Karaoke Forums

Just wanted to make a clarification. Someone posted on the forum that GEMS can only be played on a PC, as they are MP3+G.

I don't remember who it was, but it seems Luddite technology has passed them by.

Virtually every karaoke disc player made in the last several years ( going back as far as 5 or maybe longer) are multi-media players.

Though many people mention the Madboy, it is not unique. From the cheapest RJ junk to Mixonic to V2Gos ( made at the Pioneer factory), Performers' Choice, Pioneers, Voco-Pros, and the rest.

Not only will they play MP3+G, but also MPEG4, DVDs, HDCD, JPEG, S-VCD, and everything else, except maybe Blu-Ray.

Most also come with card and USB ports as well ( I don't use them because they kind of a PITA to use, but I know a KJ that uses the card port for filler music).

So yes, GEMS can be used with a player, unless they have some sort of included software that would make them PC only, which I doubt. Wouldn't make sense.

_________________
"No Contests, No Divas, Just A Good Time!"

" Disc based and loving it..."

Yes and No. Do not confuse the type of DISC with the format of the AUDIO FILES. WHAT is stored on a disc and HOW it is stored on a disc are two completely different things. As I have tried to tell you many times over, the GEM discs are not conventional Audio discs. They are Data discs (CD-ROM). There is a fundamental difference. The only thing that is the same is the shape and the fact they are plastic. It has NOTHING to do with the format of the actual audio files.



And the GEM discs are none of these. They are CD-ROM data discs. These machines would have to have the explicit ability to read CD-ROM data discs and parse the files. Some of the newer models may be able to do this, but it is not as widespread as you infer. Some for example may be able to play the MP3 audio off a data disc, but not the graphics.

Example: If you buy Turbo Tax 2012, it comes with videos imbedded that teach you about taxes. BUT you cannot drop your Turbo Tax install CD into your DVD player and watch those videos because the disc is a completely different format.



FYI....again: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_di ... al_formats

I am the first to admit that I have no experience with GEMS.

It seems that you are saying that these discs are not MP3+G discs, but software discs. Is that correct?

If so, there are two issues that come to mind.

1) It confirms my statement regarding counterfeit GEM discs. Yes, I knew they were counterfeit by the labels, but now you are saying that the player user had to extract / convert the tracks to MP3+G for use. Good to know, but not really the issue.

2) This is what will get this thread moved to the legal section:

If these are software discs useable ONLY ON PC, then SC has given approval ( by making use in players impossible) for their product to be played from PCs. No need for individual permissions to be granted. It would blow their proceedings out of the water.

Bazza, I don't know one way or the other, so I am honestly asking: Are you sure that these are SOFTWARE- not MP3+G- discs??

Please keep in mind that SC advertises these discs as MP3+G for easy transfer ( loading, as in software) to PC. Are the giving an inaccurate description?

_________________
"No Contests, No Divas, Just A Good Time!"

" Disc based and loving it..."

Bazza I have a madboy player that WILL play the GEM series discs. So Joe is correct on what he is stating. Any Disc player that plays MP3+G will play them.

_________________
The Line Array Experiment is over. Nothing to see here. Move along.

Where did you see counterfeit GEM discs?



You have already said you have no experience with the GEM's, so I assume this also means you have no experience with the GEM series License agreement. I do however have experience with it. Here are some key lines from the GEM license paper work -

"Remember: your GEM discs can only be loaded on one device"

"You are specifically prohibited from removing the manufacturer's original serial number from the Media."

"....you may shift the Content stored on each of the Original Media to ONE Non-Original Medium of your choice."

"You acknowledge and agree that the ownership of all Media, including all right, title and interest therein, belongs to Sound Choice and will remain with Sound Choice throughout the term of this Agreement.

This all comes from a license agreement

1) between Sound Choice and a single entity
2) regarding a specific, serialized set of content
3) regarding content which is owned by Sound Choice
3) that Sound Choice allows to be copied to only a single device/non-original Medium

Which means they are granting ONLY that single entity permission for that specific set of serialized content to be used on a single device.

They are not giving blanket permission to anyone and everyone to use all Sound Choice content on any PC.




The GEM discs are MP3+G discs. I am not familiar with karaoke players that read PC formatted discs, but I imagine that any device that can, should be able to read the GEM discs. Here is a screen shot of the directory structure -



-Chris

_________________
-Chris

Joe, you are obviously not familiar with the mp3 format When you extract the digital data stored on your cdg disk to a hard drive into the wave format, you're only moving from one media to another without affecting the quality, right? Now, when you encode these files to the mp3 format, you're reducing the size, right? So in this case, it's like transfering these encoded files from your hard drive to a cd-r, again, just moving from one media to another...
Your cdr becomes a data disk just like your hard drive

So, ignoring the stuff that doesn't matter, it seems that GEMS are standard MP3+G discs, and as I stated, are playable in most modern players.

As for the poster who asked about counterfeits- I have mentioned these in threads going back as far as a year, and got laughed at for mentioning it.

No biggie, but I know for a fact that they do exist. So far, have seen them in N.H., Virginia, Maryland, and NY. If labels are an indication, then there are at least 3 different producers.

One uses a copy of the Spotlight colored label, but marked as GEMs, one is probably the same person who counterfeits so many MM and KK, using the comic font pastel labels, and one uses a black and white label with a graphic of a karaoke singer.

2 were at private events, and one was at a dive bar.

Mentioned before. Don't believe me? No worries....don't care, and not important. I'm sure there are 100X as many MP3+G download copies as burned discs....

_________________
"No Contests, No Divas, Just A Good Time!"

" Disc based and loving it..."

I am not saying that counterfeit GEM discs don't exist, just asked when you saw them. Since this thread popped up about when the most recent GEM series hit eBay, I thought you were calling it out as counterfeit which I am 99% sure was not.

Counterfeit GEM's are actually a lot easier to spot than most due in part to the serial # on every disc.

The more interesting aspect of this would be knowing if these counterfeit GEM discs you saw are actually older SC tracks that were burned in and labeled as GEM or if the counterfeits were actually sourced from a legitimate GEM series.

I know that digital watermarking is being used by some karaoke manufacturers. It would not surprise me to learn that original GEM discs have their tracks watermarked. I know that if I ever had my GEM discs or my drive that contains the tracks stolen, I would immediately be on the horn to Sound Choice to let them know.

-Chris

_________________
-Chris

"It seems"? Geez, how can I be any more clear. Listen carefully. They are CD-ROM's. There is no such thing as a "MP3+G" disc format. There is CD-A, which is audio, there is CD-ROM which is data (among MANY others). You can put any file on a CD-ROM from MP3's to word documents to photographs.



The statement that they are "only useable on a PC" is incorrect. They are usable in any device that reads CD-ROM's and plays karaoke files.



Joe. They are MP3+G files on CD-ROM. You are confusing the FILE TYPE with the DISC TYPE.



It is a file copy, hence easy transfer.



Well of course...look at what you wrote "Any Disc player that plays MP3+G will play them". This is like saying "Any CD player that plays CD's...can play CD's". An MP3+G is on a CD-ROM. If the player supports both CD-ROM and MP3+G, then you are good to go.

BUT that isn't what Joe said. he said any modern karaoke machine can play GEM discs, which simply is not true. Not all machines support CD-ROM.



As I said from post #1...Yes & No.

If the player supports CD-ROM, yes. MP3+G is a file standard. NOT a disc standard. Not all players automatically support CD-ROM...this is a fact.

Let me give you an example you will understand. Say you put an instrumental version of a song on 78rpm vinyl. You would never say "Any turntable that plays instrumentals can play this". It has to support the FORMAT (78RPM) not the FILE (the instrumental song) and as you know, not all turntables play 78's.