The solution for better audio play back
As a magician and audio visual nerd, I like to find technology and apply it to my magic. With this product review/tutorial I will present for you an audio solution that has changed the way I run audio for three different magic shows. This may benefit your magic show as well.
When I was 18 years old a I worked for the Phoenix Suns basketball team as their official magician. I would often arrive at the games early just to hang out in the empty arena. I became friends with the D.J. and noticed the equipment he was using to instantly pull up any audio track he wanted with the touch of a button. He was using a device called an Instant Replay machine. This machine had a bank of 50 buttons, and each button held a clip of audio that you could manipulate in different ways. You could play one track at a time and pressing another button would override the previous track that was playing. This device also had several memories with the ability to hold hundreds of songs. This seemed like the ultimate solution for an illusion or magic show. I later noticed that a few of the largest illusion shows were using this. I also noticed it at a Carrot Top show and I learned it was a staple at many radio stations for sound effects. It seemed like a perfect solution until I saw the price tag of $3,600.
My show and the shows I was working for could not justify that kind of expense for a machine of this awesome nature. So we continued to use the dual CD player method, running the same disc in both CD players and transitioning between both players as needed. This is/was an effective method but it has limitations. You can only load so many songs on a single disk. More disks mean more possibilities of loading the wrong songs at the wrong time or even possibly damaging the disks. And that is why I was so excited to find the Roland SP-404SX.
What is the SP-404SX?
The Roland SP-404SX is a linear wave sampler, and it’s typically used by D.J.s to create loops and sequences used in many different applications, it’s a fancy beat box. (See the video demonstration)
Some features of the SP-404SX
- 12 Touch Pads
- 10 Memories
- Swappable memory cards up to 32 Gig
- AC or DC power (plug it in or use 6 AA batteries)
- 3 Playback modes
- On board volume control
- Stack up to 12 tracks at a time
- It’s Affordable
- Many more features you will never need to use but are fun to play with
Why the SP-404SX may solve all your audio problems.
The SP-404SX is a very powerful tool for magic shows of all sizes, at a reasonable price of around $400. It has 10 memories with twelve buttons each. This will allow you to load up to 120 tracks at as much as 2 gig per button with a total of 32 gig max. Music is loaded onto the SP-404SX with a very simple computer program that is included. It should be noted that this is not a perfect solution, there are a few small quirks but I think they are easy enough to work around, this machine was not invented for our use.
What does this mean to you? Well I load my songs onto the SP-404SX by banks. The banks are labeled by letter, I use labels A and B as the main show banks. I try to load the SP-404SX in order, The opening routines music would be pad number one, and the second routine is pad number 2, and so on. This makes it easier to remember where your music is, although you won’t have to remember and you’ll see why in my video. I then jump to Memory E and load all of my pre-show, intermission, post show music and voice overs. If the show has any additional performers I give them their own bank and load ALL of their music even if they are doing only one routine. (This way when the show changes, I’m ready)
The pre-show, intermission, and post show music each are on their own pad. This means I have about a dozen songs on one track that is loaded onto a single pad. I simply use Garage Band on my Mac to edit these tracks together with smooth transitions. (You can use your favorite method)
There are three main playback options to use.
- The first option doesn’t really seem effective for our needs, it’s called “GATE” and it will play the track as long as you are holding down the pad. You can also use the hold button and cause it to loop.
- The second option is the “STANDARD” playback, and it works best if you are running your own music. Basically you press the pad once and the track will play to the end and then stop. If you edit your music appropriately this is an extremely useful playback option. I sometimes use this for a sound effect that will play over another track. The problem with the standard playback is it must play from beginning to end. If you press pad 1 in standard play back mode and then press 1 again it will simply start the track over. You can void it by pressing “CANCEL” 4 times, but that will stop all of your tracks. Remember, we are re-purposing this for our use, this is not what it was originally intended for.
- My favorite playback option is called “LOOP” and that is exactly what it does, once you press the pad it will loop the track until you press the pad again. This is what I use the most when I’m running someones show. I add a little dead time to the end of each track to give me some time to remember to press the pad again shutting it off. If I’m just using the music as a filler in the background I will buy affordable royalty free loops from a place like Audio Jungle, and I’ll load those onto the SP-404SX.
So in conclusion, the Roland SP-404SX is a very effective tool for working magic shows today. Using it will help you avoid lost disks, scratches, and most importantly missed cues. The device does have a few quirks for our use but they are easy to over come. If you want to find the best pricing on a Roland SP-404SX and help support my blog, please click any of the links on this page.
If you have any comments, tips, or suggestions please leave them below.
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