Karaoke Forums

I have enough equipment now that I am trying to configure what I would use in different size venues based upon the amount of sound I have to produce and the size of the area where I have to set up.

Also, my goal is to limit the amount, size and weight of the equipment so that I don't have to carry any more stuff than the job actually requires.

As to TV/Monitors...

I started with a 13" CRT color TV and designed my own stand that also accommodates 4 cordless mics. It is bulky and heavy and I realized that it was a UNNECESSARY pain if it wasn't actually needed! And the main determinant regarding that is whether I was taking the cordless mics!

So I purchased a 17" flat screen LCD tv and mounted it on a music stand. It is compact, relatively light weight and fits into a "duffle" bag. It was purchased to either serve the singers or to turn to the audience when a TV was unavailable for them! I eventually purchased an additional mic stand "stereo" top that will accommodate up to six mics, including cordless ones! So, if I don't need the flat screen for the audience's benefit and I do want to take cordless mics, I am no longer locked into the 13" TV and its special stand! I can use the less bulky and lighter weight flat screen set up plus the mic stand!

Today my newest video monitor for singers arrived. It is a 7" flat screen and it mounts on top of one of my camera tripods. It is unbelievably light and compact, even with the tripod. AND... I have clipped a mic stand to the tripod. It can't get any lighter or easier than that!

Anybody else doing anything similar?

No.. a 7 inch screen for the singers is way to small. I get a lot of older people, and use a 15 inch monitor, and it is sometimes hard to see with certain manufacturers, like PHM/PHN, where it is yellow & blueish. I could never go to a 7 inch screen and keep my singers.

Dan, why do you say that the monitor it's way too small? Have you ever experienced one?

This size monitor was briefly discussed recently on the forum and someone or some others also said it was too small! But no one ever indicated that they had actually used one.

Our local retail karaoke store sells what I purchased for $300. And I have been to a show that uses one and where there were "older' singers aside from me! So I guess there are old people who don't find it to be too small.

While I do believe that I could, on occasion, run into someone who is comfortable with the setup, I still have my laptop as a backup option. I've been to shows where there is no video monitor and the laptop is what the singers use!

I gotta admit, having not used one, when I first read 7" I too felt that was way to small. I currently use a 13" tv (which means about 12" of viewable screen) and I can't imagine going any smaller. In fact I'm hoping to go flat panel myself and go with a larger monitor.

I'd also be a little nervous about mounting anything to a mic stand. They just are not designed to handle a whole lot of weight and can be put off balance fairly easily. Currently I use a standard Karaoke monitor stand (On-Stage I believe) and separate mic stands for the microphones. I've been pretty happy with that setup, although I will admit your plan is very intriguing.

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DJ Tony
Let It Rip Karaoke

Letitrip

First of all, the weight is almost non-existent, so it could work on a mic stand without making it top-heavy. But, again, I have it mounted on a camera tripod which it is specifically designed to fit the TV's base!

As to size... If you are computerized, the CDG graphics on your laptop screen for the words is probably a 1/2 and maybe only 1/3 the size of the TV, to put things in perspective!

Lastly, it is an additional option, not my only option. If there are places and times when it is not the best choice, I'll use another option!

I get complaints about my 13" singers screen being too small now. Plan on moving to a 17 or 19" here in the next month or so. I use 2 7" LCD monitors for my cue screens behind the booth & I have trouble seeing them clearly sometimes.

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

i recently went to a 16" LCD TV, and retired my old 20" flat TV. I really liked the size of the larger screen, but i like the size and weight of the smaller one. However, I don't think I would go any smaller than a 15". Anything smaller might become an issue with some of the singers...bad lighting, eyesight. That sort of thing.

Whoops that's right, got all the scenarios screwed up in my head. Separate stand=good

Just for grins, since you brought up the second graphics display on the primary display of the computer, I'll size it to 6.5" diagonal (the size of the viewable area on a 7" LCD) at my next show and see how that looks. That will answer the question in my mind once and for all.

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DJ Tony
Let It Rip Karaoke

I would not use that size for my own shows for the reason I stated previously.. but yes, I have been to a show where there was a very small screen (maybe 7 inch) and it was not much fun trying to read the lyrics.. let alone I heard all the people I was with complain about the same thing.

I would never use my laptop screen as a singers screen. Thats not very attractive looking in my opinion. For $300 you can get a nice 19-20 inch LCD that is not very heavy at all online. Just my thoughts..

Well, to each his own.

While as a singer I might PREFER a larger screen, the karaoke store is touting how well the equipment has been working for those who have purchased it.

The only shows I have been to with this size TV are cnducted by one of our larger karaoke "companies" - a company I discussed in a recent post regarding companies that have multiple rigs.

And while I can't honest say I like the 7" monitor as well as much the 60" one on the wall, I have yet to come across a SINGLE singer at any show using that size tv who complained about it! If I had encountered just ONE complaint, I may have reconsidered purchasing it!

Oh,... I got it for $100!

Next, I am considering getting a large flat screen LCD for private parties held in reception halls where I don't expect to find a TV on the wall!

, like they would actually say otherwise.
I offer in my shows what I prefer as a singer, if I don't like it, someone else surely won't either - then why offer it is the way I look at it. Which is partly why I got into karaoke in the first place, to do a show opposite of shows I didn't like to begin with.

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

Hmmmmm. A 7 inch monitor might be up there close to filler music for me. While I might be able to see it, I'd have to get really close to it to do so and I'd prefer to be able to be a little further away from the screen while singing.

I'm with Lonnie when it comes to "what do you think a salesman would say" when he's trying to sell you something?

I started out with a 9" AC/DC portable that I yanked out of my van. Everyone thought it was too small. The 13" CRT that I currently use is adequate, but I put it on a high table so it's not too much of a strain. I'll probably go with something bigger sometime but that's not high on my priority list because no one's complaining.

For my residency I have a 16" portable mounted on the wall for the singers,and a 32" for the audience. My mobile gigs I use a 19" vga monitor for the singers,and I can use a projector if required. Your 7" monitor...You say its on a mic stand...is it DIRECTLY in front of the singer i.e within a foot or so of the singer?

Bill H

How old was the technology on that 9" unit? The unit I just purchased is crystal clear!
As I suggested, for those who have hosting software on your computer, you can check it out for yourselves.

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Anyway, as usual, many of you display your general ignorance through the manner in which you respond to something new -- new ideas, new answers, new equipment, new circumstances.

Again I have 13" and a 17" monitors. Anyone who says 13" isn't large enough is either playing at old, old age homes or has completely worn out the equipment. My 13" is old and clear as could be for karaoke lyrics, as well as music videos. And... I have large groups coming up for sing-a-longs utilizing 6 mics. If the 13" screen were too small, no one would care to join in after one experience!

So, believe what you would like about that which you have never experienced! I have sung with that small screen at least three times. The entertainment company using it has 5 hosts working for it. And it was at the owner's show that I first encountered the 7" screen in actual use!

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Some of these posts remind me of when I started out. Most of the forum's "experts" tried to talk me out of purchasing my Fender Passport. Of course, now I know why -- they haven't a clue about karaoke in smaller venues, many of which are primarily eating establishments and not watering holes.

But instead of saying that they are not really familiar with the type of places I was describing, and/or they hadn't actually ever used the equipment I was discussing in the type of environment where I said it would be used, everyone knew better from afar than those who had hands-on experience with the stated equipment and specific venues. It didn't matter to the "experts" how many other KJ's I indicated were using the very same equipment locally and doing so successfully; it didn't matter how many shows I personally attended that utilized a Passport -- all that mattered to the experts, it seems, is that the expert's opinion prevailed. And there is no way our almighty forum experts could be wrong.

Well they were wrong and the Passport did the job it was purchased to do and I stand by my decision to purchase it. And I will still find good use for it even with all of the additional equipment I now have

Now what works for me may not work for others; that's a given. But I am realizing that it is a waste of time, generally speaking, to share much info that out of the mainstream with this group. There are just too many big egos amongst you.

As for me, I didn't invent the 7" Tv or originate the idea of using it for karaoke! I have no stock in the company! I thought some folks would like to consider it. Only one person, however, is open-minded enough to check it out, even though he is skeptical. And then he will KNOW (not guess or conjecture) whether it will work for him just as I determined it will work for me. And to purchase this equipment, I had to put aside my initial (emotional) personal opinion that I DIDN'T like the small TV and allow rational thinking to prevail. You see... every purchase we make is based upon emotions, in spite of what you may believe to the contrary. But this isn't suppose to be a thread about marketing.

So, I set aside my emotions in order to determine that the little TV, in most circumstance, works just fine and there is actually nothing wrong with it, generally speaking, from the viewpoint of a singer!

l

Yeah, Lonman, I must agree with you here. I was getting too many complaints with my 13" CRT from the older set...

I have a 19" flat screen, and the problem went away. I'm 43 and my eyes struggle now too...

A 7"??? No way that's gonna fly, sorry Eric, but good luck.

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Good music, good friends, howling good times!

First off let me say that I do not have the 7"LCD monitor you are referring to.

However I have been to some shows that have tried them and the screen is way to small for my liking. I found them difficult to see when the lyrics sweep fast or when I do a duet that uses blue lyrics it is particularly difficult to read them.

Each to their own, but I have tried downsizing from 19" TV's to 13" and rec'd flack from my customers. Once the 13" became toast, I went back to 19" and this time I went LCD with a wide screen, the complaints stopped.

Frankly the 13" worked ok for me but my customers did not like it.

After 10 years of doing this I have learned to listen to my customers.

I'm with Lonman, Koyote, Bill and others. 7" is too small.

Time will tell and if you are listening you will begin to hear them complain a couple of weeks after you first introduce it into you show. Generally they will not complain if they know it is your new "pride and joy" or Toy. A few weeks down the road the newness will wear off and you may begin to hear how they really feel.

If it works for you and your customers then great!

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FlipSide Karaoke
Scott

I have been to shows that used a small screen and it didn't bother me, but then again I don't much look at lyrics. On some songs I do glance at them from time to time to verify memory, but I am usually not relying on them.

I really like having them facing me, though, because I always want to face the audience. When the screen is behind me, as it does in some one-screen shows in our area, I have almost a nervous tic on some songs as I glance to the side or behind me to verify where I am in the song. It isn't a good way to be, but I hate singing with my back facing the audience more.

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[color=#ffff55]Mickey J.[/color]
Alas for those who never sing, but die with all their music in them.
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

You also have to remember that just because someone doesn't complain, doesn't mean they don't like it. There's no way I would ever even consider less than a 13" screen for my singers, and I would sooner quit doing karaoke than have them sing using my laptop screen. I'm all for making things easier for mobile use, but there's just some things I won't compromise on. My 15" and 17" LCD monitors are lightweight, easy to set up, and easy for everyone to see.

By the way, as Lonnie said, I based what I use on what I liked and disliked as a singer, before I became a KJ. That's why I always have a mic stand for every microphone. I wouldn't do a show without them, so mic holders on the TV stand are a "no-go" with me.