Miscellaneous
Numark CD Mix 2
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This is an integrated set of twin CD decks with built in mixer, separate tone controls, 10 second anti shock memory, true buffered instant start and stutter/relooping facilities. The usual pitch bending, auto fader start, programmable tracks and cue control bells and whistles are included along with inputs for external decks and mic's and both balanced and unbalanced outputs.
This is a great piece of kit that is very easy to use, solidly built and useful for any gigs out of the back of a Ford Cortina given it can run off a 12V DC car battery. As well as separate bass and treble controls for each channel, you also have high, mid and low equaliser controls for both master and mic output. The large backlit display is well laid out and can show several time modes along with the track, frame and pitch bend whilst the oversized cue buttons and +/- 16% pitch bend/jog wheel are quick, responsive, tactile and accurate. All very useful when fumbling around in the dark.The real fun though is in playing around with the relooping and stuttering features that let you set stutter points and seamlessly loop any part of a track. At any time, you can hit the reloop button to reloop button to reloop button or stutter at that p..p..p..p..point.
Numark also used to make a CD Mix 1, which was a lower spec unit minus all the cool relooping stuff and individual channel tone controls. It's still a good piece of kit though and worth considering if on a budget plus it has the added advantage of 2 sets of auxiliary outputs that is sorely missing on the CD Mix 2. However, if you're willing to shell out the extra damage, the CD Mix 2 is tops and will have you mixing, beat matching and looping in no time at all. A matching Numark CD Mix carry case is also available and is just the thing for protecting your kit whilst later versions of the CD Mix 2 also offer support for MP3 CD's.
Sony MZ-R500 Minidisc Walkman
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An excellent no frills portable minidisc recorder with G-Protection jog proof playback, digital Mega Bass and MDLP (minidisc long play) that allows you to copy up to 4 CD's onto a single disc. Editing functions are all easy to use and the magnesium body is both slim and light enough to carry in your jacket pocket without giving you a hernia or an embarrasing bulge.
The three stage digital Mega Bass is especially impressive adding lots of depth to even the brightest of recordings. The supplied optical cable ensures you can make digital recordings from a suitably equipped CD player and Sony also throw in a power adaptor and a pair of standard earphones. Best of all, the R500 lasts for up to 48 hours during continuous use on a single battery meaning you'll spend more time jamming than you will stocking up on Duracell's. Perfect for long-haul flights!
I sometimes use the Sony for recording mixes so I can play them back and cut and slice tracks as required. This gives me all the flexibility I need for managing tracks whilst retaining the digital quality of the source. A really useful feature is the T-Mark button that will set a marker for the minidisc at the current position during playback. If there's a particular section of music I want to drop, I can simply mark the beginning and end during playback by hitting the T-Mark button and then delete everything between the markers.
Most importantly, the Sony MZ-R500 is available in any colour you like as long as it's Conservative Black, Classic Silver or Funky Blue (I went for the Funk of the Blue).
Denon DVD-1730 DVD Player
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It's hard to think of a reason for buying a proper DVD player when the likes of Tesco are selling cheap far east imports for 20 quid but if you ever needed the justification, the multi-region 1730 is a good model to change your mind and show what you're missing out on. As HD displays become ever more popular, the DVD-1730 has HDMI output with a 1080i scaler. What this means is that it will upscale all your existing standard DVD's to HD quality. Along with the signature Denon power button that glows red and green for power off and on respectively, the superior build quality over cheaper models is immediately apparent with a smooth tray loading mechanism and quality connections at the back including component out with progressive scan.
Spinning a DVD disc in normal mode via progressive scan gives a warm, virbrant picture that shows a fine level of detail with excellent colour reproduction. Switching to any of the HDMI modes notably improves sharpness and granularity on a larger display for both HD and non-HD sources. The 1730 also provides a full range of controls to tailor the picture to your liking that includes a 6 parameter video equaliser and black level control.
Along with the usual DVD and VCD formats, the 1730 can also play DivX, Windows Media and MP3 formats. Best of all, as a budget CD player for listening to stereo, the 1730 copes admirably and really widens the gap between the el cheapo players sold by Tesco that are pretty dreadful for music and the quality players at the top end of the budget market that can handle anything you care to throw at them.
Marantz DV6600 DVD Player
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The Marantz is a very musical and gorgeous looking super slim multi-region mid-range DVD player that not only gives a razor sharp picture but can also spin a CD when required. Most DVD players are pretty dire when it comes to CD stereo playback yet the DV6600 does it very well. A high grade power supply and audio components are used to maximise sound quality and the whole video circuitry can be switched off to just output sound only thus reducing any inteference in the signal.
This is a powerful and functional DVD player with progressive scan, HDMI output, full support for VCD's and MP3's and even a built in Dolby Digital and DTS decoder for using with a pro logic amp with 5 channel input. Its musical heritage is enhanced by support for SACD's and the whole unit is swarthed in a beautiful metal chassis. The remote although simple and logical to use is unfortunately a real moose finished in all black that doesn't complement the stunning look of the DVD player in the slightest. If you can ignore that though, with a DVD player that looks this good, you'll spend as much time admiring its appearance as you will the picture and sound.