Improvements to overlays for Remote VoiceTracking
Posted: 28 May 2023 18:55
We are using overlays for our ad-breaks in ProppFrexx, but we are currently having some minor issues when using those with Remote VoiceTracking.
* We use the "Suppress Filter" on overlays to make sure no Jingles/Sweeps are played before the start of an ad-break. When a playlist is retrieved using Remote VoiceTracking the Overlays are resolved to the playlist as Embedded Containers, which are played by the playlist players and not the overlay player. This causes the suppress filters not to apply.
* We want to allow our live DJ's to prepare their playlists at home, but this is not possible right now. Since overlays are resolved to the playlist as Embedded Containers these playlists will work differently in a live session. Our radio DJ's are trained to use the Overlay Players for adverts as we need strict timing on those.
Would it be possible to add an option to resolve Overlays to a new type of playlist entry. Something like a placeholder so the VoiceTracker knows where the ad block is, but the overlay is still played out using the overlay player. This placeholder would suppress the normal overlay, as they can be dragged around in the playlist which can cause timing to be different from the scheduled time, but playback will happen by the overlay player.
Or perhaps a different approach would be an option to allow all "OVERLAY:" embedded containers to be removed from the playlist when it is loaded and all overlays to be rescheduled to the appropriate timing>
I don't know what is possible here and if it would be too complex to implement. If you have a similar workflow that exists with the current version of ProppFrexx that solves these issues, please let me know
Thank you in advance!
* We use the "Suppress Filter" on overlays to make sure no Jingles/Sweeps are played before the start of an ad-break. When a playlist is retrieved using Remote VoiceTracking the Overlays are resolved to the playlist as Embedded Containers, which are played by the playlist players and not the overlay player. This causes the suppress filters not to apply.
* We want to allow our live DJ's to prepare their playlists at home, but this is not possible right now. Since overlays are resolved to the playlist as Embedded Containers these playlists will work differently in a live session. Our radio DJ's are trained to use the Overlay Players for adverts as we need strict timing on those.
Would it be possible to add an option to resolve Overlays to a new type of playlist entry. Something like a placeholder so the VoiceTracker knows where the ad block is, but the overlay is still played out using the overlay player. This placeholder would suppress the normal overlay, as they can be dragged around in the playlist which can cause timing to be different from the scheduled time, but playback will happen by the overlay player.
Or perhaps a different approach would be an option to allow all "OVERLAY:" embedded containers to be removed from the playlist when it is loaded and all overlays to be rescheduled to the appropriate timing>
I don't know what is possible here and if it would be too complex to implement. If you have a similar workflow that exists with the current version of ProppFrexx that solves these issues, please let me know
Thank you in advance!