Set up a Custom Music on Hold Playlist

Music on hold (MoH) is the audio a caller hears once you place them on hold, letting them know the call is still connected. Cloud Voice ships with a default playlist of built-in tracks, but you can also create your own. There are two kinds of custom playlist to choose from:

• Local audio: a set of audio files you upload to the system. The tracks play in turn whenever someone is on hold.
• Streaming music: a single URL that points to a live audio feed. Callers hear whatever that source is broadcasting.

Follow the section below that matches the playlist type you want.

Set up a local audio playlist

Audio file requirements

Every file you upload has to meet these specifications:

Item	Requirement
File format	.wav, .mp3, or .gsm, encoded as one of: PCM 8kHz 16-bit 128kbps; A-law (G.711) 8kHz 8-bit 64kbps; u-law (G.711) 8kHz 8-bit 64kbps
File size	Up to 8 MB

Tip

If a file doesn’t match the format requirements, re-encode it first. See Convert Audio Files for two ways to do this.

Limits

Item	Limit
Local audio playlists	16
Audio files per playlist	8

Step 1: Create the playlist

1. Sign in to the PBX web portal and go to PBX Settings > Voice Prompt > Music on Hold.
2. Click Create New Playlist and fill in the pop-up window:
   • Playlist Type: Select Local Audio.
   • Playlist Name: Give it a name you’ll recognize later.
   • Play Order: Choose whether the tracks play in alphabetical order or at random.
3. Click Save.

Step 2: Upload audio files

1. Select the playlist you just created, then click the files icon .
2. In the pop-up window, click Upload.
3. Click Browse, pick the audio file you want, and click Upload.
4. To add more tracks, repeat the previous two steps. Each file you upload appears in the MoH Files list.

Step 3 (optional): Preview the files

Before you go live, you can confirm each track sounds right and plays all the way through.

1. On the MoH Files page, select a file and click the play icon .
2. In the pop-up window, choose where to preview it:
   • Under Play on Web, click the play control to listen in your browser.
   • Or, in the Extension drop-down list, pick an extension and click Play. The system calls that extension and plays the track over the phone.
3. Click OK.

Step 4: Save the playlist

Click Apply to save your changes.

Step 5: Make it the system playlist

1. Open the Prompt Preferences tab.
2. In the Music on Hold drop-down list, select your playlist.
3. Click Save, then Apply.

Caution

The Music on Hold setting on the Prompt Preferences tab is the system-wide default. Changing it affects every call placed on hold across the PBX, so confirm the new playlist is correct before you apply it.

From now on, callers placed on hold hear the tracks from your playlist.

Set up a streaming music playlist

You can create up to 5 streaming music playlists.

Step 1: Create the playlist

1. Sign in to the PBX web portal and go to PBX Settings > Voice Prompt > Music on Hold.
2. Click Create New Playlist and fill in the pop-up window:
   • Playlist Type: Select Streaming Music.
   • Playlist Name: Give it a name you’ll recognize later.
   • Streaming Music URL: Enter the URL of an existing music stream.
3. Click Save.
4. Click Apply.

Step 2: Make it the system playlist

1. Open the Prompt Preferences tab.
2. In the Music on Hold drop-down list, select your playlist.
3. Click Save, then Apply.

Callers on hold now hear the audio streamed from your URL.

Note

If the system can’t reach the URL, or the stream has no audio available, the caller hears nothing while on hold.