So you wanna be a karaoke host? (Part 3: Formats for karaoke tunes)

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A popular question in Yahoo Answers is this: "How can I remove the vocals from this song?" I think the hope is that you can send an mp3 file through a magic piece of software and the vocals will go away, leaving just the instrumental parts. Cool. I wish it would work.

Sometimes this could work. Sometimes, when the studio mixes a track, they will put some instruments and the vocal in one channel, and some other instruments and the vocal in the other channel. By subtracting one from the other, you should get just the instrumentals. It would be great if they did that all the time. I don't think it's all that common.

Another way that the vocals could be removed - kinda - is by using "sophisticated mathematical algorithms". Neural networks. Wavelets. Fourier transforms. As an applied mathematician, I have learned that if it's easy for a person to do, it's hard for a computer. It's pretty easy for a human to isolate the vocals in a song. Computers have a lot of trouble with that. 

So how do they create karaoke songs, Mr. Smarty-pants Math Dude Revelator?

One way they could do it is to remix the original tracks. Rather than add Lady Gaga into the mix, they could just leave her out. They could, but the studios aren't particularly interested in that. Karaoke is such a tiny market. And the distribution channels are different. And the original recording artists would get a cut.

So, studio musicians are hired by karaoke studios to re-create the instrumental parts of a song. For a very good karaoke studio, this is a laborious process, listening over and over to get every rift and nuance correct. For other karaoke studios, this could be some guy picking out the melody on a synthesizer.

Next, the words are typed in and sequenced with the music. The computer then knows when to display the words and when to highlight them. The music and the words are then assembled onto a CD+G format disc.

CD+G? What's that? 
I'm glad you asked. When the format for a CD was decided upon, there was a small amount of space left on the disk. Someone came up with the idea that it might be useful to stuff some low resolution graphics in that extra space. This extension to the standard CD format was called CD+G for "compact disk plus graphics". Later, someone hit on this as an ideal format for karaoke.

If you put a CD+G disk into a standard CD player, it will play just like a regular CD, only without the vocals. Naturally, the graphics part will not show up. If you play that same CD on your computer using Windows Media Player or iTunes or WinAmp, you still won't see the graphics. You need a special program to display the graphics as the music is being played. Three examples of such programs are: Siglos, RoxBox, and Karma, but I talked about these in the previous post.

A few years back, if you wanted to be a KJ, you would buy a special CD+G player. This would connect to your audio equipment and to a TV and you would be all set. Well... except that you would need the CD+G disks. And probably a lot of them. Several hundred maybe? That can be a lot of CDs to schlep around, and a lot of CDs to sort through when looking for a song.

Just like regular DJs, KJs are making the transition from CD players to computers. Enter the mp3+G format. As I mentioned before, karaoke CDs are just like regular CDs in terms of the music. Naturally, you can rip the music to an mp3 file just like a standard CD. Karaoke ripping programs will do this normal rip, but will also create a second file for the graphics that is hidden on the CD+G disk. These graphic are stored in a file with a .cdg extension.

So, if you rip your karaoke CD with Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit", you will find two files: "Jefferson Airplane - White Rabbit.mp3", and "Jefferson Airplane - White Rabbit.cdg".

The two files, the .mp3 and the .cdg, will likely be about the same size. As for disk space, I figger about 200 songs per gigabyte for karaoke. 

Where do I find these karaoke tunes?
I have two favorite sites to buy karaoke tunes: karaoke.com and buy karaoke downloads. Here is a more complete list of where to look.

The first site sells mostly CDs, although they have downloads now as well. The cost of karaoke CDs is similar to the price of regular CDs. You can find cheap cheap CDs for a few bucks. I have paid $30 for a single CD. Their prices for downloads are currently 99 cents a song, generally.

The second site sells individual downloads for anywhere from 99 cents to two bucks, with a 20% discount after you buy five songs. They claim they have 20,000 songs, but there are a lot of songs not available. I go to karaoke.com when I can't find it at buy karaoke downloads.

The second website is great for me during a gig. If the venue has wireless, and someone asks for a song I don't have, I can often download it and have it right there. I don't know if patrons are impressed by this, but they sure should be.

Those are my two favorite sites. Here are a few others: Loud Karaoke, Ace Karaoke, and Tricerasoft. Since I have not dealt much with them, I can't recommend them.

How many songs do I need?
In order to be considered a big shot KJ, how many songs do you need? My experience has been that no matter how many songs you have, there will be people disappointed that you don't have their favorite song. My opinion - you need a few thousand songs at least.

For my first big gig, I had 3,844 songs. (Math geeks will immediately recognize this number as 62 squared.) In that first year, I was buying CDs every week. Now, I am at something over 8,200 songs, and I have slowed down the frantic buying.

At the other extreme, I visited two bars in New Orleans that offered karaoke. Each of the bars had a list of songs that was two pages long. Huh? I don't get it. Bourbon Street is not the main street of Karaokeville.

Ripping
Important point here for the KJ wannabe. This is gonna take a bunch of time. When you order a stack of CDs from karaoke.com, and they arrive in the mail, you could use them directly in your laptop. But you are gonna wanna rip them to your hard drive. Each one. One at a time.

And by the way, if you use the standard rip and burn software to copy a CD+G file, all you will get is the audio part. You will need to get a CD+G rip program. Although you can get a program from any of the companies that sell karaoke hosting programs, I would recommend Siglos' Power CD+G Burner, for $39. (Warning: I had a bad experience with a piece of freeware that was not worth what I paid for it!)

Other formats
The wonderful thing about standards is there are so many to choose from. The mp3/cdg format is not the only game in town, but it does seem to be the most popular.

Another format that I have seen is .bin, which seeks to overcome one of the disadvantages to the mp3/.cdg format. The problem is that the .cdg portion is not compressed. Given the size of disks today, this is not a big disadvantage. The benefit of leveraging the standard format has far outweighed the disadvantage of the extra file size.

Another interesting format is the midi format. This is the format that is used to communicate to midi keyboards. Basically, some of the karaoke host programs have adopted the standard midi format as one way to compose and play karaoke songs.

Like I said, this is interesting. It has the advantage of leveraging all the software that is available to compose midi files. There is a big disadvantage, however. When you play back a midi file, it sounds like, well, like a midi file.

There is one additional format for karaoke files that I consider just a bit more interesting, the mp4 format. This is standard for encoding video information. But, a karaoke song is really just a video, right? The audio track is the music and the video part is the words.

Here is where it gets interesting. Siglos sells a program called "Power CD+G to iPod Converter". For $39, you can have a program that will translate all your karaoke files into a video format that you can play on your iPod.

Hmmmm.....   Karaoke on the go?  I do gigs at retirement centers where I don't lead karaoke, I just sing. I used to carry along my laptop, a set of small speakers, and a table. With this, I don't need the laptop. Cool.

Just in case you want to feed the iPod display to your TV, all you really need is a cable. I found an iPod to TV cable on Amazon for about $9. One side of the cable plugs into your iPod, the other side has three RCA plugs for S-video. (S-video is an input that you will find on most TVs.) One of the RCA plugs is for the video, one for the right channel and one for the left. You will need to tell your iPod to send this TV output. Go to video settings on your iPod and make sure TV output is enabled.

Copyright (c) 2010, John Seymour

So you wanna be a karaoke host? (Part 2b: Working dog category)

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Those of you who are still reading this blog are at least willing to consider the idea of a component karaoke system... a system where the various pieces of the system are in separate boxes. In this post, I will consider some various options for components.

As I have mentioned before, I hope it is understood that the products mentioned in these posts are meant as examples, and not as endorsements. I heartily welcome comments about people's experience with this equipment and with other equipment.

Getting away from CDs

Have I ranted enough about how bad all-in-one systems are? Well, I have one more rant. All of the systems mentioned in the previous posts are CD based systems. The KJ has to schlep in a big box of karaoke CDs. These CDs must be organized nicely because the KJ must be able to locate the proper disk and load it every three minutes throughout the evening. If a singer changes his mind when they get to the stage, the KJ must be able to quickly respond with a different song. 

Just like the  mp3 file has freed us from the wretched, tyrannical CD, new formats have been created for karaoke CDs. And guess what?  You can use your laptop to run a karaoke show. What you need is some karaoke tunes and a piece of software to play them. And of course, a laptop. I will talk about the karaoke tunes in the next post "Formats for karaoke tunes", but lemme just say a bit about the software to play karaoke songs.

 

 A laptop with karaoke host software will encompass the music player and the lyrics generator components. The karaoke host software will play your karaoke tunes just like any mp3 player program. As it plays the songs, it will display the lyrics in a window, in sync with the music.

Here's the cool part. The window with the lyrics? You can move it around. Wait, I'm not done yet. Let's say you have a laptop that you can plug a second monitor into. This is true, by the way, of all laptop computers that were built after the war of 1812. Let's say you plug a second monitor into this laptop. And let's say that you tell Windows to extend your desktop to the second display. Ok, here is the really cool part. You can move that window with the lyrics out to that second computer monitor. The singer looks at the second monitor, and can read the lyrics without seeing that you are playing solitaire on the main monitor. 

There will be more discussion about monitors and displaying the words in the post "Getting the word out". I don't know yet if I will mention playing solitaire during a show.

Here are a few examples of karaoke hosting programs: Compuhost, MTU hoster, RoxBox, Siglos, and Tricerasoft.

I am sure this list is not complete. In case you want to see some discussion about which is best, have a look at the karaoke forum. 

Which one do I use? Well, I started years ago with the home version of Siglos, basically because it was cheap. I later graduated to the professional version of this package because I already knew how to use the home version.

Why did I go to the pro version? Well, naturally because I am a pro, but there are two features that are very useful for me, especially at my Monday night gig where I typically see a few hundred people every night. (Brief pause for the reader to say "wow". Thank you.) 

The first great feature is that the software will automatically start a regular song when the karaoke song completes, and then will automatically fade this out when you start up the next karaoke song. Great stuff. Dead air during a karaoke show is, well, dead.

The second feature is that the software will keep track of people and songs for me. Someone hands me a slip or what to sing, and I enter their name and the song into the computer. When they come up five minutes later and ask when they sing, I can quickly check the computer and tell them that they are the sixth singer and they will sing at about 11:20. When they come up the second time, at 11:05, and tell me that they need to sing right now because they are more special than everyone else in line, then I can use the software to bump them back to singer #15.

In the clever diagram above, I drew the box around the karaoke tunes as well as the other two pieces. I debated with myself for some time about that. I hope that I didn't give the impression that laptop computers generally come with a huge collection of karaoke tunes. They don't, unless of course you are buying your laptop from a KJ who for some unfathomable reason has decided to get out of the business. 

(A word of caution here. Some unscrupulous sorry excuse for a KJ may attempt to sell you a laptop onto which they have illegally copied 74,619 karaoke songs. All that for the low low price of only $2,000. Wow. Such a deal. Unless you are the sort of person who will buy TVs and stereo equipment and original Van Gogh paintings out of the back seat of a minivan, I would suggest that you steer clear of that deal.)

So, I don't mean to imply that karaoke tunes come bundled on the laptop. I merely meant to underscore an important point. Once you get your laptop all set up, all the karaoke tunes will be on your laptop. There is no need to cart your 500 CDs around with you. This convenience alone is a good reason to consider a laptop.

One might consider a different approach, for example Vocopro sells a Karaoke player component that encompasses the same pieces as the laptop. It will play karaoke CDs and it will display the lyrics. I see two disadvantages to this system, however. First, it does not allow you to store a zillion karaoke tunes - you need to schlep CDs, and find CDs, and feed them in one at a time. Second, the user interface is rudimentary. It is limited to selecting one of the tracks on the CD. Of course, the Vocopro system is cheaper than a laptop.

Now, on to the discussion about combinations of mixer, amp, and speakers...

Option 1: All separate components

One way to put together the mixer, amp, and speakers is to use all separate pieces. Here is one set of components. The prices I give here were pulled from the Musician's Friend website. As I said before, I welcome comments about the merits of various components.

Mixer  - Mackie ProFX8 - $230

Amp - Crown XLS202D - $250

Yamaha S112V - $660 / pair

Again, I am not endorsing this equipment, but these components are all pretty decent quality. You could use these for a gig.  Still, the tally comes up to over $1100. Can you get a better price? Can you get by with cheaper stuff? Maybe you could contact my friend Bob at Cascading Waters Audio for other recommendations. 

Since the speakers are the most expensive part, you might consider going with a smaller speaker. As for me, one of my sets of speakers is an older version of the Yamaha speakers above. I bought them used. Go figger. I'm a cheapskate.

I don't always use that pair, though, since they are heavy and bulky. For a smaller gig, I use a smaller set of speakers, the Phonic SEM710, which go for about $100 each. They are certainly not as good a speaker as the 12" Yamaha, but for the price, I was impressed.

It all depends on the size of the gigs you will be running, and what kind of sound quality you are comfortable with. For more discussion on speakers, have a look at my post "getting those karaoke vibrations going". Discussion on amps? "Karaoke system amp"  Mixers? "Mixing it up"  If you would like to better understand the silly specs or want some guidance about how much power is needed, take a look at my post entitled "Watts and RMS and Ohms, oh my!"

Option 2: combined mixer and amp

When you combine a mixer and an amp, you call it a powered mixer. I have one and I like it. (I also have a separate amp and I have two regular mixers. Just bragging.) I like the powered amp because I don't need to carry around both a mixer and an amp. If you have these as separate pieces, you kinda need to have a DJ box to put them in as well. This box is another hundred bucks and a bunch more weight. 

 

My own powered mixer is rather old. There isn't really an equivalent on the market anymore. I bought it used. Go figger. I'm a cheapskate. But, to give you an idea of what a powered mixer might look like, here is the Yamaha EMX212S.

This piece of equipment sells for $420. The specs are similar to the combination Crown amp and Mackie mixer that are listed above at a total of $480. Hmmm... similar functionality, and a slightly lower cost. All in one box. These are all good things.

Why go with separate components? Let's say you have a gig where you require more power? If you have components, then you would need to buy another amp and another set of speakers. If you bought a powered mixer, then you would buy another amp and another set of speakers. Then you would probably use this mixer, cuz it has (I believe) a line level output that you could send to the amp. Bringing this along for the ride means that you have the extra weight and space of the amp inside the mixer.

Ok, try this scenario. Let's say you want a fancier mixer?  Well, then clearly it makes sense to have originally gone with the components so you can just swap this out.

Option 3: combined amp and speaker

Rather than put the amp in the mixer box, you could skin the cat by packaging an amp in each of the speakers. They call these powered speakers or active speakers (as opposed to passive speakers). 

The Behringer B212D is one example of a powered speaker. They sell for $280 each.

Let's stop and figger here. Rather than going with the Crown amp at $250 and a pair of Phonic speakers at $100 each for a total of $450, you could go with a pair of Behringer powered speakers at $560. That sounds like a good deal.

But of course, you have the whole upgrade path/components thing. And then another issue. (Thanks Bradley, for pointing this out.) 

If you have a pair of powered speakers out there, the powered speakers are probably "out there". That is, they are not right where you are sitting. If you need to adjust the volume of the speakers, you kinda have to walk over to each speaker and crank it up. 

Why do I say that? Can't you just adjust the mixer to change the volume at the speakers?  Yes, you certainly could. To do that, you would start with the volume at the speakers pretty close to maxed out. Then at the mixer, you would run the levels very low. That causes a problem, though, with noise. (Have a look at my post on "Tying it all together".) The signal coming out of the mixer is a very low level signal, so it is very sensitive to noise. When the speakers are high and the mixer is low, you will probably hear a 60 Hz hum. To get rid of this, you want the mixer all the way up.

Hence a conundrum. When I run with my powered speakers, I normally set them to about half-way at the start of the night (when the music is quietest) and then adjust them up when it gets crowded and my mixer starts getting close to maxing out.

I actually have a pair of the Behringer 212XL speakers, by the way. I like the sound quality, but for a larger venue, I have had these "bottom out". When you try to run them too hard, the woofer sounds like it is farting. Loudly. This, by the way, is not a good thing. Farting too loud can blow out your woofer. Talk to your doctor about that. I had to crank down the bass.

As far as powered speakers go, I would love to have a pair of JBL Eon 315 speakers at $500 each. I'm salivating. But then I also salivate when I think about Angelina Jolie. I may never have either one.

 

Option 4: Combined mixer and amp and speakers
Here is another interesting option. Fender makes a portable system where all the pieces (mixer, amp, and speakers) fit together into one nice box. I said, "nice", but note that I did not say "cute". It weighs in at 44 lbs. If you are not comfortable lifting this much weight, then this might not be your system.

This system, the Passport 500 is 500 watts total and includes a pair of speakers with 10" woofers. In other words, the system is similar in specs to the other systems discussed here. This unit sells for about $1000. They also have a systems that are 300 watts and 150 watts.

I have actually used one of these models, I forget which one. My only beef with it was that the mixer does not provide a separate output for a monitor speaker. This is perhaps my own bias, but I feel a monitor speaker is essential if you want to get the best sound out of the singers. I will talk about monitor speakers in my section about speakers.

Another beef about this system is just my general disinclination toward buying everything in one box. It does make it hard to upgrade.

Summary
Let me summarize by recalling the costs of seven different combinations of mixer, amp, and speakers.

1a - Total cost $1140
Mackie ProFX8         $230
Crown XLS202D      $250
Yamaha S112V X 2  $660

1b - Total cost $680
Mackie ProFX8         $230
Crown XLS202D      $250
Phonic SEM710 X 2  $200

2a - Total cost $1080
Yamaha EMX212S    $420
Yamaha S112V X 2  $660

2b - Total cost $620
Yamaha EMX212S    $420
Phonic SEM710 X 2  $200

3a - Total cost $790
Mackie ProFX8         $230
Behringer B212D X 2 $560

3b - Total cost $1230
Mackie ProFX8         $230
JBL Eon 315 X 2       $1000

4 - Total cost $1000
Fender Passport 500  $1000

Let me stress a few things here. First, I have made comments about some of the equipment here, but I do not consider myself an expert. I have not worked with some of the equipment mentioned here, and I have not worked with enough different equipment to consider myself qualified to give advice on specific products.

The second thing I want to stress is that, while there are some differences in these seven options in terms of price, the big difference in price is not in how the components are packaged, but rather in the quality of the stuff in the package. I could make a case for going entirely with components, for using powered mixers, or for using powered speakers. I have all of them.

Copyright (c) 2010, John Seymour

So you wanna be a karaoke host? (Part 2a: Examples of all-in-one systems)

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In the first part of this series ("a generic system"), I described the various pieces that you must have in a karaoke system. This part was kind of theoretical. In this post I will give some examples of what I call all-in-one systems - systems where all or most of the pieces come in one package. The next post will describe other ways to configure a karaoke system.

I mentioned some disclaimers in my previous post. I wish to repeat disclaimer #2, because it is especially relevant to this post:

2. This is not intended to be a buyers guide. I will mention specific products and reference specific websites that sell stuff. Please interpret these as examples and not as endorsements. When and if some manufacturer or retailer decides to give me some money, then I will be happy to state that their equipment is the best stuff around.

Combined systems versus components

Not only is there a bewildering assortment of products, features and prices, but it is made even more confusing by the fact that the components that I spoke of before (mixers, amps, speakers, etc.) are often combined into one package. When you buy a system, you have to decide whether to buy all the components separately, or to have A and B in one package, or to have B and C together.

Years and years ago, when I worked for Radio Shack (Ummm... t wasn't called Radio Shack at the time, since Marconi had not yet invented the radio.) Years and years ago, when I worked for Two-Campbells-Soup-Cans-With-A-Sting-Between-Them Shack, I would tell customers to buy all the components separately because that way you could gradually upgrade your system, one piece at a time. I liked to give that advice cuz people spent more money if they bought all the pieces separate. I was working on commission.

Since I am no longer working on commission, I can talk about combined systems.

All-in-one system, toy category

This first category is what I might recommend for a kid who loves to sing. All the pieces are packaged together in one compact and convenient package. Nothing else to buy.

Well, almost nothing else to buy. These systems generally come with a small selection of songs. You're going to want to buy some tunes. Hannah Montana and High School Musical are kind of a necessity.

Here are two examples of all-in-one toy systems.

Emerson GQ755, $70 from Amazon

 Another one, $160 from ToysRUs

 

If the kid you are buying for is 14 or older, I would suggest staying away from the toy category. At 14, kids become hearing impaired. That's why you need a bullhorn to ask them to clean their room or empty the dishwasher, and that's why they turn up their music so loud. The sort of system in the toy category just will not have the kind of power than a 14 year old desperately needs. And believe me, when they try to get that kind of volume out of the system, the system will provide you with 100 watts of pure distortion. Not only will it be karaoke, and be loud, but it will also sound bad. Is "bad karaoke" redundant?

But if the kid you are buying this for happens to be "your kid within", and that kid within wants to enter the lucrative profession of karaoke hosting, then I have another reason why you should avoid the toy category. The equipment is not road worthy. If you start lugging these toys around to bars, you will be laughed at. But more important, your toys will fall apart very quickly.

This exhortation goes for home stereo equipment in general. Home stereo equipment is just not designed to be hauled around every night. Exposed knobs will break off and speakers that do not have a cage over them will get poked out. If you want to be a KJ, buy KJ gear.

All-in-one system, low end pro category

Speaking of which, here is one example of an all-in-one system that was designed for KJ use.

This system, the Vocopro Gigstar, is available from Karaoke Warehouse for $380. (By the way, did I mention that I do not intend this to be a buyer's guide?) It comes with all the components, well, almost all the components. I don't see any listing for microphones, so I am guessing you would need to chat with the folks at Karaoke Warehouse about getting a set of mics. I am sure they will be glad to sell you a few.

Oh, and a TV. You need to get a TV to show the words. Actually, there are a lot of bars that have TVs these days and you could hook this system up to them. I will discuss this further in the post "Getting the word out".

The particular system comes with something over 300 karaoke songs. This may sound like a lot. It is probably enough songs if patrons are content to dig through to find something they can sing. This collection is definitely not a big enough collection for someone who comes in looking for a specific song.

Referring back to my rather clever component diagram in the previous blog, this all-in-one system combines all the pieces that are within the dotted line.

The system is attractive because it is pretty much all in one box. Less stuff to carry around. That's good. It's also pretty inexpensive. That's good. But please note that I am giving this system as an example, and not endorsing the equipment. I don't know if I mentioned that. In fact, I am gonna un-endorse this equipment. Well... not this particular piece of equipment, but just the idea of an all-in-one system.

First, there is the whole argument I used when I was at Radio Shack. The only way to upgrade an all-in-one system is to replace it. And trust me, if you decide to be a KJ, you will want to upgrade. At some point you will read the manual for this equipment (that is, unless your a guy) and find out that you can hook up external speakers. So you take some of the exorbitant money you are now making and buy a set of speakers. Now you are lugging around two sets of speakers - one set in the box and the other set in separate boxes.

Then you will find out that the amp in the all-in-one box just doesn't cut it. The Vocopro gives you a place to connect to an external amp, so you will buy a second amp to run the second set of speakers. And you go to your gigs carrying a 53 pound box with 47 pounds of stuff you don't use.

Components also make sense when equipment breaks. If something breaks in an all-in-one system, you are dead in the water. If something breaks in a component system, you can replace that particular piece.

Another issue that I have with all-in-one systems (in general), the audio quality of this system is probably not all that fabulous. Now I should say that I have not heard the Vocopro system, but... The manual says that the system is rated at "100W total power (peak to peak)". I will talk about the whole subject of power in a later post (Watts and RMS and Ohms, oh my!), but this equates to about 18W of power per channel RMS. If you are looking for a karaoke system for a living room, or one to take to a retirement center, then 18W per channel might be just fine. But for a bar where people listen to music to drown out the demons in their head? Not nearly enough.

Another comment I will make about the likely sound quality... the speakers just aren't in the right place. You probably don't want the speakers to be directly connected to the mixer. More about speaker placement in the post "Speakers - getting those karaoke vibrations going".

Ok, so I have come down pretty harsh on this system, but let me back off just a little bit. Let's say that you have a gig at a bar that has it's own sound system. And let's say that you can hook into their TVs. For that scenario, something like the Vocopro Gigstar is certainly cost-effective and pretty easy to schlep around. I know a karaoke host down in San Miguel, Mexico who uses a system like this.

Another point... I started out with some pretty inexpensive equipment. And lousy. Inexpensive and lousy. Did it make sense to start that way? Hmmm... good question. One argument would say that the $500 that I spent on the first equipment was wasted. Another argument would say that this relatively small investment allowed me to decide whether I liked the job. The real bad decision would have been if I had spent $5000 on equipment that sat in my basement.

In the next post "Working dog category", I will give some examples of karaoke systems more commonly used by the pros.

Copyright (c) 2010, John Seymour

So you wanna be a karaoke host? (Part 1, a generic karaoke system)

So... you wanna be a karaoke host?

First of all, let me say that, next to being an applied mathematician, being a KJ is one of the best jobs around. I mean... you get to listen to absolutely fabulous renditions of the most popular songs around. You get to be around people who are drunk, without having to get drunk yourself. Respect... tell me, who gets more respect than a KJ? Really. Who?

Well, ok. Most politicians get more respect than KJs. And politicians get to hang around with Sarah Palin. That's a perk.

Me?  I'm in it for the groupies. I was just talking about that with Jaggar the other night. Yeah. He's envious. He wishes he would have decided to become a KJ. I told him there is still time. Naturally, he asked about the kind of equipment he might need. This series of blogs is a summary of what I told him.

What equipment do I need in order to enter the prosperous and glamorous profession of karaoke hosting?
I have been asked this question more than a few times, so I thought it might be worthwhile to dedicate a series of blogs to answering the question. I hope to put this at a level where it can be easily understood by the layman or laywoman who needs a little background into putting a system together.

Disclaimers
1. This is not a series of blogs for the sound system engineer. I have chosen at times to sacrifice less critical details in favor or succinctness and clarity. If someone corrects me on pesky facts, I will reiterate this disclaimer so that I don't have to admit my ignorance.
2. This is not intended to be a buyers guide. I will mention specific products and reference specific websites that sell stuff. Please interpret these as examples and not as endorsements. If and when some manufacturer or retailer decides to give me some money, then I will be happy to state that their equipment is the best stuff around.
3. If you wanna hang out with Sarah Palin, that's your business. I would prefer to just listen to the media poke fun at the stupid things that she says.
4. If you are confused reading these posts, just imagine how confused I am!  Have a little compassion, ok?

System diagram
Below is a diagram of a generic karaoke system, indicating all the parts that must be present in a karaoke system. Karaoke systems will box these pieces into subunits in different ways, but all karaoke systems need to have these parts. In the next post, I will gives some examples of how manufacturers combine different parts together in order to confuse people and talk about how these pieces can be brought together to make a complete system.

Karaoke tunes
Just like every CD player needs CDs, and every DVD player needs DVDs, and every KJ groupie needs KJs, every karaoke system needs karaoke tunes. As a KJ, you need to decide whether a) you are gonna be a scumbag pirate who enjoys the idea of paying tens of thousands of dollars in fines when he/she is finally caught, and really doesn't mind stealing from the very people that allow them to make money,  or b) you are gonna run your karaoke as a real business and an ethical business. If you decide that you actually want to deserve the incredible respect that a KJ gets, then you should realistically figger on spending thousands of dollars on tunes.

In a subsequent post, I will discuss the various formats of karaoke songs: CDG disks, DVDs, midi, mp4, bin, and mp3+cdg files. The wonderful thing about standards is there are so many to choose from. I am sure you will find that post absolutely riveting.

Music player
You will need something to play the music. Well, duh. This is analogous to a CD player or WinAmp or an iPod. I will discuss the various options in yet another absolutely riveting post. Surprisingly, the options for karaoke look a lot like a CD player, WinAmp, and an iPod. 

Mics
If you want someone to sing, you probably oughta give them a microphone. Maybe this isn't essential? I suppose you could be running karaoke in someone's living room, or in a karaoke booth. Or in your shower? Maybe you won't need any mics then. But, if you are doing karaoke in the shower, you probably will need me. Give me a call, ok? Well... unless you are a guy. You probably won't need me if you are a guy.

In my post about karaoke mics, I will discuss wireless and wired mics,and also look at the trade offs between cheap, lousy mics and expensive, high quality mics. I don't wanna spoil the suspense, but cheap mics are less expensive than expensive mics. Lousy mics are not as good as expensive mics.

Mixer
My wife's mixer is a KitchenAid. She loves it. I just haven't had much luck doing karaoke with it. (Maybe I will ask her to make some karaoke bars some day. and maybe she will ask me to stop making stupid puns.)

A karaoke system needs to combine several sound sources - at least one vocal and one backup track. A mixer needs to have some way to adjust the volume on each of these. A mixer should also allow you to adjust the bass and treble kinda stuff for each sound source. A mixer should also give you the ability to separately adjust the volume to various speakers. Also, a mixer should allow you to add some special effects. I will go into each of these in, you guessed it, another post.

Amp
Microphones and iPods and CD players don't put out a lot of power, and a mixer does little to make the signal any more powerful. An amp takes the minuscule output from the mixer and converts it to a level that can actually drive the speakers.  I will talk about amps in another post. Fascinating stuff, really.

Speakers
Speakers are called transducers. A transducer turns power of one sort into power of another sort. In the case of a speaker, the electrical power coming out of the amp is turned into vibrations in the air, that is, into sound. Woofers, tweeters, subwoofers - all subjects for a subsequent post.

Another thing that I will add to this post is a discussion about the monitor speakers. Very important, and often forgotten.

Technical stuff
Unfortunately, you have to know a bit of technical stuff in order to get the amp and the speakers to play well together. And to get an idea just how much power you need for a gig. This post will help?  Maybe?

Lyrics generator
So far, it's all been about the sound. Lets not forget about the words. In order to get most people to sing, you need to put the words in front of their face. There needs to be a piece of software somewhere in the system that translates the words that are encrypted in one of the karaoke formats into a signal for some sort of display.

Video display
And finally, you need a display for the user to see the music. This could be a TV screen, or it could be a computer monitor. But it could be something else?  To find out, you will have to read the post on video displays for karaoke systems.

Tying it all together
Cables. Forgotten, maligned, disparaged, often abused, and generally misunderstood. It's no wonder so may cables wind up in therapy.

The post on cables will discuss the three basic types of signals that cables need to transmit, and the plethora of connectors that could be put on the ends of these cables. The wonderful thing about standards is there are so many to choose from.

Menu of subsequent posts
Part 2a: Examples of all-in-one systems
Part 2b: Examples of systems, working dog category
Part 3: Formats for karaoke tunes
Part 4: Microphony for karaoke
Part 5: Mixing it up
Part 6: Karaoke system amp
Part 7: Speakers - getting those karaoke vibrations going
Part 8: Watts and RMS and Ohms, oh my!
Part 9: Getting the word out
Part 10: Tying it all together

Copyright (c) 2010, John Seymour

How can a KJ help bad singers?

"I am a Karaoke DJ, what is the best advise I can give to my bad singers?

Only serious comments please. Please give me a list of tips that the karaoke singers can read and maybe try help their hobby. My karaoke is all about fun, but some regulars that come sing get despised by the crowd because they sing so bad. I don't want them to stop singing, although would like to give them some tips."

I caught this question on Yahoo answers. Here was my suggestion:

1. First off, whatever you do, keep it positive. Everyone is there to have a good time. If it's a downer, they won't be back.

2. You have to resign yourself to the fact that you are not their vocal coach. You can't do much to make them a better singer.

3. You can sway the response of the crowd so they don't dwell on how lousy the singer was. Keep things positive. If you keep the party going, then these regulars will not be despised. If the song rocks, get the crowd singing along. I use a second computer screen pointed to the crowd to encourage this. Stand up and make the universal symbol for "everybody clap along". BTW, I will not tolerate the crowd booing. Ever. If someone starts that, I will completely stop the music. Keep it positive.

4. If you don't have a monitor speaker on the floor pointing at the singer, then get one. Even a good singer can sound bad if they can't hear their own voice. If someone is fumbling, then crank up their vocal in the monitor speaker. Often this gets someone to hold pitch better. Also, it might get them to sing more quietly.

5. Turn up the backup music to the house speakers but bring down the vocals on the house speakers. (You can do 4 & 5 if you have an adequate mixer.)

6. One sound problem that I see frequently is people grabbing the mic by the ball. If they wrap their hand all around the ball, then their voice will sound muffled, and you will also get feedback. This is one piece of constructive criticism that you can give without offending anyone - how to hold the mic, (Did I mention to keep it positive?)

7. Speaking of mics, make sure you have a good mic. I use Shure SM58s.

8. If someone is not such a good singer, gently suggest that they bring someone else up on stage. "Hey... I bet you and Shirley would be great on that song." But keep it positive, and make sure the singer always has the right to decide who joins them on stage.

9. Sing along behind them. Don't use your mic... that would be rude unless you know they are ok with it. But if you sing so they can hear you but the crowd can't, then they might start catching the right notes.

Good luck with this!
John the Revelator 
Looking for karaoke in Milwaukee?

Longest karaoke song

Karaoke trivia time. What is the longest karaoke song?

American Pie is the longest. At least in my collection. I have something over 8,000 songs. (See my website for a complete listing.) There are eleven songs that are longer than 8 minutes:

8:00 Jane Siberry and k.d. lang - Calling All Angels
8:04 Led Zeppelin - Stairway to Heaven
8:07 Doors - The End
8:21 Steely Dan - West of Hollywood
8:22 Meatloaf - Paradise by the Dashboard Light
8:22 Neil Young - Like A Hurricane
8:23 Michael Jackson - Thriller
8:35 Red Hot Chili Peppers - Sir Psycho Sexy
8:36 Guns 'N Roses - November Rain
8:45 Led Zeppelin - Kashmir
8:47 Don MacLean - American Pie

I should note that Paradise by the Dashboard Light and American Pie are #1 and #3 of the worst of all karaoke songs, largely because they are soooo long. (See my previous blog on the worst karaoke songs.) If someone is not a stellar performer, then 8 minutes can be an eternity.

Another note... this question was asked on Yahoo Answers. Disco Bob answered that "Roundabout" by Yes was the longest. I don't have that karaoke song in my collection, so I can't say for sure. But
I don't have that one in my collection, so I can't say. The regular version (non-karaoke) is 8:32.

Looking for karaoke in Milwaukee? 

idiogoogling - looking yourself up on Google

Ok, so we have all done it, right?  Typed our name into Google. Looked to see if there is anyone famous? Looked to see if we are actually on the Googledar?

So, I did it today. I know that I do show up on the web. I have this blog. I have a website. I have a whole bunch of patents. I have some work affiliations, like, I am on the board for TAGA. I know of two blogs (1, 2) that reference me. Facebook, LinkedIn... Maybe there is an FBI website with my photo on it? I dunno.

I have tried a number of more directed searches to find links to me. Here are some that find me:

"Milwaukee karaoke" - My website shows up as the first hit!  That's pretty cool.
"Revelator karaoke" - Nine of the hits on the first page are links to me! I pretty much own those words.

"shark Revelator" - This unlikely combination of words shows up twice in the first page. I'm kinda guessing that not many people will be typing in those words. Except of course if you are reading this and then type them in out of curiosity?

Here are a few more very unlikely Google searches where I have made it to the top: "revelaticus", and "tiedyedapiaens". I own these words. After all, I made them up. I hope that "idiogoogling" shows up as my word. "Idio" means "self". And "googling", of course, means "looking stuff up on Google". "Idiogoogling", then, means "looking yourself up on Google".

Maybe I have also claimed ownership of the word "googledar". It's kind of a take off on the phrase "show up on your radar". To show up on the googledar means that Google becomes aware of you.

I like making up words. Maybe someone will start using them?  Boy, wouldn't that be cool? I had a little game I played with a patent attorney I worked with. I tried to coin at least one new word in every patent.

This may seem like just a silly game, but the patent office is ok with this. An inventor is allowed to be his own lexicographer. After all, a patent is about stuff that's new. How can we expect that there is a word for stuff that doesn't exist yet?

Here are some other phrases where I rank high in the googledar: "nude revelator", "Elvis Revelator", "getting discovered karaoke", "Jewish Christmas songs", "karaoke goes to Hollywood". All of these have me showing up in the number two position. Not half bad?  Unlike revelaticus, I could imagine some unsuspecting person actually typing these phrases in!  Well, maybe not the "nude revelator" thing.

Here is another one where I show up at the top: "gypsy Revelator". This one is very heartwarming. My wife, Madelaine, goes by the stage name "Gypsy Songstress". I, of course, go by the stage name "John the Revelator". It has been a marriage made in heaven, and now Google knows it!

I am also very happy that "Madelaine Revelator" also has my website as the first hit. :)  This is good, because a week or so ago, there was an unfortunate blog of mine that showed up. It seems that some unscrupulous individual posted a picture of me along with some other woman named "Madelaine". Same spelling. My wife was understandably upset. That cost me big.

Here are a few other Google searches that turn up links to me: "josh groban revelator"  (#3), "safarioso" (#4), "best slow dance songs"  (#15), "karaoke scenes in movies" (#16). That's cool. :)

I am a little disappointed that my blog post on "worst karaoke songs" does not show up in the first 100 Google hits. I kinda liked that blog post. I mean... it has a practical theme. I put a bunch of time into it. I think I approached the whole subject very methodically and scientifically. There are a lot of sites where people were just throwing out their own opinions about songs that they hated to hear destroyed through karaoke. I was far above that. I did a meta-analysis about people throwing out their own opinions about songs that they hated to hear destroyed through karaoke. This is the stuff of which medical journals are made!

Anyway, it would seem that there is a possibility that a Google search on my name will actually turn up a website about me.

I googled my name. The first hit that is about me is #587.  Sigh.  I'm gonna take a wild guess that there will not be that many people who sift down that far to find me. Anyone who does is likely to be a deranged, obsessive compulsive psychopath. Come to think of it, I sifted down that far to find me. Does that mean...? whatever.

The problem is, there are just too many John Seymours who were famous:

John Seymour wrote about 60 books about self-sufficiency. I actually own one of his books "The Forgotten Crafts". I show it to people and say "hey, look at my book." I mean, the book is mine. I bought it, right?

John Seymour Lucas was an English artist. That's kinda cool.

John Seymour was a composer. Me too. We have a lot in common. He wrote operas. I don't like opera. My wife does. I don't plan on writing an opera, but I may have no choice.

Sir John Seymour was the father of Jane Seymour, who was the queen of England, married King Henry the Eighth. By the way, Jane Seymour is my first cousin. Not the actress who played Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman. Her real name was Joyce Frankenburg. Joyce is no relation to me. But my father always told me that we were related to the Jane Seymour who was queen.

There are a few famous John Seymours who are still alive:

 John Seymour was a senator in California.

John Seymour co-authored a book on neuro-linguistic programming. Maybe he likes to invent words, too? He works as a business consultant.

John Seymour and John Seymour are inventors. We have a lot in common.

John Seymour is a golf pro. He and I have a lot in common.


Gosh darn it. I have a lot of competition. Some day I hope to move up in the ranks. If I keep writing blog posts like this, I am sure I will make it up to #586 in no time!

Karaoke goes to Hollywood

(Updated April 9, 2010)
When someone mentions "karaoke" and "movies" my first thought is the movie Duets with Huey Lewis and Gwyneth Paltrow. The movie is about karaoke. Huey plays a karaoke hustler. (Why did my high school guidance counselor fail to mention that as a potential career?!?!) Contrary to some people's opinions, the father / daughter duet of Cruisin' (sung by Lewis and Paltrow) is great. Well... that's my opinion.

Karaoke is a part of our culture, so it is natural that it has made its way into the movies. I have a list of movies below that contain a karaoke scene. I have include movie clips when I could find them. Please let me know what I have missed!!


(500) Days of Summer - In this movie, the main characters commit many random acts of karaoke. Imagine. Real life characters in a movie singing karaoke as just something they do? And they may be quirky, but they're not nerds. The actors actually sing karaoke, as well. Here Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt talk about karaoke. Here is a sound clip of Gordon-Levitt singing "Here Comes Your Man". Just in case you wanted to know, the karaoke scenes were filmed at a real bar in Los Angeles: the Redwood Bar. 

Baby Mama - The game Karaoke Revolution is featured in this movie with  Amy Poehler singing the ever-popular karaoke song "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun". 

Black Rain - Michael Douglas and Andy Garcia take a break from chasing Japanese mobsters to sing karaoke.

Bridget Jones's Diary - Bridget Jones gets a little tipsy and embarrasses herself singing karaoke at the office Christmas party.

The Cable Guy - Jim Carrey goes over the top as only he can with his karaoke version of Somebody to Love. 

Chicken Little - This animated film includes a karaoke rendition of Wannabe by Spice Girls

City of Ghosts - James Caan sings karaoke? In Cambodian? Really?

Coyote Ugly - I have heard this movie has a karaoke scene. I have not been able to find anything about it. Help me out here.

Duets -  Huey Lewis and Gwyneth Paltrow aren't the only ones who show off their karaoke sings in the movie Duets. Here is a video of Andre Braugher singing "Freebird", Here he teams up with Paul Giamattiwith an awesome version of "Try A Little Tenderness".

Eat Drink Man Woman - The neighbors are incessant karaoke fanatics. Jia-Jen: "Can't they stop that karaoke"? Jia-Chien: "We communicate by eating. They do it by singing." Jia-Jen retaliates against the neighbors by playing stereo wars. 

He Was A Quite Man - I found this quote in the Encyclopedia Brittanica: "while cutting loose at a karaoke bar, Venessa ruptures her colostomy bag". Wow. I just added this movie to my Netflix list.


High School Musical - The two main characters meet while singing karaoke. Read this for a dissertation of the role that karaoke plays in this musical. 

I Still Know What You Did Last Summer - Jennifer Love Hewitt sings I will Survive. She freaks when the words on the screen reminder her that this is a scary movie. 

The Karaoke King - "Finally there is a movie which is true to karaoke." Unfortunately, the movie apparently never made it to theaters, can't be rented from Netflix, and is not available from Amazon. Click here to find out how to correct the grievous injustice.


Karaoke - Malaysian indie film starring Zahiril Adzim. It does not seem to be available in the US, but you can see the trailer.

Keeping the Faith - In this scene, Ken Lueng delivers an absolutely priceless performance as a karaoke gear salesman trying to sell the Audio 2000 to Ben Stiller and Edward Norton. "Is this a good machine?" "Yeah, it's good if you a cheap bastard!"  Did I say the performance is priceless?

Jackpot - Ahhhh... A movie about a guy who tries to make it big singing karaoke. There's a good plot! Add in performances by Garrett Morris and Daryl Hannah. Add in a pink Cadillac. Have we got us a movie? The reviewers thought not. Have a look at the trailer.

A Life Less Ordinary - Ewan McGregor kidnaps heiress Cameron Diaz. Naturally, the two wind up singing Somewhere Beyond The Sea in a small karaoke bar. 

Lost in Translation - Bill Murray plays an aging actor making a short trip to Japan. In this scene, Bill sings  More Than This to a newlywed wife in a karaoke room. For a detailed analysis, see this link.

My Best Friend's Wedding - Cameron Diaz is horrified to be called onto stage to sing "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself". She starts out weak and nearly gets booed off the stage. Somehow, she keeps her composure and the crowd turns in her favor. I dunno. Between this performance and the one in A life Less Ordinary, I'm thinking that Diaz may not have all that great a singing voice. 

No. 3 - Evidently there is a karaoke scene in this Korean black comedy gangster movie. 

Opportunity Knocks - Dana Carvey starts out tentative (seems to be a common theme in movie depictions of karaoke) in his version of Born to Be Wild. A crazed man in a neck and arm bracedrushes the stage to attack Carvey, and Carvey responds by amping it up. I guess I'll have to watch the movie to figger out why the guy has a neck brace and why he is out to get Carvey, 

Orgazmo - I may have actually seen this movie. Then again maybe not. I'm not going to admit either way. In the movie, G-Fresh, the black wannabe owner of a sushi bar sings karaoke in his establishment. I wish I could find a video of the karaoke scene.

P.S. I Love You - This movie includes a number of karaoke performances. In one scene, Gerard Butler starts with a rocking version of "Ride Sally Ride", and then Hilary Swank is badgered into singing. Finally she agrees on a bet. For $200 she performs Prince's "Get Off". The scene ends with her getting off the stage by falling. In another scene, Swank dedicates "Love You til the End" to her deceased husband.

Rising Sun - This Sean Connery begins with some Japanese men singing "Don't Fence Me In."

Rush Hour 2 - Chris Tucker (Jackie Chan's sidekick) sings a great karaoke version of Michael Jackson's Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough. I mean, it's really good.

Shrek - This has got to be one of the all time best karaoke scenes. What could be better than animated characters rocking out to Just the Way you Are, Like a Virgin, Baby Got Back, Feelings, YMCA, Do You Really Want To Hurt Me, Staying Alive, Who Let the Dogs Out, Dance to the Music, and Happy Together. Watch it.  It's great.


Slither - B movie. Thriller. Aliens. A woman singing karaoke off key. Ummm.... Not my kind of movie.

Something About Mary - Ok, so this isn't really a karaoke scene, but it's good. Listen to Build me Up Buttercup from the credits.

True Stories - This movie has some karaoke clips. I just can't find anything about them. Help me out here?


Under Cover Brother - Eddie Griffin and Denise Richards (be still my heart!) sing Ebony and Ivory in this spoof of blaxploitation films.

Up in the Air - Great movie!  I loved it. There is a karaoke scene, with Anna Kendrick singing "Time After Time". I don't think she

When Harry Met Sally - Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan visit Sharper Image to find a wedding present. Crystal is distracted by a karaoke machine. He and Ryan perform Surrey with the Fringe On Top.

Looking for karaoke in Milwaukee?