Be careful. I don't think the Loudcaster version of RadioBoss has the settings to make your station DMCA compliant. Also the Loudcaster version of RadioBoss is the old version of RadioBoss. The new version is very good and it has a lot new features. They also fixed a lot of bugs in the new version. I use RadioBoss to automate my station.

Thank you for that info. Very important to know. It's usually worth paying the extra bucks for a more stable environment and enjoy enhanced features. I will check out their website again and re-evaluate. Thanks!

I've used the Loudcaster version. As far as I can tell, it's no different at all from the most recent version of RadioBoss offered to the general public.

And the Playlist Generator Pro is very good, and will make your station DMCA compliant as long as you set it up that way (no repeat artists for x minutes, etc.)

I'm hoping to get back to everything Loudcaster soon, by the way. Have had a few financial hiccups this month. :/

When you buy the Loudcaster version of RadioBoss, does Loudcaster send you a reg code?

I think so. I've had the LC version for quite a long time (a year maybe?) and LC sent me the code, although that policy may have changed. Like I've said, it's been a while.

Having said that, I'm probably not going to go back to RadioBoss when I come back to full time broadcasting. I've been looking for another automation program and I'm testing 3 of them right now.

The reason I probably won't go back to RadioBoss is because the developers won't consider using mp3gain (replay gain) tags for normalization purposes, in favor of their own gain control set up. I use StereoTool for a plug-in, and when I use it with RadioBoss, I get mad distortion and clipping that cannot be alleviated through any amount of tweaking. That and the fact that I want to start voicetracking and RB still doesn't have a legitimate voicetracking feature is making me search for greener pastures.

By the way, one of the automation programs I'm testing is mAirlist , and they are running a special right now (home studio, for non-profit hobby stations, only 69euro, approximately 89 dollars USD). I love their program and may end up purchasing it. While going through the program, I observed that it is not only highly customizable, but seems to be easy to use. (Although I don't like the 30 minute at a time trial -- doesn't allow for too much getting your hands dirty without reloading the thing).

Sorry for the long reply. :)

Don't know why the link isn't working.

mAirlist can be found at

http://www.mairlist.com/en/

but wouldn't you know it, the offer ends on the 15th (tomorrow) :/

Also, and I didn't know this before, the mAirlist home player (different from the home studio) also has an encoder and may be better budget wise. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles as the home studio, but can still be used to broadcast and it's only 29euro. This also might work for what you are describing, and seems to be quite affordable.

That is weird. I am using RadioBoss with the Stereotool plug in and it works great. It makes my stream sound really good and it has an awesome Auto Gain Control. The new version of RadioBoss does have a VoiceTracking feature.
Mairlist seems looks cool. I am going to download the demo and try it out.
I think for what radiojonnyking wants to do RadioBoss is the way to go. RadioBoss has a very good event scheduler. It is more advance than Sams and StationPlaylist scheduler.

And also I think you can upgrade the Loudcaster version of RadioBoss to the newest RadioBoss and have the Loudcaster features still. I will check this today.

I just tried out the Loudcaster version of RadioBoss. The Loudcaster version of RadioBoss doesn't work any more. When you open it it asked you to log in to Loudcaster. It ask for your old username and password. When you type it in an error code pops up. You old login is not valid any more.

Maybe it's just my stereo tool settings. It could be. I agree, RadioBoss does have a pretty nice built in Auto Gain, but without support for replay gain, my music is all over the place sometimes. Nonetheless, I think RadioBoss is a good product, I just think that the direction I'm wanting to develop the station goes away from what RB can do.

RB's voicetracking is pretty limited in what it can do. It will do voicetracking inasmuch as it will allow you to record and insert a voicetrack, but it won't allow you to use a "track tool" or equivalent to peg the intro to the songs so a DJ can talk up the ramp, which is primarily what I'm looking for. Sorry about that, I should have been clearer on what I meant.

Regardless, RadioBoss is a good product -- I didn't know about the password not working. Like I said, it's been a while. Also, my DSL (I just switched from cable) is just about the worst connection I've seen ever and drops out every 10 minutes, so I probably won't be able to go live anyway anytime soon....:D

Thanks for all of your input. I appreciate the discussion and it really helps me to decide. The fact that RB has an excellent scheduler makes me very interested in going that way. I also realize I should just stay away from the LC version. Thanks again!

You can schedule events in SAM Broadcaster as well. I've found SAM to be pretty easy after I watched youtube videos on it. The PAL scripts also make it easy to customize as well. But I've also used the older version of RadioBoss. Its Winamp on steroids. The Pro playlists setup os tricky but if you manually enter songs into a playlist its easy to do. Its more designed for the beginner and I'd recommend either MirList if you can get a encoder to work with it or maybe radiodj.ro (same deal for the encoder). The nice thing is radiodj.ro is FREE and there was an older freeware version of Mairlist. (I think its called) which you can request a FREE licence for.

I decided to go with StationPlaylist which has been working out quite nicely.