Portable Karaoke Machine
Memorex SingStand MKS-SS1 Home Karaoke System
I’m Asian, so karaoke is in my blood. But karaoke is becoming more popular everywhere around the world, no matter where you live, so chances are you too will be called to pick up the mic and perform in front of your friends one of these days. That being the case, you’re probably gonna be like me and want to practice on your own preferably at home before you step out and face possible ridicule. Or perhaps you are a somewhat serious singer and you just want to practice the latest familiar pop songs in the comfort of your own home. That’s where a portable karaoke machine comes in.
No matter how you look at it, the Memorex SingStand MKS-SS1 Home Karaoke System is the most entertaining, easy to use, and versatile home karaoke system that I’ve seen on the market. Basically, if you own any song or MP3, you can sing karaoke with it — that’s how versatile it is. You can even plug in your own instruments such as a keyboard or electric guitar to add your own musical accompaniment.
Here’s how the SingStand works. What happens is that the SingStand uses a special technology called Auto Voice Control that turns the volume way down on the song’s vocal parts when you’re singing, and brings the vocal volume back up when you stop singing — this way, you don’t forget the melody to the song. I found that the SingStand usually doesn’t eliminate the vocal track 100%, but more than enough so you can’t hear it when you’re actually singing. Also, it tends to muddy the vocal quality of the original singer a little bit, but that’s usually not a problem since it doesn’t matter when you’re the one doing the singing. Overall, the AVC system is great in that you’ll never forget the words when you blank on the lyrics.
You can sing along to any music from your iPod or any other MP3 player that you might have, using a standard 3.5mm jack. The portable karaoke machine even has a convenient little holder to place your audio device so you can control it easily.
The SingStand features a high-quality dynamic microphone with a 10 foot long cable, and two powerful high-quality 4 Watt speakers built right into the base itself which offer great sound comparable to a home stereo system. Of course, karaoke is the most fun when you share the experience with your friends. The SingStand’s got you covered with two microphone inputs he can sing a duet with your friend. You can enhance your singing voice digitally with voice control and reverb effects, simulating a concert environment.
Setup is fast and easy. Of course, the only drawback to this type of karaoke system, is that you don’t see lyrics scrolling across the TV screen. The trade-off is that you can basically sing karaoke to literally any song that you own, without having to buy any specialized “karaoke only” tracks. My friends and I like to sing songs that we pretty much know the lyrics to, and we download and print out the lyrics to songs that we don’t know on the computer.
My friends and I have been having a blast with the Memorex SingStand. Every party I throw at my house has a constant line of people waiting to sing on it, and my friends are always asking to borrow it and take it to their house. It’s great for the entire family, and little kids especially love it. The prices very reasonable too, especially because you won’t have to buy a bunch of specialized karaoke-only CDs all the time. When it comes to portable karaoke machine choices, I think this is the only one to consider.
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