Please review our FAQs below. Still have questions, please contact us directly.
How does the audience listen to the show?
The audience listens to the show by downloading the PYROCAST app from the Google Play or Apple App Store. They can search for the app by typing "pyrocast". It should be the first result that appears.
After installing the app, they enter the 4-digit show code you provided them. The audio file takes a moment to download and they sit back and wait for the audio to start. If the show is paused or re-started, the audio is kept in perfect sync.
Using the app, the audience member can also adjust volume, receive announcements, and even adjust the timing if the audio does not quite match.
How does PYROCAST work and how can an app be reliable?
PYROCAST was designed for scalability, reliability, autonomy, and professionalism for large scale events. This means that once an audience member enters the 4-digit show code, the audio file is downloaded locally to their phone. When the operator starts the show using the PYROCAST app, or the app.pyrocast.com web interface, the show will begin on all devices through several major worldwide CDN (content delivery network) networks and NTP (Network Time Protocol) systems. PYROCAST uses absolute time references which allows devices to continue playing even if a network connection is lost by the audience member or even the host who started the show. Network volume is not a concern due to how the system is designed and the use of several redundant content layers and caching systems.
How do I start the show using the COBRA Firing System?
If you are using the COBRA Firing System, you can use the PYROCAST app or app.pyrocast.com to start the show and feed SMPTE into the COBRA 18R2 controller.
If you designed the show using COBRA Show Creator your show, the show 4-digit code is displayed both within COBRA Show Creator and from app.pyrocast.com. Make sure to login using the same email address you use when logging into the COBRA Portal.
If you are using another design software such as Finale3D and plan to use SMPTE, you can login to app.pyrocast.com and upload your audio file directly and click a button to add SMPTE automatically to the right audio channel. After uploading your audio file, a 4-digit show code is made available for you to provide to your audience members.
How do I start the show using the IGNITE Firing System?
If you used IGNITE Show Designer to design your show, you can provide your audience the same 4-digit IGNITE show code.
Make sure to enable PYROCAST within your IGNITE app from Menu > Settings in order for the integration to work. Once enabled, any show you start from within the IGNITE app will automatically start playing audio on the PYROCAST app for anyone entering the same show code. Easy cheesy!
How do I start the show using other firing systems?
PYROCAST works with any firing system that supports the SMPTE timecode format.
To begin, login to app.pyrocast.com and upload your audio file. After uploading your file, select SMPTE (Right Channel) from the actions dropdown from within the shows list. PYROCAST will create a 4-digit show code automatically and also layer in the appropriate timecode file for you. Then, using the PYROCAST app or app.pyrocast.com, you can output SMPTE directly to the firing system of your choice while playing the PYROCAST app in sync for the audience.
If you have any questions on how to use PYROCAST with your firing systems, email us at help@pyrocast.com.
How do I start the show without an integrated firing system?
Are you looking to play a soundtrack to your audience as you manually fire your show? Or, do you want to start the soundtrack and your firing system manually at the same time using a 3, 2, 1, countdown method? No problem, we have you covered.
To begin, login to app.pyrocast.com and upload your audio file. After uploading your file, PYROCAST will create a 4-digit show code automatically and also layer in the appropriate timecode file for you. Then, using the PYROCAST app, you can start, pause, and stop the show manually. We recommend practicing in advance so you are prepared for the day of your show.
If you have any questions on how to use PYROCAST "at will", email us at help@pyrocast.com.
How do you handle music royalties and licensing for professional events?
PYROCAST has relationships with key US performance right organizations (PROs) including BMI, ASCAP and SESAC. Our licenses are specific to our app and go beyond typical licenses carried by municipalities, radio stations, and other public serving venues. PYROCAST automatically detects each song, duration, artist, and album using fingerprinting recognition software. We then submit the data to the required PROs and pay the associated license fees on your behalf.
While PYROCAST pays license fees for audience members listening through the app, PYROCAST does not pay license fees for audio played through any 3rd party playback systems including speaker-based sound systems and radio stations. We suggest working with your local venue as this is commonly covered under blanket licenses owned by the local municipality, radio station, or other third party.
PYROCAST only pays license fees for events held within the United States of America. If you are outside the US, you are responsible for your own license fees. To assist, PYROCAST provides you a downloadable file containing how many users listened to the event and song-specific content for your associated soundtrack.
How does PYROCAST scale to larger shows?
PYROCAST uses global distributed CDN (content delivery networks) and from Amazon and Google to handle all audio file downloading and core synchronization. For timing accuracy, we use NTP time servers from both Apple and Google. Using cached content delivery and decentralized time servers, we apply negligible pressure on any centralized server system to support mass scalability to support simultaneous users in the hundreds of thousands. For any event scaling concerns, please email us at help@pyrocast.com.
What other cool features exist in PYROCAST?
Personal Audio Alignment
As an audience member, you can adjust the audio timing by 0.1s increments either earlier or later. This allows for fine tune adjustments if the audio alignment is not perfect.
What Fireworks are Shooting?
If you created your show using IGNITE Show Designer or COBRA SHOW Creator, the PYROCAST app will display a section for what fireworks are currently firing as the show progresses.
Make Audience Announcements
As the show operator, you can send real-time announcements to the audience before and during the show. You can use this for important announcements such as show delays or for fun such as letting people know the cheeseburgers are ready!
How accurate is PYROCAST timing between the app and the fireworks?
PYROCAST is typically spot on with timing, but can vary by 1/10th or 1/5th+ of a second depending on the device. Using the PYROCAST app, a user can align the audio forward or backward by 1/10th of a second increments if desired. Traditional speaker systems will delay audio by about 1/10th of a second for every 100 ft. between the user and the speaker. PYROCAST is currently in BETA and is optimizing this to eventually obtain even tighter timing using varying technology approaches, all of which are planned to support backward compatibility with the PYROCAST system.
How do you pause the show if you are using SMPTE?
There are a few options for doing this depending on how your firing system works. Many firing systems have two SMPTE options if the SMPTE timecode feed is lost, corrupted or cannot be read. The first option is to continue to show. The second option is to stop or pause the show. For example, if you are using the COBRA 18R2, you have two options: timecode1 (continue) or timecode2 (stop). If you are using timecode1, you should pause the 18R2 first. Then, pause PYROCAST. You can do this in any order, but you need to pause both. When you resume the 18R2 and PYROCAST, the show will self-align. If you are using timecode2, you can pause and resume PYROCAST only as the 18R2 will pause and resume with the SMPTE feed. This is because the timecode2 argument is designed to perform this way vs. continuing on it's own. If you have any further questions, definitely shoot us an email at help@pyrocast.com.