Creative X-Mod Makes Sound Come Alive

If you're like me, the sound coming from your laptop is hardly worth all the sales hype. Hooking up to a sound system will certainly make your music tracks sound better, but with MP3's, there always seems to be something missing. Even the WAV files seem a little weak. And it's primarily due to the fact that the sound card in your laptop is so small that it sacrifices sound quality. So how does the karaoke host use a laptop for his show and not make the music sound like it's being played through a toy piano?

An external sound card is required to compensate for the vibrance that was lost during the MP3 compression. And for those tracks that are not compressed such as WAV, the external sound card will make up for what's lost in the downsizing of internal components on the computer and what is lost when it's compressed onto the original recording. In my search for a quality card, I came across the Creative Labs Xmod USB Sound Card for PC & Mac. And, for the price, I think it was a wise choice.

The X-Mod is a X-Fi module (short for Xtreme Fidelity) that can be used on both PC and MAC. It plugs directly into the USB port on the computer with a supplied cable, thus bypassing the internal sound module all together. Another cable splits the stereo output into two channel RCA plugs. Plug the other end into your sound system, turn on your computer, and it's ready to go. No software is required. The package does not say the RCA cable comes with it, but I think it was included. If not, they are not expensive.

If you don't want to connect to an external sound system, the unit comes with a set of ear buds for personal listening. Adjusting of the volume is done through the dial on the X-Mod's face. Set your computer to maximum and use the dial for easy sound changes.

The X-Mod has Two enhanced sound controls which are turned on and off by slider switches on each side.  The X-Fi Crystalizer remasters the sound that is lost during compression, a necessary evil in making your music portable and downloadable. The crystalizer makes the music sound more like the original CD. The X-FI CMSS-3D control expands the sound of your MP3's and digital movies and adds a "virtual" surround sound. This helps make the recordings sound more like what you would hear in a live performance. Isn't that what you look for in your sound recordings anyway?

When it comes to karaoke, the Creative Labs Xmod USB Sound Card for PC & Mac makes the whole experience sound - well Whole! The music tracks sound much more vibrant and will make it a pleasure to sing to your favorite songs. I would go to karaoke shows and be disappointed to hear a song and the background vocals were almost non-existent. With the help of the X-Mod, I have been able to put the background vocals (and eveything else in that frequency range) back into the equation. The music sounds full, the bass and highs come through even without a sub. Of course equalizers will also help, but I've found I've been able to limit their use since adding this little box to my system. If you're looking for a way to augment the sound of your laptop, the Creative Labs Xmod USB Sound Card for PC & Mac is one you will want to check out.

Gem Series Answers the Call For Computer Versions Of Karaoke Songs

Karaoke hosts all over the country have been up in arms for quite some time. It is a long painstaking task to "format shift" all those CDG's to MP3+G. But by doing so, they can be more easily used on computer to make the karaoke experience much better for the customers. They have also had to deal with the fact that the karaoke producers have been on the warpath with karaoke pirates who download all their songs for free on-line and  have been targeting legal hosts in the process. At a show, there is very little way for a karaoke host to prove (short of carrying the discs that they seek to leave home) that he/she is actually paying for the songs on their computer or downloading them illegally.  This has become a sore issue on some of the front running karaoke forums of late.

While karaoke manufacturer Sleptone Entertainment dba Sound Choice has been actively seeking to rid the industry of illegal hard drives with 100,000+ song titles, they have apparently also been listening to the people that have been keeping them in business for the last 20+ years. As such, they have made an attempt to smooth the feathers they've been ruffling. This has not been an easy task.  It remains to be seen whether their latest attempt to again make karaoke a viable industry for the manufacturers as well as their paying customer (the legal KJ's) will work.

The GEM Series from Sound Choice is a collection of all of the currently available songs from the Sound Choice Library. It includes approx. 6000 songs and is available in set quantities from 300 on up.  The series has been converted to 320 KPS MP3+G files which is the best, but largest, of the the mp3 compression formats. The series is being made available only to professional karaoke hosts. The program provides all the songs on disc, but requires the KJ to agree that he/she will not allow anyone to copy the files, will not run more than one show per collection purchased (1:1 ratio), and will make their library available for audit by Sound Choice at any time.

This last requirement has the karaoke forums buzzing. The hosts who advocate legal libraries are relating this effort to illegal search and seizure, invasion of privacy, and to the IRS' authority to inspect your bank accounts for no reason at all. Are they correct? Do they have a point? Is there anything that Sound Choice can do to deal with the issue and appease the masses at the same time? The thought of allowing anyone access to personal information on a computer is disturbing. After all, we go to great lengths to shield this information from the internet hijackers. On the other hand, when it comes to intellectual property, do we really purchase anything but the disk, the cassette tape, or the paper in the book?

The copyright laws for intellectual property are very clear. When  you purchase an album of music, you are purchasing the right to use that music for your own personal enjoyment. You can move it to your mp3 player so you can take it with you, but you cannot give it to your friend to copy. The same is true when you download that title from the internet. If the copyright holder has not been compensated for the purchase of that track, then it cannot be legally sold to you. You may remember the famous case against Napster. The legal answer would be the same for any site that allows you to freely download any and all songs - it's not legal! The law is also clear in regard to using those same tracks for a commercial purpose. You can't do it! The jury has ruled in the past on format shifting for personal use. It's still out on format shifting for use in a commercial venture. But Sound Choice is at least saying they have no problem with format shifting as long as you buy the discs and only format shift them for one show for each set purchased. You must keep the discs and you cannot use them after you format shift for anything other than an archival copy.  If you run more than one show, you have to purchase one copy of the disc series for each show. For the new series, you have to keep the series discs together, so two rigs means two different copies of the entire series purchased.

Sound Choice claims that for every song that they paid rights for and produced, from 10 to 100 illegal copies have been made. Because they are one of the best at producing karaoke tracks (as defined by the number of illegal tracks in existence and as evidenced by the proclamations of the karaoke hosts themselves) Sound Choice claims they have lost many millions of dollars, have had to cut their staff to bare bones, and are unable to create new tracks for the near future. In order to remain viable, they have taken the reigns and are suing KJ hosts, and venues for running karaoke shows with illegally obtained tracks.  They do this by sending investigators into shows to observe the host running the show from computer instead of from disc. (I have found no evidence that they are suing Karaoke hosts that run their shows with illegally obtained disc copies). Those that do and display the Sound Choice Logo are sued and must prove that they actually own the original discs that the music came from. If they don't have them, they are given a choice of purchasing the whole collection or going out of business. Anything else means they will be prosecuted for trademark infringement. If they are successful, then you can be sure other manufacturers and copyright holders will be standing in line.

If it works, this new program has a great benefit to Sound Choice. The legal KJ's that agree to buy the new series will be registered users who will sign a contract and will display a sticker that proves that their library was legally obtained from the manufacturer. Those same KJ's are the ones that have already purchased their libraries on CDG. It's still up in the air on whether they will do any kind of buy back of those discs. Otherwise, legal KJ's will be making a double purchase of at least a portion of their libraries. Good deal for Sound Choice, but bad for Hosts. It may also keep many older businesses that have accumulated a large collection from getting involved in the program.

Now comes the other side of this scenario. Sound Choice is hoping to get KJ's who have been pirating their music to come over to the other side. They would like them all to purchase the GEM series (which is a great deal compared to purchasing the CDG's) and become legal. They also hope that it will deter those who are not willing to pay to give up the business. But you and I both know that isn't going to happen.

Even with the new program becoming popular with the Professionals in the field, Sound Choice will still be dealing with the same issues they have been to date. Those that choose not to purchase and register will still do what they have until they are hauled into court and forced to prove that they are legal. Those that are legal will just get mad and stop using Sound Choice music at their shows. Those that aren't legal will agree to quit in order to avoid costly prosecution. Some of those will turn around, change their name, and do it all over again.

Sound Choice has made a valiant effort in their attempt to survive. To go out of business would mean that the industry would be losing another great manufacturer. We have lost many over the years. Some because of issues like this, others because they chose to ignore the law themselves and got caught.  If they continue to try to clean up the industry in order to survive, then only time will tell if they will be successful. The Gem Series is an attempt to control the use of their products. I hope that the legal KJ's begin to realize that the only difference between the contract they must sign to purchase this series and what they have been doing all along is that they are now not the only ones policing themselves. Those that don't follow the rules will be weeded down, but probably not out!