News, reviews and articles about musical gear and accessories.
The other night while watching TV, I caught a new iPad mini commercial from Apple. This one features a little girl playing a ukulele and singing a song to her grandpa. The little girl is using Facetime on her full sized iPad while her grandpa is watching at the other end with his mini. Cute […]
I’ll be home for Christmas with the iPad mini take 2 Read More
Most of the instrument interfaces for connecting an instrument to a computer or iPad that we’ve looked at on the Gadgeteer require the instrument to have a 1/4″ phono plug or a USB port (or adapter, like the Apple Camera Connection kit). They work great, except when you have instruments or mics with different connectors.
Focusrite iTrack Solo microphone and instrument interface for iPad, Mac, and PC Read More
Computers and software have transformed the recording industry for even amateur musicians. No longer do you have to rent expensive time in recording studios to make professional-sounding recordings. A quick Google search will find multiple stories about entire albums being recorded on an iPad or an iPhone. If you intend to use only virtual instruments,
Squier by Fender Strat Guitar with USB and iOS Connectivity review Read More
Guitarists who want to record directly into their computer or iPad have had to rely on some sort of interface, and The Gadgeteer has reviewed some of them. Some work better than others, and some require proprietary software for best results. Fender has released a guitar that doesn’t require a third party interface. Their Squier
Squier by Fender Strat Guitar with USB and iOS Connectivity Read More
The Pitchclip from Korg is a chromatic clip-on tuner that will help you quickly and accurately tune your guitar, bass or ukulele. It features a display that can be reversed for easy viewing when mounted on either side of the instrument’s headstock. The Pitchclip is available in 8 different colors and is priced at an affordable
Korg Pitchclip is an inexpensive colorful way to tune your stringed instruments Read More
Guitarists who perform live (and even those who don’t) are always on the look out for new ways to attach an extra pick to their instruments. When you’re playing music in front of people and accidentally drop your pick, you can’t take time to search around for another one in the middle of a tune.
Wedgie – A handy guitar pick holder instead of a bad high school memory Read More
It’s time to start planning your holiday shopping, and Pyle Audio has a great gift idea for someone who wants to learn to play guitar. Their PEGKT15 electric guitar package comes with everything needed to get started. The kit starts with a double-cutaway, solid-body electric guitar made with a basswood body, maple neck, and rosewood fretboard. It
Pyle Audio All-in-One Beginner Electric Guitar Package Read More
If you’re an amateur or professional musician, you’ve undoubtedly seen information about the variety of interfaces that allow you to record music on your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad. IK Multimedia, who created the iRig guitar interface, has just announced that their new iRig PRE microphone interface is ready to ship. The iRig PRE has
IK Multimedia’s iRig PRE Universal Microphone Interface for iPhone/iPod touch/iPad Read More
iRig KEYS is 37 velocity sensitive MIDI keyboard that connects directly to the docking connector on an iPhone, iPod, iPad or the USB port on Mac/PC. It is an ultra-low power device that can be used for hours when connected to one of these devices. It features a pitch bending wheel and programmability with storage
Hammacher Schlemmer is offering what they call the World’s Lightest Packable Electric Guitar. It weighs 3 pounds and is 28″ long overall, and it is a “full-scale length 24 3/4″ guitar with 22 frets, enabling accurate chord and finger placement without adjusting one’s playing style.” The tuning pegs are placed inside the “body” of the
World’s Lightest Packable Electric Guitar Read More
Made in the USA of recycled plastic, MagnetaPicks are 0.8mm thick guitar picks with an embedded neodymium magnet. The embedded magnet means you can stick these picks on metal surfaces such as the strings of your guitar (if you play a steel string guitar of course), the back of your tuners, mic stand or even
MagnetaPicks – Lost Guitar Picks may be a Thing of the Past Read More
I’ve mentioned that my husband is an amateur musician who has an interest in recording his own music. Julie recently allowed us to review a Behringer USB link to connect a guitar to a computer, with Butch doing the evaluation and me doing the writeup. She’s now allowing us to review the JamUp Plug from
Positive Grid JamUp Plug and JamUp Pro iOS App Review Read More
Wear Your Music is offering some unique gift ideas for music lovers and musicians. They sell bracelets made from recycled guitar strings of stars like Eric Clapton, MGMT and Santana. If jewelry isn’t your thing, they also make bowls from vintage records. Prices vary greatly with the bracelets. Depending on the artist, you might pay anywhere
Wear some Rock God Mojo on Your Wrist Read More
I don’t play any instruments, but my husband, Butch plays guitar and piano. He’s always had an interest in recording his music, and over the years has purchased several expensive effects processors and recording devices. These items are all tucked away because they are clunky to use and take a lot of space to get
Behringer Guitar Link UCG102 USB Interface Review Read More
I’ve tried all kinds of iPad apps that can turn the tablet into a musical instrument. There are piano apps, drum apps, guitar apps, etc. They are all fun to play with, but this is the first time I’ve actually been thoroughly impressed with one. Ian told us about the Futulele app a few months ago, but
Who Needs a Real Ukulele When you Have an iPad? Read More
Samson’s new Carbon 49 USB MIDI Controller is piano style keyboard with 49 velocity-sensitive keys, dedicated Transpose and Octave buttons, as well as Pitch Bend and Modulation wheels. Designed with the iPad in mind, the Carbon 49 features an integrated iPad slot and can be used with your favorite MIDI apps via Apple’s iPad Camera
Carbon 49 – A Fullsized Piano Keyboard Designed With the iPad in Mind Read More
This Solar Guitar Tuner from ThinkGeek has a solar panel to keep its batteries recharged. The TASCAM TC-15 chromatic tuner has needle, strobe, fine, meter tuning modes, with twelve tone equal temperament tuning and a detection accuracy of within one cent (one hundredth of a semitone). Tune the guitar by plugging it into the Solar
Tune Your Guitar with the Power of the Sun Read More
Many years ago someone invented a cable lock system that protected your bicycle from theft. Not so long ago, Kensington took that idea and applied it to a cable that was designed to secure your laptop. Now we have another product that uses this basic same idea. It’s the Rock Lock for your guitar. It’s made
Secure your Guitar with a Rock Lock Read More
Most computers and mobile devices have built-in microphones now, and they are fine for phone calls and video calls. They fall short when you need a higher-quality audio for podcasting or recording music. There are a variety of microphones on the market, from cheap stalk microphones to studio-quality mics costing hundreds (or thousands) of dollars.
Samson Meteor Mic USB Studio Microphone Review Read More
Olaf Diegel from the Auckland University of Technology in Auckland, New Zealand is exploring the limits of 3D printing technologies and applications. Some of his projects are shown on his ODD website. Case in point his Spider electric guitar which is cut using a EOS Formiga P100 (which I’m guessing is probably a little out of the price range of
3D Printed Guitars Rock Read More