The Parrot
The Parrot lets you hear how you sound at the far end. You talk, and when you release the talk button, the Parrot plays you back through the codec of a mode: AllStar, DMR, YSF, M17, P25 or D-STAR. Only you hear it. It is never on the air.
What the Parrot is #
- Each station has one Parrot. It shows last in the module bar, with the name Parrot.
- You must sign in, and your account must be able to talk on a module. Visitors do not see the Parrot.
- Only you hear your playback. Other users do not hear your talk or your playback, and they do not see that you use the Parrot. Many users can use the Parrot at the same time.
- The Parrot is never on the air. The radio, the links and the reflectors do not hear it. It makes no clips, and your talk does not show in Activity or Last heard.
- The recording stays in the memory of the station. It is not saved to a file.
- The Parrot uses the same audio steps and the same codec as a real module of the mode. So you hear what a listener on that mode hears.
The Parrot is not Parrot mode of a radio. Parrot mode plays the local radio back to the radio. Read Test with parrot mode.
Hear how you sound #
- In the module bar, click Parrot.
- Under Sound like, select a mode, for example AMBE+2 (DMR, YSF, NXDN).
- Hold the talk button and speak, for up to 60 seconds. The page shows Recording.
- Release the talk button.
Result: After a short time, the Parrot plays you back. The page shows, for example, Playing back as AMBE+2. To stop the playback, click Stop.
- Open mic is off on the Parrot. Use the talk button.
- At the longest recording time (60 seconds by default), the recording stops and the playback starts.
- The dashboard keeps your Sound like choice in this browser. The default is AllStar (μ-law).
See how you sound
The Parrot also shows your audio, so that you can compare takes by eye:
- While you record, a level meter and a waveform show your mic. A mark on the meter shows the station level, −25 dBFS.
- During the playback, the level meter, the waveform and the spectrum show the audio that plays, after the codec. The mark on the meter shows the level into the vocoder of that playback.
- After the playback, the last picture stays until you record or play again. So you can compare two takes.
The meter is green up to −18 dBFS, amber to −6 dBFS and red above. The spectrum goes from 100 Hz to 4 kHz, the top of most radio audio. Set Audio visuals to Low to see the meter only, or to Off. Read See your audio.
The Android app and the iPhone and iPad app show the Parrot last in the module bar. They keep your Sound like choice on the device. An older version of an app does not show the Parrot. Update the app.
Note: Speak as you do on the air, at the same distance from the mic. A voice that is too quiet, too loud or noisy sounds worse after the codec than before it.
The modes in Sound like #
The list names the codec, and the modes that use it are in parentheses. One codec can be used by more than one mode.
| Choice | Codec | Needs the transcoder |
|---|---|---|
| AllStar (μ-law) | G.711 μ-law, 8 kHz | No |
| AMBE+2 (DMR, YSF, NXDN) | AMBE+2 | Yes |
| IMBE (P25) | IMBE, P25 phase 1 | Yes |
| Codec2 (M17) | Codec2 3200 | Yes |
| AMBE (D-STAR) | D-STAR AMBE | Yes |
- The station does not need a module of the mode. It needs only the codec in the transcoder. So you can hear yourself on P25 and D-STAR too.
- When the station has no transcoder, or the transcoder is not connected, only AllStar (μ-law) works. The other modes show Needs the transcoder.
- An admin can remove modes from the list.
Play again #
After a playback, the station keeps your recording for 5 minutes, or until you talk again. So you can hear the same words in a different mode.
- Under Sound like, select a different mode, for example Codec2 (M17).
- Click Play again as Codec2.
Result: The Parrot plays the same recording through the new codec.
Voice shaping
On the AMBE modes, the dashboard shows Voice shaping. It is a small EQ before the vocoder, for close studio mics: less bass below 250 Hz and a little more presence at 2.2 kHz. Use it to hear the same take both ways.
- After a playback, under Voice shaping, click Off or For AMBE.
- Click Play again.
Result: The Parrot plays the same recording with the other shaping. The strip names the shaping of each playback.
Station uses the setting of the module, Shape the voice for the vocoder. An admin sets it in the settings of a YSF, DMR or M17 module.
Level into the vocoder
On the modes with a vocoder (all except AllStar), the dashboard shows Level into the vocoder: how loud your voice goes into the codec. Select −30, −34 or −38 dBFS, then click Play again to hear the same take at that level. Station uses the level of the module, −34 dBFS by default. Read Audio levels.
The dashboard keeps your choices for Voice shaping and Level into the vocoder in this browser. They change only your Parrot playbacks, not what the modules send. In the apps, the Parrot uses the station settings.
Messages #
| What you see | What to do |
|---|---|
| Waiting for the transcoder | Other users use the transcoder now. Your playback starts when one of theirs ends. AllStar does not need the transcoder. |
| The transcoder has no free session. | Try again, or select AllStar. |
| The transcoder is not connected. | Select AllStar, or try again later. |
| This station has no transcoder. Only AllStar works. | Select AllStar. An admin can set up a transcoder. Read tcdpool. |
| There is no recording to play. Talk first. | The 5 minutes ended, or you did not talk yet. Talk again. |
Settings for admins #
The Parrot is on by default. In Settings, under Station settings, click Parrot. The page has:
- Turn on the Parrot.
- Modes in “Sound like”: the modes that users can select.
- Longest recording: 5 to 60 seconds (default 60).
- Transcoder playbacks at one time: 1 to 8, for the whole station (default 2). More users wait in line. AllStar playbacks do not count. On a busy station, set 1, so that live traffic keeps more of the transcoder.
Result: A change applies at once, with no restart.
The page also shows the state of the Parrot: on or off, the transcoder, and the playbacks now. Settings > Health shows the same state.
The module ID parrot is reserved. When a station already has a module with the ID parrot, the station keeps that module and the built-in Parrot is off. The Parrot page and Health tell you this.