Orpheus Quick Start Guide

Quick Start Guide — Version 1.8 — 2026

1. Initial Setup

Six steps from a boxed unit to a working device. Sections marked (Pro only) apply to Orpheus Pro.

1. Connect Power

Plug in the LiFePO4 battery using the XT60 connector. If you have a solar panel, connect it via the MC4 connectors, matching positive (+) to positive and negative (−) to negative.

2. Power On

Flip the power switch. The touchscreen will display the Orpheus interface after approximately 60 seconds. If nothing happens, press the manual wake button on the enclosure.

3. Connect Speakers

Attach speakers to the waterproof connectors on the enclosure. Test audio by switching to Manual mode and playing the test tone.

4. Set Your Location

Go to Settings → Astral Setup. Enter your GPS coordinates (latitude and longitude) and select your timezone. This is required for the sunrise/sunset calculations used by Astral and Seasonal modes.

5. Verify Time

Check the clock displayed on screen. If it is incorrect, either set it manually under Settings → Time & Date, or let the companion app do it — tap Auto-Configure Hub (GPS & Time) in the app and it sets the clock, timezone and GPS position from your phone in one step (see section 4).

The built-in battery-backed clock maintains accurate time from this point forward, even when the device is powered off.

6. Load Audio Files

Insert a USB flash drive containing your audio files (WAV or MP3). Open the Audio File Manager from the toolbar and use USB Import to copy files to the device.

7. Create Your Portal Account

Register at gaiaforge.tech/portal to get your software updates, the companion app and your documentation.

You will need your device serial number. Find it on the unit’s touchscreen under the About tab — the (i) icon at the top of the screen. It is also printed on the device label.

Choose Register, select Orpheus, then enter the serial number along with your name, email and a password.

2. Playback Modes

Orpheus has four playback modes. Choose one from the mode selector at the top of the screen.

Manual

Direct control for quick tests and on-demand use. Tap Load Audio, choose a file, and use Play, Pause and Stop. Adjust volume from the toolbar.

Interval

Playback during specific time windows.

1. Tap Add Interval to create a schedule entry.
2. Set the Start Time and End Time (e.g. 06:00 to 08:00).
3. Choose the days: Daily, Weekdays, Weekends, or specific days.
4. Tap Select Audio to assign one or more files. Multiple files play in sequence and loop for the duration of the interval.
5. Save. Tap any interval to edit it later.

Example — a bird ringing station: morning lure 05:30–07:00 daily; midday call 12:00–12:30 weekdays; evening session 17:00–18:30 daily.

Astral

Playback relative to sunrise and sunset, shifting automatically as day length changes through the season.

1. Tap Add Astral Interval.
2. Choose Sunrise or Sunset as the reference event.
3. Set the offset — for example “30 minutes before sunrise” or “1 hour after sunset”.
4. Set the duration of the playback window.
5. Assign your audio files and save.

Example — a dawn chorus study: start 30 min before sunrise, play for 90 minutes; and at sunset, play for 60 minutes.

Seasonal

Different schedules for different times of year. Each season has its own playlist of events, and Orpheus switches between them automatically by calendar date.

Natural seasons — leave Custom Seasons off and tap Setup Natural Seasons. Edit any of Spring, Summer, Fall or Winter to open its playlist editor, then add events with Add Astral (sunrise/sunset-relative) or Add Fixed Time (specific time of day).

Custom seasons — for research that does not align with standard seasons, toggle Custom Seasons on. Name a season (e.g. “Spring Migration”), set its start and end dates with the calendar picker, save, then build its playlist the same way. Seasons may overlap.

Example — a migration study: Pre-Migration (Feb 15 – Mar 10), low-intensity calls at dawn only; Peak Migration (Mar 10 – Apr 20), full dawn and dusk playlist; Post-Migration (Apr 20 – May 15), monitoring calls only.

3. Recording (Pro only)

Orpheus Pro records audio to a USB drive alongside its playback role.

To make a first test recording:

1. Insert a USB drive with free space.
2. Open Recording mode.
3. On the Audio tab choose bit depth (16-bit or 24-bit), sample rate (44.1, 48 or 96 kHz) and mono or stereo.
4. On the Levels tab press Auto-Set Gain while the loudest sound you expect is happening, so peaks land safely below clipping.
5. Press Record Now, capture a short sample, and play it back to check.

Beyond manual recording, Orpheus Pro can record on a schedule, relative to sunrise/sunset (astral), or only when sound crosses a threshold you set.

4. Companion App

The companion app is how you manage a deployed unit. It works over Bluetooth, wakes a sleeping unit for you, and is the easiest way to set location and time — so once a unit is in the field you rarely need to open the enclosure.

Install it

Android — download the APK from gaiaforge.tech/orpheus or your customer portal. When prompted, allow installation from unknown sources.

iOS — the iPhone app is currently pending App Store approval.

Connect

1. Open the app. It scans for nearby Orpheus devices automatically.
2. Tap your device in the list (e.g. “Orpheus-91BD”).
3. That is the only step you take. The app connects over BLE, wakes the unit if it is asleep, switches on its Orpheus-XXXX WiFi hotspot, joins it, and loads the dashboard: battery and solar status, schedules, device time and location, and diagnostics.

How long it takes: about 20–40 seconds if the unit is already awake, and up to a minute or slightly more if it is asleep or switched off — a sleeping unit has to boot before it can answer. The app shows its progress while it waits, so leave it running rather than retrying.

Auto-Configure Hub (GPS & Time)

In the app’s Settings screen, pick your timezone and tap Auto-Configure Hub (GPS & Time). The app reads your phone’s GPS, sends the position, timezone and current time to the unit, and reads the clock back to confirm — setting everything Astral and Seasonal scheduling need, with no typing.

5. Deploy

Enable Deep Sleep

To maximise battery life, enable Deep Sleep under Settings → Power Management. Orpheus will power down between scheduled events and wake just before the next one. A unit with adequate solar input can run indefinitely in this mode.

You can always wake the device manually with the wake button on the enclosure, or remotely from the companion app over Bluetooth.

Switch the monitor off

The touchscreen has its own switch on the front panel. Turn the monitor off for normal use — switch it on only when you need to work on the unit directly.

Orpheus runs exactly the same with the screen off, and you keep full control through the app. The display is one of the biggest continuous power draws on the unit, so leaving it on eats into your deployment time for nothing.

Pre-deployment checklist

First few days

Check battery levels and playback logs for the first few days to confirm the system is behaving as expected before leaving it unattended.

6. Updates

Orpheus updates from a USB stick, using a single file that contains both the device application and the firmware.

1. Download orpheus_update.zip from your customer portal at gaiaforge.tech/portal — the Orpheus dashboard lists the current release and its notes.
2. Create a folder on a USB stick named exactly orpheus_update and put the zip inside it, still zipped.
3. Insert the stick, then on the unit go to Settings → Updates and tap Scan for USB, then Update App, then Update Firmware.

It takes about 3–5 minutes, with a progress display throughout.

7. Quick Reference

Item	Value
Battery connector	XT60
Solar connector	MC4
Audio formats	WAV, MP3
WiFi hotspot SSID	Orpheus-XXXX (unique per device)
WiFi password	None (open network)
WiFi auto-off	5 minutes of inactivity
Bluetooth range	~10 metres
Boot time	~60 seconds
App connect — unit awake	~20–40 seconds
App connect — unit asleep	up to ~1 minute or a little more
Monitor (front-panel switch)	Off for normal use
Update folder on USB	orpheus_update (case sensitive)
RTC battery life	3–6 years
Recording bit depth (Pro)	16-bit or 24-bit
Recording sample rate (Pro)	44.1, 48 or 96 kHz
Support	contact@gaiaforge.tech

For the complete manual — troubleshooting, power management detail and full companion app instructions — visit gaiaforge.tech/orpheus or your customer portal at gaiaforge.tech/portal.