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Atomic Floyd AirJax Headphones: The Ultimate in Sophistication

Do you think that buying a pair of sophisticated, high-end headphones is a waste? You are actually wrong because if you are still using the headphones that you got with the music player, then you are actually missing a lot. So let me introduce you to these new headphones that come from Atomic Floyd. Yeah, it’s the same old brand known for its vinyl albums.

The first thing that you notice (or should notice) about the Atomic Floyd AirJax headphones is their cord. Different from the usual ones, this cord gives you a fibrous feel and is also quite stiff. Another outstanding feature is its metallic wings that not enhance the appearance but also improves the grip. Although you may feel heavy when putting on the wings for the first time but believe me, you will feel more comfortable the second time. Even if the “angel wings” don’t feel that great, the amazing sound quality, which completely puts to shame the experience offered by the generic Apple iPod earphones or any other standard pair, is worth enough to convince you for sacrificing the comfort. The sound delivery is so good that you are likely to ignore all other factors.

The small accessory kit that you get with the headphones will include a converter, a hex tool and an extender lead. Designed to increase the flexibility of wearing these headphones, these accessories are quite useful. Especially the tiny hex tool is just right for tightening the ear loops whenever required. Use it to adjust the size that you like the most.

You may consider buying these headphones if you don’t mind paying a high price for a worthy product.

Tags for this article: player, headphones, atomic floyd hidef drum headset

Linn Majik LP12 Turntable: The Classic Returns

The history of LP12 starts in the 1970’s when it was a must have turntable. In fact your masculinity was doubted if did not have one. It was quite successful for a relatively expensive vinyl turntable then, and there were a variety of Linn and Naim systems were launched and which are still in the market. In the last ten years, LP12 has just been graded as just another addition to the already existing stock of turntables. It was quite expensive also and coasted around £4,480 pounds without cartridges.

The Linn Majik LP12 is the latest affordable version of the already existing version of LP12 turntable. It features solid base and standard armboard along with Mazak 8 platter and extremely low noise patented main bearing. This turntable is available in a variety of types and has a solid wood base board and is surmounted by a stainless steel which has the on and off buttons mounted on it. In order to get things moving, Majik LP12 turntable neoprene flat belt along with headshell and single piece carbon fiber armtube

This Linn Majik LP12 turntable features an internal power supply, Pro-Ject 9cc tonearm and Adikit MM cartridge. This latest high end turntable is highly intuitive and has an outstanding user interface. It is available in five different finishes and costs around £2000 pounds or $4000, which is obviously more than your basic and average turntable like the Numark TT 1650. It is capable of delivering outstanding sound quality. This turntable has its unique capability of bringing resolution, scale and at the same time wide bandwidth in order to rock the party.

Tags for this article: player, turntable, review

Ads Tech Instant Music RDX-150: Transform Music

Do you have your favourite tracks on a cassette, but you can’t listen to them because they are non-transferable to digital players? If yes, then it’s time to get the Ads Tech Instant Music RDX-150 converter.

It’s basically a Vinyl and Cassette ripper which lets you extract the tracks from the cassette or vinyl, and change its format so that you can store it on your PC or any other digital media player. Just plug in the ADS Technologies Instant Music RDX-150 to the USB port of your PC and it’s ready to rip the songs from any analogue source to the most popular music formats including MP3, WAV and WMA (Windows Media 9 Audio) and AAC. Once you transform the tracks in to digital format you can use them with a variety of music players. Instant Music RDX-150 is an excellent choice for converting the analogue songs into crisp, high quality audio.

The best part of this device is that during format conversion the audio quality does not get deteriorated. Along with the main unit come the professional audio mixing softwares such as Nero Mix, Nero SoundTrax and Nero Wave editor 2 which offers lots of options to play with the songs.

Instant Music tech specs:

• RCA Stereo (Left and Right), SPDIF output
• RCA Stereo (Left and Right), SPDIF input
• RCA Stereo (Left and Right), SPDIF line in/line out
• Windows 98SE /ME /2000 /XP OS supported
• USB 1.1/2.0 compatible

Tags for this article: music, converter, vinyl
The ION TTUSB Turntable makes DJing Simple

The ION TTUSB Turntable makes DJing Simple

The TTUSB is a simple, innovative and affordable turntable from ION, a new brand from Numark, the already renowned DJ equipment specialists. This all in one vinyl to digital turntable is equipped with a USB connection that lets users transfer their music from records to the computer; thereby easily digitising entire collections of vinyl records to either the Mac or PC. Once the records have been recorded onto your computer, your music becomes easily portable, as you have the option of either listening to the songs or music, or transferring it to the MP3 player or iPod or recording CDs.

No drivers are required for connecting this belt driven USB turntable to either a Mac or PC. It is not important to have a phono input in your music system; the ION TTUSB can be easily connected simply by using a switchable level output. The music can also be conveniently transferred through the use of the exclusive software suites from ION, such as Audacity, which can be used for advanced recording and editing. Moreover, the software programmes can also convert 78 rpm records, while the EZ Vinyl converter is capable of recording and converting the vinyl directly to the iTunes music library.

These USB based turntables are just perfect for digitising your vinyl records and also feature a 1/8 inch line input jack for connecting other music sources, such as cassette decks and also for converting your music to any digital format. The TTUSB turntable from ION will let you breathe new life into your old record collections.

Tags for this article: turntable, DJ Equipment, vinyl
Technics SL1210M5G Turntable: Professional Style and Quality

Technics SL1210M5G Turntable: Professional Style and Quality

Undoubtedly CDs are able to give an amazing sound quality, but for many nothing in the world of audio can beat the warmth of the sound coming from a vinyl player. Mark my words when I say, vinyl isn’t dead. The SL1210M5G turntable from Technics, rightly captioned as the grand master of turntables, is the pinnacle of 1200 line of turntables. This turntable features a pitch control method exclusive to the SL1210M5G. It is a fusion of some extensive and unique features and Technics’ legendary reliability and ruggedness, which helps in coaxing most out of our collection of records.

The turntable is a complete digital solution which eliminates any hassles involved in matching the pitch ranges and also provides the user the option of choosing between the + 8 and + 16 range. You get the exceptional quality tracking experience with the exclusively constructed gimbal-mounted tone-arm and the Technics SL-1210 M 5’s oxygen free cable ensures an outstanding sound quality. This improved quality of tone-arm in M5G offers better skip resistance and break adjustment is also made more accessible.

The construction in terms of finish, style and colour scheme are all exclusive to SL1210M5G and it provides a unique metallic black finish, blue light for both the pitch ranges. And last, but not least, the brushed steel hardware used with the turntable is uniquely different than the usual plastic used by most other turntables.

The quality of any turntable is judged by certain standards, including accurate pitch, a high torque, superior sound and a quality tone arm with better skip resistance. The Technics SL1210M5G turntable has successfully delivered in all these arenas and remains practically unmatched in its quality.

Tags for this article: player, turntable, DJ Equipment
Numark TTi USB Turntable: Transfer Vinyl to Digital Effectively

Numark TTi USB Turntable: Transfer Vinyl to Digital Effectively

Numark TTi is a fusion of USB connectivity, Numark’s legendry turntable performance and the convenience of an iPod. The Numark TTi USB turntable, which features a built-in iPod dock, helps you in transferring your entire vinyl collection into a digital format, or even directly to your iPod. All your records are archived to either MP3 or CD format with the help of software, which is included in the package. This revolutionary product is capable of recording the music directly to your iPod from any external audio input or vinyl records.

This turntable can be directly connected to the computer through its USB port and converts your collection of vinyl records to digital music. A wide range of software has been included for the expressed purpose of converting the vinyl records to digital music. These software programmes include the EZ application, which aids you in taking advantage of computer recording and primarily includes the EZ Vinyl Converter 2 (for hassle free recording in PC only), EZ Audio Converter (for hassle free recording in Mac only) and Audacity (for reducing vinyl noise and pops in both PC and Mac).

This USB turntable, in combination with its included EZ application software, helps you in digitally archiving your entire collection in just a few mouse clicks. The Numark TTi turntable includes a universal iPod dock, which supports all model iPods. It can easily be stepped up and no special drivers are required for doing so. For instant playback from either iPod or Vinyl records, it can be easily and quickly connected to any mixer through its integrated line-level RCA output and the speed of the playback can also be easily adjusted through the included pitch controller.

Tags for this article: player, ipod, turntable

DJ Needles and Cartridges: Selecting the Best

DJ Needles, most commonly known as the stylus or styli, are some of the most important parts of the turntable. From the end of the tone arm to the vinyl, there are a total of three parts which collectively make up the extension. The first is the head shell followed by the cartridge and then finally the needle. With every turntable a standard pair of needles and cartridges is provided, though you do have a variety of other advanced options to choose from.

Selecting the right needles or styli and dj cartridge is no big deal, as there are only two types of styli currently available on the market. The needle diamond tip can be either spherical or elliptical, with each one capable of performing a specific function, and the decision is based primarily on preference. Similar to how the decision between vinyl turntables and CD DJ turntables, such as the Technics SL-DZ1200, is based on personal taste and goals. The Spherical styli are best suited for a scratching and battle DJ. The main reason for this is that they stay in the groove of the record much better than the elliptical, thereby having the highest skip resistance and a very high output based application. Elliptical styli, on the other hand, are more suitable for beat mixing and hi-fi systems where the main function is playback. They deliver amazing playback sound quality, which is quite true to the original sound recording, since they have a lower tracking force that is easier on the vinyl.

If you are DJing at clubs and parties, you will need a more durable and robust pair of DJ needles. The selection of your needle will totally depend on the style of music you intend to play and also on the type of DJ you want to be, like a battle or mix DJ.

Tags for this article: turntable, vinyl
DJ CD Players: The End of the Vinyl Age

DJ CD Players: The End of the Vinyl Age

DJ CD players have been available in the market for quite some time now and, gradually down the line as the years passed by, they have become quite DJ friendly. A good DJ CD player would be one which can not only emulate all the features that can be achieved using a vinyl turntable, but also has some additional benefits and features. DJs can choose from the two types of CD players available in the market, rock mount and table top.

A table top CD player is quite similar in function, as well as design, to normal vinyl DJ turntables. As the name table top indicates, they can be placed flat on the table. Pioneer is the leader in the production of these types of DJ CD players, and the Pioneer CDJ 1000 MK3 is at the top of the entire available range. There are also a wide range of quality Denon table top CD players available in the market, such as the Denon DN-S1000 compact CD/MP3 player, Denon DN-S3500 and Denon DN-S5000. The second type of DJ CD players are rack mount. As is clear from the name, they are built to fit into a rack. These CD players are most popular among mobile DJs.

Any good DJ CD player should include all the important features like pitch control, sampler and effects, cue points, support both CD and MP3 music files and should allow scratching if required. This can be accomplished by providing both the platter and jog dial option, and, lastly, it should have a digital output.

Tags for this article: player, turntable, players

Stanton Final Scratch: Scratch MP3 Files the Original Way on your Computer

Final Scratch is a special type of a kit from Stanton that allows the user to manipulate MP3 songs on a computer using special records from a turntable. Although this concept sounds like rocket science, the way it works is actually quite simple. The special records only carry a time code, not the actual songs they will manipulate.

This time code carried by the records is then translated by the converter into a digital signal, which is then sent to the computer running the included Final Scratch programme. The Stanton Final Scratch programme then uses the digital signal to simulate the effect of scratching on MP3s, and in fact succeeds admirably in this manner. Only MP3 files are mixed or scratched, and no real vinyl records are ever used, even though you mimic the vinyl scratching technique using the specialised turntables. In other words, you will be able to achieve the same effects of scratching a vinyl record on a turntable like the American Audio TTD-2400, but with MP3 files. With this software you do needn’t worry about carrying a record case all the time, all you need is a laptop with all the required songs stored in it.

The Stanton Final Scratch kit includes one scratch amplifier with its power supply, one USB and four stereo phone leads, three final scratch vinyls and one installation CD for your laptop. Everything included in the kit are of a nice build quality, the cable is quite long at around 2 metres, and the amplifier, although quite lightweight and plastic, is quite well designed. The software is quite intuitive and has an amazing user interface.

With good knowledge and proper care of this kit, this software proves to be a very useful tool for any professional or aspiring DJ.

Tags for this article: software, turntable, vinyl

Getting Started as a DJ: Turntables

As everybody knows, a disc jockey commonly known as a DJ is responsible for mixing and playing musical tracks from a playlist in a club, bar or any event, in order to create recognisable songs with fun beats that encourage dancing. You can become a professional DJ only by mastering every kind of DJ equipment. All the high-end and specialised kinds of DJ equipment require a fair amount of practice before you are set to play in a professional atmosphere like a club.

The key to being a good DJ is minimising the silence and maximizing the spin. For that you need to be completely focused on what you do, and you have to make sure that your playlist includes a good collection of songs to suite the entire crowd on the dance floor. Ultimately, it is the results that matter.

The turntable is the logical first step towards becoming a DJ, or you can say that it is the heart and soul of DJing. Although there is a digital route, with CD players like the Numark CDN 88 on the market, nothing in the world of DJing can compare to mystique of vinyl turntables. Dual turntables are required for mixing up songs and, most importantly, beat mixing. When the records are being played, it is quite essential to change the tempo of the song to match the tempo of the other song, and also to keep the atmosphere rocking.

Direct drive turntables have a definite better performance, in comparison to belt drive turntables, and result in much better and easier beat mixing. A good DJ should be able to achieve smooth transitioning between the tracks, which is only made possible with the help of quality turntables.

Tags for this article: turntable, vinyl