 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: janlynn
Date: 2005-11-04 23:06
to anyone who has one of these gadgets
i want to get a windplayer tascam cd trainer - was trying to get one off ebay but all i find are guitar and vocal trainers. as far as i can see, they all function the same way and can be used for any instrument since you can change the key. but i was wondering about the cancel feature. is the guitar trainer set up to recognize the guitar to cancel ...if i want to cancel clarinet off a cd, how will it know? how does the cancel function work?
thanks, jan
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-11-05 01:28
Another option would be to get a digital program which uses your computers power to do the tempo changing instead of spending more on the hardware.
Cost of a program such as "the amazing slowdowner" is under $50.
It works as well if not better as you can save the files with it too. Transposes by cents as well as 1/2 steps and slows down, speeds up too.
Post Edited (2005-11-05 12:42)
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Author: janlynn
Date: 2005-11-05 01:41
thank you david ... this unit is under $195 new and less on ebay. also portable. im really interested in "this" and just want to understand how the cancel feature works.
jan
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Author: allencole
Date: 2005-11-05 05:55
The 'cancel' feature, if I understand it correctly, is set up to cancel something which is centered in the stereo panning and which is in the same frequency ranges that you'd expect for a vocal. I have a guitar trainer, but haven't used the advanced features yet.
I doubt that the "cancel feature" varies much from model to model. Most model-specific variations are probably related to effects and equalization for the target instrument.
I just bought one a few months ago for $150 at a local music store. A fantastic device for the money!
Allen Cole
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Author: BobD
Date: 2005-11-05 09:51
Tascam does not make a "wind trainer". They do make the Bass, the Guitar and the Voice versions. Google on Tascam and read about them, then contact Tascam direct with your specific questions. Yes, they do seem to be useful instruments but of course you have to mike your clarinet.
Bob Draznik
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Author: janlynn
Date: 2005-11-05 11:08
yes - actually they DO make one for a windplayer. see www.windplayer.com. i know they also make a guitar, bass, and vocal trainer. i have read the descriptions. they all seem to do the same things so were not sure why they were instrument specific.
my father wants to get me one for christmas and when he looked on ebay, he could only find the guitar, bass, and vocal tainer. (maybe the windplayer is too new??). anyway, he will pay the $195 for the windplayer if he has to, but if the guitar one does the exact same thing - why not get it for less on ebay?
so allen - i take it if he got the guitar trainer - there would be no problem using it for clarinet?
thanks, jan
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Author: Jack Kissinger
Date: 2005-11-05 16:28
From reading the info at the Tascam website, I expect that the electronics are different between the three models of "trainer" that they make. They indicate that the vocal trainer is the one that woodwind and string players are buying. I've never tried one so I can't tell you how well it works. If it works well, however, it would be a fantastic toy -- think music minus one for just about any piece you wanted with tempo control as well. At this point, I'd want to try one myself before I shelled out my money. Selectively cancelling one instrument on a standard cd without losing alot of other info sounds like magic to me. (But modern electronics can be pretty magical.)
Go to <http:www.tascam.com> and search on "cd trainer" without the quotes.
Best regards,
jnk
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Author: allencole
Date: 2005-11-05 18:47
If I have my terminology correct, the "cancel feature" is probably a parametric equalizer. If this is the case, how well it works probably will depend less on the device itself than on the mixing characterisics of the recording.
I've never used this feature on the tascam unit, but have experienced the effect while tuning through a demodulted FM radio signal with a shortwave radio receiver. Signals mixed equally strong in both the left and right channels will cancel each other out. Signals with unequal mixing come to you at their net strength.
It's a pretty nifty effect in a modern stereo recording mixed with a lot of separation. It'll be interesting to see what happens on recordings that are less separated or in mono. And it's hard to know if this feature functions any differently from instrument to instrument. I agree, however, that the vocal model probably best matches our purposes.
Unfortunately, my unit came without a manual, and I only use it to slow down very fast passages at this point. A good testing device might be a Jamey Aebersold recording. If I remember correctly, their keyboards and bass are on separate channels, with the drums centered. If this is the case, the Tascam's 'cancel' feature should eliminate the drums if they are well-centered in the recorded signal.
Allen Cole
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Author: BobD
Date: 2005-11-06 16:00
Windplayer sure looks a lot like a Tascam product but Windplayer and Tascam seem to be two different companies. If you go into the Tascam website I doubt you will see a "windplayer" advertised. But you may have a point....i.e. Tascam may manufacture it for Windplayer.
Bob Draznik
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Author: Jack Kissinger
Date: 2005-11-06 21:33
"Windplayer sure looks a lot like a Tascam product "
Right down to the Tascam name stamped on it!
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The Clarinet Pages
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it looks like the vocal trainer would do it.