Vox amPlug Classic Rock Guitar Headphone Amp

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List Price: Price Unavailable
Sale Price: $30.66
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• Available in three styles: VOX AC30, Classic Rock, and Metal.
• AUX in jack lets you jam along with your CD/MP3 player.
• 100% analog circuit faithfully simulates the response of the original amps.
• AC30 emulates the AC30 top boost sound of a vintage VOX AC30.
• Classic Rock gives you the great high-gain sound of a UK-made 100W amp.

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Easily the best headphone amplifier I've tried! In the past these things were either full of hiss, smothered in echo, or were little more than glorified fuzz boxes with an Walkman-style headset. (That was definitely the case with Vox's discontinued AC1). The Amplug is different. It plugs right into your guitar's output jack, and has distinct tone, gain, and volume controls. No, this doesn't sound like a 100 Watt Vox head shrunk into a palmsize toy. It DOES sound amazingly like a much larger and more expensive amplifier, with very pleasing and tube-like distortion at higher volumes. It's the "classic rock" model, meaning that it's optimized for the chunky tube-distorted sound of the mid 1970s.

I like the Amplug a lot.

If you're into lead or rhythm guitar in the styles of Free, Led Zeppelin, Kiss, or the Who, you're going to enjoy this as a very valuable and inexpensive practice tool. The sound quality is good enough to use the Amplug as an amp simulator if you want to record your guitar directly to your computer. I think many people would be fooled into thinking you really had a large tube amp if they heard the recording. It's an amazing simulation, and I prefer the tube emulation in it to some digital effects units I've tried. I actually like the fact that it doesn't have built-in reverb as I'd rather use my own reverb when recording than be forced to settle with the built-in type.

Drawbacks? The clean sound is anemic. (This is not the headphone amp to use if you're planning on comping jazz chords with a heavy right hand. I have tried my mandolin with the clean setting and the results were somewhat better due to the double coursed strings.) Also, the Amplug really does require fresh batteries the sound as the batteries weaken becomes more and more abrasive. As the batteries die, the sound gets progressively irritating. The plug isn't angled, so you're going to have a hard time using this with a Strat-like guitar. (I use a Gibson SG and I don't have this problem). The construction is very lightweight plastic that does not inspire my confidence. For a few dollars more, the Amplug could have a metal chassis that would be very durable. None of these things deter me, because I don't expect miracles from a Japanese-made plastic amp. This is in no way a surrogate for a real amp, such as Vox's own DA5, and is very much a single-trick device but it does its single trick very well.

I bought the Vox Classic Rock amPlug on a whim in a music store. I'm glad I did! It's helped to excite me once more about playing and practicing daily. The price is definitely right, and the distortion sounds are superb. Buy this with the understanding that no amp can do all things and you'll have a great time with it.

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Got this for Christmas, and it is a lot of fun. The sound is very warm an tube-like, unlike the old compressed-to-death SRD Rockman tone of the 80's. The gain can be turned down for a clean tone, but when turned up, it has a very nice distortion. The only feature missing is reverb, as it only delivers a studio dry tone. One drawback is that it swings around in the jack, but I'm not sure how it can be avoided. Also, it was actually refreshing to see "Made in Japan" labelas opposed to some of the shotty Chinese made products. If it had reverb I would give it 5 stars. Pretty cool to walk all over the house and be able to jam, and a nagging spouse is easily drowned out! :)

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The sound of this little guy is very good for what it is. Goes from clean to a nice classic rock crunch. What makes it a very good and recommended product is that it is very practical for quiet practice. Plug into the guitar, plug in headphones, and you are free and mobile to play around. The offset plug works in front angle sockets (Strat style) or end mounts (everything else), and the controls are readily available. Seems solid but I have only had it a few weeks. Right price for what it is.

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I just received this small headphone amp and just quit playing it after two straight hours. I purchased the Vox Amplug AC30 about a year ago and was less than impressed with it. At the time, I was running it into a Highway One Telecaster with stock single coil pickups.

I now have a Gibson SG Standard with stock pickups. I really debated weather or not to get the AC30 again or the Classic Rock because I couldn't find any definitive reviews about how clean the Classic Rock could get. Let me be DEFINITIVE...It can do cleans really well! It can also get some crazy gain too. I was really impressed by how responsive it was to my playing dynamics. Even with a lot of gain, all I had to do was roll back the volume and it sounded so warm and full.

Having watched the few YouTube videos with the AC30, I didn't think it would have enough gain or crunch. I'm so glad I went with the Classic Rock.

I bought the Vox Amplug AC30 and loved it so much, it probably doubled (or tripled) the amount of time I play guitar. I loved it so much I went out and got the more expensive (by $10) Joe Satriani Signature Amplug. I liked the Satriani model also because it covered a different tonal range than the AC30, and delay feature is a lot of fun. But I had serious questions about the Classic Rock Amplug. Why did have only a 4-star review on Amazon among the lowest for any of the fabulous Amplug products. Would it be only a "one trick pony"?

Well, I have to tell you, I was completely blown away by how great the Classic Rock Amplug is, and I'm now even more blown away by some of these negative reviews. I've tried out a number of effects pedals for plugging into an actual guitar amplifier, and many pedal users are seeking what they call a "Marshall-in-a-box". In other words, they want a effects pedal that will single-handedly transform whatever amp they have into the sound of a miniaturized stack of Marshalls. Believe it or not, the Vox Classic Rock on higher gain settings is about as close to a "Marshall" sound as I can imagine. And it comes in a small, plastic headphone amplifier that runs on 2 AAA batteries and costs all of $39.99.

Functionally, the Classic Rock Amplug is the same as the AC30 three dials for gain, tone, and volume, an aux in jack (for MP3 players), a headphone jack, and an on/off switch. But that's where the similarities end. While the excellent AC30 model simulates the boxy, sparkly sound of a tube amplifier, the Classic Rock packs some PUNCH. The low end presence on this thing (even through a $20 set of entry-level Sony headphones from Target) is significantly greater than on the AC30. More importantly, the sound doesn't deteriorate with higher volumes. There are plenty of ways you can try to play guitar through headphones, but most of them become a static-filled mess as soon as you turn up the volume. Amazingly, the tiny Amplug has plenty of power on tap, and the "overdrive" is controlled through analog circuitry, with amazing clarity.

But the real surprise in the Classic Rock Amplug (and the point upon which I disagree with several other reviewers here) are the clean and slightly overdrive tones as you roll back on the gain knob. Several reviewers referred to the clean tones as weak, or claimed that there were no clean tones. Yet, with both my Les Paul and a Strat, I was able to set the Volume at around 6-8 and the gain at about level 2 and get a very nice clean tone without loss of volume. If any dirt was remaining, a slight rollback on the guitar volume further cured the problem. Even better, playing a Strat into the Classic Rock with the gain set somewhere between 2 to 4 actually created a Tubescreamer-like blues tone! This tone was one of the audio demos offered on Vox's website, but I didn't believe it for myself until I plugged the Classic Rock in and dialed in that tone.

Long story short, the Classic Rock is extremely powerful, but more verstaile than I thought. It can do the high-gain Marshall tones I expected, but also offers a wide array of clean or slightly-overdriven tones. It might even be more versatile than the AC30 Amplug, though I remain pretty loyal to the AC30. The good news is that the two models are different enough and cheap enough that you can own both. Highly recommend the Classic Rock 5 stars.

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Nixon Stylus Headphones

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List Price: Price Unavailable
Sale Price: $103.97 - $129.95
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For a pair of $120 I believe that you get you money's worth. They are capable of producing Beats level bass but you have to go to your music equalizer and customize it. In my opinion these are better than Beats because they can be used for just about any music genre such as classical and country without having the unneeded bass heavy input of Beats. The spiral cord really helps in preventing entanglements and since it's detachable from the headphones you can buy a new one if the jack connection gets damaged. I wear these for 4-5 hours at a time because they are just that lightweight and comfortable. As for noise isolation, I keep my volume between 30 and 40 percent and it is more than enough to block out the world. The styling is unique and I have never seen anybody with these so that makes them even more special... Or maybe I want to feel like a hipster, haha.

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I've been looking for the perfect headphones for forever now and have often returned a lot that i've bought. These are exactly what I was looking for. They are super lightweight and fold up quite nicely for portability and come with the perfect leather pouch to protect them. The memory foam ear cushions are soooo much better than normal earpads you find on other headphones. They are super comfortable and cancel out a TON of noise. The sound on these is amazing too. I listen to many different kinds of music and these are perfect for each genre. A little mixing on your graphic equalizer and these couldn't be more perfect. All around great purchase. I'm extremely happy. Definitely won't be returning these!! The shipping was ridiculously fast as well. These arrived 6 days ahead of time!!! You can imagine how please and excited I was about that!

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Blocks outside noise, they look good the springy cord makes it do they get snagged and pull out when snowboarding.

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Sennheiser EH2200 Professional HiFi Studio Headphones

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List Price: Price Unavailable
Sale Price: Price Unavailable
Today's Bonus:

• Closed stereo headphones designed for hi-fi systems and portable stereos
• Dynamic circumaural design delivers detailed sound with powerful bass response--ideal for DJ monitoring
• Duofol technology reduces ambient noise levels and feedback sensitivity
• 10-foot detachable, Kevlar-reinforced OFC cable
• Lightweight, comfortable, ergonomic fit fosters extended use; fully modular design with replaceable parts and 2-year warranty

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I bought these to replace my 8-year-old Sony MDR-V600 headphones. After listening to the Sennheiser EH2200 headphones for a few days, I'd say they are a more-than-adequate replacement, and for about half the price.

The EH2200's have very good sound. Saying they have excellent bass response is an understatement. If you like rap, you'll be in for a VERY pleasant surprise--you'll hear low notes you've never heard before. However, these headphones do not sound quite as detailed as they could, perhaps because they seem to fall off slightly on the high-end. Cymbals in particular tend to get lost. Turning up the "treble" control on your stereo very slightly or boosting frequencies above 10KHz a few decibels with an equalizer will help flatten the response. That's not to say they sound bad, they just sound a bit better with more treble.

Although I would classify them as slightly "dull" rather than "bright," this is perhaps to their advantage, as you will find that you can listen to them for a long time continuously without fatigue on your ears.

Physically, these headphones are very comfortable, and very light, almost to the point of being excessively so. They weigh less than a baseball cap. Unfortunately they look and feel like a set of toy headphones, but don't let that fool you. Once you have them on and properly adjusted, they are so light that it's easy to forget that you are wearing them.

One bad point is that the cord is not coiled. It is very long and in my case in particular I've found that as it lies on the floor it has a tendency to get caught up in the wheels of my desk chair. However, the cord is detachable so at least it would separate from the headphones instead of breaking them.

The earcups swing around so that you can listen with just one ear if you want to use them for recording sessions. These headphones do not fold up for storage.

When worn normally, they do a very good job of blocking out outside noises, perhaps too good of a job: I had to turn up the ringer volume on my telephone because I kept missing phone calls when I was listening to them, a problem I've never had with headphones. If they only folded for storage, they would be great for airplane trips.

One word of caution: Out of the box these headphones did not sound very good, the sound was extremely muddy. However, instead of immediately returning them, I tried "breaking them in" as was recommended on many audiophile web sites. Initially I didn't place much stock in that suggestion, but it actually made a tremendous difference. (I played "white noise" on them for eight hours by tuning my FM receiver between stations, at moderate volume.) If you find they don't sound as good as you had hoped, try "breaking them in" overnight.

I would recommend these headphones to almost anyone looking for good sound at a decent price.

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For ..., I think these are an excellent valuea good way for non-audiophiles to upgrade to better phones.

The sound is crisp and clear, and compares very well to more expensive phones I've heard in stores. Bass response is good, so much so that I don't use the Megabass as much on my portable.

Speaking of portables, these will work adequately with a portable player (max volume just a tad bit low), unlike many premium headphones. Of course, you will get best results playing these with a regular stereo.

They are very comfortable and lightweight, so you don't notice them too much. The light weight also helps a little in the portability factor.

One noteHeadphones sound a lot better after you break them in for at least a few hours. This one is no different-

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I purchased these headphones for general home and office use; at home, they are used for listening to music and/or playing games on the computer once the girlfriend has gone to bed (small apartment, and the computer is in the bedroom). I've also used the adapter to plug them into my Onkyo TX-DS474, which is an aging but good mid-end receiver. The sound is incredible, especially on DVDs.

The only downside is that these headphones do not do surround, but again, that's pretty hard to do and usually doesn't turn out that great in headphones anyway. I also use these at work for listening to music while I program, and they are extremely comfortable. I wear them upwards of 3 hours at a time, and while I never forget that I'm wearing them, they never become obtrusive or uncomfortable. One other thing to note is that these phones do a great job of blocking outside noises. I've had people come over to talk to me who had to give me a good shake because I couldn't hear them... :)

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I purchased these headphones right before heading out on a trip that included travel via train and airplane, and these have served me well.

First off, the sound quality is amazing for the price. Everything sounds great, and it does especially well with bass. I have not had headphones that work this well before.

Secondly, they are incredibly comfortable. They weigh practically nothing and after a few minutes you forget that you are even wearing them. The padding is also very nice.

They do a good job of blocking outside noise also, worked great on the train, and a lot of the engine drone on the plane was stopped as well. However, they are not noise cancelling so don't expect too much on a noisy plane.

The only downsides I would note are, the cord is not coiled, so it can get tangled eaiser, but thats a minor downside. The cord is removable so you could switch to a coiled one if you really wanted to. Also, since they are non-folding, they are a little hard to carry with you, but I just put them in my backpack/carry on thing and I was fine. The minor downsides do not take away from everything that is good about the product.

I definitely suggest these headphones, if you are looking for a good pair for a good price.

I've been slowly upgrading the head phones I own usually because the headphones break. Not what one usually assumes to be the functional part, just the cheap plastic parts that hold the important bits to your head. I have three headphones now, one a new Sennheiser EH2200, the other two held together by duct tape.

My first reaction to the Sennheiser EH2200 when I got it was "Oh no, more cheap plastic." I was a little underwhelmed by the not so sturdy construction. But who knows, maybe they'll hold up. They are comfortable to wear. Other head phones begin to hurt the top of my head for some reason. These haven't.

But how do they sound?!? Okay. I wasn't bowled over. I think somehow I expected to be wowed, but I wasn't. They're a little heavy on the low end which seems to overwhelm the mid range at least listening to rock-n-roll. So far I've mostly listed to mp3's but generally the sound is crisp and clean. I think with these headphones I notice much more than before the differences between different recordings. This is good, I want to hear the music not my headphones interpretation of it.

I am definitely happy with these headphones and consider them to be a step up from my previous $50 Optimus (probably make by Koss) headphones.

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STEREN-CUSTOM INSTALL

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List Price: Price Unavailable
Sale Price: $2.79
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I bought this cable (2.5mm male to 2.5mm male 1.5 foot) to replace the cable which came with my son's Turtle Beach X11 gaming headphones (when being used on the Xbox 360). This cable is perfect. I saw a couple people complain about the length of the 1.5' version of this cable, and I just don't get that complaint. You don't need a long cable to run from the Xbox controller to the input port on the headphones (located on the cable around 2.5 feet down, inline from the headphones. 1.5' should be more than enough. Who the heck wants an extra 2 or more feet of cable there? Unless you are a giant, that is ridiculous.

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Well reading the other review I knew not to expect a long cord, but I didn't need a long one anyway.

I used it for my turtle beach x11 headphones and it worked pretty good. I think it would give back feedback sometimes(Minus star), may have bothered my friends but didn't bother me, hehe. I'm actually not sure how good it is with the white controller I was using it with the Air Flo Controller for Xbox 360 Wired. I would recommend it.

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Buyer beware the picture that accompanies this listing is highly misleading relative to the length of the cable, which is only 18" long. Nowhere in the text does it specify the length, so I took a chance on it on the basis of the photograph. The actual cable is MUCH shorter than the photograph indicates.

Note that the part number Steren 252-601 is given, and a quick Google search revealed that it was indeed an 18" patch cable. So I could have done that before I bought it, but I didn't.

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IDANCE FUNKY300 -Watt -Channel Recording Studio Equipment , white and orange

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List Price: $49.00
Sale Price: $46.18
Today's Bonus: 6% Off

• GET LOUD and CLEAN, Funky Form Factor,Dual Driver for Music Lover, Prenium Ear cup, Compatible with iphone, inline microphone.
• Driver Unit: 40mm Impedance:32Ohms, Driver Unit: 15mm Impedance:8Ohms, Driver Type: Neodymium, Sensitivity: 108dB+/-3dB
• Frequency Response: 15Hz~20KHz, Cord Length: 1.5m, Cable Type: PVC, Plug: 3.5mm gold chrome.

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I purchased these headphones much cheaper than the listed price. They are a solid build but not very comfortable for long periods of time. I use them now as back up monitor headphones..the bass is a bit overwhelming but can be tamed with proper eq setting. The mids are really good but the highs lack that punch..overall they are solid headphones to have in your studio or DJ bag, they aren't a one and all headphone set but can be use as back up monitor headphones..it's all-ways good to make music you record sound good on anything and you can achieve that with these.

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First Act Kids Pink Electric Guitar with Built in Speaker

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List Price: $99.95
Sale Price: $49.99
Today's Bonus: 50% Off

• 30" Electric guitar
• Maple neck with hardwood fingerboard
• Speaker cancelling headphone jack
• Output jack for connecting to outboard amplifier

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I got a great deal on this guitar thanks to a store going out of business, but it is still this same guitar.

Maybe you'll have better luck, but the built in amp in the one I got is pretty crumby, but my kid is 3 and will love it regardless. When you turn the volume up loud enough to hear, you also get to hear some annoying feedback noise. Sometimes it doesn't make the noise, but most of the time it does.

The saving grace is the headphone jack which makes the noise a little, but not as much.

I WILL say that it tuned easily enough and, if you can ignore the feedback, it sounds pretty good. I took it for a test drive and for what I paid (25 USD)I think it is worth it. I'm interested to see what happens when I plug it into the MP3 port on my home entertainment center.

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Tascam DP-004 Digital 4-Track Recorder

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List Price: $279.99
Sale Price: $189.95
Today's Bonus: 32% Off

• Two 1/4 mic/line inputs
• Switchable guitar input
• Headphone/Line output
• USB 2 connector for connecting to your home computer
• Records to SD Card media

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As a songwriter who needs something that will allow me quickly to jot down song ideas and fragments, as well as completed songs, this unit is a little cumbersome. In order to create a song, you must do the following:

1. Turn on unit

2. Press "Menu" button

3. Scroll to "Song" menu item

4. Click a function button to select

5. Using the data wheel, scroll down to "Create"

6. Click a function button to select

7. Use data wheel to enter name of song one laborious letter at a time (optional step: you can forgo naming a song and it will be named "Song023" etc.)

8. Click "Home" button

9. Click "Rec" buttons for tracks 1 and 2 (assuming you want to record in stereo).

10. Click the record transport and play transport buttons together, to start the recording process (I'm assuming you have already set the input levels and want to use the built-in mics)

11. Click the stop transport button when you are done recording your song

12. Repeat steps 9-11 if you wish to overdub another voice or instrument on tracks 3 and/or 4.

13. Click "Menu" button, then "Play" to listen to playback

14. Click stop button at end of song

15. Click "In/Out" button

16. Click function key "Out" to set the out point

17. Click "Rec Mode" button

18. Using data wheel, scroll down to "Master Rec"

19. Click function key to select

20. Click the record transport and play transport buttons together, to start the recording process for the "master" track (this is simply a stereo mixdown of the four tracks)

21. Click "Rec Mode" button

22. Using data wheel, scroll up to "Multi Track"

23. Click function key to select

24. Click "Menu" button

25. Scroll using data wheel to "Wave"

26. Click function key to select

27. Scroll down to "Export Master"

28. Click function key to select

29. Use data wheel to enter name of song one letter at a time (optional step: you can forgo naming a song and it will be named "Song023" etc.)

30. Click function key to execute exporting of the master stereo tracks to the FAT partition of the SD card within the unit.

31. Attach unit to your computer via the supplied USB cable

32. Open folder to view the files on the Tascam

33. Click the "Wave" folder to find the master tracks you just created.

34. Go to a file conversion program to convert the ".wav" file to an ".mp3" file, so you can email it to your friends, etc.

Whew! Not exactly a quick, friendly, intuitive process!

What you want is a two-click process to start recording (as on my old mini-disk recorder), and then be able to connect to a computer to copy the file and convert. There are an awful lot of extra steps involved, but of course you are talking about four tracks, not just stereo, so there's just no getting around the necessity of the mix-down/mastering. What is a little odd and annoying are those extra steps to export the master to the FAT partition of the Tascam SD card (steps 27-30, above).

Also, since each song file must be loaded before you can listen to it, there is no way to play songs one after the other unattended, or zip quickly between songs like you can do on an iPod or CD player, to audition which is which (thus naming them is critical).

Anyway, a word to the wise if you want something quick and easy. You pay for the ability to make a multi-track recording. On the other hand, if you want something with great quality recording sound, ample storage (a 16 GB SDHC card gives you 1300 track minutes in the 8 GB partition you can create (the largest possible), very nice and sensitive built-in stereo mics,and something you can use to create an excellent mini-demo, then this will definitely do the trick.

TIP: Purchase a PSP-100 power adaptor. It is made for the Sony Playstation and is identical to the more costly PS-P520 Tascam says you have to buy (i.e., 5V, 2A, correct plug and polarity). I paid $5 for mine, not $30!

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This is my favorite toy at the moment. I bought it to use it for what it's supposed to be used for a multitrack recorder. I wanted to record myself playing rhythm guitar and then do some lead over the top.

I own a decent Yamaha cassette tape 4-track from the late 80's. How far things have come since then! The DP004 runs from 4AA batteries and fits in the pocket of a pair of baggy shorts. Sure, it's only got 2 audio inputs, no EQ and you can only record 2 tracks at once, but for the price it's fantastic functionality. The user guide is well written and very comprehensive 111 pages in all.

If you're trying to use it to record lectures or other lengthy stereo performances, you've picked the wrong tool. It will do it, but it only records in 44.1kbps, 16bit WAV format big files! If you need to record lectures, buy a dictaphone. The supplied 1GB SD card (ATP brand for mine) is only useful for learning how to use the machine. I put an 8GB Transcend SDHC card in and it says I have 408mins worth of record time on a 2GB partition. (It made itself 3 x 2GB partitions).

The four track recordings go on a proprietary MTP partition on your SD card and the WAV files end up in a FAT partition that your PC can read. The bigger the SD card you put in, the more and the bigger the partitions you get. It wants to format a card as soon as you put a "new" one in. It won't format the whole card into one partition. To the bloke who reckons it ate his card read the part in the manual (p85) that tells you how to reformat the whole card to FAT32 after you've finished using it.

True, there are several steps involved in mixing down your four tracks into a stereo master and then exporting the stereo master to a WAV file. You can fiddle with the level and pan settings during the mixdown, so that's why it takes place in real time. Remember it's supposed to be used for recording garage band ideas, not bootlegging orchestra recitals.

I have done just that however I tried recording my son's school percussion ensemble. I just left the unit on the floor under my seat with the microphones pointed towards the band. Even with the mics only 4" apart, it gives an amazing stereo image. Captures the bass drums, bells and cymbals beautifully. There is a very slight perceptible hiss from (good) headphones on playback, but I'm not sure whether that's the recorder or just the headphone amplifier. This is not a 48-track professional studio mixer with XLR inputs and a gajillion knobs and sliders what can you expect?

The built-in mics have three gain settings high, mid, low and there is an input gain adjust and overload LEDs for each channel. I've tried recording bands with the built-in mic on several MP3 players, and the gain is too high you just get distortion. I have placed the DP004 about 2' from my son's drum set and on the "low" setting it works a treat.

The unit is very easy to use and I've only had to refer to the manual a couple of times to learn everything I needed. The user interface works just like a tape recorder with cue/review, play and stop buttons. You can also jump to any point in the track by changing the index time values (h:mm:ss) with the data wheel.

What a superb piece of kit!

[Edit 7/29/09] One thing lacking that I quickly discovered it has no automatic punch in/out. Tascam's website blurb says it does, but the firmware clearly doesn't support this. You can manually punch in/out but that's next to useless when you're trying to re-record part of a bungled guitar solo for instance. It's not physically possible to let go of the guitar mid song, push the "punch in" button on the recorder and get your hands back on the guitar in the split second before your solo starts. My ancient Yamaha tape 4-track does have this feature. I emailed their tech support about this and got no response whatsoever. Not even a "We're not going to answer your question" email. If anyone can figure out how to do this, please let me know! All it needs is a firmware update; no hardware modification. Still an excellent tool, despite this.

[Edit 12/4/09] I just noticed Tascam now do a DP-008, which is a very similar unit but with 8-track recording. Guess what the '008 has an auto punch in/out feature! I emailed their tech support again, begging them to release a firmware update for the DP-004 with this missing feature included. Join my campaign and email them the more people that bug them, the more likely they will oblige. You can find their (Teac's) customer support email address on their website.

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I just bought the Tascam DP004 pocket studio so that I could record my music, mix tracks, etc. Just a few short points I guess, since this is the first device like this that I've bought.

1) A big complaint is that you can't just turn it on and record (when those inspirational moments come, they just come...) When it turns on, the previous track you recorded on is loaded up, so you can over-write your previous stuff if you just turn on the unit and start recording. Instead, you have to go through some digital menus and create a new file name. When practiced, it takes 20-30 seconds, depending how much effort you want to put into naming the file (somewhat annoying, using the turn dial to select each letter one by one from a long list).

2) Buy the PSP100 power supply, not the tascam brand one. It'll save you at least $20. I have the PSP100 and it works like a 5 volt charm.

3) Recording multiple tracks is easy, and track editing is great. But every time you press the record button, the button physically makes a clicking sound. This sound is recorded and will appear on your track. This is lame.

4) There is a learning curve on this device, but it's not at all unreasonable given what this puppy can do. Just look at the instructions and figure it out as you go along.

5) The unit attaches to computer for data transfer via usb, and this works fine (the tascam just pretends that it's an SD card reader, it seems). If your computer already has an SD card reader though, you might as well forget using it for tascam file transfers. Getting the SD card out of the tascam is a pain. It's hidden in the battery compartment, and it cannot be removed without removing the batteries. Oh well.

6) The built in microphones are great quality. Now just a caveat I'm no professional sound engineer, but there's no extraneous noises, hissing, static or any other type of interference that I can detect. I can record a quiet part and amplify it 10 times when I get it to my computer, and it still sounds great.

A great buy, as long as it doesn't fly into a million pieces anytime soon. (It's sturdy, lol.)

Addendum: Tascam DP-004 handles external microphones very poorly. I've just been recording using the internal condenser microphones, which are actually pretty good, but I upgraded to a shure sm-57 mic, plugged it into the tascam (an xlr-to-1/4 cable) and found that it picks up a lot of noise. The problem wasn't the microphone either. In fact, I have read non-amazon reviews using much better microphones than me, and no one can get external mic recordings nearly as clean as what the tascam's internal condenser mics get. So if you get this tascam, you're sort of stuck with the sound quality of the mics that it comes with: fairly noiseless but with only mediocre quality, frequency distribution, etc. Had I known this, I would not have bought the tascam. To be fair though, it doesn't even have xlr inputs, so maybe I should have taken the hint...

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I use it for recording acoustic violin and Yamaha P-90 electronics piano.

Pro 1: Function very well and its compact size.

Pro 2: Built-in internal microphone is excellent.

Minor Con 1: There is no preamp capability. A phantom power adapter or preamp is required for most microphones.

Minor Con 2: The optional power supply PS-P520 is not a generic 5-volt AC adapter. The DC plug shape is not standard. If AC adapter is not an option to you, you need to spend another $20 to $30 on this adapter.

Minor Con 3: The two microphone/line-in inputs are both ¼", not 3-pin XLR. This is not a problem for guitars. For XLR microphone, XLR to ¼" adapter is required.

A year or so ago I bought a Boss Micro-BR for portable and home recording, and after fighting with it for a few months, I sold it. It worked well enough, and had a lot features, like built in effects and drum tracksbut it was way too complicated to use. Every time I took it out it seemed I had to review the manual. Even when when I thought I had the functions all sorted out, it was easy to get confused, with all the menus and sub-menus. I sold it after a few months. Why couldn't they make a cheap multitrack recorder that was as easy to use as the old Tascam cassette-based Portastudios?

Enter the DP-004. While it's not as easy to use as the old cassette units, it's pretty easyand it does a lot more than any cassette deck ever did. It doesn't have effects or drum tracks (it does have a metronome function) but it does have a lot of knobs and buttons where the Micro BR used menus, and it has two microphonesmaking it a great portable stereo recorder.

The DP-004 does have menus, but once you've set the parameters for a session (inputs, track assignments) you can pretty much ignore most of them until it's time for mastering, and even then it's not too complex. Most of the time you can just use the default settings. Live stereo recordings using the built-in microphones can be done with the DP-004 right out of the box: Punch record on tracks 1 and 3, adjust the levels, and hit the RECORD and PLAY buttons. That's it.

I find myself using the stereo recording function even more than the multitrack capability. It's great for recording practice sessions (or school concerts, for you parents) and yet costs about the same as a lot of the two channel recorders.

It's not perfect. I'd prefer less menu functions and more buttons and switches, but I suppose that would have raised the price and made it larger. Battery life could be better, too, but an AC adapter works well at home. (Hint: Use the Sony PSP100 power supply, which can be had for a fraction of the price of the Tascam unit.) For the money, it's pretty hard to beat.

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Korg WAVEDRUMORT The Expanded Wavedrum Designed for Arabic Music

Customer Ratings:
List Price: Price Unavailable
Sale Price: Price Unavailable
Today's Bonus:

• New sounds and new loop phrases have been added; finished in a rich, deep red color
• Real drumhead and textured rim playing surfaces offer inspired performances
• Innovative technology combines DSP synthesis and PCM samples; plus effects
• 150 preset + 150 user programs; Live Mode stores up to 12 favorites for instant recall
• Jam along to the 140 loop phrases or to the MP3/CD/AUX input; headphone output

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I bought one of the 'standard' wavedrums a while ago. Although I knew that a electronic drum would never really replace an acoustic hand drum, what I saw of the wavedrum convinced me that it had a lot of potential. I have enjoyed it immensely, and it has proved itself very useful. My main music type that I play is kind of a world fusion type, as well as Christian worship (contemporary obviously, but more in the vein of Kevin Prosch or Misty Edwards than standard Christian music. Spontaneous at times, incorporating several kinds of genres and instruments). The wavedrum fit in perfectly. Before, I had my whole set up at big events.. often times a drum set with a doumbek, some types of cajons, a riq, djembe, and a jingled darbuka handy nearby incase I wanted them. In set up B, I used a special cajon with a microphone I placed inside, and some of the same hand drums. Both set ups were a LOT to carry. The wavedrum has allowed me to lighten the load. The oriental even more so, because those added features really pack a punch.

Now like I said, the wavedrum is NOT a replacement for any of these drums, and I don't think it was intended to be. If you are a doumbek prodigy, you're going to play a real doumbek. The subtle technique used in those instruments is just something you need the real thing for if that's what your primary goal is. However, the wavedrum does emulate things very well. Better than any other electronic drum I've seen. I can get doum, tek, and ka depending on how I strike the drum in the 'doumbek' wavedrum algorithms. And the added algorithms and PCM sounds over in the Oriental over the original wavedrum are even more expressive. If you're not a world hand drum virtuoso trying to be a virtuoso, and you play many of these instruments live on a regular basis, I'd really look into this.

That being said, if you want the best from this, you will have to learn to tweak the sounds. It's not that hard, it's just time consuming. I started to recreate all the sounds that I wasn't too fond of, and tweak the ones I was fond of to improve them. I've found the chimes and cymbal/jingle effects are very high quality in the oriental, and I keep finding myself adding them into many of the sounds! It's getting ridiculous.

If you're going to buy a wavedrum, get this one over the original. It is worth it, particularly if you like Arabic/eastern percussion. Or, if you're a serious performer who already has the original, you could do what I did and use this in conjunction with it. You hook up 2 via the headphone out of one, and the aux in of the other (provided you turn up the aux in volume on the receiving wavedrum). It has proven very useful to me, and many people who hear some of the incredible embellished sounds it can make are just blown away.

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I got it into my silly head a while back that I wanted to take up drumming, and like a fool I dove headfirst into this little item. Strange waters for a beginner to go treading into, but I don't regret the purchase in the least. These are very deep waters, and I'm utterly delighted to be in them.

I'm very interested in synthesizers and am familiar with the quality of Korg instruments. After a lot of research on youtube.com and reviews in many publications over all versions of the Wavedrum, I felt that the Oriental Limited Edition was the one to go for with its 50 additional programs over the original (total 150), 9 additional algorithms and the availability of an additional 50 user defined presets (total of 150). After a few weeks of playing it, I replaced the head with a Remo 10" Weatherking Black Suede Ambassador which seems to be a close match for the Korg Wavedrum Black Limited Edition's Remo head. Was this necessary? Had I worn out the original head? Not in the least. This is one tough, durably made instrument. I just wanted to try a different head. Changing the head is a two or three minute operation and the tools necessary to do it with were provided with the instrument. There is an instructive demonstration on youtube.com for this. The new head added quite a different character and playing feel to the drum. Personally, I quite prefer the Black Suede Ambassador. Not a bad addition at $14ish dollars.

How qualified am I to give this review? Apart from being an owner of the object, probably not very. I can only give you my own experience with it and I don't have much to compare it with. I've never studied drumming and what I now know is mostly derived from watching videos and DVDs on drumming technique. Yes, I'm a percussion dilettante with little experience with drums apart from a few hours spent with a pair of drumsticks on a practice pad in college that belonged to my music major roommate. To tell you the truth, in size and shape this instrument is a lot like a practice pad. Unamplified it sounds about like one too. With its thick, strong aluminum rim attached to a dense, plastic body, I believe it's a lot tougher than a practice pad. All my hand drum experience is with a knock-off, Indonesian made djembe.

Do I use it for anything practical? A little. Mostly I just have fun with it. I do a little freelance game development at times and I love making sound effects. This fits right in with that. It's also a great way to blow off steam. Any solid object that won't hit you back is good for blowing off steam, but not so many of those sound as good as this does.

I wonder how the Wavedrum would play if it were attached to a wooden djembe-like body. I've observed that it's good at picking up sounds from my drum stand when I strike it. I think attaching this to a traditional, wooden drum form like a conga, djembe, doumbek or darbuka could be a productive field of endeavor. I've been having fun running a clip-on piezoelectric contact microphone through the Wavedrum's aux input and attaching it to things like stainless steel water bottles, paper towel rolls and even sheets of copier paper to explore their percussive qualities. Could not such a mic be run through a wooden base be used pick up some interesting hand slaps and mallet blows? All you need for such a thing already exists in the Wavedrum. I think you, the engineers at Korg, or a third party developer could have an interesting Wavedrum accessory on their hands with this idea. You heard it here first!

To make the most of this instrument is going to take you a lot of work. Fun work though. It will take you quite a while to exhaust your exploration of the 150 instruments it 'contains.' It's going to take you longer to master programming your own drum patches. I'm not saying that it's so difficult as all that. I mean that the number of variables available to you is huge. Even more so with the Oriental Limited Edition. You're going to need to have your owner's manual at your side to do it, and it requires study. Indeed it does. Study that I find is richly rewarded with all the amazing sounds I can get out of it.

Many have noted that this drum is not a substitute for the many many ethnic instruments that it is able to emulate. Of course it's not. But it is a musical instrument in its own right. It has its own unique qualities, properties and characteristics. Just as it is not a replacement for all of those drums, those drums, for all their virtues, cannot replace this one either.

Thanks for reading such a long review! I deeply enjoy this instrument. I just wanted to convey that.

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All the stuff that was already said. :) The Oriental edition is the Wavedrum with just about twice as many great sounding programs, algorithms and loops. It takes hours to explore all the tasty sounds in a Wavedrum; double that for the Oriental. But like all good drumming exercises, soon your thoughts stop and you begin to heal. Namaste!

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This is a very responsive electronic drum. This version should probably be called the Middle-Eastern edition because the focus was more on that than say Taiko or Chinese drums. So if you're expecting Chinese/Japanese/Korean kinds of drums, you won't find that many on here. However, the Middle Eastern style drums are pretty cool and responsive. There are drums from Africa and other places too.

Pros:

More sounds to choose from than the Original or Black edition of the Korg Wave Drum.

Very responsive.

Sounds great.

Detects what you are playing with (sticks, mallets, brushes, chopsticks)

You can do cool sound bending tricks by pushing on the head.

There's bumps that you can scrap on the rim to make different noises.

Cons:

Switching from patches takes a long time unless you save it to the pre-loaded banks (like 5 or 6 seconds, which means you need to set things up for shows)

Headphone and outputs are a little low in volume even when the volume is set to max. A mixing board can fix this.

The snare drums on here probably shouldn't be used since it is not the bounciest drum head to play on (due to whatever's under the actual swapable drum head)

If you have not used this thing before you buy itthen go check it out at a music store. It is a bit more complex than I thought it would be. Took about an hour to figure out how to properly adjust the sensitivity on the head and rim, and I still dont think I got it right. Perhaps its just the instructions, a DVD would be nice w/ it. Seems pretty solid built though... its a unique tool to say the least.

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American Dj Fwireless Fs1200 Wireless Remote For Fog Storm 1200 And 1700

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $39.95
Sale Price: $30.57
Today's Bonus: 23% Off

• Wireless Remote Accessory For The Fog Storm 1200Hd And The Fog Storm 1700 Hd
• Push Button Type Remote Similar To A Car Alarm Keychain Remote
• Replaces Wired Remote With The Receiver

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Purchased this for my Fog Storm 1700. Came with batteries and worked right out of the box. I tested the max range to be greater than 100 ft.

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We used this remote to control a Fog Storm 1700 located on the stage and concealed in the set. The remote was operated by the lighting tech in the control booth about 80 feet away. There was not a clear line of sight between the controller and the receiver. The setup worked flawlessly over nine performances (plus rehearsals) with multiple triggers per show. Very satisfied. Our other option was to get a DMX controller, but that would have been more expensive and much more complicated from an installation standpoint. Glad we went with the wireless.

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I purchased 2 of these for my FS 1700 Chavet smoke machines. They have excellent range and can recieve signal thru drywall, steel garage door but not cement block. I walked 120' away and they worked fine. The handheld remote device is kinda small and both pieces are made of plastic. We'll see how long they last. Good for now though.

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Going wireless is far worth it....And product came within days ..even before promised. I would recommend anyone to go wireless

We added this little item to our dj fogger. It works great and the range is good to with no problems at 40'+ away. Easy to add and the magnetic feature is a bonus. If you want full control of your fog machine then this device is for you.

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HOSA 2-Foot Headphone Extension Cable 3.5mm TRS to 3.5mm TRS - MHE-102

Customer Ratings:
List Price: Price Unavailable
Sale Price: $4.99
Today's Bonus:

• Specifications -
• Nickel-plated contacts for rugged durability and efficient signal transfer
• Oxygen-Free Copper (OFC) conductors for enhanced signal clarity
• OFC spiral shield for effective EMI and RFI rejection and flexibility
• Connector - 3.5mm TRSM to 3.5mm TRSF

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Hosa makes the best cables and the price of this cable is amazing! I bought an 8 pack of these cables a year ago and have had no problems at all. I use them on a weekly basis so they have definitely seem some wear. Like another review says they do look thin but they seem to be well made and they work great. In my experience with hosa I am sure these cables will last forever.

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The cable has worked great for the last month, but it's very thin. For house practice it's fine, but I wouldn't dare to gig with this thing. I have a feeling it's not a cable that will last forever.

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