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Automation choices?

D

DyingMedium

Guest
Hi there...

I am with a small (very small) market station in Oregon. We need to upgrade our automation. Audiovault quoted us 15K...That's a little higher than we wanted to go, but we don't to settle for an unstable system.

We've also been exploring Arrakks Digi-Link extreme...I've also stumbled across Rivendell, but can't seem to find an actual graphic of what it looks like to run.

So...What is the best computer automation system for the best price?

It would need to allow for streaming in the future and allow for live/live assist and auto modes. It would also need the ability record phoners. Allow for remote access and voice tracking...

Any help on this? I appreciate any feedback...

DM
 
We use Simian to run our three-station cluster of two AM's and an FM in western Pennsylvania. We voice-track on all-three, and it's pretty affordable. The hardware isn't proprietary, so you can trade out for computers if you can do it.

It interfaces with Adobe Audition (formerly known as CoolEdit Pro) very nicely. It's pretty stable...I haven't known it to crash on us.
 
Jazler Radio Automation has a nice interface and is very easy on the pockets.
Listed on the website you can download a demo version with all features active
for 30 days.
It's popular with the internet crowd as European Broadcasting Stations.
http://www.jazler.com/
 
I wouldn't overlook Register Data Systems. They've been at it longer than most, and they understand small market broadcasting very well.
 
Nexgen is the best if you can afford it. With that being said, if you're in a small market with a limited budget, pick up the phone and order a Siman system. I have two small stations that own Simian and it is EXTREMELY reliable. You won't be disappointed! Their tech support is MUCH better than a lot of the other big players.
 
OKCRadioGuy said:
if you're in a small market with a limited budget, pick up the phone and order a Siman system. I have two small stations that own Simian and it is EXTREMELY reliable. You won't be disappointed! Their tech support is MUCH better than a lot of the other big players.
Click to expand...

Yeah...what he said. :D
 
Thanks very much for the reponses...I'm aiming for the small market NexGen...Simian didn't seem to be all that much cheaper, although it did look pretty good...

Anyone have any experience with Arrakis Systems Digi-link extreme? Stable? not?
 
DyingMedium said:
Thanks very much for the reponses...I'm aiming for the small market NexGen...Simian didn't seem to be all that much cheaper, although it did look pretty good...

Anyone have any experience with Arrakis Systems Digi-link extreme? Stable? not?
Click to expand...

I like Arrakis Digilink for satellite-delivered radio formats. Not for anything else.
 
I've been struggling with the Simian/NexGen dilemma, too...

The station's been running Simian for a while (long before my arrival), and it's been freezing up lately. We're upgrading the facility - expanding our technical capabilities, which requires an automation overhaul. Replacing Simian with NexGen has been proposed. It's certainly more expensive than simian, but I haven't heard anyone complain about NexGen's stability, or it's capability.

Is NexGen worth the extra bucks?
 
easyfm said:
Station Playlist has a great price/performance ratio. Ideal for automation.
Click to expand...

Thinking of helping an LPFM transition over to StationPlaylist. It looks like it would work well for small operations that don't take lots of sat feeds or external sources.
 
techie2 said:
easyfm said:
Station Playlist has a great price/performance ratio. Ideal for automation.
Click to expand...

Thinking of helping an LPFM transition over to StationPlaylist. It looks like it would work well for small operations that don't take lots of sat feeds or external sources.
Click to expand...

I've used it and I have to say StationPlaylist is a super system at a bargain price! I threw out my Digital Jukebox software in a heartbeat after I saw what this could do! It's fab!
 
SAM4 is also a very cheap alternative, it's mainly geared at internet stations but I have seen a number of small market stations run it successfully. The only downside is that the music scheduling is very limited. However, now they have a new add on that does allow decent scheduling to be done plus they added voicetracking in version 4 (not sure how good it is, never used the voicetracking before). I use AIR for my music stations, I run SAM4 only on the talk station now.

www.spacialaudio.com
 
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