Using Chime.Center

Chime Center is the best way to manage your ringing system. We frequently update this new app. To ensure that you are using the latest version, you should force your browser to do a hard reload by typing Shift-Ctrl-R (macOS: Shift-Cmd-R) at the home screen (the version is displayed at bottom left). We recommend you use the Chrome browser and keep it up to date for best results. This app will not work with Internet Explorer or older versions of Safari.

This document will get you started. Look for a blue button with the letter i on it on each Chime Center page that you can click for page usage information.

Requirements

• Chime Master Advanced eXperience touchscreen bell ringing system.
• Both the ringing system and browser accessing Chime Center must have internet connections.
• Up-to-date Internet browser (Chrome preferred) running on
  • Desktop or laptop PC or Linux
  • Desktop or laptop MacOS
  • Chromebook
  • Tablet (Android or iOS)

Getting Started

Login

The Chime Master service department will email an invitation to the purchaser to join Chime Center. Please provide a valid email address at the time of order for whom this person shall be.

Click the link provided in the email to set up your account with your name and password. After you log in to https://chime.center using these credentials, you will be able to manage your system.

We suggest using an up to date version of Chrome for best results. If clicking the link in the email launches your system default browser and it is out of date, copy the complete link and paste it in the address bar of Chrome.

Availability of features described below vary depending on

• Chime Center subscription level
• AX system model features
• User privileges set by the system administrator

Logout

You will remain logged in with the browser you log in with until you explicitly log out using the top right button. Be certain to log out when accessing Chime Center on a computer that is not your own.

If you forget to log out of a public computer, sign into Chime Center and go to My Account using the top right button. Click, Logout Everywhere. To retain remote control app access without re-scanning the QR code, be sure to un-check Clear Remote Sessions before saving changes.

Home

When you open Chime Center, you will see your personalized Home Screen. All of the custom manual control buttons will be shown. These features can be activated from this screen the same way you would use them on the Remote App. Setup and scheduling features that show as buttons on the front panel of the system are part of the Chime Center menus.

Schedules and settings

Music

• Player controls - Some of the music menus support auditioning of individual songs or albums.
  • Play control buttons are at the top and next to each item: Next and Stop.
  • Play status is shown at the top of the screen with the title of the title played or in progress.
  • Beside listed items will be green Play or Shuffle buttons to audition the item.

Albums

Chime Master has provided each Advanced eXperience system with a library of preset Albums. An album is a collection of selection titles. Each album has music that is appropriate for specific musical styles, seasons or occasions.

In this menu, you can add, edit or delete albums from your system, as well as add and delete selections from existing albums. If you choose to delete an album or delete a selection from an album, you are not deleting any selections, either custom or prerecorded, from the system itself. There is no limit to the number of titles in an Album but if you make it too small, it will become repetitive. You can always edit an album to add more titles or group it with other Albums to avoid this problem.

Selection Titles

Show in Default Library - Determine whether the title will be displayed when you are searching in your Default Library.

Allow in SmartAlmanac - Select if this title may play when the AX carillon chooses a SmartAlmanac selection. The title must be in an album that is linked to a season before it will play as an Almanac Selection.

Seasons

All Chime Master carillons come with a collection of seasons like Christmas, Thanksgiving and Easter. With Chime Center you can disable a season, edit the beginning and ending dates for each season, determine which albums play during a season and even create your own seasons. A season can last as little as one day or can span several consecutive days. It can be set up for a holiday you celebrate that we have not already defined or anytime you want a different album to play. When your carillon changes seasons, your schedule does not change but anywhere you have selected an Almanac Selection to play, it will choose from the Albums in the current season. If any day is scheduled to play more than one Album or Season, you will hear music from all the listed Albums. The size of the Album determines how often you will hear music from it. If you save a Season with no Albums in it, nothing will play during that Season.

Edit Season

Enabled seasons will be observed on their assigned dates. If not enabled, the season will be ignored.

Silent Season prevents scheduled music and ringing during the assigned dates. Manually selected ringing will still play.

For non-silent seasons, select the albums that the SmartAlmanac should choose titles from during this season. If no albums are selected, neither Almanac events nor Almanac buttons will play music. Specifically scheduled titles and ringing functions continue to play normally.

Season Timeline

Display beginning and ending dates for active seasons (enter number of days to look ahead).

Upload MIDI

Millennium and Platinum systems support MIDI file uploads. You can create chime and carillon arrangements of your own using popular notation programs such as Sibelius or Finale. Save the finished arrangement as a MIDI 0 or 1 file. Uploaded files appear in the User Recordings album and may be copied or moved to other albums for SmartAlmanac play.

Upload Audio

Platinum systems support audio file uploads. Chime Center supports .flac, .wav, .mp3, and .aac formats. Uploaded files appear in the User Recordings album.

Manage User Files

Delete keyboard recordings or uploaded MIDI and audio files you no longer need.

Schedule

Weekly scheduled events play every week until changed. When you configure Angelus and time strikes, they become weekly events. If both the Angelus and time strike are scheduled on the same hour, only the Angelus will play. Angelus and time strikes precede other ringing and music scheduled at the same time.

Create Event

Date or days selectors change depending on if you are scheduling a Weekly, Monthly, Annual or one time event.

Time - Set the time for the event.

End or Begin at - set so event starts or ends at the programmed time.

Use SmartAlmanac music - when checked, you have options to select either the number of minutes or songs you want to play. When this option is not checked you can look up specific ringing or music to play, and build a list of these selections before saving.

Configure Time Strike

This screen opens showing the current schedule. You can either clear it and start over or make slight changes before saving. See the instructions for the Time Strike help for detailed instructions.

Select the hours you want to ring for most of the weekdays while All is highlighted

Select a particular day of the week to make it ring differently from the others (All will no longer highlight).

Click each hour to turn on (green) and off (gray).

Click the 9 to 9 button to turn on the hours from 9 AM to 9 PM and all other hours off.

Click the Clear button to turn off the entire selected day(s).

Click the Quarters button to select which quarter hours to ring.

Click the Top Style button to select ringing style for the top of the hour.

Click the Other Quarters Style button to select the ringing style for the other quarters (melody or toll).

Select the Time Strike Melody and click the Save to Schedule button at the bottom.

Configure Angelus

Select an Angelus Pattern for your prayer bell.

Click the orange + button to add Angelus times to the list (typically two or three times per day).

Click the > button if you want to add a separate schedule for Sundays.

Click the Save to Schedule button at the bottom.

Review Events

Review scheduled events that are scheduled Weekly (other than time strike and Angelus ringing), Monthly, Annual and One Time.

Click the View/Edit button to modify the event.

Review Upcoming Selections

The next few days can be previewed including what SmartAlmanac music choices the system has made. Any changes made to the library or schedule will cause these selections to be changed (picked again in a different order).

Review Played Selections

Previous few days can be reviewed. SmartAlmanac choices can be challenged and remedied to your liking.

Keyboard

The keyboard screens on Chime Center are typically used on a laptop near the organ. MIDI keyboards connected to the local PC hosting the browser will not control the ringing system.

Record Performance

Replicates the local touchscreen and remote control app keyboard screen. This may be useful if you want to use the Music Librarian to work with your recordings after each take.

Keyboard Instruments

Replicates the local touchscreen keyboard instruments setup page.

Keyboard Settings

Replicates the local touchscreen keyboard setup page. Allows technicians to set keyboard MIDI channels and transposition without having to be at the ringing system.

Administrative features

Accounts and Settings

Manage Users

Lists users who have access to the system and their role.

Permission Levels (roles)

• Basic
  • Homepage and remote screen is defined by administrator
  • Other administrator discretion feature limitations
    • Access to remote app
    • Access to Play Selections
    • Access to Keyboard performance and recording
• Power User
  • Can have limitations for scheduling, library management and settings
• Administrator
  • Has unlimited access including ability to invite and set up other users

All users options:

Add New User blue button - Provide an email address for the user, set a front panel PIN code and set permission levels. The user will receive an email invitation to Chime Center.

Logout All Users red button is a NUCLEAR option to be used when you suspect someone may have illegitimate access to your system. This will force all users to supply email and passwords to log in to Chime Center. It will also require remote app users to scan a QR code on the local system to reinstall the remote app.

Per user options:

Disable User button - Prevent this user from using their remote control until they scan the local QR code again.

Clear User Login Sessons button - options to clear the remote and/or log the user out of Chime Center on all their browsers

Edit User has the following features

Change the user's name

Customize the user's home menu

Send the user another email invitation (when email address changes)

Change Password - send a password reset email to user

Change PIN - change the users local system login PIN

Change the user's permission level

Limit the user's access times to certain times of day and days of the week (applicable to local PIN login, Chime Center and Remote app).

Music Settings

Multiple arrangement types can be enabled for the SmartAlmanac music (enabled arrangements are chosen randomly for each selection).

Each arrangement may offer choices of instruments depending on your AX model.

Green Play buttons can be used to audition your choice.

Ringing Settings

The Platinum AX provides several instruments for swinging and tolling bells.

Volume

Separate default settings for inside and outside speaker levels.

Front panel speaker default can be set as provided by your system model.

Click the Save to Settings button at the bottom.

System Info

Displays the version of your system and the SmartAlmanac outcome of the Quick Setup screens.

Help

This is a link to the AX online manual.