Broadcast live with MB Recaster

MB Recaster is a Windows encoder that captures sound from your microphone, line-in or Stereo Mix and streams it to your station. It does not play music itself, so you use it together with a player or automation program, or with your microphone. This guide covers setting up an encoder with the Icecast type.

Before you start. Before you start. MB Recaster is a Windows program, and its free version captures from a sound card, microphone, line-in or Stereo Mix and can run up to four encoders. A paid PRO version adds full registration. It does not play music files by itself. Menu wording can vary slightly between versions, so if a label differs, look for the closest match.

Where to find your connection details

Every program on this page needs the same five details to reach your station: a server address, a port, a username, a password and a mount point. You copy them from your control panel. It takes about a minute, and you only need to do it once for each program.

1. Log in to your control panel

Use the control panel link and the username and password from your welcome email.

2. Go to the dashboard and click How to connect

After you sign in you arrive at the main dashboard. Next to the preview player you will see a blue link called How to connect. Click it.

3. Copy your five details

A window opens with your connection details. Keep it open while you set up your software.

Steps

1. Open the download link above and download MB Recaster for Windows, then run the installer.
2. Log in to your control panel. On the dashboard, click the How to connect link next to the preview player and keep that page open. You will copy five details from it: the server IP, port, username, password and mount point. The pictures at the top of this page show where to look.
3. Open MB Recaster and choose the sound capture device it should record from: your microphone, line-in or Stereo Mix. Stereo Mix captures everything your computer plays, which is how you broadcast music from a player on the same computer.
4. In the main toolbar, go to MBRecaster then Setup.
5. Open the Metadata tab and enter your station details, such as the name, website and genre.
6. Optionally, on the Options tab, tick Run with Windows so MB Recaster starts when your computer starts. Only do this if you want to go live each time.
7. Open the Encoder 1 tab.
8. Set the encoder Type to Icecast.
9. Choose an MP3 Codec in stereo, at a bitrate your plan allows, such as 128 kbps.
10. Enter your server details in the server and password fields: your server IP, your Port, your Mount point exactly as shown in How to connect, and your Password. If a username field is shown, enter the username from How to connect.
11. Tick Enabled, then click Close. MB Recaster connects and starts streaming. Your live broadcast now interrupts your AutoDJ.
12. Check that the main window shows it is connected and sending audio, and that the level meter moves while you speak or play something.
13. To finish, untick Enabled on the encoder tab or close MB Recaster. Your AutoDJ resumes automatically.

Settings at a glance

Running more than one stream

The free version can run up to four encoders. Each one is set up on its own tab (Encoder 1, Encoder 2 and so on). Your Citrus3 plan decides how many mount points and bitrates you may use, so only add more if your plan includes them.

Music and effects

MB Recaster does not play music. Play your tracks in a player, with Stereo Mix selected as the capture device, or use a mixer. The program can also work with Winamp-style DSP plugins for audio processing, which is optional.

Track titles

MB Recaster can read the current track title from an external text file and send it to listeners. Your music program needs to write that file, so check its options for a now-playing or export setting.

Check that it is working

Open your radio page, or press play on the preview player on your dashboard, and listen. Expect a delay of a few seconds between what you do and what you hear, because every internet stream has some. For the most honest test, listen on a phone over mobile data. If you can hear your show, you are live, and your AutoDJ is paused until you disconnect.

Troubleshooting

• The encoder will not enable. Check that your Type is Icecast and every connection field is filled in.
• Listeners hear silence. Choose Stereo Mix or your microphone as the capture device, and make sure it is not muted in Windows sound settings.
• It will not connect. Open How to connect again and compare every field character by character, or copy and paste each one. The server must be entered as an address or IP only, with no http://, and a mount point must begin with a slash.
• It says the password is wrong. Use the source password shown in How to connect, not your control panel login password.
• It connects but listeners hear nothing. The program is sending silence. Check that the right input is selected, that the level meters move, and that nothing is muted.
• The audio stutters or drops. Your upload connection is the usual cause. Close video calls, cloud backups and other uploads, use a cable instead of Wi-Fi, and try a lower bitrate.
• The audio sounds too fast, slow or distorted. Make the sample rate the same everywhere (44100 Hz is the safe choice) and keep your levels out of the red.
• My AutoDJ did not come back. Make sure the program has fully disconnected, then wait a short while. If the station is still silent, email support@citrus3.zendesk.com.

When you stop MB Recaster, your AutoDJ continues the programme.

Next guide: Broadcast live with RadioBOSS