I think well positioned different audio sources adds dimension and interest to a Yard Haunt. Especially since I'm adding focus to haunting my back yard; would love to have various audio sources. A few questions / comments:
1) To keep things water resistant / not worry about theft, I was thinking of purchasing a number of small boombox / CD units from thrift stores--ones that are, dunno, 5 pounds in weight or so, then wrap them in thin black trash bags to protect from the elements as well as hide them. By back yard is partially forested; don't expect any ToTs to walk back there. But would be cool to have the HM wolf howls or other strange noises emanating from maybe 4 units. Good idea? Other alternatives for speaker sources? I've seen a bunch for price range of $5 to $10 in thrift stores. A lot of them lack power cords and so can't always be tested; can't even often find one from another device to swap out. It's those small rectangular receptacles on the cord / power input.
2) For audio not requiring synchronization, I'll just have a CD playing on each unit that loops a track.
3) For audio I'd like synchronized, say, for "surround sound" I'd likely buy a bunch more of the "200 channel FM wireless transmitters" ($3?) from eBay and transmit to different FM channels for each unit. Couldn't be too far away. Other alternatives for syncing up audio sources?
4) My main question--how to author and then generate multi-channel sound tracks. In the other days, I'd use a cheap Tascam 4 or 8 track tape recorder--might still if there was a tape loop function on them. These days, I'd expect to use a DAW. Are there any cheap "nobody loves me" 4 to 8 output USB digital audio cards I should consider for a Windows box? I have a laptop and desktop computer, so I suppose I could buy a used internal card and install--but don't know how many outputs that would give me. Or B), could I author a 5.1 DVD for just the sound output--and what would I purchase to convert the digital audio out into 1/8 / 3.5mm outputs to feed into my FM transmitters? Cheap and simple rules the day here. Assuming I can use Audacity to generate regular multi-track audio. What free or cheap DVD authoring software, that includes sound, could I use?
The Haunted Mansion is very much enlivened, as well as other dark rides like Pirates of the Caribbean, buy multi-point sound sources, synchronized or not.
For sync'ed multi-track audio, thinking it might be *very* cool to have a bunch of things going on near the street on my front lawn, so ToTers would hear audio behind them as they approach for candy. I was very much blown away by the HM's stretching room effect; where if you linger before the staff kick you out, you hear awesome surround sound of bats fluttering in 360 degree coverage--but they use dozens of speakers--which you can often see in flash photos of the stretching room--this is at the Magic Kingdom. And also the gargoyles whisper and laugh and talk to each other very briefly. Very cool effect; subtle though because many never linger long enough to hear--they run to their Doombuggies.
1) To keep things water resistant / not worry about theft, I was thinking of purchasing a number of small boombox / CD units from thrift stores--ones that are, dunno, 5 pounds in weight or so, then wrap them in thin black trash bags to protect from the elements as well as hide them. By back yard is partially forested; don't expect any ToTs to walk back there. But would be cool to have the HM wolf howls or other strange noises emanating from maybe 4 units. Good idea? Other alternatives for speaker sources? I've seen a bunch for price range of $5 to $10 in thrift stores. A lot of them lack power cords and so can't always be tested; can't even often find one from another device to swap out. It's those small rectangular receptacles on the cord / power input.
2) For audio not requiring synchronization, I'll just have a CD playing on each unit that loops a track.
3) For audio I'd like synchronized, say, for "surround sound" I'd likely buy a bunch more of the "200 channel FM wireless transmitters" ($3?) from eBay and transmit to different FM channels for each unit. Couldn't be too far away. Other alternatives for syncing up audio sources?
4) My main question--how to author and then generate multi-channel sound tracks. In the other days, I'd use a cheap Tascam 4 or 8 track tape recorder--might still if there was a tape loop function on them. These days, I'd expect to use a DAW. Are there any cheap "nobody loves me" 4 to 8 output USB digital audio cards I should consider for a Windows box? I have a laptop and desktop computer, so I suppose I could buy a used internal card and install--but don't know how many outputs that would give me. Or B), could I author a 5.1 DVD for just the sound output--and what would I purchase to convert the digital audio out into 1/8 / 3.5mm outputs to feed into my FM transmitters? Cheap and simple rules the day here. Assuming I can use Audacity to generate regular multi-track audio. What free or cheap DVD authoring software, that includes sound, could I use?
The Haunted Mansion is very much enlivened, as well as other dark rides like Pirates of the Caribbean, buy multi-point sound sources, synchronized or not.
For sync'ed multi-track audio, thinking it might be *very* cool to have a bunch of things going on near the street on my front lawn, so ToTers would hear audio behind them as they approach for candy. I was very much blown away by the HM's stretching room effect; where if you linger before the staff kick you out, you hear awesome surround sound of bats fluttering in 360 degree coverage--but they use dozens of speakers--which you can often see in flash photos of the stretching room--this is at the Magic Kingdom. And also the gargoyles whisper and laugh and talk to each other very briefly. Very cool effect; subtle though because many never linger long enough to hear--they run to their Doombuggies.
NB: All of these outputs need to go to powered speakers or be amplified in some way.
