I’ve been having many reach out to me lately asking how to set up a means to bring music into a room, and while IMVU has given a thorough instruction on how to add a stream link into your room, it doesn’t really go into how one could make their own station.
So rather than explaining it over and over again, I thought maybe I would post something I can send as a link.
I’m sure there will be confusion, so please ask questions in the comments. Also, let’s not turn this into a complaint session on the demise of IMVU Music. It’s gone, and I don’t think it’ll be coming back. So move on.
What is IMVU Radio?
In simple terms, it’s taking an online audio stream and piping it directly into a room. It’s similar to what many of us did years ago with what was termed “Internet Radio” and what we do now on free and paid streaming services such as Caster.fm
So in order to stream audio directly into an IMVU room, you need:
Direct dedicated streaming service
An app that allows you to play music live (if you wish to play live)
Music to play (as files)
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RickErosposted
6 days ago
Where do I get music?
That’s on you. You will need files though. They can be MP3, WAV, FLAC, AIFF, or OGG from what I know. You can buy them online off MP3 stores, or rip old CDs you might have, or whatever works for you.
I do suggest to save yourself hosting space and make your files in the bitrate of what your plan allows. So if you’re on Unlimited with 192 kbps streaming, there’s no point in uploading 320 kbps MP3s or even WAV files. You’re taking up more of your hosting than you need, and the audio won’t be as high quality.
Can I just hook up Spotify, Tidal, or Pandora?
Technically, you could using BUTT. However I would advise against it.
First, you’ll need a way to get the audio from the streaming service into your stream, and from what I know it comes down to setting up your computer’s audio input to “Stereo Mix” or whatever setting that takes all the audio played on the computer, and then it would broadcast all audio, including Spotify, Tidal, or Pandora.
The problem…now you need your computer, broadcasting, and streaming service on all the time. You can’t just set it and forget it like you can with the Auto DJ Service.
Plus, it’ll take ANY audio from your computer and play it. So an error beep or what not will go in.
AND…those services frown on broadcasting their streams, so if you’re caught they would cut you off and potentially ban you.
Questions?
I know you’ll have them. Ask here in the comments.
When you’re on the main dashboard, you’ll see a URL in the Streams section that ends in /radio.mp3 That’s the URL you put into IMVU.
MAKE SURE YOU TURN ON YOUR BROADCASTING!
I’ve made this mistake, wondering why I had no audio, panicking as to why. Go to the section entitled “Broadcasting Service” and click “Start” or “Restart” to turn it on so you can broadcast.
Now if you have someone who wants to listen to your stream without being on IMVU, or they are not updating their Classic Client, you can give them the URL labeled “Public Page”, which will give them a web page they can listen from like they would on the free services.
You can also add your branding to that page through the Branding link on the left.
0 Votes
R
RickErosposted
6 days ago
I want to play live like you do
For those who know me, I was a club and rave DJ for many years, so I will usually hook up and DJ live in a room, playing like I used to play in clubs and events.
If you want to do this, you’ll need the hosting as I mentioned, but also you will need an app to play music live.
I use Virtual DJ, but Mixx is a free version that works well. SAM Cast is one some use, BUTT is another free software that only does the stream connection, but not the playing of music.
Your best bet is to look up in the instructions for whatever you use on how to put in the inputs you need to play in Asura Hosting.
On the Asura Hosting end, I’d tell you to go to the section on the dashboard called “Streamers/DJs” and click Manage, you’ll see credentials on the right side for the IP address and such.
I would suggest using the mount /radio.mp3 over just a /, just seems to work.
You can find your password for the connection on the profile in this dashboard. If not, then you can set yourself up as a DJ and put in a password. This section is also ideal if you want to have friends play at scheduled times, so they have their own connection settings and the system will not let them stream except on their scheduled times.
0 Votes
R
RickErosposted
6 days ago
OK, I got hosting, what now?
Asura Hosting works where you have a login to your account information, and then they email a login to your station, where you can manage it all.
So use the login to your dashboard and you’ll initially see a chart showing your listener stats, and then at the bottom where you can manage your station(s). Yes you can pay more to have multiple if you like.
When you click on “Manage” you’ll see the dashboard of your station, and all the features you will need.
I want to make playlists and run a station on auto
For this, you’ll have to use their Auto DJ Service found in the lower corner of the screen. You click on “Music Files” and you can upload your audio files (MP3, FLAC, WAV, AIFF, OGG, etc) where they will be stored.
From there, you can make playlists of what will be played, and thus later tell the Auto DJ Service to play it. You can even set up scheduling where the system will play a playlist for a time period, then change over…so you could do theme nights or what not.
0 Votes
R
RickErosposted
6 days ago
This is NOT free
I will level with you all and tell you if you want to stream audio into an IMVU room, the free services we’ve all used will not work.
Why? You need to have a DIRECT LINK to your stream.
The free services do not give you a direct link. This is why you cannot hook it up to IMVU Radio, and while you can still use those services, you’ll be on the old way of sharing a URL in a chat people will need to run in the background.
Also, if you want to stream music automatically without you having to play live or even be there, you’ll need a hosting service to hold your music and thus you can make playlists.
Now I went shopping around for a service, and was astounded at their prices, but found one that I think is affordable from Asura Hosting. I’ll be using this as my example. You can use any hosting you wish, but this is what I used.
Disclaimer: I don’t work for Asura Hosting, nor am I in any kind of affiliate program. I just found they have a good price compared to others, which cost way more.
Asura Hosting will give you the means to stream live or you can upload music and set up playlists to play on auto. Prices can range from $40 a year to $140 a year. You can do monthly, but I think it’s not worth the added expense unless you’re not sure you want to stay with this.
If you want to run a station on automatic, look at the Auto DJ Storage, but also look down at what audio quality you can get. I went with Unlimited, as it gave me plenty of space to play, but also a decent audio quality.
I also suggest using Icecast over Shoutcast, mainly because Icecast is an open source setup, and you won’t end up with potential licensing fees.
Introduction
I’ve been having many reach out to me lately asking how to set up a means to bring music into a room, and while IMVU has given a thorough instruction on how to add a stream link into your room, it doesn’t really go into how one could make their own station.
So rather than explaining it over and over again, I thought maybe I would post something I can send as a link.
I’m sure there will be confusion, so please ask questions in the comments. Also, let’s not turn this into a complaint session on the demise of IMVU Music. It’s gone, and I don’t think it’ll be coming back. So move on.
What is IMVU Radio?
In simple terms, it’s taking an online audio stream and piping it directly into a room. It’s similar to what many of us did years ago with what was termed “Internet Radio” and what we do now on free and paid streaming services such as Caster.fm
So in order to stream audio directly into an IMVU room, you need:
Direct dedicated streaming service
An app that allows you to play music live (if you wish to play live)
Music to play (as files)
0 Votes
5 Comments
RickEros posted 6 days ago
Where do I get music?
That’s on you. You will need files though. They can be MP3, WAV, FLAC, AIFF, or OGG from what I know. You can buy them online off MP3 stores, or rip old CDs you might have, or whatever works for you.
I do suggest to save yourself hosting space and make your files in the bitrate of what your plan allows. So if you’re on Unlimited with 192 kbps streaming, there’s no point in uploading 320 kbps MP3s or even WAV files. You’re taking up more of your hosting than you need, and the audio won’t be as high quality.
Can I just hook up Spotify, Tidal, or Pandora?
Technically, you could using BUTT. However I would advise against it.
First, you’ll need a way to get the audio from the streaming service into your stream, and from what I know it comes down to setting up your computer’s audio input to “Stereo Mix” or whatever setting that takes all the audio played on the computer, and then it would broadcast all audio, including Spotify, Tidal, or Pandora.
The problem…now you need your computer, broadcasting, and streaming service on all the time. You can’t just set it and forget it like you can with the Auto DJ Service.
Plus, it’ll take ANY audio from your computer and play it. So an error beep or what not will go in.
AND…those services frown on broadcasting their streams, so if you’re caught they would cut you off and potentially ban you.
Questions?
I know you’ll have them. Ask here in the comments.
Useful Links
I forgot to put them into the content…
Asura Hosting - https://www.asurahosting.com/azuracast-hosting
Virtual DJ - https://virtualdj.com/
Mixxx - https://mixxx.org/
SAM Cast - https://spacial.com/sam-cast/
BUTT - https://danielnoethen.de/butt/
0 Votes
RickEros posted 6 days ago
What link do I put into IMVU?
When you’re on the main dashboard, you’ll see a URL in the Streams section that ends in /radio.mp3 That’s the URL you put into IMVU.
MAKE SURE YOU TURN ON YOUR BROADCASTING!
I’ve made this mistake, wondering why I had no audio, panicking as to why. Go to the section entitled “Broadcasting Service” and click “Start” or “Restart” to turn it on so you can broadcast.
Now if you have someone who wants to listen to your stream without being on IMVU, or they are not updating their Classic Client, you can give them the URL labeled “Public Page”, which will give them a web page they can listen from like they would on the free services.
You can also add your branding to that page through the Branding link on the left.
0 Votes
RickEros posted 6 days ago
I want to play live like you do
For those who know me, I was a club and rave DJ for many years, so I will usually hook up and DJ live in a room, playing like I used to play in clubs and events.
If you want to do this, you’ll need the hosting as I mentioned, but also you will need an app to play music live.
I use Virtual DJ, but Mixx is a free version that works well. SAM Cast is one some use, BUTT is another free software that only does the stream connection, but not the playing of music.
Your best bet is to look up in the instructions for whatever you use on how to put in the inputs you need to play in Asura Hosting.
On the Asura Hosting end, I’d tell you to go to the section on the dashboard called “Streamers/DJs” and click Manage, you’ll see credentials on the right side for the IP address and such.
I would suggest using the mount /radio.mp3 over just a /, just seems to work.
You can find your password for the connection on the profile in this dashboard. If not, then you can set yourself up as a DJ and put in a password. This section is also ideal if you want to have friends play at scheduled times, so they have their own connection settings and the system will not let them stream except on their scheduled times.
0 Votes
RickEros posted 6 days ago
OK, I got hosting, what now?
Asura Hosting works where you have a login to your account information, and then they email a login to your station, where you can manage it all.
So use the login to your dashboard and you’ll initially see a chart showing your listener stats, and then at the bottom where you can manage your station(s). Yes you can pay more to have multiple if you like.
When you click on “Manage” you’ll see the dashboard of your station, and all the features you will need.
I want to make playlists and run a station on auto
For this, you’ll have to use their Auto DJ Service found in the lower corner of the screen. You click on “Music Files” and you can upload your audio files (MP3, FLAC, WAV, AIFF, OGG, etc) where they will be stored.
From there, you can make playlists of what will be played, and thus later tell the Auto DJ Service to play it. You can even set up scheduling where the system will play a playlist for a time period, then change over…so you could do theme nights or what not.
0 Votes
RickEros posted 6 days ago
This is NOT free
I will level with you all and tell you if you want to stream audio into an IMVU room, the free services we’ve all used will not work.
Why? You need to have a DIRECT LINK to your stream.
The free services do not give you a direct link. This is why you cannot hook it up to IMVU Radio, and while you can still use those services, you’ll be on the old way of sharing a URL in a chat people will need to run in the background.
Also, if you want to stream music automatically without you having to play live or even be there, you’ll need a hosting service to hold your music and thus you can make playlists.
Now I went shopping around for a service, and was astounded at their prices, but found one that I think is affordable from Asura Hosting. I’ll be using this as my example. You can use any hosting you wish, but this is what I used.
Disclaimer: I don’t work for Asura Hosting, nor am I in any kind of affiliate program. I just found they have a good price compared to others, which cost way more.
Asura Hosting will give you the means to stream live or you can upload music and set up playlists to play on auto. Prices can range from $40 a year to $140 a year. You can do monthly, but I think it’s not worth the added expense unless you’re not sure you want to stay with this.
If you want to run a station on automatic, look at the Auto DJ Storage, but also look down at what audio quality you can get. I went with Unlimited, as it gave me plenty of space to play, but also a decent audio quality.
I also suggest using Icecast over Shoutcast, mainly because Icecast is an open source setup, and you won’t end up with potential licensing fees.
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