On all karaoke CD's, the music and background vocals are not the original band, or in the case of a vocal demo track, not the original singer. The arrangement of the song is usually in the style of the person who has made the song a hit.

Karaoke track.
You sing the main vocal part of the song. This also referred to as the instrumental track on some karaoke CD's. Background vocals (not the main vocal), if needed, can also be heard on the prerecorded karaoke CD track, so when you sing the song, these addtional voices are heard, along with you singing your main part.

Vocal Demo track.
A pro singer sings along with the music, so you know how the singing part is supposed to go.

Disk descriptions that say " karaoke and vocal demo tracks ".
The CD is designed for performance version (karaoke- no vocalist on this version) and rehearsal version (vocalist can be heard on the CD ) of each song. Only some karaoke disks have this. ( Chartbuster 6+6's, Priddis 5's, mostof the "Monthy" disks - Pop Hits Mon.,Top Hits Mon.,)Practice singing by listening and singing along with the rehersal singer. You can turn the rehersal vocalist on an off during rehersal using the Left/Right balance control on your stereo. Then perform the song using the karaoke track.

CD+G.
A five inch standard size CD disk. CD+G means compact disk with graphics. Graphics refer to the words of the songs which appear on a color background, and change color as you sing them. CD+G's have 4 to 18 songs per disk depending on manufacturer. To see the words, you need a karaoke player. If you put a CD+G disk in a regular audio CD player, the music will still play just fine, but not the graphics.
Many people ask us if the words are on a regular, non-karaoke CD - they are not. You must have a "karaoke CD" to see the song words AND a karaoke player to see the words. DVD players WILL NOT play CDG disks.

VCD.
This is a 5 INCH CD karaoke disk with video background. Most DVD players can play these (see your owners manual) and all VCD karaoke players can play them. Also, most PC computers and Power Macs can play these VCD CD's. The words will show up on your computer monitor like a regular karaoke show. Title selection is limited but is growing. Rather than a "blue screen" background like CDG disks, these disks have "videos" like a music video you see on TV playing in the background..very colorful. click here to see VCD disks Our RSQ 222 and RSQ 333 karaoke players play the VCD disks

DVD.
Like VCD's above. These CD's DO NOT play on your home computer unless your computer has a DVD player built in. DVD disks will not play on a standard CD player. Most people buy these because they already own a DVD player to play movies on, and, just by using a karaoke DVD disk, it makes the player into an "instant" karaoke player. We recommend using the VCD disks on your DVD player, IF your DVD player can play them. - most can- see your owners manual. The reason we like the VCD disks for DVD players is there is more selection available and VCD disks play on most all DVD or VCD disk players and VCD disks usually cost less than DVD disks. Karaoke Pro's generally do not use use this format because selecting the song number can be slow and cumbersome, which is fine for home use where you are not in a hurry to select songs. If your DVD player does not have a mic. input on it, you may want to get a small mixer and microphone so you can hear your voice thru the TV or amplfier. We sell the Pioneer MA-3 Karaoke Mixer for $54 which is ideal for this purpose. This mixer easily connects betwen your DVD player and your sound system. It also adds digital echo to your voice- you control how much echo -includes 1 mic.

LASER DISK.
This was the original format for modern karaoke. This 12" disk is no longer being made and replaced with the standard 5" CDG disk. The words change color as you are to sing them. Depending on the manufacturer, they contain 12 to 28 songs per disk. Nice video pictures showing in the backround like VCD disks.

SOFTWARE.
This refers to the type of media which reproduces the music in the case of audio cassette tape, or reproduces music and video or graphics in the case of laser disk, CD+G, VCD, or video tape. To reproduce the graphics and or video and to display it, you must have a karaoke player attached to a TV, VCR or video monitor.

Multiplex.
There is a voice track so that you can learn the song. Some manufacturers have two versions of the song on the disk. One without the voice track and one with. Some manufacturers provide you with only one version that has a voice track. In either case the voice track can be removed by using a feature on your karaoke player called "MULTIPLEX" (MPX) or the balance control on your amp or CD player.

HARDWARE.
This is a generalized term and refers to the players, key controllers, mixers, amplifiers, speakers, and microphones.

KARAOKE PLAYER.
A CD player that plays karaoke CD's (CDG disks). They can also player regular CD's too. It converts the information on a karaoke CD disk, to audio and video output. They must be connected to an amplifier. Many home singers connect them to their home stereo system for an amplifier. They must also be connected to a TV via the "video input" on the TV, OR if the TV does not have a video input, you need an "RF Modulator" ( which we sell for $28.95) and then you can see the words on channel 3 or 4 on the TV. You can also use your VCR in place of the RF Modulator, as long as your VCR has a "video input" on it -most do.

PORTABLE KARAOKE PLAYER.
A karaoke player that has the CD player and amplifier built into one unit. These portable players need only a connecting wire to your TV or video monitor "video input" or VCR video input. IF you don't have a "video input" on your TV or VCR you will need an RF Modulator (see definition of RF Modulator) While these units work fine with their built-in amplifier, they sound even better when connected to a home stereo unit. These players have a jack where you can plug in a microphone..most of these players have an adjustable vocal echo. All of these players can play regular music CD's as well as Karaoke Cd's (CDG disks).

AMPLIFIER.
Takes the reproduced sound of the CD from the player and amplifies the sound. Karaoke amplifiers contain a variety of features which include mixing capabilities for microphone and music, and depending upon the features you want include echo, key change, vocal reducer, and vocal replacement.

MIXER.
This is placed between the player and amp in the connection process. A mixer is used when your player or amp doesn't have a place to connect a microphone. The mixer "mixes" the music from the player, with the sound from the microphone. Some mixers contain additional features such as key control, echo and vocal reducer for reducing the vocals on a regular, non-karaoke CD so you can sing with a regular CD.

KEY CHANGER.
This is another device placed between the player and amp in the connection process, but it is also "built-in to many CDG players. This device raises or lowers the key that the song is in. This helps a singer sing the song in his or her range ( makes the song easier to sing). It does not effect the tempo of the song. Other terms for key control are digital key control or pitch control.

VOCAL REDUCER.
This feature also known as vocal masking and vocal suppressor reduces the vocal on a regular, pre-recorded music CD. In newer CDG players that have this feature, it is usually used to play a regular, non-karaoke CD. When you sing along with it, it automatically reduces the volume of the original singer and your singing "over rides" the original singer. In addition to the vocal it may reduce any instrumentation in the same range as the pre- recorded vocal.

VOCAL REPLACEMENT.
This feature is helpful when you are trying to learn a song on a multiplex recording. In newer CDG players that have this feature, it is usually used to play a regular, non-karaoke CD. When you sing along with it, it automatically reduces the volume of the original singer and your singing "over rides" the original singer. When you play the vocal track on a multiplex recording and start to sing this feature mutes the pre-recorded vocal and then continues it when you stop singing.

RF MODULATOR.
If you are not connected to a monitor type TV you need one of these to convert the video signal from your karaoke player's "video output" to Channel 3 or 4 on you TV. If you have a video input on your VCR, you may not need the RF Modulator. click here to see our RF Modulator

DISK STORAGE CASES.
If you are doing shows it is a must to have some sort of systematic storage for your biggest investment, your disks. click here to see our CD disk storage cases.

MICROPHONE.
Buy a good quality microphone. Poor quality microphones will sound bad no matter how much you have spent on amp's and speakers. Wired microphones plug into your sound system with a cord. Wireless Microphones permit you to go anywhere in the room while you are singing. Wireless mic.s plug easily into your sound sytem. Many singers like a wireless mic. because most wireless mics. amplify your voice just a small amount, unlike wired or corded mics., which have no amplification built into them. With this small amplification, singers with a "soft" voice can usually be heard better on a wireless mic.
We carry 2 brands of wireless mics. -Shure and Nady..both very good. Handle wireless OR wired mics. with care.