What, how, why?
From setup to remote control — every SpinLoud feature, step by step.
1. Getting started
Why: SpinLoud plays professionally programmed radio channels for your venue, fully automatically — no staff attention required. You set it up once; it runs itself.
- Sign up with your email at account.spinloud.com/register and complete the verification step.
- In the welcome wizard, enter your business details and pick a channel that fits your venue — you can preview channels before choosing.
- Your first venue and its default zone are created automatically.
- Open the player (section 2 below) — music on.
Free trial: every new account gets a 7-day trial with all features enabled. No card required to start.
2. Starting the player
Why: the device that plays the music is your venue's "player" — a computer, a tablet, or a spnBox. Each zone runs one active player at a time, so two devices never play over each other.
- In the browser: player.spinloud.com → sign in → pick your venue/zone → Play. Audio processing (EQ, compressor, limiter) runs on the device; only the song files come from the network.
- Desktop app: stays signed in as long as it's open — the recommended option for venue computers.
- spnBox: plug it into power and the internet — after pairing it plays entirely on its own (see section 11).
- On channel changes the current song finishes first, then the new channel takes over — guests never hear an abrupt cut.
3. Downloading the apps
- SpinLoud Venue (desktop, Mac & Windows): for uninterrupted playback on a venue computer. Downloads: player.spinloud.com/download
- SpinLoud Remote (iPhone/iPad & Android): your pocket remote — play/stop, channels, volume, schedule. Search "SpinLoud Remote" on the App Store or Google Play.
- Tablet: if you keep a fixed tablet at the venue, run the player in the tablet browser or as an app.
Tip: account actions (billing, team, schedule) are identical everywhere — change something in the app or at account.spinloud.com and it applies across all devices.
4. Venues & zones
Why: a venue is your physical location; a zone is an independent audio area inside it (dining floor, bar, terrace, garden). Each zone carries its own channel, schedule and sound settings.
- Add a venue: account → Venues & Zones → "Add venue". Each venue is its own subscription; up to 10 venues (contact us for more).
- Add/remove zones: from the zone list on the venue card. The default zone can't be deleted; others can be added and removed freely.
- Rename: double-click the zone title.
- One player runs per zone — for two floors, create two zones and connect a device to each.
5. Channels & favorites
Why: channels are programmed by music directors with real radio rotation logic — not playlists: no song or artist repeats back-to-back, and the energy shifts through the day.
- Explore: preview any channel in the Channel Catalog (account or player).
- Favorite: the star on a channel card — favorites become your quick-switch list in the player.
- Assign to a zone: zone → Settings → Main Channel. It plays whenever no schedule block is active.
- Staff restriction: Staff users can only switch between channels you allow (see section 12) — the "rap in a jazz bar" problem, solved at the root.
- Custom channel: send us a Spotify/Apple Music playlist link and our team builds a channel exclusive to your venue (paid add-on).
6. Weekly schedule
Why: calm at breakfast, upbeat at dinner — music should follow the clock. Draw the schedule once; transitions happen automatically every day.
- Open zone → Schedule.
- Drag on the grid to draw a block, assign it a channel.
- Day types: weekdays / Saturday / Sunday (and specific days if you like) each get their own rows.
- Save — done. When a block ends, the zone returns to its main channel.
- OFF AIR block: want true silence at certain hours? Draw an OFF AIR block.
- Overlapping blocks: the shorter (more specific) block wins — nest a 1-hour happy-hour block inside your evening block.
- Blocks past midnight (e.g. 22:00–02:00) are supported.
- Schedule switches also wait for the song to finish — no audible cut.
7. Broadcast hours & auto-stop
Why: music playing all night in an empty venue is wasteful and a neighborhood problem. The broadcast window is enforced server-side — even if the tablet is forgotten, the music stops on time.
- Zone → Settings → Broadcast hours: set auto-start and auto-stop times.
- A device still playing outside the window receives an automatic stop from the server.
- If you deliberately press Play after an auto-stop, the system respects it and won't silence you again until the next boundary.
8. Sound: SpnSound, Mono/Stereo, volume
Why: venue speakers aren't home speakers; level differences between songs and harsh highs wear guests out. SpnSound (10-band EQ + compressor + limiter) balances every channel to broadcast quality.
- SpnSound on/off: zone → SpnSound tab. Applies to every player — desktop, tablet and spnBox.
- When Mono? If your speakers are distributed through the space (ceiling speakers, multi-room lines), stereo separation sounds "half" in some spots — choose Mono so every speaker gets the full signal. With a classic amp + two speakers, stay on Stereo.
- Volume: adjustable from the player, the Remote app, or your account — remotely.
- Sound changes apply when the current song finishes — the no-abrupt-cut rule is deliberate; don't assume "it didn't work", wait one song.
9. Explicit filter
Why: a family restaurant and a late-night bar don't share the same tolerance. The filter removes explicit-tagged songs from rotation.
- Account-wide default: set once for all venues in account → Settings.
- Per-zone override: override the default per zone (e.g. filter off in the bar zone, on in the restaurant zone).
10. Remote control & monitoring
Why: whether you run a chain or you're simply away, control should stay with you. All zones are visible and manageable live from one account.
- Live status: account → Venues & Zones shows what each zone is playing right now, online/offline.
- Remote commands: play/stop, channel switch and volume — from your account or the SpinLoud Remote app, reaching the device in seconds.
- Channel switches still take effect at the song boundary; guests never notice.
11. spnBox
Why: hardware that plugs in and plays on its own — for venues that don't want to keep a computer or tablet running. The most resilient, set-and-forget option.
- Connect the box to your speaker system and the internet (Ethernet or Wi-Fi), plug it in.
- In account → zone → spnBox, enter the sticker code on the box (e.g. SPN-A3F9-K2) — paired.
- Everything else is automatic: it follows your channel, schedule and sound settings by itself.
- Internet outage: the spnBox keeps playing from its on-device library for up to 8 days; it re-syncs when the connection returns.
- Power outage: it boots back up on its own and resumes — no action needed.
- Reboot: if ever needed, send a remote Reboot from the spnBox card in your account.
- To order: account.spinloud.com/billing or sales@spinloud.com
12. Team & roles
Why: not everyone needs access to everything. Roles strike the balance of "staff can stop the music, but can't switch to whatever they feel like".
- Owner: everything — including billing and venue deletion.
- Brand Manager: adding venues, channel decisions, user management.
- Venue Manager: their venue's schedule, settings and reports.
- Staff: play/stop and switching between allowed channels only.
To invite: account → Team → enter an email, pick a role. The invitee gets a link and sets their own password.
13. CherryPick — song requests
Why: take guest requests without handing over the microphone. Requests blend gently into your channel's rotation; your music identity stays intact.
- Enable it in zone → CherryPick; place the QR stickers on tables.
- Guests scan the QR, verify their email, pick a song — it plays when its turn comes.
- Daily per-person limits, cooldowns and GPS verification (only people at the venue can request) are under your control.
14. Subscription & billing
- Each venue is its own subscription; see pricing. Annual billing includes 2 months free.
- The trial lasts 7 days and ends on the same date for all venues.
- Cancel: account → Billing → Cancel. Service continues until the end of the period; during trial it ends immediately and you're never charged.
- Payment problems: if a card is declined, playback doesn't stop immediately — you get a 14-day grace window and email notifications.
- Invoices and card updates: account.spinloud.com/billing
15. Troubleshooting
- No sound: check the device volume and the amp input; confirm the zone shows "playing". If a tablet fell to the lock screen, reopen the app.
- My setting didn't apply: sound/channel/schedule changes take effect when the current song finishes — wait one song.
- "Trial expired" but I'm subscribed: close and reopen the app; if it persists, write to billing@spinloud.com.
- Internet down: the spnBox keeps playing; browser/tablet players recover on their own when the connection returns.
- Can't sign in: make sure no stray spaces came along when pasting the password; use "forgot password" for a reset link.
- Still stuck? support@spinloud.com — we answer most messages within one business day. Other channels: support page.