~Multihosting via Skype~ *tutorial*

[pikapikapika]

Okay, I know some DJ's new and old have a lot of trouble with this, and I've found a few ways to do it myself so I thought I should make a tutorial so everyone can do it too~

Also this isn't a broadcasting tutorial, I don't want to reveal any secret DJ infos, haha.

Sound Blaster Audigy Soundcard
(Credit goes to Odango for teaching me this one)

Okay, so the easiest way to do this, is with a SBA soundcard, and a regular wired mic.
Although in saying that, other kinds of soundcard might have something similar to the 'what U hear' mixer channel that the SBA card has, so your card could work too.


Go to the volume controls, and set your settings like this.
Notice that the microphone option is unmuted, this is on purpose as what you are hearing (or 'what U hear') is what is going to be broadcasted via Oddcast, you will hear yourself speaking, but with this option it's in real time with no lag, so you get used to it, plus headphones are good to prevent any feedback problems from this.


Set your Skype settings like this.
As you have set recording to come from 'What U Hear' this will be your audio input to Skype, so the other person(s) will hear both you and your music, if it is playing.

While broadcasting, keep the volume controls open. This is because Skype likes to mute the microphone through 'What U Hear' as soon as you connect a call with someone, so simply unmute the microphone via the volume controls. Another potential problem is if Skype sometimes decides to change 'What U Hear' to 'Microphone' again, with the volume controls open, you can override this and change it back.
(One problem with other sound cards is that, you can't override what Skype does, however with an SBA, you can, which is why it's useful to have one)

The last thing you should do is set oddcast like this: (yes my windows theme is purple)

The mic is uncrossed just to show you the settings btw, just use that box as normal when you want to play songs.

So, all you need to do now is call someone or have them call you (making sure to keep an eye on the volume controls while you connect to them) and you can have as many guests as you like!

The only drawback with this method is your own mic volume can end up being a bit low even with mic boost on since it's going through the mixer, but that might just depend on your own set up.

I'll update this topic with more ways to do it as soon as I do the tutorials for them lol.

[pikapikapika]

Using a USB mic (1)

While it's pretty awesome for single hosting and Skype, USB mics are such a pain in the ass to multihost with 
Luckily, there is a way around it with this program: http://software.muzychenko.net/eng/vac.html

This method was the way I did it previously (it's not so great, but it is simple and does work) and uses the Audio Repeater program from the trial package (which is the full version unlike the rest of the package)


Load up Audio Repeater, and set it up like this.

AK5370 is my USB mic, so yours will have a different name, but this will route the USB audio through 'What U Hear' through the left channel only. The reason for this, is that when USB audio is routed through something, there is a small delay, so your voice will echo, this is bad. I constantly stop mid sentence because I am actually interrupting myself speaking, so left channel only means, you can take out your left headphone so you don't hear yourself. (you could do it to the right side if you like that better)

As for Skype, just use the USB mic as your mic in the settings, and don't worry about the volume control. Oddcast settings are the same as the last example.

[pikapikapika]

Using a USB Mic (2)

This is the setup I'm currently using. It's not perfect and could probably be improved, but works very well and volume levels are great.
However, this is a Foobar only method, it will not work with Winamp and the full version of Virtual Audio Cable is required, so you'll have to purchase it (but if you PM Pika, who knows what you may get...)

Foobar

First off, here is a fix for the 'clipping' noise that you get when broadcasting with Foobar:


Go to Preferences -> Playback -> DSP Manager and add in Hard -6Db Limiter from 'Available DSPs' in front of your Oddcast V3 and it will broadcast perfectly.


Next, go to Preferences -> Playback -> Output and set it to Virtual Cable 1
This is a key part of how this works, VAC creates a virtual mixing channel on your computer (like a second 'What U Hear') and this is what we will use to broadcast with.

The only problem with this is that you can't hear your own music, but I usually just listen to the stream via winamp to check that it's still working anyways so it's no problem for me, haha.
Plus there are more ways to use this program, and you can set as many VAC channels as you like, so maybe you can find a way to do this.

Audio Repeater

We need to have 2 of these running at once (just open it twice, you can have an unlimited amount)

First, for your own voice:


Then for Skype:


Oddcast

Now set Oddcast like so:


Important: Oddcast and VAC are not 100% compatible. the 'recording from' line will flicker, but that's nothing to worry about.
One thing there is to worry about is the mic box on Oddcast. When you first connect, keep it crossed or you'll have trouble actually connecting to the server. When you uncross it and start to speak via the audio repeaters, NEVER PRESS THE MIC BOX AGAIN because if you do, Oddcast will crash and mess up Foobar.

The Audio repeaters are key here, because these are now your mic on/off buttons for you and the person(s) on Skype (via stopping and starting each program). Foobar is set to play through VAC1 and when you play music it will be heard even with the mic box uncrossed (don't touch the mic box, srsly)

You can even use the Audio Repeater for your guest(s) as a mute so people listening won't know who it is until you decide to play their audio, all the while they being able to hear you and you them without broadcasting. And you can talk to each other while the songs are playing.

[pikapikapika]

So, the last method is the best way I have found so far, there's probably a better, less complicated way somehow, so feel free to add any ways you know how to do it.

And, if I wasn't clear, please tell me, I know I suck at explaining, haha. Or if you have any questions about other things.