Adding songs

The setlist is the backbone of your show. You can add audio files to it several ways — drag and drop works fastest during preparation, and the CSV import is useful when another department hands you a song list.

Drag and drop

Drag one or more audio files directly onto the Setlist panel. LTCast adds them to the end of the current list. A file that is already in that list is skipped. Dropping files elsewhere on the LTCast window also adds them, and loads the first one as well. You can drag files from any Explorer window or file manager.

Using the Add Files button

Click the + button in the setlist header (its tooltip reads Add Files) to open a file picker. Select one or more files and confirm. LTCast adds them to the end of the list in the order selected, again skipping any file the list already holds.

A song's name starts out as its file name, including the extension (for example Song.wav). Double-click the name to rename it; the file on disk is not touched.

Supported formats

LTCast accepts the following audio formats:

WAV — recommended for live use; no decoding overhead
AIFF — usually uncompressed; supported at any length, but it loads through the same ffmpeg-based path as very long songs, so it can take a little longer to load than a WAV
MP3 — compressed; supported but not recommended if WAV is available
FLAC — lossless compressed
OGG — open compressed format
M4A — AAC container; common from digital stores

Background LTC scan

After adding files, LTCast queues each one for an LTC scan in the background. Scan results appear as a small badge at the right of the song card — a green ✓ when LTC is found, a grey ∅ when none is found (blue while queued, an amber spinner while scanning, red if the scan failed). You can continue working while scanning runs. See LTC scan badges for details.

Add an empty song

Click the ∅ button next to + in the setlist header (tooltip: Add Empty Song). An empty song is a placeholder with a set length and no audio: it runs its own clock so you can attach cues and triggers to it, but it sends no sound and no timecode. Use it to hold a place in the show for a speech, an intermission or a cue-only moment. See Empty songs for details.

Import from CSV

If you have a spreadsheet of songs, save it as CSV and import it with the ↓ button in the setlist header (tooltip: Import CSV). There is no CSV item in the File menu. Each row needs at least three columns; LTCast uses the song name and the file path and ignores the rest:

With a header row like the one the ↑ (Export CSV) button writes — #, Song Name, Duration, Offset, File Path — the name is the second column and the path is the last column
Otherwise the name is the second column and the path is the third

Durations and offsets in the file are not imported, so imported songs start with no song offset. A message tells you how many of the listed files could not be found on disk. See CSV setlist export / import.

Importing a CSV adds songs to the end of the current setlist variant without replacing existing songs, and skips a file the list already holds. If you want a clean import, clear the setlist first.

Reorder songs

Drag a song up or down by the six-dot handle at the right end of its card; a line shows where it will land. Dragging inside a list moves one song at a time. With several songs selected, dragging one of them carries the whole selection only when you drop it on another list's tab (see Copy, cut & paste songs). See Sorting songs for automatic sort options.

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