Unless you’re incredibly organized, it’s highly likely that you have different music tracks dotted around different devices, which can turn digital DJing from a celebration of music to a mess of jumbled cables quicker than you can shout “tune”. Pioneer’s new digital decks, however, swap wires for Wi-Fi. More »
The advent of digital DJing removed the jumps and skips of vinyl, while introducing a bad case of cable spaghetti, as spinners bring their own kit to the party. Pioneer saw that, and has finally cut them free with the new XDJ-AERO. The WiFi-enabled DJ controller lets you load up the next Moombahcore banger direct from a smartphone, tablet, laptop or PC — with support for four connected devices at once. This also means that the audience can get involved in the track selection — a la Nexus Q — but you might want to keep that fact quiet. The XDJ-AERO is designed to work with Pioneer’s own rekordbox application, but can also be use as a MIDI controller for other popular software. On the actual hardware-side of things, there’s a built-in 24-bit audio interface, two-channel mixer (which can be used standalone) plus the usual array of cue-point triggers, FX and filters we’ve come to expect. What price does the cutting of cables command? £869 (about $1,399), and the beat can begin some time later this month. Can’t wait ’til then? Drop past the break for the ridiculously cool video (and slightly less cool press release).
Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Home Entertainment
Pioneer’s new WiFi-enabled XDJ-AERO controller says goodbye wires, hello dancefloor (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 09 Aug 2012 06:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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It’s not often that we stumble upon classical music on the floor at SIGGRAPH, so the tune of Bach’s Cantata 147 was reason enough to stop by Gocen’s small table in the annual graphics trade show’s Emerging Technologies hall. At first glance, the four Japanese men at the booth could have been doing anything on their MacBook Pros — there wasn’t a musical instrument in sight — but upon closer inspection, they each appeared to be holding identical loupe-like devices, connected to each laptop via USB. Below each self-lit handheld reader were small stacks of sheet music, and it soon became clear that each of the men was very slowly moving their devices from side to side, playing a seemingly perfect rendition of “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring.”
The project, called Gocen, is described by its creators as a “handwritten notation interface for musical performance and learning music.” Developed at Tokyo Metropolitan University, the device can read a printed (or even handwritten) music score in real-time using optical music recognition (OMR), which is sent through each computer to an audio mixer, and then to a set of speakers. The interface is entirely text and music-based — musicians, if you can call them that, scan an instrument name on the page before sliding over to the notes, which can be played back at different pitches by moving the reader vertically along the line. It certainly won’t replace an orchestra anytime soon — it takes an incredible amount of care to play in a group without falling out of a sync — but Gocen is designed more as a learning tool than a practical device for coordinated performances. Hearing exactly how each note is meant to sound makes it easier for students to master musical basics during the beginning stages of their educations, providing instant feedback for those that depend on self-teaching. You can take a closer look in our hands-on video after the break, in a real-time performance demo with the Japan-based team.
Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Handhelds, Peripherals
Gocen optical music recognition can read a printed score, play notes in real-time (hands-on video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 08 Aug 2012 17:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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If you’re in the market for a battery-powered speaker and are willing to splurge a bit, then you’d be wise to check out the 1Q from Vers. The diminutive, 3-inch cube-shaped music system is said to provide some impressive tunes all by its lonesome, but it can also be paired with another 1Q to provide true stereo sound. Also, thanks to a 3.5mm headphone jack and Bluetooth connectivity, the little guy is sure to work with any number of devices. Naturally, much of the 1Q’s allure is due to its hand-crafted wooden enclosure, which is available in walnut and bamboo varieties. The Vers 1Q has eight days left in its Kickstarter funding phase, but it’s not like the project will need your help across the finish line: it’s already surpassed the goal nine times over. Fortunately for you, this provides an opportunity to snag a 1Q for just $95; when it hits the market in November, the speaker will retail for $120. For even more details, be sure to hit up the PR after the break.
Meet the Vers 1Q: the wooden, portable Bluetooth speaker gets Kickstarted, ships this November originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 08 Aug 2012 07:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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This week you’ll find that your Sonos player is able to hook up with none other than Songza, a system which not only allows you to make fabulous playlists, but to see playlists made by professional musicians as well. Sonos is already a system with many musical sources working with it for a fabulously harmonious system of speakers and mobile connections galore – now with Songza, you’ll be able to sit back and enjoy the sound in a whole new way.
This system is available for users in both Canada and the United States for starters, and hooking up with it is perfectly simple. All you’ve got do to is head to Songza online to sign up, then add it to your Sonos UI. Inside Sonos you only need to navigate to More Music on your Controller and poof! There Songza will be. This system is 100% free and has no audio advertisements whatsoever.
This release has several big-name music artists joining in on the party including Counting Crows, Tori Amos, Slash, and Montgomery Gentry. Each of these artists have their own playlists that you can access instantly. Sonza also allows you to make your own playlists and have them ready to go based on different times during the day as well – it’s a rather versatile system.
Dive in to our Sonos portal to see everything from hardware and software updates to reviews of products galore. You’ll also want to head to the timeline below to catch up on the newest updates to the Sonos line, and stick around as the connections continue!
Sonos updates with Songza for pro-made playlists is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Love your Kindle Fire, but find yourself habitually cursing its lack of Swedish music streaming services? Great news, Spotify’s now available through everyone’s favorite $200 Amazon tablet, bringing with it free custom radio stations, social functionality like the ability to view friends’ playlists and 320kbps listening. Interested parties can download the app from the source link below.
Filed under: Tablet PCs, Software
Spotify app hits Kindle Fire, brings mobile radio and 320kbps listening originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Aug 2012 12:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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It looks like SiriusXM is ready to start providing its content in a way people will be more receptive to, today announcing the launch of SiriusXM On Demand. The company says that over 200 shows and 2,000 hours of content will be available from its network on the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. Better yet, the app will be available at no extra cost to existing SiriusXM subscribers, so if you happen to miss your favourite show while on the road, you can fire up the app and listen later without worrying about the costs.
Sirius also says it will be making older content available, including its exclusive shows, specials, and series, and new Featured Content will give users a broader access to the library available to them, including interviews and new shows, and users will naturally have access to Sirius’ most popular shows, including The Howard Stern Show, The Opie & Anthony Show, The Jamie Foxx Show, and Ask Martha.
“Vault” content will include various Town Halls with artists such as Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Usher, Coldplay, and Nirvana. Users will be able to store On Demand content for a limited time on their mobile devices too, so you could load up a few shows for offline listening when you’re next without an internet connection.
Notifications are also onboard, pushing new alerts when shows are updated or added. The only drawback is that commercials will still be added into the On Demand content, although Sirius says the interruptions will be “minimal” on select shows, while music programming will have no commercials at all. There’s no Android version of the app yet either, but the company says it’s coming in the near future.
SiriusXM On Demand for iOS now available is written by Ben Kersey & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
People who have great singing voices either worked hard to get there or were born with it. Then there are the others who trained themselves using the Beauty Voice Trainer.
It’s another one of Japan’s nifty self-improvement contraptions that promises to “give you the dulcet voice you know you’ve always wanted.” It’s different from the rest because it, for once, doesn’t promise to tone your facial muscles or get rid of wrinkles like the Rhythm Slim Chin Exerciser or the Smile Lines Face Belt.
Instead, the Beauty Voice Trainer sets out to loosen up your throat so that your voice passage opens to allow stronger sounds to pass through. At least, this is what they claim it does on their website.
It also comes with a tuning fork so you can reach the notes you want to reach and identify proper intervals between pitches. Use it for five minutes a day and you might see your singing voice improve (or not.)
The Beauty Voice Trainer retails for $59(USD). That’s a couple of hundred bucks less than what you’d have to pay if you hired a voice coach, but again, no guarantees that it’ll make it any more likely you’ll get picked on The Voice.
YouTube is plenty busy with a livestream of the Olympics in HD for Asian and African audiences, but it’s keeping tabs on the scene in the states, too. The service is running a free, two-channel webcast of Chicago’s Lollapalooza music festival this weekend, which features big-name acts such as Jack White, The Black Keys and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. As you may recall, YouTube also offered a live broadcast of the event last year. Click through to the source link to see who’s on stage. Hey, it’s not the same as being at Grant Park, but it’s probably a lot less sweaty.
Filed under: Internet
YouTube streaming Lollapalooza festival for those of us who can’t be in Chicago originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 04 Aug 2012 04:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
The Lolapalooza music festival is officially underway in Chicago, but you can catch the whole event at home because it will be livestreamed all weekend on YouTube. If you’ve got some down time why not tune in and catch some jams from the likes of Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Black Keys, Jack White, and loads of other bands. Personally, I’m psyched to catch the recently reunited At The Drive In on Sunday night for some throwback, post-punk radness. The YouTube page for the livestream has a complete schedule. [YouTube Blog via The Verge] More »
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