AV Pro Timer Manual

1. Overview

AV Pro Timer is a professional countdown and count-up timer for live events. It is designed for event operators, AV technicians, and stage managers who need precise, visible timing on a second screen.

The application runs as two windows:

• Control Window — stays on the operator's screen. Contains all controls: start/stop, duration input, presets, message overlay, settings, and a preview of the current timer value.
• Output Window — goes to the second monitor (or stage screen). Shows the timer, clock, progress bar, and any pushed message in a clean, fullscreen display.

AV Pro Timer is completely free. No account, no license key, no registration.

2. Installation

System Requirements

• OS: Windows 10 or later (64-bit)
• RAM: 4 GB minimum
• Disk: 150 MB free space
• Display: 1280 × 720 minimum; second monitor recommended for the output screen

Installing

1. Download AVProTimer-Setup.exe from the AV Pro Timer page.
2. Run the installer. Windows may show a SmartScreen warning for new software — click More info → Run anyway to proceed.
3. Follow the installer prompts. AV Pro Timer is installed to Program Files\CueCongress\AV Pro Timer by default.
4. Launch AV Pro Timer from the Start menu or the desktop shortcut.

3. First Launch & Screen Layout

On first launch, AV Pro Timer opens two windows:

• The Control Window opens on your primary monitor.
• The Output Window opens fullscreen on the second monitor (if one is connected), or as an 800 × 500 window on the same monitor if you only have one screen.

The timer starts at the default duration of 5:00 (5 minutes). You can change this default in Settings.

4. Control Window

The Control Window is the operator interface. From top to bottom:

Title Bar

Click AV PRO TIMER at the top-left to open the About dialog, which includes a version number and a Check for Updates button. The ⚙ gear button on the right opens Settings.

Timer Preview

A large display at the top of the panel showing the current timer value in MM:SS format. Color matches the output window: green (normal), orange (warning), red (expired).

Count Mode

Two buttons select the timer direction:

Button	Behaviour
▼ Countdown	Counts down from the set duration to zero. Blinks and plays the audio cue when it reaches zero.
▲ Count Up	Counts up from zero. No blink or audio cue.

Switching mode while the timer is running takes effect immediately.

Transport Controls

Button	Action
▶ START	Starts the timer running from its current position.
⏸ PAUSE	Pauses the timer at its current value without resetting.
↺ RESET	Stops the timer and returns it to the set duration.

+/– Adjustment

The +1 min and −1 min buttons add or subtract 60 seconds from the current timer value and start position. These work whether the timer is running or paused — useful for on-the-fly adjustments during a live event without stopping the clock.

Set Time

Use the minutes and seconds spinboxes and click Set to set a specific duration. This stops the timer and loads the new value. The output window updates immediately.

Presets

One-click preset buttons for frequently used durations. Click any preset button to immediately load that duration and reset the timer. See Section 7 — Presets for how to manage them.

Output View

Three buttons control what the output screen displays:

Button	Output shows
⏱ Timer	Timer only
🕐 Clock	Current time only
⊞ Both	Timer and current time (default)

Message Overlay

Type a message in the text field and click Push (or press Enter) to display it on the output screen. Click Clear to remove it. See Section 8 for details.

Audio Cue

Enable the sound cue checkbox and browse for a sound file. The sound plays once when the countdown reaches 00:00. See Section 9 for details.

Show / Hide Output Window

Toggles the output window visibility. When hidden, the timer keeps running in the background. Showing it again sends it back to the second screen in fullscreen.

5. Output Window

The Output Window is the audience-facing display. It opens fullscreen on the second monitor. Everything in this window is controlled from the Control Window — there are no controls on the output screen itself.

Timer Display

Large, bold MM:SS countdown. Color changes based on time remaining:

Color	When
Green	Time remaining is above the warning threshold (default: 60 seconds)
Orange	Time remaining is at or below the warning threshold but above zero
Red & blinking	Timer has reached zero and blink effect is enabled (countdown mode only)
Red (counting)	Overtime — timer continues past zero counting up (e.g. -0:01, -0:02…) when Overtime is enabled

Progress Bar

A thin colored bar at the bottom of the output screen fills from full to empty as time counts down. It uses the same color as the timer display.

Clock

The current time in HH:MM or HH:MM:SS format. Visible in Clock and Both output views. Format (12-hour or 24-hour, with or without seconds) is set in Settings.

Message

When a message is pushed from the Control Window, it appears as a text overlay near the bottom of the output screen. It is hidden when no message is active.

6. Timer Modes

Countdown Mode

The default mode. The timer counts from the set duration down to zero.

• At zero: the display turns red, the blink effect starts (if enabled), and the audio cue plays (if enabled).
• If Overtime is enabled (default): the timer continues counting past zero — displaying negative values (e.g. -0:01, -0:02…) in red, so the audience and operator can see how much time has been exceeded.
• If Overtime is disabled: the timer stops at zero and must be manually reset.

Count-Up Mode

The timer counts from zero upward. Useful for timing open-ended segments or recording elapsed time.

• No blink or audio cue in count-up mode.
• The progress bar fills from 0% to 100% as the count reaches the set duration, then stays full.
• The timer continues counting past the set duration — there is no automatic stop.

Switching Modes

Click ▼ Countdown or ▲ Count Up at any time. The mode change takes effect immediately and works whether the timer is running or stopped.

After switching modes, it is recommended to press ↺ RESET to reload the timer to the correct starting position for the new mode.

7. Presets

Presets are one-click duration shortcuts displayed as buttons in the Control Window. They let you load a standard duration instantly during an event without using the Set Time spinboxes.

Using a Preset

Click any preset button. The timer immediately stops, loads the preset duration, and the spinboxes update to match. Press ▶ START to begin.

Managing Presets

1. Open Settings (⚙ button) and go to the Timer tab.
2. In the Presets section, set the minutes and seconds spinboxes to your desired duration.
3. Click Add. The new preset appears in the list.
4. To remove a preset, select it in the list and click Remove.
5. To reorder presets, drag and drop them up or down in the list.
6. Click OK to save. The preset buttons in the Control Window update immediately.

8. Message Overlay

The message overlay lets you push a text message to the output screen instantly. Useful for:

• "5 minutes to stage"
• "Please take your seats"
• Technical cues or speaker prompts
• Announcements visible on the stage screen

Pushing a Message

1. Click the message text field in the Control Window (labeled "Enter message to push to output screen…").
2. Type your message.
3. Click Push or press Enter. The message appears on the output screen immediately.

Clearing a Message

Click Clear to remove the message from the output screen and clear the text field.

Appearance

Message text color and font size are configured in Settings → Colors (Message color) and Settings → Fonts (Message font size). The message appears near the bottom of the output screen, above the progress bar.

9. Audio Cue

AV Pro Timer can play a sound file automatically when the countdown reaches 00:00. The cue plays once per countdown run.

Setting Up the Audio Cue

1. In the Audio Cue at 00:00 section of the Control Window, click Browse….
2. Select an audio file. Supported formats: WAV, MP3, OGG, FLAC, AAC.
3. Check Enable sound cue. The setting is saved automatically.
4. Click Test to preview the sound before the event.

Behaviour

• The audio cue fires exactly once each time the countdown hits zero.
• After a reset or a new duration is set, the cue rearms and will fire again on the next zero.
• The cue does not fire in count-up mode.
• If no file is selected or Enable sound cue is unchecked, no sound plays.

10. Settings

Open Settings by clicking the ⚙ button in the top-right of the Control Window. Settings are organized into four tabs.

Clock Tab

Option	Description
24-hour / 12-hour	Sets the clock format on the output screen.
Show seconds on output	Appends seconds to the clock display (e.g. 14:30:05 vs 14:30).

Colors Tab

Click any color swatch to open the color picker. Changes are previewed live on the output window after clicking OK.

Setting	Affects
Background	Output window background color
Timer — normal	Timer text when time is above the warning threshold
Timer — warning	Timer text when at or below the warning threshold
Timer — critical	Timer text and blink color at zero
Clock	Clock text color on the output screen
Message	Message overlay text color

Fonts Tab

The output window automatically scales all text to fit the screen size. Font sizes adjust live whenever the output window is resized or moved to a different monitor — no manual configuration needed.

Timer Tab

Setting	Description
Default duration	The duration the timer is set to on first launch and after a reset. Set in minutes and seconds.
Warning threshold	The number of seconds at which the timer color changes from green to orange. Default: 60 seconds.
Overtime	When enabled (default), the timer continues past zero counting negative time in red. When disabled, the timer stops at zero.
Blink effect	When enabled (default), the timer blinks when it reaches zero. Disable for a steady display.
Presets	Add, remove, and drag to reorder quick-access preset buttons. See Section 7.

Checking for Updates

Click Check for Updates at the bottom of the Settings dialog (or click the app title to open About and use the button there) to check for a newer version of AV Pro Timer. If an update is available, you will be offered a download link.

11. Keyboard Shortcuts

Key	Action
Space	Start the timer if stopped / paused. Pause the timer if running.

12. Troubleshooting

Output window does not appear on the second screen

• Ensure the second monitor is connected and recognized by Windows before launching AV Pro Timer.
• If the app is already open, click Show Output Window in the Control Window. It will reopen on the second screen.
• If both windows open on the same screen, check Windows display settings: Settings → System → Display and verify the second monitor is set to Extend these displays.

The timer continues past zero

• This is the Overtime feature — the timer counts negative time in red so you can see how much time has been exceeded.
• To disable it, open Settings → Timer and uncheck Overtime. The timer will then stop at zero.

No sound plays at zero

• Confirm Enable sound cue is checked in the Audio Cue section.
• Confirm a sound file is selected (the filename appears next to the Browse button).
• Click Test to verify the file plays. If no sound plays during Test, check Windows audio output device and volume.
• The audio cue only fires in Countdown mode, not Count Up.
• The cue fires only once per run. Press ↺ RESET or set a new duration to rearm it.

Preset buttons disappeared after opening Settings

• This was fixed in v1.0.0. If you are on an earlier build, update to the latest version.

Colors look wrong / all black

• Open Settings → Colors and reset each color to your preferred value.
• The background defaults to black (#000000). If timer or clock colors are also black, they will be invisible against the background — set them to a contrasting color.

App not starting / installer warning

• Windows SmartScreen may show a warning for new software from a new publisher. Click More info → Run anyway to proceed. AV Pro Timer does not contain malware.
• Ensure Windows 10 or later (64-bit) is installed.
• Try running the installer as Administrator if installation fails.

Update check fails or shows no result

• Ensure the computer has an active internet connection when checking for updates.
• The update check connects to cuecongress.com over HTTPS. If a firewall or proxy blocks outbound HTTPS, the check will silently fail.
• If no dialog appears, you are already on the latest version.