My tool of choice for Karaoke shows is CAVS Karaoke DVD-203G USB because the new SuperCDG’s hold up to 2000 songs, virtually eliminating the need to change discs plus… an external hard drive holds 10’s of thousands of songs. Put on some toe-tappin’ non-Karaoke music like ‘Pick up the pieces’ or ‘We’re having a party’ while you strategically place your songbooks and forms, then follow these simple rules to success:

#1 - Loosen up the crowd - with a short 1-2 minute warm up
Lower down the music and introduce yourself. ‘Hello everyone, my name is Danny and I’ll be your Karaoke DJ for tonight’s fantastic Karaoke-Dance Party in honor of Ted’s 40 birthday.’ (cheers) ‘I’m very anxious to introduce our first star of the day, because tonight everyone will have the chance to be a STAR… so please pick a song from the book that you’d like to sing, even if your not sure you want to… yet.’ Use the remote to raise up the music and get ready to start the show in the next step.

#2 - Focus on the audience - they are the STARS
One mistake that many Karaoke DJ’s make is that, even if you can sing, you must resist. Duets with guests are fine but singing all night is boring, unless you’re Jon Bon Jovi. Repeat after me… “I am NOT the STAR, I introduce THE STARS.” Keeping with this notion, get the crowd singing together first. Play ‘New York, New York’.” Work the room with your mic, putting guests on-the-spot. This will encourage them to put their names on the list and get into the singing mode.

#3 - Dead air out - bumper music in
Entertainer Pros know that ‘Timing is Everything.’ You must eliminate DEAD AIR with “bumper music.” Create a vibrant, rhythmic atmosphere that began when you set up and doesn’t stop until break it down. My CAVS Karaoke system contains 5000 Karaoke tracks and 3000 non-Karaoke tracks and dance mixes so, I choose the bumper music to fit the crowd. The remote control allows me to program the Karaoke songs followed by bumper music so I can mingle with the crowd and get others to sign on.

#4 - Give away prizes
There is nothing better then winning a prize, even if it is a cheep little gold colored shooting star trophy, inscribed with “Best Singer Award” from the dollar store. It means a lot to be a winner and makes for fun competition.

#5 - Keep them Clapping and Cheering
Many “Karaoke singers” feel like they actually can sing and it’s up to you to make them continue to feel that way so give them a warm and hardy introduction, as if they are appearing on American Idol and a “Good Job” when they’re through.

#6 - If the rhythm of the party slows down get them Dancing
I have seen a whole room full of folks that need a little push to get the party going. Break away from the Karaoke for a short while and spice up the party with party songs and Dance Mixes. Include Macarena, Electric Boogie OR Cha-Cha Slide among your choices to get everyone involved, then come back to the Karaoke action. Pick music appropriate to your audience and you’ll be a hit.

#7 - Be Yourself
Of all these rules, it’s most important to be comfortable and confident as the MC of a Karaoke party. The guests are depending on you so above all be yourself, using whatever rules above you can, and you’ll be a better KDJ for it plus… your clients feel that ultimately YOU are the star.

To learn more about the CAVS DVD-203G USB check out specs and packages  here

Benefit #1 - Karaoke fun at a fraction of the costs with SuperCDG Discs

As an alternative to the expensive Laser Discs and CD+G Discs (holding between 12 and 22 songs at a rate of about $1 per song), CAVS Karaoke has created “SuperCDG” which holds up to 2000 Karaoke songs costing about 10 cents each and SuperCDG Players like the CAVS DVD-203 USB cost a fraction of what machines used to. SCDG Karoke Discs can be found online in a range from $50 to $200 but they usually hold 250 to 1250 songs on each. I’ve seen 1250 song discs for as low as $99.

Benefit #2 - CAVS PC Software allows you to creating your own SuperCDGs filled with your own MP3s

Expand your CAVS Karaoke player’s music capabilities by using the optional software to create your own SuperCDGs with your MP3 music. Remember wiring your home system up with separate DVD, CD Players or maybe even a Karaoke machine or a 300 CD/DVD Carousel? Remember naming all the discs on the carousel machine. With only 2 SuperCDG discs full of your favorite MP3s you can replace your entire carousel. The song titles come up right on the front LCD panel. The DVD-203G USB also read many other formats including: DVD, DVD-R, DVD+R, DVD-RW, MPEG-4, VCD, CD+G, CD-R, CD-RW, HDCD, JPEG CD, Kodak (slideshows).

Benefit #3 - 5.1 Dolby Digital allows you use with your existing surround sound system

The 5.1 Dolby Digital output allows these units to effectively replace any other disc players in your home system, saving space on your shelves and just looking neater. There’s also output for S-Video and Fiber Optical

Benefit #4 - Expand the memory on the CAVS DVD-203 USB

The CAVS DVD-203G USB has USB port which allows you to load your songs onto an optional external hard drive meaning that you could conceivably have 100,000 Karaoke and Non-Karaoke songs right at your fingertips.

Benefit #5 - The family that sings together swings together

To me this is one of the most important benefits of having Karaoke in your home. If you are a Karaoke addict like I am you know there’s not much else that can compete with a family get together around the Karaoke machine. Dad get’s to sing “Mack the Knife,” the neighbors come over to join in and Little Linda can practice for American Idol when the house is empty. It builds confidence for the kids and strong bonds between family and friends and that’s always a good thing.

If you are considering a Karaoke Player which reads SuperCDGs you can learn more at CAVS Karaoke DVD-203G USB

CONS

Proffessionals will not use the supplied microphone. To my ear, as a professional I like to use high quality mics so the singers always sound their best. That being said, the average “consumer ear” may find that the supplied CAVS microphone sounds just fine.

There are no fancy video graphics like you see with the 12″ laser discs. What you get is backup tracks of CD quality music with the song’s lyrics on your monitor or TV.

When purchasing a CAV DVD-203G USB unit ther are several ala carte extras to consider:

1. The unit has two mic inputs but only comes with one microphone as was mentioned above. You might want a second for all those duets.

2. Most packages include 1 disc (up to 1250 songs) so if you want more discs they can cost between $70 - $200

3. The USB port is for an external hard drive which is NOT included so that will cost $96 and $250 depending on the size but you could fit up to 100,000 songs or more.

4. An Audio/Video cable is included but any additional cables for example; SVideo, Coaxial or Optical cables will have to be purchased separately.

5. In order to make your own SCDGs you need additional software for around $49 or a deluxe version for $69 from the manufacturer.

PROS

The CAVS DVD-203G USB is an average sized components which fits nicely into a home entertainment system or pro rack. It can replace an AC3 Dolby Digital DVD Player and/or 500 CD Carousel. It easily hooked up to my TIVO via the front side AV inputs (White-Red-Yellow RCA plugs) but those without
TIVO should look for the same jacks on their VCR or right on the TV. You can also use an S Video conection or the RCA A/V jacks on your home stereo and TV combo. The professionals use the mixer and video dirctly to a video monitor or video patch bay.

Plays every format: DVD/VCD/SCDG/CD+G/CD/CD-R/CD-RW/MP3/JPEG/Kodak Photo CD

Excellent sound and arrangement Quality - We tested the Sweet Georgia Brown Magic Tracks with 1208 songs and the quality of the sound and the musical arrangements were excellent.

SuperCDGs can be played on your computer. Each retail disc comes with a self contained PC program which loads and plays the hundreds and thousands of songs allowing you to do a karaoke show with just your (DVD equipped) PC or Laptop.

It’s possible to Make your own SuperCDGs from your old CD+G library or from your MP3 collection of non-Karaoke songs with the optional software.

With the CAVS DVD-203G USB Player I can also hook up to an optional CAVS 60, 160 or 250 Gigabyte hard drive for a whopping storage capacity of 100,000 SONGS.

For the Professional:

• Save Money from buying so many discs

• Save Time from changing discs between singers

• Save Pain from carrying hundreds of discs
  in cases

• Save the headache from dealing with scratched discs when you swap them out since the need to swap discs it virtually eliminated.

 

• Mix-Down allows you to make studio type output of your performance to an external recorder or computer

In Conclusion

The bottom line is that the trade-offs do not outweigh the value. The unit we tested had a few added costs for software, a hard drive and some additional SCDG discs but what we have now is an expandable system which plays SCDGs, so all we need to do now is convert our old CD+G’s to SuperCDGs and we’re set. If you are considering a CAVS DVD-203G SuperCDG Karaoke Player check out the specs and compare packages HERE

by: Dan Heise

This is big news and it’s about to turn the Karaoke industry on its ear. If you have never heard of SuperCDG or SCDG technology or the CAVS DVD-203G and the CAVS DVD-203G USB then hold on to your seat or sit down because, if you like Karaoke as much as my family and friends do, then you will not believe what I am about to tell you. The concept of the SuperCDG format is simple. By compressing karaoke song tracks into small MP3 files (like you use on your iPod), you can store up to 2,000 songs with lyrics on a single DVD disc, without loosing audio/video quality.

CAVS DVD-203G and the NEW CAVS DVD-203G USB SCDG players utilize this new type of SCDG compression which makes an entire Karaoke System (with thousands of songs) quite affordable. The old CD+Gs only held about 22 songs each and cost me about $1 per song whereas the new SCDG’s cost around 10 cents a song. With the old CD+Gs you needed to switch discs for just about every singer but with a SuperCDG you can just punch the numbers in and away you go plus you can make your own SCDGs.

Once I discovered the capabilities of the CAVS DVD-203G USB system, I decided to purchase it along with only 4 discs which gave me a collection of over 4500 songs for a rip-roaring Karaoke sing-a-long party at home with the family or professionally out on gigs. Old fashioned Karaoke players like my expensive Pioneer just can’t play “SuperCDG’s”

The CAVS DVD-203G and the CAVS DVD-203G USB

SuperCDG’s cost between $80 and $200 bucks but they contain over 1200 songs each so they really are worth it. I also have the ability with additional computer software available to create my own customized SCDG discs and to convert my old CD+Gs to the new format.

It’s no wonder you don’t hear much about the CAVS DVD-203G and the CAVS DVD-203G USB since you wouldn’t even look at the other choices, once you learned about these. This concept of low priced machines and songs could basically put all the others out of business.

Check specs and compare packages for yourself: CAVS DVD-203G SCDG Player CLICK HERE
Check specs and compare packages for yourself: CAVS DVD-203G USB SCDG Player CLICK HERE