Hi! I belong to a local VFW post that does steak combo dinners followed by karaoke every Thursday night. My 16 y.o. daughter and I have gotten into the habit of going almost every week. Now even her 17 y.o. BF comes with sometimes and sings. We have a lot of friends that drop in and some of them are really good singers.
I'd like to get a machine for about $100 to practice a little at home. I recognize from looking at some forum entries, that using a PC or laptop seems to be the latest direction. I'm OK with that if it isn't too involved and the needed software is cheap. My old laptop may work for this, or I could use my daughters although she only with me 50% of the time. My PC is only about 15' from the main flat screen TV in the house (as an option).
There are a lot of players out there and most require buying mics separately. I'm just trying to keep it cheap and simple, initially. I am also wondering if there are rental CD-G discs or groups that swap these discs as accumulating enough of them to have a couple of dozen songs to draw on seems potentially pricey, especially since most of the compilation discs only have 2 or 3 songs that I'd want.
Anyway....have only been doing this for about 3 months, daughter and I are just now starting to be half way good at singing based on audience response and I'd like to take a tentative next step.
I appreciate any good advice. Thanks, -Nate
Looking for First Time/Home Use Machine Suggestions
Hi there.
welcome to the madhouse.
If you have a look online for DVD players, look for a cheap and cheerful unit that has two microphone inputs on the front panel.
These units "almost" always play CD+G discs and can be picked up for very little outlay. However, DO check the specification to confirm it does play CD+G or is usually claimed, "Karaoke discs".
Next trip online is Ebay where you can pick up a couple of microphones, again for very little cost. While on Ebay, have a look for Karaoke discs, CD+G or CDG discs. You should find loads of them.
You should be able to get a workable system for well under $100 to play through a television.
However, my Caveat is that you most definitely will NOT get the power and quality of a proper system with separate mixer/amp/loudspeakers, etc.
Have fun.
Sandy
welcome to the madhouse.
If you have a look online for DVD players, look for a cheap and cheerful unit that has two microphone inputs on the front panel.
These units "almost" always play CD+G discs and can be picked up for very little outlay. However, DO check the specification to confirm it does play CD+G or is usually claimed, "Karaoke discs".
Next trip online is Ebay where you can pick up a couple of microphones, again for very little cost. While on Ebay, have a look for Karaoke discs, CD+G or CDG discs. You should find loads of them.
You should be able to get a workable system for well under $100 to play through a television.
However, my Caveat is that you most definitely will NOT get the power and quality of a proper system with separate mixer/amp/loudspeakers, etc.
Have fun.
Sandy
The hardware is the cheap stuff.
The music is the expensive part.
Check the online karaoke sites and price the music before you decide if it's something you really want to do.
I will be a very expensive habit. Like all of them..
The reason we are all on computer is because the discs are so fragile. Tiny scratches can ruin an entire disc. They need to be respected.
The music is the expensive part.
Check the online karaoke sites and price the music before you decide if it's something you really want to do.
I will be a very expensive habit. Like all of them..
The reason we are all on computer is because the discs are so fragile. Tiny scratches can ruin an entire disc. They need to be respected.
You might want to check out the Madboy player that Sound Choice is selling through their site. It will play all of the standard karaoke formats except for laser discs. It will also play off of an sd chip and an external Hard drive.
you can get the player at www.soundchoicestore.com and you can get the SD chips at www.chartbusterkaraoke.com which contain mp3+g songs.
you can get the player at www.soundchoicestore.com and you can get the SD chips at www.chartbusterkaraoke.com which contain mp3+g songs.
I realise that this reply is a bit after the event. But I just found it and hope that, although it may come a bit late for the original poster, there will be others who could profit from my experience.
I also required a simple and cheap karaoke setup for home use.
Here's the system I ended up with which works fine.
Laptop computer running Karafun which is free to download. If you want to use an extention screen so the singer isn't trampling over your feet while reading the lyrics, then ensure the laptop can operate in 2-screen mode.
Microphone: Peavy PV1 which was my 'emergency' mic in my band days. It cost around £40 in the 60s. If I were to buy a mic today I'd get a Shure SM58. The one with a switch is preferrable although slightly more expensive. This is supplemented by a couple of £5 karaoke microphones. Yes, they're cheap. And yes, they're a bit nasty. If you have two decent singers you might want to stretch to another SM58.
A pair of microphone stands.
Mixer: Sound Lab MICRO MIXER G105C. Cost around £17-18 and has built-in delay (reverb). Don't let the giveaway price mislead you, you couldn't build it for that price. I tried.
Behringer B208D: A self-powered PA with around 165 Watts RMS output. More than enough punch for any domestic situation. It can be had for as little as £119.
The singer can follow the lyrics on my laptop or on my 22" PC monitor which I feed from a VGA socket on the laptop. I also have a VGA input on my Sony Bravia TV which I plan to feed from a VGA splitter so as to give the 'audience' a look at the lyrics.
One disadvantage of the cheap mixer is that the delay effect is applied to all 4 channels. This means you can't feed the headphone socket of the laptop into the mixer - you don't want to apply reverb to the backing track signal. To get around this I made up a special 3-way lead that patches the laptop into the cable as it leaves the mixer. This was easy to do and involved only the addition of a couple of resistors.
I can hear all the groans. Okay, it ain't a professional setup. But I don't want a professional setup and there must be lots of people like me. This system works very well for me. And I challenge anyone to do it cheaper. Excluding the laptop, I spent around £125.
The karaoke files needn't be expensive either. I have just under 4,000 songs and they cost me not a lot.
If you want more information, PM me your email address and I'll help you all I can.
I also required a simple and cheap karaoke setup for home use.
Here's the system I ended up with which works fine.
Laptop computer running Karafun which is free to download. If you want to use an extention screen so the singer isn't trampling over your feet while reading the lyrics, then ensure the laptop can operate in 2-screen mode.
Microphone: Peavy PV1 which was my 'emergency' mic in my band days. It cost around £40 in the 60s. If I were to buy a mic today I'd get a Shure SM58. The one with a switch is preferrable although slightly more expensive. This is supplemented by a couple of £5 karaoke microphones. Yes, they're cheap. And yes, they're a bit nasty. If you have two decent singers you might want to stretch to another SM58.
A pair of microphone stands.
Mixer: Sound Lab MICRO MIXER G105C. Cost around £17-18 and has built-in delay (reverb). Don't let the giveaway price mislead you, you couldn't build it for that price. I tried.
Behringer B208D: A self-powered PA with around 165 Watts RMS output. More than enough punch for any domestic situation. It can be had for as little as £119.
The singer can follow the lyrics on my laptop or on my 22" PC monitor which I feed from a VGA socket on the laptop. I also have a VGA input on my Sony Bravia TV which I plan to feed from a VGA splitter so as to give the 'audience' a look at the lyrics.
One disadvantage of the cheap mixer is that the delay effect is applied to all 4 channels. This means you can't feed the headphone socket of the laptop into the mixer - you don't want to apply reverb to the backing track signal. To get around this I made up a special 3-way lead that patches the laptop into the cable as it leaves the mixer. This was easy to do and involved only the addition of a couple of resistors.
I can hear all the groans. Okay, it ain't a professional setup. But I don't want a professional setup and there must be lots of people like me. This system works very well for me. And I challenge anyone to do it cheaper. Excluding the laptop, I spent around £125.
The karaoke files needn't be expensive either. I have just under 4,000 songs and they cost me not a lot.
If you want more information, PM me your email address and I'll help you all I can.
HOME KARAOKE LOUNGE BUILDING 101 by Christopher djBe Bifani
Hi singers! Ready for your own club-quality system at home?
Today's laptop-based systems are great for home use just like pro use, and can go anywhere easily too. But good ol' karaoke disc and traditional players can be a wise choice for many home karaoke lounge planners, have their own vinyl party-type vibe, and are not at all fragile if handled properly, just like LPs or DVDs. And the price is dropping on them - to where you can now get very nice collections, from reputable dealers, for pennies a song on ebay - for example the Sweet Georgia Brown set of about 70 discs and over 1,000 songs is less than $100.
Karaoke disc players are also under $100 now, and very comprehensive. Buy from a reputable online dealer like ace karaoke or karaoke warehouse because they have honest return policies and these things can be dicey.
I suggest to my singers looking to create a home singing environment that they make their karaoke player the centerpiece of their home theater system. Their karaoke player becomes their DVD player, CD player and interface for flash, USB and SD card as well. The better karaoke players today are enabled with all these new-fangled pieholes and some, like recent acesonic models, record your discs to flash or card at 4X speed, with or without your singing on top.
I recommend against singing through home-theater five- and seven- speaker arrays, especially the plasticky bestbuy-type theatre-in-a-box crap. But If you've got that already, and the mains are at least 10" woofs, switch to 2-speaker stereo mode and bypass the dinkies.
If you're starting from scratch, you're actually in luck because big-ass old-timey speakers are everywhere on craigslist for next to nothing. Look for 12s with nice big deep heavy cabinets. And if the gang wants to put their drinks on them who cares, you only paid about 15 bucks apiece.
Receiver Amps are another item that's finding its way to craigslist - as people "upgrade" to the sleek plastic garbage that comes with their hometheater sets. You can find Onkyo, Sony etc receivers for $50 bucks or less, or just check your attic. You'll want 200 honest watts in a receiver.
The better receivers have four speaker outs. Ahhhh...double stereo! If you have a big space for your home lounge, go for it. A pair of 10s" and a pair of 12s" and you're in karaoke heaven. Movies sound great too. Go to an audiophile site for placement options, but generally speaking, you can get better sound dispersal with less volume. More bass with less boom. More treble with less screech. If you're second set of speakers has 6" or smaller woofers, switch them off for karaoke, 8" depends on the speaker.
For add-ons, and depending on how modern the singers in your clique are (alot of karaoke fans are quite 20th century) you might want to hook up a cassette deck to your system - which are like 2 or 5 bucks nowadays. Any drunk can hit PLAY and RECORD at the same time, an easy way to make party recordings with zero learning curve and without anyone messing with your main unit.
There are also rack system CDR-music recorders out there for peanuts nowadays, under $100 for sure. I use a SONY dual CD recorder with 4X speed duplication for my home rig, its great! Plays last recorded song automatically when you next hit play. A CD recorder enables you to make copies for you and your guests that are digital, and that they can play on the ride home as they text everyone about how incredible your party was!
OK, So you've got your starter library of over 1,000 songs off ebay for $80, you found a pair of nice bigass speakers, 3-ways with 12s) for $40, you got a cassette deck for a buck or two, and you scored a moneyback-guaranteed acesonic or rsq player for $100 from which you promptly threw away the included microphones.
Now you need microphones. musiciansfriend.com is the place to score good mic packages CHEAP! Some of their starter AKG packages will give you two nice mics and two lightduty stands for less than $100. You want stands because otherwise your mics be allover the place, and stands make a good karaoke party better. Way better. For wireless mics try acekaraoke again, they have a decent rechargable set for under $100. Better karaoke players have three mic inputs. A typical home configuration would be two wired and the third input taking a two-mic wireless set.
One of the most important components to your karaoke lounge is also about the cheapest....a 13" color TV for the singer. They are like $2 in thrift stores these days. Look for one that is flat on top because that's where drinks are going to go. This way the singer can face the group instead of everyone just staring into the house TV. That gets old quick. A singer TV gives you the option of using your house TV for lyrics too or keeping the game on close-captioned, just like in bars. You'll need to go to Radio Shack for a simple RCA Y-video jack unless your player has two video outs, about four bucks. Another advantage of these TVs is they fit perfect on most backed bar stools, look for a used wooden swivel bar stool, they're great and much nicer-looking in a home-lounge than those robot-looking monitor stands.
For inexpensive ambience, different colored jar candles are great, and another neat trick is spray-painting 40 or 25 watt lightbulbs different colors and temporaily putting them in your available fixtures. Cheap shoplights with colored bulbs also work well for putting light in strategic places. Have a good radio station dialed in, switching over to music between singers will give you the professional touch.
You can accomplish this whole setup for $300 to $500, and your and your radio and TV viewing experience goes way up in the bargain!
Home karaoke is fun, inexpensive entertainment, and a great way to prepare for - and save up for - a night on the town, showcasing your skills to the crowd and your favorite KJ! See you at the show!
FB friend Christopher djBe Bifani contact: djbe@rock.com
Make Music Not War! };=D
Today's laptop-based systems are great for home use just like pro use, and can go anywhere easily too. But good ol' karaoke disc and traditional players can be a wise choice for many home karaoke lounge planners, have their own vinyl party-type vibe, and are not at all fragile if handled properly, just like LPs or DVDs. And the price is dropping on them - to where you can now get very nice collections, from reputable dealers, for pennies a song on ebay - for example the Sweet Georgia Brown set of about 70 discs and over 1,000 songs is less than $100.
Karaoke disc players are also under $100 now, and very comprehensive. Buy from a reputable online dealer like ace karaoke or karaoke warehouse because they have honest return policies and these things can be dicey.
I suggest to my singers looking to create a home singing environment that they make their karaoke player the centerpiece of their home theater system. Their karaoke player becomes their DVD player, CD player and interface for flash, USB and SD card as well. The better karaoke players today are enabled with all these new-fangled pieholes and some, like recent acesonic models, record your discs to flash or card at 4X speed, with or without your singing on top.
I recommend against singing through home-theater five- and seven- speaker arrays, especially the plasticky bestbuy-type theatre-in-a-box crap. But If you've got that already, and the mains are at least 10" woofs, switch to 2-speaker stereo mode and bypass the dinkies.
If you're starting from scratch, you're actually in luck because big-ass old-timey speakers are everywhere on craigslist for next to nothing. Look for 12s with nice big deep heavy cabinets. And if the gang wants to put their drinks on them who cares, you only paid about 15 bucks apiece.
Receiver Amps are another item that's finding its way to craigslist - as people "upgrade" to the sleek plastic garbage that comes with their hometheater sets. You can find Onkyo, Sony etc receivers for $50 bucks or less, or just check your attic. You'll want 200 honest watts in a receiver.
The better receivers have four speaker outs. Ahhhh...double stereo! If you have a big space for your home lounge, go for it. A pair of 10s" and a pair of 12s" and you're in karaoke heaven. Movies sound great too. Go to an audiophile site for placement options, but generally speaking, you can get better sound dispersal with less volume. More bass with less boom. More treble with less screech. If you're second set of speakers has 6" or smaller woofers, switch them off for karaoke, 8" depends on the speaker.
For add-ons, and depending on how modern the singers in your clique are (alot of karaoke fans are quite 20th century) you might want to hook up a cassette deck to your system - which are like 2 or 5 bucks nowadays. Any drunk can hit PLAY and RECORD at the same time, an easy way to make party recordings with zero learning curve and without anyone messing with your main unit.
There are also rack system CDR-music recorders out there for peanuts nowadays, under $100 for sure. I use a SONY dual CD recorder with 4X speed duplication for my home rig, its great! Plays last recorded song automatically when you next hit play. A CD recorder enables you to make copies for you and your guests that are digital, and that they can play on the ride home as they text everyone about how incredible your party was!
OK, So you've got your starter library of over 1,000 songs off ebay for $80, you found a pair of nice bigass speakers, 3-ways with 12s) for $40, you got a cassette deck for a buck or two, and you scored a moneyback-guaranteed acesonic or rsq player for $100 from which you promptly threw away the included microphones.
Now you need microphones. musiciansfriend.com is the place to score good mic packages CHEAP! Some of their starter AKG packages will give you two nice mics and two lightduty stands for less than $100. You want stands because otherwise your mics be allover the place, and stands make a good karaoke party better. Way better. For wireless mics try acekaraoke again, they have a decent rechargable set for under $100. Better karaoke players have three mic inputs. A typical home configuration would be two wired and the third input taking a two-mic wireless set.
One of the most important components to your karaoke lounge is also about the cheapest....a 13" color TV for the singer. They are like $2 in thrift stores these days. Look for one that is flat on top because that's where drinks are going to go. This way the singer can face the group instead of everyone just staring into the house TV. That gets old quick. A singer TV gives you the option of using your house TV for lyrics too or keeping the game on close-captioned, just like in bars. You'll need to go to Radio Shack for a simple RCA Y-video jack unless your player has two video outs, about four bucks. Another advantage of these TVs is they fit perfect on most backed bar stools, look for a used wooden swivel bar stool, they're great and much nicer-looking in a home-lounge than those robot-looking monitor stands.
For inexpensive ambience, different colored jar candles are great, and another neat trick is spray-painting 40 or 25 watt lightbulbs different colors and temporaily putting them in your available fixtures. Cheap shoplights with colored bulbs also work well for putting light in strategic places. Have a good radio station dialed in, switching over to music between singers will give you the professional touch.
You can accomplish this whole setup for $300 to $500, and your and your radio and TV viewing experience goes way up in the bargain!
Home karaoke is fun, inexpensive entertainment, and a great way to prepare for - and save up for - a night on the town, showcasing your skills to the crowd and your favorite KJ! See you at the show!
FB friend Christopher djBe Bifani contact: djbe@rock.com
Make Music Not War! };=D
Visit my page on FB....Karaoke Karolina. Check out my store/studio/art gallery AXXTACY GUITARS & GEAR M-F 2PM-7PM, 5285 Main, Shallotte, NC. 910-795-9083
