PlayIt Live

Concepts

This page introduces the main building blocks of PlayIt Live and explains how they fit together. Each concept links to a more detailed section. If you are new to PlayIt Live, reading this page first will help the rest of the documentation make sense. For short definitions of individual terms, see the Glossary.

The playout log

The playout log is the heart of PlayIt Live. It is the running order of everything your station will play, shown as a list of items in the order they will go to air. Most items are tracks, but the log can also contain voice tracks, break notes, fixed time markers, and other special items.

You can build the log by hand by dragging tracks into it, let PlayIt Live fill it automatically from your schedule, or use a mixture of both. See The Playout Log.

Tracks and track groups

A track represents an audio file, together with the information PlayIt Live needs to play it well: artist, title, duration, and cue points such as the intro and cue out position. Tracks are imported into your library and can be browsed and searched from the track list.

Track groups organise your tracks. A group can be a Listed group (a hand-picked list of tracks), a Filtered group (tracks selected dynamically by their properties, for example "all songs from the 1980s"), or a Grouped group (a combination of other track groups). Track groups are used throughout PlayIt Live: to filter the track list, to build a playout pattern, and within clocks and playout policies.

Players, segues, and player modes

The players load tracks from the playout log and play them in sequence. In Live Assist Mode, several players sit at the top of the main window, each showing intro, elapsed, and remaining timers.

A segue is the transition from one item into the next, where one track ends and the following one begins. PlayIt Live works out segues automatically from each track's cue points, and you can fine-tune them in the Segue Editor.

PlayIt Live offers two player modes: Live Assist Mode, built around the playout log, and Decks Mode, a classic deck-based layout.

Automation

PlayIt Live can run your station on its own. Two switches in Live Assist Mode control this:

  • The Log Scheduler automatically fills the playout log ahead of time so there is always something queued to play.
  • Automation plays items automatically and locks the log to prevent accidental changes. Turning Automation on also turns on the Log Scheduler.

With both switches off you are in full manual control; with both on, the station runs unattended.

Scheduling

Scheduling is how PlayIt Live decides what to play and when. There are a few related concepts:

  • A Playout Pattern is a repeating sequence of track groups (for example song, song, jingle) that the scheduler cycles through to fill each hour. This is the simplest way to automate your output.
  • Clocks are hour-long templates that lay out exactly what should play in an hour and in what order, mixing track groups, specific tracks, adverts, voice tracks, and markers.
  • The Clock Schedule assigns clocks to the hours of the week, so different hours and days can sound different.
  • Playout Policies are rules that keep your output sounding consistent, for example preventing the same artist or track from repeating too soon.

Together these feed the scheduling engine, which generates the playout log.

Adverts and scheduled events

Advert Scheduling manages commercial spots: you create campaigns of adverts, PlayIt Live places them into advert blocks across the log, and it produces a play report for billing.

Scheduled Events trigger actions at specific times or when PlayIt Live starts, for example merging an external log or switching Automation on.

Voice tracking

Voice tracking lets a presenter record links between tracks ahead of time. The recorded link is stored in the log and played at the right moment, so a pre-produced show can sound live. Voice tracks can be recorded in the studio or remotely with Remote Voice Tracking.

QuickCarts

QuickCarts are instant-playback buttons for jingles, sound effects, beds, and other audio you want to fire on demand while presenting. They are arranged on pages of buttons alongside the playout log.

Priority streams

Priority Streams allow a remote presenter or external source to take over from automated playout. When a priority stream is live it overrides normal Live-Assist output, then hands back automatically when it ends.

Bringing audio in and out

  • Monitored Folders watch folders on disk and import audio automatically as files are added, keeping your library up to date without manual importing.
  • Internet Broadcast streams your audio output to an Icecast or Shoutcast provider, and Now Playing sends details of the current track to a file or online service. Both are set up from the Tools menu.
  • Logged Tracks records what was actually played and when, for reporting and royalty purposes.

Working remotely and across studios

The Built-in Remote Access Server lets you reach PlayIt Live from a web browser to:

To share a single set of data across several computers, PlayIt Live can connect to PlayIt Manager (or to the built-in server of another PlayIt Live), keeping tracks, schedules, and the playout log in sync.

Plugins

PlayIt Live can be extended through plugins, installed and configured from the Plugins menu in the main window. Available plugins include Microphone Mix, Audio Processing, and Remote Start (MIDI).

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