Icecast Streaming Media Server

[square_eyes]

Hi,

I'm a noob here so take it easy:)

I only just figured out the reason I couldn't register to post up until today was because I have a Gmail account. I have been waiting patiently for an admin to activate my account. Anyway, I have been wanting to ask this question for months.

I'm new to internet radio and like to work out most things myself.

I have done some reading (here and other places) and can't seem to make my fallback mount work. Icecast documentation is great but I can't find what I need, which is probably something simple I have missed.

I'm assuming I don't need an actual stream/source constantly playing the fallback file and that icecast can handle it.

I have Icecast2 running as a service and I have configured the below. If you could point me in the right direction it will be much appreciated.

The issue I'm experiencing is that listeners are dumped when the source disconnects. I want them to fall back to looping silence. This is so I can gracefully handle changing DJ's (or sources)

- Fallback file in the following location C:\Program Files (x86)\Icecast2 Win32\fallback\loading.mp3
- 'Loading.mp3' is 5 seconds of silence @ 128kbs, stereo, the same as my source.

Icecast config is as below...


<icecast>
<limits>
<sources>3</sources>
</limits>
<authentication>
<source-password>XXXXXXX</source-password>
<relay-password>XXXXXX</relay-password>
<admin-user>admin</admin-user>
<admin-password>XXXXXX</admin-password>
</authentication>

<hostname>XXXXXXX</hostname>
<listen-socket>
<port>XXXX</port>
</listen-socket>
<fileserve>1</fileserve>
<mount>
<mount-name>/live</mount-name>
<fallback-mount>loading.mp3</fallback-mount>
</mount>
<paths>
<logdir>./logs</logdir>
<webroot>./web</webroot>
<adminroot>./admin</adminroot>
<alias source="/" dest="/status.xsl"/>
<fallback>./fallback</fallback>
</paths>
<logging>
<accesslog>access.log</accesslog>
<errorlog>error.log</errorlog>
<loglevel>3</loglevel> <!-- 4 Debug, 3 Info, 2 Warn, 1 Error -->
</logging>

</icecast>

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

[karlH]

The error log may prove useful here, I suspect it will be reporting a file not found error. I think you have the loading.mp3 file in the wrong place, it should be under webroot so

c:\....\web\loading.mp3

also to be correct use

<fallback-mount>/loading.mp3</fallback-mount>

There is no fallback tag in paths.

karl.

[square_eyes]

Great thanks, will try now and post the outcome.

[square_eyes]

OK I made the changes. I seem to be half way there.

I'm listening in iTunes, before I'd get dumped and iTunes would move on to another track.

Now I stay on the stream, but the counter/timer in iTunes just stops. The main play/stop button hasn't turned into play, telling me that it's still held in limbo.

Unfortunately the audio from the new source doesn't start playing unless I hit stop and play again.

Error log is as below...

Note the final line happens only after I hit stop/play on iTunes to resume the stream.

[2011-10-18 13:15:15] INFO source/source.c Source "/live" exiting
[2011-10-18 13:15:15] INFO source/source.c passing 1 listeners to "/loading.mp3"
[2011-10-18 13:15:15] INFO source/source.c listener count on /loading.mp3 now 1
[2011-10-18 13:15:18] INFO connection/connection.c Source logging in at mountpoint "/live"
[2011-10-18 13:15:18] INFO source/source.c listener count on /live now 0
[2011-10-18 13:16:21] INFO source/source.c listener count on /loading.mp3 now 0
[2011-10-18 13:16:22] INFO source/source.c listener count on /live now 1

I have double checked both sources and fallback are all 128kbs stereo as I know that can cause issues.

[square_eyes]

Turns out I was wrong. My file was mono!

After fixing that up, the iTunes ticker keeps playing when I disconnect the source, but does not return when the new source connects. The last two lines here only occur after hitting stop/play on iTunes.

[2011-10-18 13:35:48] INFO source/source.c listener count on /live now 1
[2011-10-18 13:36:13] INFO source/source.c End of Stream /live
[2011-10-18 13:36:13] INFO source/source.c Source "/live" exiting
[2011-10-18 13:36:13] INFO source/source.c passing 1 listeners to "/loading.mp3"
[2011-10-18 13:36:14] INFO source/source.c listener count on /loading.mp3 now 1
[2011-10-18 13:36:17] INFO connection/connection.c Source logging in at mountpoint "/live"
[2011-10-18 13:36:17] INFO source/source.c listener count on /live now 0
[2011-10-18 13:37:18] INFO source/source.c listener count on /loading.mp3 now 0
[2011-10-18 13:37:20] INFO source/source.c listener count on /live now 1

For good measure I tried this with VLC and that has the same symptoms. i.e. holds connection but does not play the new source when that is connected.

[square_eyes]

Other things I have tried

1. Clearing mp3 tag data from fallback file
2. Shortening fallback file (now 4 sec)
3. Resolving host IP directly and locally (remove dyndns.org service)
4. Changed log level to 4, debug mode to see if more information is available
5. Updated source limit to 2 and clients to 3 in config file
6. Running as a service and as standalone application

[karlH]

your log messages indicate that the icecast end of things is ok, the listener falls back and then resumes on /live. Did you verify that the fallback file played? and that the resuming stream has the same stream parameters as the fallback?

karl.

[square_eyes]

The last lines of the log only occur after I hit stop then play on iTunes (or VLC).

i.e. the listener isn't automatically being moved back to the live mount when the new source connects.

I also set up a welcome message (intro) that now plays at the start of the stream. This plays correctly, then moves the listener across to the stream.

I had a thought, perhaps it's a combination of how I'm specifying the mount point. Up until now my config file, source and listen .pls file all say '/live'. Yet the fallback is '/XXXX.mp3'. I started adding .mp3 to all my references to the mount point and got varied results. If there was an odd combination, the intro wouldn't work or the fallback wouldn't.

None however, were able to have the listener come back to the stream when a new source connected though.

Thanks for your help by the way I'm hoping we can get to the bottom of this:D

[karlH]

that's probably because you don't have

<fallback-override>1</fallback-override>

set as well.

karl.

[square_eyes]

That's got it!

Thank you so much Karl