Got Hoster, got laptop...now what??
 

I purchased the Hoster program for running my shows from a laptop. I went and purchased a laptop that met all the requirements as listed on the website. Now apparently I need to get a CDG burner?? When I bought the laptop...they sold me a DVD burner and said it was capable so I was not concerned. Now here I am ..thousands of dollars later - installed the Hoster program and it says NO for Karaoke. So I looked on the site for a solution- apparently I can get one from MTU but I have no idea which one I need and is that ALL I need...or with there be more? I have no idea about Microstudio...do I have to have that too??? It is turning out to be a huge expense for me...and I am feeling a bit concerned now that I have made 2 large purchases and I am still sitting here unable to use it. Please help me figure out what more I need and how much more money I am going to have to find to get this up and running....am I the only one that is this frustrated?? Also I am in Canada...so anything I buy is eeeekkk so much more than you guys pay for it...so thats why I need to know what my best options are...Thanx For Your Help !!

External USB Drive
 

What you need is a USB2 Plextor CD-RW that MTU sells for $189.00US or if you wish you can buy at a good retail store in Alberta? This drive sells for that amount in Montreal but in Canadian dollar so you should find it in Calgary?

With the dollar exchange plus shipping you will pay more with MTU because you're in Canada (Me Too!!) but it will be 100% CDG certified because they test each drive they ship. The reason I don't recommend the DVD-RW from Plextor is that you already have an internal DVD drive so why pay more?

Make sure you have a USB2 port on your laptop and you're in business!!

Ho yeh, Go Flames Go!!

regards

Just a CD-RW drive?
 

So will that solve my entire problem or am I still gonna need to but Microstudio or Karaoke Suite 4?? Because I cant do anything with the Hoster program yet....I have no idea if I will still need something else......

Starfire,
If you are going to run a karaoke show from a laptop, the usb plextor . that you use to import songs. If the onboard hard drive is large enough to hold all the karaoke tracks you are going to be playing that should do it.

If you are going to be importing a huge amount of karaoke disks into the computer you may need an external hard drive also.

Microstudio or Karaoke Suite 4..... while they are nice to have, you do not need them to run a karaoke show.

Karaoke suite 4 is for creating karaoke songs from scratch. I don't think you will be doing this.

Gary

Okay...now I have a problem. I went to purchase the drive from MTU and it says that they do not ship drives outside of the US !! So what do I do now???? This is the most frustrating experience ....I need help...please !!

I am in the us, and am not familiar with the retail stores in canada, but as mlepine said, you can buy them there. Here best buy, or compusa, circuit city ect. all carry them.

Ship to US
 

Don't worry, someone will help you at MTU. They shipped to me and others but it's just that they don't do it at large...

They won't let you down, it's not the way they work!

regards

plextorshopcanada.com
 

I did a yahoo search with: plextor cdrw
Found the main Plextor site.
Selected the Americas and came around to the above address.

(I've looked at some Best Buys and Circuit Cities in my part of Southern California, and haven't had much luck finding Plextor Drives-I'm just looking out of curiosity since I have one from MTU)

Hope you've received all the help you need.

Still Looking...
 

Well I have called all my local suppliers and I guess Plextor is not the big thing in this area...can't get any. Looked on the plextor canada website but then I am still faced with ordering online from somewhere and if it doesnt work...I am out the cash. If I try to get it from MTU after exchange and brokerage fees it will be very costly. So I am still hoping for the magical answer to appear. If I was to order from Plextor Canada....which ones should I consider? I wanna be sure to get the right one....anyone??

Model Numbers Would Be Nice
 

I was noticing that too. The burners sold by MTU are described less by model number than by function. It would be nice if MTU's description of their burners were more exact on the model numbers so if, Heaven forbid, we had to get them from another source because of special circumstances, we could know what it is that they recommend. I can see if they don't want to give too much info, however.

Re: Still Looking...
 

Any Best Buy in your region? Did you send MTU Support an email asking if you could buy from them?

Models are easy: If you want a CD-RW all you need to say is external USB, 48X or 52X which is the latest model they make.

regards

Why not go to www.plextor.com and buy direct? They have an on line store, and I'd bet they give full specs on all their products, or could answer your questions.

George

Good Suggestion and there is in fact 3 Best Buy in Alberta which carry's the Plextor brand!

http://www.bestbuycanada.ca/companyi...or.asp?lang=EN

Good Luck!

Nope...Best Buy in Canada does not carry Plextor.


"Currently the only item by Plextor that we carry is the Plextor PX-M402U ConvertX Digital Video Converter."

Customer Care
Best Buy Canada

Thanx for the suggestion....but I guess here in Canada we don't get the good stuff....eh? haha

If I order off Plextor Canada...can someone advise which one specifically will work best? Don't wanna spend a few hundred if it is not necessary and a hundred dollar one will do the trick.

Who ever said Best Buy Canada doesn't carry Plextor is wrong!
This has to be a regional decision because I've seen it with my own eyes in Toronto last month.

Click on this linck to see model & CDN price:
http://www.plextorshopcanada.com/basket.asp

regards

I've been using a plextor premium (internal) since they first came out , not a single problem. I know they make an external version of the same model. My internal was @$99 US. that was last August at Best Buy here in Michigan....

As to what they sell for in Canada.......dunno.

But its a solid workhorse.:g

If all else fails pop over to Ebay.There are just loads of Plextor Burners.No need to buy the newest and fastest.
It is always reccommended to burn audio at a slower speed anyway to achieve better quality.
There are other burners(older it´s true) that support cd+g,eg HP,Yamaha.
I´ve picked up many a bargain by not just buying the newest or fastest.
Don´t forget USB 2.0 not 1.1 or your life will be more miserable when you see the burning time for a cd!

Johnocolin said:
Sorry, a slow burn is not "ALWAYS" recommended. That thinking has dramatically changed over the last three years or so. A good check of these forums would reveal just exactly the opposite, especially where CDG is concerned.

The faster the better, and in many cases a fast burn will clean up a bad commercial disc.

George

I´m not going to debate this.Believe me you can save yourself a lot of money.Which good KJ buys bad commercial discs?

Faster the better
 

I agree with George when he says now the faster the better.

If you burn at 48X you will get better sound than 10X for example but if you don't use a good media at 48X you might have a sensitive disk versus the 10X.

The solution? MTU CDR's or if you wish Mitsui!! With this brand the faster the better and you ALWAYS get an excellent sound with a very stable playback.

Regards