TTS Talk-Tracker User manual

™
User Guide Version 6
Please Read All Instructions Carefully Before Using

Talk-Tracker User Guide
2
Please retain these instructions for future reference
Talk-Tracker contains a non-replaceable,
rechargeable battery
Do not attempt to remove the battery
Do not allow your Talk-Tracker to come into
contact with water or other liquids
In the event of an electro-static discharge, your
Talk-Tracker may malfunction. In this case, you may
need to connect to a computer to reset it
Warranty is void if the case is opened for any reason
The warranty does not cover any data loss from the
unit nor any consequential loss of information
FCC compliance
NOTE:
THE MANUFACTURER IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR
ANY RADIO OR TV INTERFERENCE CAUSED BY
UNAUTHORIZED MODIFICATIONS TO THIS
EQUIPMENT. SUCH MODIFICATIONS COULD VOID
THE USER AUTHORITY TO OPERATE THE
EQUIPMENT

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NOTE: This equipment has been tested and found to comply
with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15
of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide
reasonable protection against harmful interference in a
residential installation. This equipment generates, uses and can
radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in
accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful
interference to radio communications. However, there is no
guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular
installation.
If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or
television reception, which can be determined by turning the
equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct
the interference by one or more of the following measures:
Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
Increase the separation between the equipment and
receiver.
Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different
from that to which the receiver is connected.
Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician
for help

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Know your Talk-Tracker
Red „Record‟
Button
LCD Screen
Built-in Speaker
4-way Rocker
Switch
Green „Play‟
Button
Microphones on
All four corners
Menu
Button
On-Off Switch

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Talk-Tracker controls
There are two sets of controls which are used to control
the Talk-Tracker, The Record and Play Buttons and the
4 way switch and menu button
Next
Status area
Menu key
Selection
area
LCD Screen
Vol +
Vol -
Prev
On/Off
Status
LED
Rec
Play

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Recording & Playing your First Track
Switch on the Talk-Tracker by sliding the On-Off
switch until the Status LED lights Orange (steady or
flashing), indicating it is waiting in standby
Press and release the Record button (Red ring). After a
second or so, the Status LED will change to Red
indicating it is recording
The recording can be paused at any time by pressing
the Record button briefly. The Status LED will flash
to show the recording has been paused. Simply press
the Record button again to continue recording
When you are finished Recording, press the Record
button, and hold for 2 seconds, to stop the recording
and save it as the last track. The Status LED will
change to Orange (steady or flashing)
Alternatively you can press and hold the Record
button during the whole of the recording and release it
when you have finished recording
Press the Play button (Green ring) to play your track.
The Status LED will light Green while the track is
playing
When the track is finished, Talk-Tracker will return to
standby and the Status LED will be Orange

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The Talk-Tracker will not store recordings of less than
2 seconds, so ensure you record for longer than this
Please note that the Talk-Tracker can only store a
maximum of sixty two tracks, regardless of the length
of track.
Recording & Playback Modes
Talk-Tracker can record and playback files in two
formats: MP3 or WAV files. Depending on your
application, you may want to use one of these formats
rather than another. For instance, much podcasting is
done using MP3 files so this would be the best format if
you wanted to make podcasts. For information on
recording lengths for both formats see page 15.
.
Status LED
The Status LED provides you with a clear indication of
what is happening with your Talk-Tracker. Please take
note of the following information so that you can get
the best results.
Flashing Orange: Ready to Play/Record MP3 file
Steady Orange: Ready to Play/Record WAV file
Steady Green: Playing (or fully charged)

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Flashing Green: Playing Paused
Steady Red: Recording
Flashing Red: Recording Paused
Flashing Red/Green: Charging
Flashing Orange/Green: Battery low
Pausing or Stopping a Track
Press the Play button (Green ring) to play a track. The
Status LED will shine steady Green
Press the Play button again to pause the track at the
current place. The status LED will flash Green
Press the Play button again to resume playback
To stop a playing track completely, press and hold the
Play button for 2 seconds
Fast Forward & Reverse
While a track is Playing or Paused…
Press and hold the Prev(ious) or Next track button on
the 4-way rocker switch
The Status LED will flash Green and will move within
the current track at a fast rate

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When the button is released, Play or Pause will
continue at the new position within the track
The Play position will not pass beyond the start or end
of the current track
Moving Between Tracks
While a track is Playing or Paused…
Press the Prev(ious) or Next track button on the
4-way rocker to move to the selected track
Charging the Battery
Talk-Tracker is supplied with a partially charged battery
and can be used immediately without charging first. The
battery can be charged by connecting to the USB port of
an active computer or the charger. No software is
required:
Connect Talk-Tracker to the USB port or charger
The Status LED will flash Red and Green (or Orange
if connected to the separate charger)
When Talk-Tracker is fully charged the Status LED
will change to steady Green
A complete charge of a fully discharged battery will
take about 4 hours

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Using the Menu System
The LCD on the Talk-Tracker provides a multi-level
menu system that allows you to select certain
configurations, manage the sound files and select
recording and playback functions.
The display comprises two separate parts: the status area
at the top in Yellow and the selection area at the bottom
in Blue.
Standby Screen
The Standby screen is the
first screen shown when
the Talk-Tracker is
switched on. The status
shown here is:
active track is number 1 out of 7 tracks
repeat mode setting is repeat
record/playback mode is MP3
volume is set to 17
battery is fully charged

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Playback Screen
During playback, the
central part of the screen
shows the name of the
track currently playing.
playing track 1 of 24
now 6 seconds into a 39 second track
playing track
playing is paused
Recording Screen
Recording in MP3 mode
Recording in WAV mode

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recording track
recording is paused
battery 50% full
Config Menu
Selecting the item from the standby screen,
displays a menu of configuration settings:
Rec Recording mode: MP3 or WAV
Backlight Defines the length of time backlight is
on after the last keypress. Press any key
to switch the backlight back on.
Language Select from the available languages for
the menu system. Note that this does
not change the standby screen
System Info Displays firmware version and available
memory
Browse Menu
Selecting the item from the standby screen
displays the files and folders internal to the Talk-
Tracker.

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When you select a folder, the display changes to show
the files and sub-folders within the selected folder. Select
“Parent Folder” to go back one level.
When you select a file, you can then choose whether to
Play the selected file or Delete it.
Connecting to a PC or Apple Mac
Switch off the Talk-Tracker
Plug the Talk-Tracker into an available USB socket
using the USB lead provided
The first time Talk-Tracker is connected to the PC, it
will automatically install the drivers and may require
the PC to be rebooted depending on your operating
system
The PC or Mac will recognise the device as a USB
mass storage device and it will appear as a removable
drive in the file explorer window
The tracks you have recorded will appear in the folder
MIC_REC. Use this same folder to copy MP3 or
WAV files to for playback on Talk-Tracker
You can delete from, add files to, or format the Talk-
Tracker directly from the computer if you wish

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Installing & Using Audacity
Audacity is provided with Talk-Tracker for your
convenience. TTS do not support it or provide any
warranty for its use. It is not part of the Talk-
Tracker product
Audacity is free, open source software for recording
and editing sounds. It is available for Mac OS/X,
Microsoft Windows, GNU/Linux and other operating
systems
Connect Talk-Tracker to the PC or Mac and browse
to the Audacity folder (contains release 1.2.6)
For Windows, run the file audacitywin.exe
For Mac OS/X (PPC), run audacitymac.dmg
You may find it easiest to copy the folder to your PC
or Mac before doing this
Instructions, latest versions for all operating systems
and licence information for Audacity can be found at
http://audacity.sourceforge.net

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Technical specification
Records directly into MP3 or WAV file format
128MB of flash memory, up to 4 hours recording
MP3: Bit rate: 128 kbps (44kHz sampling)
Max time: Approx 2 hours
WAV: Format: IMA ADPCM
Bit rate: 64 kbps (4 bits per sample)
Max time: Approx 4 hours
For maximum recording time, delete the Audacity and
User manual folders to give additional memory space
Built-in 300mAH Lithium-ion Polymer battery
Battery supplied partially charged (50%-90%)
Loud-speaker and four microphones
One stereo 3.5mm headphone socket
Power consumption:
75mA standby
100mA recording
80-120mA playback (depending on volume)
Battery life approx 3 hours of recording or playback
Size: 135mm long, 75mm Wide, 23mm height

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Troubleshooting
Talk-Tracker is designed to work reliably and predictably
in all normal conditions. However, it is possible that
problems may occur. Please check the following before
contacting technical support:
Problem
Status LED appears to flash randomly
Solution
Battery is low. Charge the battery
Problem
Missing Start or End of Recording
Solution
Talk-Tracker automatically fades in and
out of recording & playback. Ensure you
leave a second or two at start and end
Problem
Files corrupt or buttons don’t work
Solution
Format the drive in Windows (use the
FAT format, not FAT32)
Problem
LED flashes Red during Record
Solution
Memory is full. Delete some files
Problem
Some tracks do not appear to play
Solution
Probably because they are in the
alternative format. Try swapping between
MP3 and WAV formats
Problem
Status LED doesn’t come on
Solution
Battery completely flat. Recharge

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Support & Warranty
This product is provided with a one-year warranty for
problems found during normal usage. Mistreating the
Talk-Tracker™ or opening the unit will invalidate this
warranty. Any data stored on the unit and any
consequential loss is not covered by this warranty. The
battery is not user replaceable.
All out of warranty repairs will be subject to a
replacement fee.
Please visit www.tts-group.co.uk for latest product
information.
Email [e-mail] for technical
support.
TTS Group Ltd Freephone: 0800 318686
Park Lane Business Park Freefax: 0800 137525
Kirkby-in-Ashfield
Nottinghamshire, UK
NG17 9GU

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RMEducational Software, Inc TTS Group Ltd
310 Barnstable Road Park Lane Business Park,
Suite 101, Unit A & B Kirkby-in-Ashfield,
Hyannis, MA 02601 Nottinghamshire,
USA NG17 9LE
[phone] United Kingdom
[phone]
This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC
Rules. Operation is subject to the following two
conditions: (1) This device may not cause harmful
interference, and (2) This device must accept any
interference received, including interference that may
cause undesired operation.
Warning: Changes or modifications to this unit not
expressly approved by the party responsible for
compliance could void the user's authority to operate the
equipment.