If you play music in your shows, you may want to consider an MP3 player. I have long relied on a wireless system, Sony MiniDisc and CDs, but felt it was time to purchase and try out an MP3 player. Here’s the first in a multi-phase story that discusses my MP3 odyssey.
There are probably lots of magicians already using them, but MP3 players are giving performers new options for controlling the music and sound effects in their shows. I have long used a Majiloon wireless system at my big shows and a CD-player for less formal performances. Here’s why an MP3 player sounded like an excellent source of music to pipe through my PA system.
Look Ma, No Wires
The beauty of the Majiloon system is that it allows you to completely control your music and sound effects via a wireless controller, which includes: starting and stopping music, adjusting volume, skipping songs and tracks and even fading a song before its end should you get ahead in a routine.
I generally like my Majiloon system, but there are lots of batteries to maintain. There’s the AA battery in the Sony MiniDisc player, the two nine-volt batteries in the reception device and the unconventional A22 battery for the pager device, the controller that rests on your belt, which I usually purchased from Radio Shack.
I always use rechargeable batteries and make sure to charge them before each day of shows. Unfortunately, the A22 battery wasn’t available as a rechargeable battery and even with a meter, I was never sure if it was going to make it through a show (unless the battery was new). I hated buying these non-standard batteries and did have problems on occasion when they went out on me during performances.
The other downside with the Majiloon system is that the list of songs is limited to whatever you burned onto your MiniDisc. I find that my stage shows still change a lot, depending on the venue and audience. Although I often burned discs the night before to accommodate different shows, this took time.
Downbeat
Because of the battery issue, I often relied on CDs for less formal shows. During performances, I like to start a song, perform a routine and have the song stop at its end. For this, CDs were great. I could burn a single song onto a CD, insert it into the CD player, and the music would stop at its conclusion.
The downside of the CD was that I had to walk over to the CD player to load the discs, which caused me to briefly lose contact with my audience. Another problem, over time, the CDs always wore out or got dirt on them and I sometimes had to do my best to perform to a song that was skipping around. Once the CD began to play and I started a routine, there was no turning back.
