talking here about regular folks extracting files from their CDG’s, NOT studio engineers!!!

In closing, I ONLY have one suggestion.

Most of us (those helping MTU support) are senior members (welcome to the group Jahern, ) We are senior member NOT BECAUSE we are karaoke or software gurus, we are senior members because we have taken our time to try to help others, and in doing so, we have built our number of posts.

We have built our number of post because we have gotten involved in answering questions by trying to help those that have a bit less understanding than we do, and in doing so, we have gotten to know MTU programs fairly well.

So, when someone comes up with a problem, lets try to keep to the basics and try to address the problem or problems at hand without trying to upstage each other.

In Strait’s case, he did not give us anything to go on, so I directed him to a post that would give him some ideas as to the kind of information we were seeking in trying to help him.

TO THIS DATE, HE HAS NOT ANSWERED MY ORIGINAL QUESTIONS

Makes me wonder, whether he needed assistance or not!

Just in case Strait, and I know you WILL RECEIVE A NOTICE OF THIS POST:
[quote]Originally posted by me
Strait,

You may not have any lyrics to see. Which CDROM do you have?

Please read the following post and perhaps you can answer some of the questions listed there:

http://forum.mtu.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2157

Where are your Strait?

How about post number 2 from you?

Best regards to all,

Jon


.

[George]

Jon,
I stand corrected regarding the difference between CDA and .WAV, but I'll not take full responsibility for the error. You'll have to grant me that CDA is commonly kicked around these forums as .Wav. When any of us have discussed regular audio files we have always referred to them as .WAV. It that context I was mis-using the term.

On the surface it appears that MTU further promotes this thinking because they use the term WAV on the duplicate disc page, WAV on the import page, and Audio on the custom assembly page, and nowhere is there an explanation of the difference as they apply to these pages, if any.

In that same context also, MTU needs to re-think their terminology in the manual because they give us not so informed laymen the impression that you cannot play regular audio through Microstudio, and it was in that sense that any controversy that manifested itself came about.


For any wanting to play CDA from the hard drive, they can do so by fooling the program and importing them to the hard drive as cdg. They can then be retrieved and played, and that's a neat trick because you can play several at a time uninterrupted. As such they cannot be used in KPRO, as they already will have a cdg extension.

I also have never felt a need to show how much I think I know. If I perceive misinformation being passed on, for the benefit of the person trying to be helped, I will try to offer a correction, in as brief a manner as possible.

If SUPPORT or ADMIN has a problem with this, then all they need do is say so.

I always try to come on low key and not give the impression that I'm MTU, like some we observe.

I can't help it if some take it as a confrontational move on my part when I do offer a correction, and esculate the situation, turning it into a contest.

In the majority of those instances where I have intervened I have been correct. Sometimes I miss the mark, this time from a purely technical standpoint, but not really, when you consider the commonly accepted use of the term WAV in these forums.

I will make the observation that if you were truly interested in preserving the purity of this thread your critisisms should have been made by private message. Jahern and I have exchanged private messages regarding this issue so's not to further cloud things. So you're not really demonstrating any different behavior than you accuse us of, are you?

I also see no point into you trying to further browbeat Strait into responding. It was made sufficiently clear at the onset that more input would be helpful, and beating him/her it to death with it serves no productive purpose.

George

The good side of all this is increased circulation. Ever notice the heavy readership whenever there's a controversy brewing

[jaddams]

George,

You are absolutely correct in all of the points you make on your recent post!

I had no idea you and Jahern have been exchanging private emails on the subject. Not that anybody had to send me anything, but I was part of this thread and everything started when I answered the original post.

I know that you are the most active member of these forums and you ALWAYS do your absolute best to help others without any ego being involved. As I told you before by private message, I’ve learned a lot from you JUST by reading your posts when I joined the Forums!

Upon rereading my post, I see where I could have tried to explain things a little clearer, for example: about me “browbeating Strait,” was a subliminal way to say “Hey, slow down on the controversy guys, we haven’t heard from him yet!”

by George: I also have never felt a need to show how much I think I know. If I perceive misinformation being passed on, for the benefit of the person trying to be helped, I will try to offer a correction, in as brief a manner as possible.

Also true George, my suggestion about trying to keep to the issues was meant for anyone that takes part in helping others. In no way was criticism directed at you.

No offense was intended at all, not to you not to Jahern, IF my post was perceived that way, I sincerely and truly apologize.

Yes, I could have sent this response by private message; however, since my criticism was made on a public forum, I believe, a public apology is the best course of action!

Sincerely,

Jon

P.S. Circulation DOES increase!

[George]

Jon,

Never felt an apology was needed, but since it was tendered, it is accepted in the same spirit.

Yeah, it's always amazed me how the readership goes up rapidly whenever a serious sounding controversy occurs. Never could figure how the word gets around. One heck of a grapevine, I'll say.

Take care,

George