newbie karaoke advice solicited

[jerseyjim]

Hello All,
I attended an event last weekend where my wife & I sat behind a stage & watched a karaoke program named "hoster" run. It was our first karaoke experience. Boy, it looked like a lot of fun! We like to sing but we're much too shy & unpolished to sing in public but I said to my wife I definitely pursue karaoke ability at home. I'd like to do it as cheaply as possible. I have a brand new high end PC, my wife has a Casio keyboard with a microphone so we can sing through that. I was wondering if we purchased hoster what else we would need to buy. Of course, we have a tv with inputs,etc..
Any/all advice deeply appreciated!
Regards,
Jim

[Beavis]

well it depends on how good you want to sound.

if you want to sound good, you will need an amp, speakers & microphone.

[Eric Whitehouse]

Most of all you'll need to buy lots of karaoke discs to load into Hoster.
Good luck,
Eric

[jerseyjim]

where do you buy karaoke discs? eBay?

[jerseyjim]

So with Hoster you load the karaoke discs into your pc & then they are all in your pc so you no longer need your discs, correct?
Is there a good place to buy karaoke discs at good prices, cany you buy & download them off the internet?
Sorry for all the questions - I'm a newbie & anxious to get going asap.
Regards,
Jim

[Beavis]

once you load them into your computer your set to go. no more disc to carry.

you should always have a back up of you kma's.

hoster converts your cd-g (karaoke disc's) to kma.


just do a google search for karaoke and you will find everything you need.

[jerseyjim]

kma's??

[jerseyjim]

can anyone recommend a good allinone unit for me, using my own tv, pc & stereo unit? I'll just be using this in our home.

Again, thanks in advance.
Jim

[Karaoke John]

Hey Jim
If you are just getting started. You can buy Karaoke Disks off E-Bay, Or you can go to dedicated karaoke Web sites Like Karaoke. Com, or even to your local Wal-mart, K-Mart, Target, and Media Play to find disks.
You can also hook your Computer into your Home stereo system and use your Casio to sing through for starters til you buy all the bells and whistles. Karaoke is addictive.
Don't be shy about singing in public either Karaoke is about having fun not being the next American Idol . I used to be but I try not to take myself to seriously. I do practice at home before I sing before audiences and Its always best to sing something you know and are familiar with.
Also If you read enough of these forums you will find out about all the legal issues with downloading Karaoke titles off the internet It is just best to buy the disks and load them onto your Harddrive. Hoster will convert the CD+G format to a KMA (Karaoke Media File) So it can play it. Hoster is definately the best choice for playing back karaoke on a computer. You will need a CD player in your computer that will recognize and Play the CD+G format. Not all will, Plextor is one that will. Or they sell CD reader/writers on the MTU website that will.
Best of luck in your endeavours.
John

[George]

Jim,
Check this unit out. I have been using one for seven years as a home unit. It has every feature you'll need, including six mike inputs.

click here

George

I might add that there are six mike inputs, three in front, and three in back is why you only see three in the photo. Also, the ones in front and back are "paired" up where the individual volume controls are concerned. There are only three individual mike volume controls that control two mikes each, in addition to the master mike volume control. Thats the only place where the manufacturer's specs fall short, as far as I can tell.

[jdavia]

All the programs and software by MTU are for professional use. They also make a software called I think the name is 'Hoster Player'. Sold through another company, (need more info from someone at MTU). No other software or hardware needed except the songs I tested it.
But if none of this is for your needs, you can purchase other complete units not for a computer from Radio Shack, Walmart, Target, and such.
These are strickly for home use with less quality in the features offered.
I recommend that if you buy and you are asking us in this Forum for advice, I would recomend at least buying MTU's programs, but your computer has to be able to handle them. You might fall in love with Karaoke and wished you had later

[George]

Originally Posted by jdavia

All the programs and software by MTU are for professional use.

Gotta take issue with that. I'd say it's a fair guess that the bulk of MTU product users are just like me...Karaoke Junkies, not Karaoke Jockeys

George

[Beavis]

isnt the program called karaoke bay ??

[MTUSUPPORT]

The other product is called karaokeXTREME by Karaoke Bay, but it will only play their discs that you purchase, that are stated as karaokeXTREME, you can't import other discs into this program and it comes on the disc when you purchase it from Walmart. This is the only outlet to get this exact disc from, and I think they are less than $15 a piece.