If your previous attempts at learning to play an instrument ended in failure, the Novation Launchpad might be your ticket to musical bliss. This device is an audio controller that you can use with your computer. It consists of an 8-by-8 panel of buttons. Each … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear, News, Spotlight Gadgets

Tagged: Instrument, Music

An instrument for the terminally tuneless – LaunchPad originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on November 5, 2009 at 6:19 pm.

Like many people, I own quite a few headphones.  These days all handheld devices we purchase come with a free corded headphone which most of the time are of crappy sound quality.   But what if I want great quality sound but without the mess of a snaking cable dangling down to my Bluetooth enabled media device?  This is where the Sony Ericsson Stereo Bluetooth HBH-IS800 comes in. … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Audio / Video Gear, Musical Gear

Tagged: Bluetooth, Headset

Sony Ericsson Stereo Bluetooth HBH-IS800 Headset Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on November 4, 2009 at 8:45 pm.

When I got the invite to test drive Pick Smith’s Jam Kat. I agreed, not knowing what exactly a Jam Kat did or who Pick Smith was. Twenty minutes of poking around their website got me only marginally closer to answering those questions, but I did eventually determine that the Jam Kat is a rather clever device for quickly switching between playing fingerstyle and using a pick.

(This review was originally posted on my Ukulelereview.com site. I thought my gadgeteer guitar playing friends would like to read about it too – Julie) … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear

Tagged: Guitar

Pick Smith Jam Kat Wearable Pick Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on October 31, 2009 at 9:30 am.

Even rock gods need to practice once in awhile. Now you can do that anywhere, with the Shedneck. Available in different headstock colors and styles that include electric, acoustic, classical and bass, the Shredneck is modeled after the first seven frets of a guitar. You can … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear, Spotlight Gadgets

Tagged: Guitar

Practice your power chords anywhere with the Shredneck originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on September 22, 2009 at 12:24 pm.

I’m a fan of guitar (and ukulele) tuners that use vibration help you to zero in on the right note for each string. Here’s a new one from Planet Waves that looks like it might be pretty nice. It has a narrow LCD display … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear, Spotlight Gadgets

Tagged: Guitar, Tuner

Tune your guitar with vibrations – Planet Waves Headstock Tuner originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on September 12, 2009 at 10:58 am.

Here’s another gadget to hold your guitar pick while you play guitar. The Jam Kat is a bit different though because it features a flip mechanism that will allow you to quickly switch from playing fingerstyle with your fingers to strumming with a pick. Interesting … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear, Spotlight Gadgets

Tagged: Guitar

Quickly flip from fingerstyle to strumming – Jam Kat Pick Holster originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on September 9, 2009 at 12:26 pm.

Just a few weeks ago, I reviewed Cakewalk’s UA-1G USB Audio Interface and I was much impressed. Today, Cakewalk kicks it up a notch with the smaller of the two of their new V-Studio packages. This combo package of a portable digital multi-track recorder, a Digital Audio Workstation control surface, a PC and Mac compatible USB audio interface, and a software package to die for seemingly combines the best of not both, but all of my little worlds. Unfortunately, right in the middle of this review I suffered a major technology breakdown, it was the best thing that could have happened, read along… … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Audio / Video Gear, Musical Gear

Tagged: Cakewalk, V-Studio

Cakewalk V-Studio 100 Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on September 8, 2009 at 2:38 pm.

Check out these made to order resin and steel reinforced wall mounted guitar hangers from Grip Studios. They are available in different colors and shapes, including human hands, skeleton hands and monster hands. They are priced from $39.99 up to $119.99. I need some of … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear, Spotlight Gadgets

Tagged: Guitar

Hand shaped custom guitar hangers – Grip Studios originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on September 7, 2009 at 10:12 am.

Available in October, the Tascam PT-7 shoves three devices into one small package. The PT-7 starts with a high-speed chromatic tuner, adjustable to 7 alternate scales, adds a metronome that plays from the speaker or headphone at rates form 30 to 300bpm … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear, Spotlight Gadgets

Tagged: Tuner

Tune, record and stay in time with one device – Tascam PT-7 originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on September 5, 2009 at 9:10 am.

During my normal Saturday morning routine of hot tea, steel-cut oats and magazine browsing, I happened upon the ZeroGravity Orbit Guitar Pick in the latest copy of a visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear, Spotlight Gadgets

Tagged: Guitar

A guitar pick with training wheels? – ZeroGravity Orbit Guitar Pick originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on August 29, 2009 at 11:53 am.

Have you ever really listened to your favorite music?  Most of you either answered yes or know where I’m going and are rolling your eyes.  To those of you in the latter group, I know you’ve been here before so I’ll make my intro nice and short.   If you do not have a good set of headphones or speakers, a good audio source AND an amplifier, you’ve never truly heard your music the way it was intended. I know this sounds pretentious, but I’m a believer.  Will I find audio bliss in the HeadRoom Total BitHead? … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Audio / Video Gear, Musical Gear

Tagged: Amplifier, Audio, Headphones

HeadRoom Total BitHead Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on August 22, 2009 at 11:07 am.

This little beauty, otherwise known as the “Mint Tin Pocket Amp” is great for that guitar player on the go.  We all knew that Altoids tins were good for storing certain things… However, who would have thought they could be used for this?  This mini amp is for the … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear

Tagged: Guitar

Fresh Riffs?…Try the Altoids amp originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on August 7, 2009 at 5:16 pm.

The VAX77 MIDI Keyboard Controller from Infinite Response has to be the coolest looking musical instrument that I’ve seen in awhile. It includes MIDI in and MIDI out, as well as full USB support and is available in three different key weights. Of course, the most … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear, Spotlight Gadgets

Tagged: Keyboard, MIDI

VAX77 – Full size MIDI keyboard that folds in half originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 21, 2009 at 10:13 am.

I started exploring PC based digital multi-track recording well over a decade ago, when it was expensive and impractical. After investing over $5,000 in the endeavor, I eventually wound up with a system that exceeded my much maligned  cassette based 4 track portable studio. Fast forward and Cakewalk just sent me their most recent solution, a $99 hardware and software package promising the world and more. I know what you’re thinking, this is a joke right? Not so fast, read on…

… [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Audio / Video Gear, Musical Gear

Tagged: Cakewalk, Roland

Cakewalk UA-1G USB Audio Interface Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 8, 2009 at 7:54 am.

The Rhythmring is a small polycarbonate tube filled with beads that you wear on your hand to add some extra rhythm to your guitar and ukulele … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear, Spotlight Gadgets

Tagged: Instrument, Music

Rhythmring adds some cha cha to your guitar playing originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 5, 2009 at 4:35 pm.

The Orpheus Wallet from Braithwaite Wallets has been designed specifically with guitar players (maybe even a few ukulele players – you never know) in mind. It’s made of … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear

Tagged: Guitar, Wallet

A wallet for guitar players originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 4, 2009 at 11:13 am.

Swimming laps in the pool back and forth-back and forth.  As you’re swimming you hear the splashing of waves against the lane barriers and sides of the pool. Exhaled bubbles rush past your ears in loud succession.  If you were running, you would be listening to your favorite tunes, picking up the pace with each new song, rather than listening to your breathing and nearby road noise.  In fact, like caffeine, music is indisputably a performance enhancing “drug.”  To help pick up the pace of your swimming workout, Finis (pronounced fin-ees) applied a revolutionary technology to the lap pool to deliver the SwiMP3v2.  The SwiMP3v2 allows the lap swimmer to bring their favorite music into the pool with them with surprising audio quality. … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Audio / Video Gear, Musical Gear

Tagged: MP3, Swimming, Waterproof

Finis SwiMP3v2 Waterproof MP3 Player Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on May 12, 2009 at 1:57 pm.

Friend of The Gadgeteer and music man extraordinaire Mark Rosengarten sent me an email tonight to tell me that he’s waiting to take delivery of a Tenori-On. Since I had no clue what he was talking about, I went directly to my BFF Google for the 411. … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear, Spotlight Gadgets

Tagged: Instrument

Is it a Lite-Brite or a musical instrument? originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on April 27, 2009 at 9:51 pm.

The Guitar Hanger is a pretty ingenious way to store your guitars in a regular closet. Just throw all your clothes on the floor (that’s where half of them are anyway right?)  and dangle your Strats and Les Pauls in glorious splendor. I need 7 of these for … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear, Spotlight Gadgets

Tagged: Guitar

A closet of guitars is way better than clothes originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on April 22, 2009 at 8:07 am.

Super small USB powered 25-key velocity-sensitive MIDI keyboard controller from Korg. Also available, from Korg is the nanoPAD USB drumpad and the nanoKONTROL USB MIDI … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear, Spotlight Gadgets

Tagged: Keyboard, MIDI, Music

Spotlight Gadget – Korg nanoKEY MIDI Keyboard Controller originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on February 21, 2009 at 9:22 am.

Hercules has updated the boring old guitar stand to new levels with the I-Stand. The design is pretty cool. It collapses into a disc shape when not holding a guitar. I need a bunch of these for my ukuleles! … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear, Spotlight Gadgets

Tagged: Guitar, Stand

Spotlight Gadget – Hercules I-Stand Guitar Stand originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on February 21, 2009 at 8:47 am.

It’s been a year since I rediscovered music by picking up the ukulele. Now I’m completely obsessed with this little instrument and in addition, all the accessories that go along with them. Ok, there really aren’t THAT many ukulele accessories… But, one accessory that I use every time I play is a tuner. As a result, I’m always on the lookout for an easier to use and more compact tuner than my current favorite, the Intelli IMT-500 Chromatic Tuner. That’s why the Korg DT-4 caught my eye the other day while flipping through a Muscian’s Friend catalog. I ordered one, and now you get to hear all about it. … [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear

Tagged: Chromatic, Tuner

Korg DT-4 Chromatic Tuner Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on January 20, 2009 at 8:45 pm.

Since I recently started playing a ukulele, I’ve been interested in various accessories that go along with playing a stringed instrument. Admittedly, there aren’t many. But the main accessory that I use every time I sit down to play (or try to play) a song, is a tuner. A month ago, I took a look a the Intelli IMT-500 tuner. I like it very much, but like any good gadgeteer, I’ll be happy to dump it for something better. Today I’m going to tell you about the eNote Clip On Digital Chromatic Tuner from ELECA. Read on to see if it beats the Intelli.

… [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear

Tagged: Tuner

eNote Clip On Digital Chromatic Tuner originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on January 8, 2008 at 9:15 pm.

Back in the stone age when I was learning to play guitar, there were only two ways to tune an instrument. By pitch pipe, or by ear. I wasn’t good at either method and was always frustrated that my guitar sounded ‘funky’ when I would play it. Years later, when the first electronic tuners were introduced, I was over joyed. Finally an easy way to keep my instrument in tune. They only problems with those tuners were the fact that they were somewhat bulky and required either a quiet room or a patch cable to connect to the instrument’s pickup. Things have changed since those days. Now we have nifty strobe type tuners like the Waves Strobe-On-String tuner that I reviewed not long ago and the Intelli IMT-500 Digital Chromatic Tuner that I’m going to show you today.

… [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear

Tagged: Tuner

Intelli IMT-500 Clip-on Digital Chromatic Tuner originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on December 10, 2007 at 12:15 pm.

If you play guitar, either acoustic or electric, you probably own some type of tuner. Tuners come in several varieties. There are pitch pipe type tuners that make a sound for each guitar string. Your task is to then tighten or loosen the string until the sound it makes matches the reference note that the pitch pipe makes. Unless you have a really good ear, this is a very hard way to tune your instrument. Electronic tuners are much easier to use. These tuners have a microphone that picks up the sound a string makes when you pluck it. Then using a meter or some other method, it tells you if you need to loosen or tighten the string to bring it to the right pitch. The only problem with this type of tuner is that it requires a relatively quiet environment to work or if the guitar has a pick-up, you can connect the tuner using a cable. Today I’m going to tell you about a tuner that can work in the noisiest places, doesn’t need a cable and is tiny enough to fit in your pocket. It’s the Strobe-On-String Guitar Tuner from
Planet Waves.

… [visit site to read more]

Filed in categories: Musical Gear

Tagged: Tuner

Planet Waves Strobe-On-String Guitar Tuner originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on August 16, 2007 at 9:12 pm.