"Tell Me of Your Karaoke, Usul."
May 12, 2020 8:08 AM Subscribe
My wife wants a karaoke machine for our home.
I’m tech savvy, but couldn’t carry a tune, even if it had a handle.
Help me find the perfect little system for her!
My wife loves to sing, and has an amazing voice, and home karaoke is one step toward performing in public locally.
I want to get her something that is easy to set up and use, but also has the ability to pretty much play any song she might want to sing.
I also get the feeling that she might want to take it to family gatherings so everyone can share in the fun.
I’ve looked through clickbait articles, and amazon bestsellers, and have come up with pretty much nothing.
I think it needs:
- to be portable
- to have a large library, and be easy to add to that library, either CD, Karaoke CD, MP3 or website, such as YouTube
- show the words to the song, either on a self-contained screen, a smart phone or an iPad, maybe a TV?
- good sound for the music, but it doesn't need to be Dark Side of the Moon brilliant
- I don't care if it has flashing lights and those bells and whistles
I THINK that’s it.
I am willing to answer any and all questions and also consider any and all possibilities.
I’m looking at $200 to spend, but willing to go higher for quality and durability and ease of use.
Thank you!
I will sing a Sinatra tune in your honor!
Or NOT sing a Sinatra tune, your call.
My wife loves to sing, and has an amazing voice, and home karaoke is one step toward performing in public locally.
I want to get her something that is easy to set up and use, but also has the ability to pretty much play any song she might want to sing.
I also get the feeling that she might want to take it to family gatherings so everyone can share in the fun.
I’ve looked through clickbait articles, and amazon bestsellers, and have come up with pretty much nothing.
I think it needs:
- to be portable
- to have a large library, and be easy to add to that library, either CD, Karaoke CD, MP3 or website, such as YouTube
- show the words to the song, either on a self-contained screen, a smart phone or an iPad, maybe a TV?
- good sound for the music, but it doesn't need to be Dark Side of the Moon brilliant
- I don't care if it has flashing lights and those bells and whistles
I THINK that’s it.
I am willing to answer any and all questions and also consider any and all possibilities.
I’m looking at $200 to spend, but willing to go higher for quality and durability and ease of use.
Thank you!
I will sing a Sinatra tune in your honor!
Or NOT sing a Sinatra tune, your call.
A KaraFun subscription is $10/month and has a huge library. It doesn’t get much more portable than your smartphone or tablet.
posted by hollyholly at 10:36 AM on May 12, 2020
posted by hollyholly at 10:36 AM on May 12, 2020
If you happen to have a Nintendo Switch, they have a karaoke app called Joysound where you can pay when you want to use it. English songs are kind of limited, though, as it's a Japanese distributor. But if you happen to have a Switch already, try it out, the app is free.
posted by LoonyLovegood at 6:53 PM on May 12, 2020
posted by LoonyLovegood at 6:53 PM on May 12, 2020
Response by poster: Thank you all for your answers so far, I appreciate it! I should have added that I am looking for something that comes with the speaker and microphones as well. I didn't know there were so many possible solutions that didn't include those things.
posted by Bill Watches Movies Podcast at 7:30 AM on May 13, 2020
posted by Bill Watches Movies Podcast at 7:30 AM on May 13, 2020
Best answer: Well, this isn't quite my area, but, what the heck, I got time on my hands (*gestures at everything*) and an internet connection . . .
After some poking around, I feel like this or one of its variants might be your best bet: ION Tailgater Plus Rock Block.
Weighs 12 pounds, operates on a rechargeable battery, has microphone, seems to have good "sound" reviews.
It doesn't come with a library, but we'll get to that in a minute.
Of note is that ION is about the closest thing to a "name brand" that seems to exist in Karaoke-machine-world - to my not-inexperienced eye, a lot of the machines are really borderline toys, cheap junk. While ION is not really a pro gear manufacturer, they at least seem to have a responsive service and support team (they've answered lots of questions on Amazon) and a comprehensible manual. So you don't have to puzzle through setting it up on your own or with minimal information, and it seems if something goes awry you at least have a chance of getting some support.
- to have a large library, and be easy to add to that library, either CD, Karaoke CD, MP3 or website, such as YouTube
- show the words to the song, either on a self-contained screen, a smart phone or an iPad, maybe a TV?
OK, so, just in case you're not aware of some basic stuff, having lyrics on a screen requires a different type of CD (CD+G aka "Karaoke CD") or mp3 file (MP3+G) than you get when you just purchase a regular CD or download songs from iTunes or wherever.
(Side note is that "karaoke" videos/CD's/mp3's tend to put the lyrics on screen in the rhythm & timing of when you're supposed to be singing them (more or less), word by word or line by line, making it somewhat easier to sing along properly. Also, "karaoke" songs are re-recorded versions of songs (not done by the original musicians) with the main vocals left out.)
As folks have pointed out, there are a ton of "with lyrics" and/or "karaoke" videos on YouTube. (Note that a lot of "lyrics" videos are the original recordings, so they have all the original lead vocal parts (some people find this hard or less fun to sing along to) & often just plunk whole verses down on screen at once.)
Or there's subscription services like the KaraFun.
Or you can buy karaoke CD collections or buy & download mp3+G karaoke collections or individual songs.
So my suggestion would be to use an iPad or tablet as both your music source and video screen for lyrics. To get the audio from the iPad to the ION, you could either link via Bluetooth or use a 1/8" (3.5mm) to 1/8" cable from the headphone output of the iPad to the "auxiliary" input of the ION. Depending on your location and iPad capabilities, you could steam the songs you want via YouTube or a subscription service, and/or you could buy Karaoke CD's or mp3's and add songs directly to your device. (Note that buying CD collections might mean that you or your wife have to do quite a bit of sorting to find the specific songs she wants to sing, so maybe a subscription service or buying individual mp3 downloads would be the way to go.)
posted by soundguy99 at 6:16 AM on May 16, 2020
After some poking around, I feel like this or one of its variants might be your best bet: ION Tailgater Plus Rock Block.
Weighs 12 pounds, operates on a rechargeable battery, has microphone, seems to have good "sound" reviews.
It doesn't come with a library, but we'll get to that in a minute.
Of note is that ION is about the closest thing to a "name brand" that seems to exist in Karaoke-machine-world - to my not-inexperienced eye, a lot of the machines are really borderline toys, cheap junk. While ION is not really a pro gear manufacturer, they at least seem to have a responsive service and support team (they've answered lots of questions on Amazon) and a comprehensible manual. So you don't have to puzzle through setting it up on your own or with minimal information, and it seems if something goes awry you at least have a chance of getting some support.
- to have a large library, and be easy to add to that library, either CD, Karaoke CD, MP3 or website, such as YouTube
- show the words to the song, either on a self-contained screen, a smart phone or an iPad, maybe a TV?
OK, so, just in case you're not aware of some basic stuff, having lyrics on a screen requires a different type of CD (CD+G aka "Karaoke CD") or mp3 file (MP3+G) than you get when you just purchase a regular CD or download songs from iTunes or wherever.
(Side note is that "karaoke" videos/CD's/mp3's tend to put the lyrics on screen in the rhythm & timing of when you're supposed to be singing them (more or less), word by word or line by line, making it somewhat easier to sing along properly. Also, "karaoke" songs are re-recorded versions of songs (not done by the original musicians) with the main vocals left out.)
As folks have pointed out, there are a ton of "with lyrics" and/or "karaoke" videos on YouTube. (Note that a lot of "lyrics" videos are the original recordings, so they have all the original lead vocal parts (some people find this hard or less fun to sing along to) & often just plunk whole verses down on screen at once.)
Or there's subscription services like the KaraFun.
Or you can buy karaoke CD collections or buy & download mp3+G karaoke collections or individual songs.
So my suggestion would be to use an iPad or tablet as both your music source and video screen for lyrics. To get the audio from the iPad to the ION, you could either link via Bluetooth or use a 1/8" (3.5mm) to 1/8" cable from the headphone output of the iPad to the "auxiliary" input of the ION. Depending on your location and iPad capabilities, you could steam the songs you want via YouTube or a subscription service, and/or you could buy Karaoke CD's or mp3's and add songs directly to your device. (Note that buying CD collections might mean that you or your wife have to do quite a bit of sorting to find the specific songs she wants to sing, so maybe a subscription service or buying individual mp3 downloads would be the way to go.)
posted by soundguy99 at 6:16 AM on May 16, 2020
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posted by briank at 10:08 AM on May 12, 2020 [1 favorite]