Karaoke Forums

Hi gang! I'm a home karaoke enthusiast looking to upgrade my system without breaking the bank. My current player is a Sound Choice karaoke machine (PCK-4000) that plays CDGs and USBs, can rip songs from CDG to USB (a feature I *love*) and has two mic inputs. I also have two wired Shure mics, a computer monitor (with VGA cable) for display, and a Behringer keyboard amp for sound.
What I’d like to get is:
- A mixer, or a player with a built-in mixer (?), to make the vocals blend more with the music so the singer will sound better, instead of standing out from the music so much.
- A somewhat better karaoke player.
- For display, I'd like to keep using my computer monitor.
- Better speakers/amp – my amp is decent but of course there is no stereo sound.
- Two wireless mics. (Although I know wireless mics can have issues with feedback, etc. - so I'm open to sticking with wired.)
I'd like the whole system to be fairly portable so I can bring it to friends' parties, etc.
I've been reading good things about VocoPro players and mics. Their Jamcube 2 looks promising, although it doesn't seem to have a VGA output.
I'd appreciate any advice you all could offer. Thanks and have a great day!
Ted

Start with the player, most of us (home and pro kj's) do not use physical players anymore but use computers/laptops which are much more versatile. Rip the discs to the hard drive and it's done. Most of the better softwares will have some kind of search ability so you can type in the song or artist and get your results. Drag it to the playlist and you're off! VGA outputs on laptops are starting to go away, but you can always get an HDMI to VGA converter so you can keep your existing monitor.

A mixer is always a good thing. Here is a basic mixer, good effects, and vocal compression on 2 channels.
http://www.zzounds.com/item--YAMMG10XU

Speakers i'd recommend going with powered speakers, already have the amp built in and everything are designed to work together. Something like:
http://www.zzounds.com/item--MACTHUMP12?siid=136447
There are lots of options as far as speakers, and decent ones will be probably the most expensive part of an ok system.

Wireless mics, these will only have issue with feedback if they are turned up too high, eq'd wrong or too close to speakers. And cheaper wireless mics are typically pure crap. General rule of thumb is when getting a mic there is QUALITY/WIRELESS/CHEAP - you can pick only 2! However, there is a cheap set that I and many other kj's use:
https://www.amazon.com/GTD-Audio-G-622H ... =gtd+audio

I personally won't recommend anything VocoPro, overpriced & underfeatured.

It's basically portable enough. Two lightweight speakers, small mixer, mic receiver & laptop.

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Lonman, thanks so much for all the great info! I've resisted moving to a laptop but maybe it is time for me to "get with the times." Do you have any favorite software? I have Microstudio already and I think it includes a "home karaoke player" feature - not sure if it's any good. I've used Microstudio for ripping CDGs to MP3s but lately I've been using the Sound Choice player. Regardless of which one I use, there are some tracks that don't rip well - they skip, or the sound fades out at times, etc. I've tried ripping at slower speeds, etc. but when a track won't rip properly it doesn't seem to matter what I try - it always has the same defects post-ripping. I've always wondered what caused that. (These same tracks are fine when played from CDG.)

The mixer you suggested looks great! I guess it plugs into a laptop via USB? I understand your advice about wireless mics - and now I'm leaning toward sticking with my Sure wired mics - they've been really good and reliable so far. And I have good long mic cords.

The speakers look amazing! Definitely more than I was planning to spend but I'll think about it, and maybe look around for something a little less awesome (and less expensive).
Again, thanks so much!

You can check out all the softwares and decide. My preference is MTU Hoster.
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=22248
Most are designed for kj use, but many still use them at home as well.
MTU Microstudio can work as a basic player - no real hosting functions to speak of. Not sure which version you got, but the latest versions will actually send the lyrics to a 2nd screen. But as far as ripping programs, Microstudio is in the top 3 (#1 IMO). If you are having issues with Microstudio ripping poorly, either the disc itself is scratched to a point it can't be read or the DVD/CD drive isn't fully compatible.
There is also an ok free player from www.karafun.com that will also play your ripped files.

Yes the mixer connects to the computer via USB - much better than using the headphone jack of the computer.

Again the wireless mics I linked to contradict the normal 'pick 2' rule. They are a good sound quality, don't feel cheap, not a lot of handling noise (like you normally get with cheap mics). Plus if one breaks, it's only $35 to replace. I took all my Shure SM58 wired & wireless mics out of service in favor of these GTD Audio cheapies. They sound 'almost' as good as the Shures and a little eq tweak, you can't beat em!

Speakers are probably the key you don't want to skimp on, those I linked to are actually 'cheap' for an ok sound. Yes you can get cheaper - but you really do get what you pay for in the end.

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