Stratocaster Greats: Playing in the Style of Fender

Customer Review: History of the Fender Guitar
This is not really an instructinal DVD it is more of a history lesson about the Fender Stratocaster Guitar and its rise from the early 50's to today. Tom Kolb explains such mundane things as the Bridge section of the guitar and control knobs, tremelo,pickup's...ect.But the highlite is when he plays in different styles such as Jeff beck, Eric Clapton,Ritche Blackmore,and other great Strat players.Fun to watch if you are a huge Strat fan like me... but may bore others who were hopping to glean some riff's off of this DVD. After watching this dvd you do realize just how important the Strat has been to Rock and music in general.Its the only true example i can think of where they got something right the first time! the body and structure of the Srtat has not changed in 60 years....thats beacause it was perfect to begin with.
Customer Review: Don't waste your cash
I've played keyboard for over 25 years. I've now decided to start playing guitar and purchased this video. No doubt that Tom Kolb knows how to play a guitar. If I didn't have any previous musical knowledge I would have been completely lost watching this DVD. What it shows to you is a bunch of information about various styles of various guitar players. That's what it is suppose to do right? Well what is shown to you is a guy playing his guitar really fast and talks about nothing on how to apply techniques and use them. Then you are referred to look at a cheezy photocopied handbook that is suppose to explain everything. Wrong! Every "technique" that is shown... if you can pick it out during his fast playing... would already be known by an experienced player. Beginner.... forget it, you won't see anything that will help you. I could go on for hours on how useless this video is. But I'll keep it short. Spend your money on something else.

Electric guitar history begins in the 1920's and 1930's when two Los Angeles musicians George Beauchamp and John Dopyera began trying to find ways of creating louder guitars. They first created a resonator guitar using aluminum disks with a metal body that was three times louder than an acoustic guitar. The resonator guitar evolved into what me commonly refer to now as the dobro.

It wasn't until 1930 that Beauchamp and another man Paul Barth developed the first working pickup. They then contacted Harry Wilson who carved the neck and body of what would be the first electric guitar. They nick-named it the frying pan due to it's round body.

The first man to build and market an electric "Spanish" style guitar was Lloyd Loar. Loar created Vivi-Tone, a company dedicated to the production of spanish style electric guitars. However the design was poor and within a year Vivi-Tone failed.

In 1935 Gibson began work on developing a new guitar pickup. This pickup would become incorporated onto the standard f-hole arch-top guitar known as the ES-150. The Gibson ES-150 is considered the first modern electric guitar in history.

A milestone in electric guitar history, the ES-150 became an instant success. However their were still some undesirable characteristics. Because of the hollow body design there were often problems with feedback and distortion.

The answer to this problem was the solid body electric guitar. The solid body electric guitar can be accredited to two men. Les Paul and Leo Fender. Les Paul's idea was to take a 4x4 piece of pine and attach two magnetic pickups. He then glued two cutaway halves of the original hollow body design to the 4x4.

Leo Fender's model was slightly different. His solid body was made of oak and instead of gluing two halves of a hollow body to a solid middle Leo Fender had carved the entire body solid. In 1949 Fender released the first successful solid-body electric guitar called the "Esquire."

It wasn't until 1952 that Gibson decided to release Les Paul's version of the solid body electric guitar. Although Fender had been on the market for a short while Gibson's Les Paul quickly become the industry standard and to this day is considered the most sought after guitar in electric guitar history.

By the 1960's electric guitar history had hit its maturity. Gibson introduced the humbucking pickup which helped to reduce unwanted noise from the magnetic coils in pickups. Fender and Gibson came out with more futuristic designs like the SG and Stratocaster.

Since the 1960's There have been numerous electric guitar manufacturers to come on to the scene. Manufacturers like Ibanez, Jackson, Paul Reed Smith, Dean and B.C.Rich are just a few of the modern companies who are still continuing to make electric guitar history.

John Robert has been playing guitar longer than he can remember and teaching for the last three years. His innovative teaching methods have helped many guitarists maximize their practice time for optimal playing potential. To learn more great guitar playing tips visit Jam-o-rama.info

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Fender Stratocaster Mouse Pad

Made in the USA! This mouse pad is shaped like the real guitar! Looks great and is still very practical.

Perhaps no other guitar maker has touched the hearts of so many players and collectors as Fender. By producing excellent guitars at reasonable prices, Fender has been the instrument of choice for many guitarists throughout the world. Both the famous and not so famous have relied on Fender guitars to define their signature sounds.

The Fender company was founded by Leo Fender, and produced its first solid body electric guitar in 1951. This guitar was called the Telecaster, and was soon followed by the Precision Bass, and the legendary Stratocaster in 1954. Over the years many changes would take place at Fender which had a great impact on the types and quality of instruments they produced.

The first "mile-stone" year for Fender came in 1965. During this year, Fender was bought by corporate giant CBS. Quality began to decline during CBS's reign, and although Fender still remained popular among players, CBS lacked the commitment and understanding necessary to satisfy the needs of serious musicians. As a result, the guitars produced during the "Pre-CBS" era would become prized collectors items demanding large sums of money in the vintage guitar market.

In 1985 Fender enjoyed another "mile-stone" year as a group of employees purchased the company back from CBS. For the first time in 20 years Fender was in the hands of musicians and artisans committed to producing world class guitars. A new manufacturing facility was built in Corona California to handle the production of USA made guitars. In 1987 the Fender Custom Shop was established, reaffirming the company's dedication to producing top quality guitars, and catering to the needs of top musicians.

From 1985 to the present day, Fender has been steadily expanding its operations within the United States and abroad. The company now produces a vast array of musical products from strings to mixing boards. In spight of such massive growth, Fender's commitment to the production of quality guitars remains very high. Fender remains one of the few companies that can successfully provide quality products to both the "budget conscious" and "price no object" musicians.

Written By: Michael Casamento

This article may be freely distributed so long as the above resource box is included in its entirety.

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Fender Stratocaster Keychain

Madonna's 2008 Sticky and Sweet tour is packing out stadiums across Europe, in readiness for her tour that will be unleashed here in October. Her shows have been selling well, and many shows are near sell-outs. In Los Angeles, her only show is scheduled for 6 November 2008 and will be held at Dodger Stadium, and if you act quickly you can snare some tickets at reasonable prices.

Her latest album, Hard Candy, debuted at number one across the globe, has been dominating the charts since it's release on April 25, 2008. The Queen of Pop's album features vocal appearances by today's hottest pop artists such as Justin Timberlake and Kanye West. The producers of the album are the highly respected Timbaland and Pharrell Williams who receive both performance and production credits on the album.

And what are we to expect in LA? It will be the usual stunning array of music, stage antics, dancing and a song list that goes back to 1984!! During her Paris show, always the one to stir up a bit of controversy, Madonna tried a bit of push-it-to-the-edge sexual antics by kissing one of the female dancers, or one of the female audience members. Swigging champagne bottle she yelled at the crowd "Who do you love more, me or the Rolling Stones?"

The Material Girl always puts on an amazing concert, and this is one show not to be missed. Her current single with Justin Timberlake has hit the top of the charts all around the world. It seems the world can't get enough of this amazing lady, half way through her third decade of constantly reinventing herself and of being a superstar. And her catalog of songs is awesome including "Like a Prayer", "Vogue", "Get into the Groove" and "Holiday".

You can still obtain those tickets for Madonna in LA if you follow the link below.

M Paul is a mad Madonna fan and runs the ticket selling site http://www.concert-ticketdeals.com To get those hard-to-get tickets to see Madonna in Los Angeles, follow the link above.

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Fender Deluxe Player's Stratocaster Electric Guitar - Rosewood, 3-color Sunburst

Electric Guitar. Made by Fender.

The Deluxe Players Stratocaster is a revised version of the former Super Strat. Upgraded with American-made Vintage Noiseless pickups, this guitar not only sounds great but with a 12" neck radius and medium jumbo frets it's a workhorse of a guitar! And, don't forget about the push button switch that gives the player nine different pickup combinations!

Features:

• BODY Ash
• NECK Maple, Modern "C" Shape, (Satin Polyurethane Finish)
• MACHINE HEADS Gold Plated Fender/Reliance Vintage Style Tuning Machines
• FINGERBOARD Rosewood, 12" Radius (305mm)
• NO. OF FRETS 21 Medium Jumbo Frets
• PICKUPS 3 Vintage Noiseless Strat Pickups
• CONTROLS Master Volume, Tone 1. (Neck Pickup), Tone 2. (Middle Pickup)
• BRIDGE Gold Plated Vintage Style Synchronized Tremolo
• PICKUP SWITCHING 5-Position Blade: Position 1. Bridge Pickup, Position 2. Bridge and Middle Pickup, Position 3. Middle Pickup, Position 4. Middle and Neck Pickups (Plus Bridge Pickup When Push/Push Switch Is Activated), Position 5. Neck Pickup (Plus Bridge Pickup When Push/Push Switch Is Activated), 1-Push-Button On/Off Switch: Activates Bridge Pickup in Positions 4 and 5 of Blade Switch
• HARDWARE Gold Plated
• STRINGS Fender Super Bullet 3250L, Nickel Plated Steel, (.009 to .042)
• CASE Deluxe Gig Bag
• PICKGUARD 4-Ply Brown Shell
• SCALE LENGTH 25.5" (648mm)
• WIDTH AT NUT 1 11/16 (43mm)
• UNIQUE FEATURES Gold Plated Hardware
• ACCESSORIES Deluxe Gig Bag

NOTE: The picture on this page shows the Maple version of this guitar model, if you place an order from this page you will receive the model with a Rosewood fretboard

The two main choices in beginner electric guitars.

There can be a fair amount of disappointment when the wrong choice is made, and all it takes is a look through the guitar user reviews of popular beginner electric guitars to see the truth of it.

There are two main types of electric guitar, and they're the two most popular electric guitars available. They are the Gibson Les Paul and the Fender Stratocaster. These guitars sound totally different, in fact you could say that they are the two most distinct sounding electric guitars available.

I'm not saying that you should buy a Gibson or Fender to get the right sound for the kind of music you like, although that's certainly an option.

What I am saying though is that there are some excellent copies of Gibson Les Paul's and Fender Stratocasters that you might want to take a look at.

Let's first look at the Stratocaster as a beginners choice.

The Stratocaster is a very comfortable guitar design, with contouring to accommodate your strumming hand as well as your stomach. The main feature that makes a Stratocaster sound the way it does, is its pickup configuration.

The standard pickup configuration on a Strat is 3 single coil pickups, a 5 way pickup selector switch, one volume control and 2 tone controls.

The typical single coil pickup is made from 6 pole magnets, one for each string, around which copper wire is wound. When the guitar string vibrates, the magnetic flux of the magnet is disturbed and a corresponding electrical current is produced in the coil surrounding the magnets. That's the signal that gets sent out to the amplifier.

Single coil pickups typically sound very bright, and this is the signature sound of the Stratocaster. A good example of this is the guitar sound of Mark Knopfler on Sultans of Swing. Guitarists who's sound comes mainly from a Strat are Stevie Ray Vaughn, Jimi Hendrix, Hank Marvin of The Shadows, Eric Clapton, and a whole list of other guitarists who's names would make this article way too long.

A lot of beginner guitarists complain about the Stratocaster, and the main reasons for this are:

1.) The Strat is best suited to clean sounds, and a lot of beginner guitar players become disappointed when they don't get a good distortion, or overdriven sound out of the guitar.

It is possible to get a good distorted rock tone out of a Stratocaster, but you need to know how to get a good guitar sound and tailor your sound to suit you. A beginner guitarist won't know how to do this and a Strat isn't very forgiving, mostly because of its treble sound.

If you're into heavy metal then this is not the beginner guitar for you.

2.) The single coil pickups you'll find on a beginners Strat, or any standard Stratocaster for that matter, will pick up a lot of electromagnetic interference from flourescent lights, TV's and computer monitors, and any other sources of electromagnetic radiation. There are ways around this, but it's important to remember that this problem only really shows itself when you put your guitar through a distortion unit.

The guitar was designed in the 1950's at a time when distorted guitar sounds weren't that common. Some of the more expensive models of Fender Stratocaster have improved pickup design that eliminates the electrical hum. This won't be on the beginner Stratocaster models.

Why the Stratocaster is still a good choice for a beginner electric guitar.

Despite the problems mentioned above, the Fender Strat still remains one of the most popular electric guitars available today.

The three single coil pickups that it has are capable of producing some beautiful shimmering clean tones, especially when the five way selector switch is in positions 2 or 4. These positions are also hum cancelling, but unfortunately don't lend themselves to a great rock guitar tone.

Of the 3 pickups, the one at the neck position is the most capable of producing a classic blues rock tone, and a very desirable one at that. The pickup that normally puts people off when it comes to rock guitar tone, is the bridge position. This is the brightest sounding pickup on the guitar.

I personally don't mind it too much, seeing as it adds a bit of chalkyness to the sound. A good solution here is to later buy what's known as a hotrail pickup and replace the one that's there. This will give you a fatter rock guitar tone without the hum.

Alternatives to the standard Stratocaster.

There is another alternative to the standard Stratocaster called the Fat Strat, which features a humbucking pickup at the bridge. If there's one saving grace for the beginner metal guitarist who wants to buy a Stratocaster, it's the Fat Strat.

Humbucking pickups are a special design of electric guitar pickup that eliminates outside electromagnetic interference. They are generally louder than single coil pickups and not as bright sounding.

By having a humbucker in the bridge position and two single coils in the other two, you've got a good combination for getting a decent rock tone in the bridge pickup as well as all the other classic Fender Strat tones.

Just one last thing about the standard Stratocaster. It has a tremelo system, but don't use it. There are a few people who know how to make these things stay in tune when used, but they're not telling. If you leave it alone, it'll leave you alone.

The Gibson Les Paul as a beginners electric guitar.

This has to be the ultimate symbol of heavy rock tone. Unlike the Strat, the Les Paul has a glued in neck, or set neck as it's sometimes called.

This neck to body joint has the effect of increasing the sustain of the guitar. Because of its more complex construction, the Les Paul is a bit more expensive to manufacture.

It's a heavy guitar that can become quite uncomfortable when standing and playing for a long time. It also has a thicker neck, depth wise, than many other guitars, which can also add a bit to the discomfort factor.

What makes the Les Paul a good rock guitar?

The same things that make the Gibson Les Paul uncomfortable to play are what make it sound so great for rock.

First of all, its made out of mahogany wood. Mahogany is an excellent tone wood for electric guitars as it has a lot of bass coupled with a distinctive upper midrange bite. What makes it uncomfortable with this guitar is that there's a lot of it.

A heavier body and thicker neck all made out of mahogany adds up to tons of sustain and great tone.

Your typical Les Paul guitar has two humbucking pickups - one in the bridge position and one in the neck position.

The only real downside to the Gibson Les Paul as far as sound goes, is that although one can sometimes get close to the sound of a Stratocaster, by using some simple electronic tricks, like splitting the humbucking pickups so they can do single coil sounds as well, It's never really quite the same.

To make sure your beginners electric guitar plays at its best, there are two resources you may want to look at. The first - Beginner Electric Guitars, what to look for which also deals with the Stratocaster, and the second - Rock guitars for beginners will show you the best value Les Paul copy

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Fender '62 Stratocaster 11 Hole Pickguard - Tortosie Shell

Guitar Replacement Pickguard. Made by Fender.

4-Ply, 11 Hole Stratocaster Pickguard for 3 single coil pickups

Fits: '62 American Vintage (U.S.) and 60's (Mexico) Stratocasters. Has truss rod adjustment notch.

Ever since the guitar turned electric in 1931 rock stars have been twisting, bending and distorting the traditional sounds of the guitar to create unique master pieces that remain legendary. Rock and roll would never be if it weren't for the electric guitar. The first electric guitar was made in 1931 by the Rickenbacker company and has seen little change of the basic concepts other than the addition of solid state electronics.

Tons of different electric guitars have been introduced from countless guitar companies, but there remains a top few that have been used again and again since rock and roll arrived in the early 1950s. Below are the top 10 electric guitars of the past 50 or so years tha have became legandary.

10. BC Rich Warlock - An incredibly unusual shape introduced in the 1970s looks and sounds like its name. B.C Rich was a top choice and popularized by heavy metal bands in the 1980s like Megadeth, Danzig, Warrant and Poison just to name a few.

9. Gibson SG - The SG (solid guitar) created in 1961 was popularized by the Australian based heavy metal band, AC/DC and Angus Young's top electric guitar for sure.

8. Gibson Explorer - The airplane-looking shape was also a top favorite for heavy metal guitarists. The shape was so popular that it spawned numerous custom cloned from companies such as ESP. James Hetfield of Metallica was regularly on display with this top guitar.

7. Danelectro - One of the most simple, yet flashy designs, the Danelectro was pretty and sported a cylindrical pick-up nicknamed the "lipstick." Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin fame made this his top choice in the last few years of the band's existence.

6. Gibson SG Doubleneck - One of the strangest looking guitars, but one of the most versitile. What was tops about this guitar was that the top guitar was a twelve string and the bottom a six. This allowed for cool variations in tone and feel without the need of switching guitars during a song.

5.Gibson Flying- V - A top rock guitar for musicians who want to make a statement. Though awkward to play in a sitting position (arguable because you can't rock out sitting down), this guitar was actually a favorite of Jimi Hendrix.

4. Rickenbacker 425, 360/12 - There is no mistaking the sound of a Rickenbacker because of is resonating tone of the 12 strings. Made famous in rock and roll by George Harrison and John Lennon, this later became a top pick for bands finding a more melodic yet harmonic electric tone. Since then, bands ranging from the Byrds to R.E.M. also consider this a top pick and a staple of their unique sound.

3.Fender Telecaster - Another uniquely toned guitar made famous by Jimmy Page, this interesting single-coil pickup sound machine also sported a special "bending" device hooked to the top string that can be manipulated by pulling down on the guitar strap.

2. Fender Stratocaster - You cannot mistake the hollow, yet clear and bright sound of a Fender Stratocaster. It is amazing that a guitar this old has remained unchanged and yet still delivers the same power that Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton made famous back in the 60s. This is arguably the top choice of all Chicago-style blues players.

1. Gibson Les Paul Standard - Sexy, standard and unchanged, this top pick delivers the power and punch that has been heard by the top rock and roll bands in history. Sporting dual humbucker pickups, this guitar's sounds is like that of a 1960's muscle car. From metal, to hard rock, to punk and funk, the Les Paul Standard is arguably the most popular electric guitar in history.

Although it is nearly impossible to list these top electric guitars in any order, one can safely say that purchasing and playing any guitar on this list will certainly put a smile on your face and at the same time, conjr up fantasies of being on stage with your favorite bands. TonyRocks.com has continued this list but also reviews a number of newer guitars that didn't make it to this top list. Plus you'll be amazed at some of the guitar shreding videos posted by Paul Gilbert, famous for his Ibanez.

Want to learn more about rocking out and picking the right electric guitar for you? Visit http://learnplayguitar.tonyrocks.com and discover what it takes to shred like your favorite guitarists.

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Electric GUITAR FENDER stratocaster Coat Hook RACK NEW

A cooler way to hang your hat and coat ! This rockin' guitar wall hook features amazing detailing and a whole lotta style. The perfect gift for your favorite " Guitar Hero" !Measures 10" H x 12" W x 1" D Guitars are made of painted wood with careful attention to detail, from the faux pearl tuning pegs and six fishing line strings to the miniature tremolo arm ("whammy bar"). The musical notes, staff and hooks are made of black painted metal Easy to hang with two attached "keyhole" openings on back (mounting hardware not included) Great for hanging hats, lightweight coats or clothing

Looking to buy your first guitar or an upgrade? This guide will give you some solid tips for purchasing the most valuable guitars for the lowest prices possible.

Buy Guitars Online

If you want to save up to sometimes 75% or more off MSRP price, you should buy your guitar online. There are a wealth of online music stores to choose from. You may want to consider going to your local music store, finding the guitar you want, then buying it from your computer.

What's definite is that you'll almost always find the same guitar cheaper online than in your local music store.

Avoid Buying Unknown Name Brand Guitars

Both online and believe-it-or-not in your local music stores, retailers will try to pull a fast one on you. You'll see no-name brand guitars with prices jacked up to the same price or even past better guitars. Obviously, this is so the music stores will make more money. Buy low, sell high, right?

Personally, I trust only Fender, Gibson, Ibanez, Dean, Jasmine, Epiphone, Squire, Taylor, Norman, Martin, B.C. Rich, and Jackson guitars. There are other big brands that are probably being left out in this article, but if you don't have a clue about buying a guitar, consider choosing from those top names only.

Guitars are Crafted for Different Styles of Music

It can be tough deciphering which guitar is made for what type of music, because the same top brands normally craft all kinds of guitars for all styles. If you've never bought a guitar before, you'll want to call up an online music store's 1-800 number (or your local music store's) and inquire about guitar models related to your favorite music, then buy the guitar online.

You can often get good advice about purchasing a guitar from guitar website owners and articles, so that's another source. Search for the Contact link to contact a website owner. Most would be more than happy to talk to you about what guitar will fit you best and in your price range, and they'd be willing to e-mail you links to guitars suited for you.

However, here's a little insight. Fender has the Stratocaster for Rock and Classic Rock, the Gibson Les Paul and Les Paul Epiphone are versatile for many types of Rock and Blues, Ibanez RG Series guitars are great for Metal, and Martin makes a heck of an acoustic guitar.

Generally speaking, for Jazz, Blues, or Rockabilly try to buy a hollow body guitar. For Rock-and-Roll you can get away with buying a solid body electric with only one pickup or 3 single coil pickups. For heavier styles like New Rock, Alternative, Metal, and Punk, you'll want two double-humbucker pickups for a screaming crunch.

Conclusion to the Ultimate Guitar Buying Guide

Good luck with buying your first guitar. Just remember, buy online and save up to 75%+ off MSRP price, avoid no-name brands to get the best value, and buy the guitar that suits your favorite style of music.

Jason Parker is a guitar blogger at ATOMIC Guitarist

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Guitars Guitar Strummin Fender Gibson Cotton Throw Blanket

This is a lovely high quality Woven throw, made in USA. Great decoration for you home, office, excellent to hang on wall, fold on bed, etc.
Customer Review: Unique Gift
This gift was ordered as a Christmas gift to my teenage brother who loves guitars. I searched everywhere for guitar blankets, and this was the only one I could find. I was very pleased with the seller (Cjicollectiables, LLC)as the product arrive on time and came with a customer satisfaction garentee. Needless to say, I was very satified with the blanket throw, as was my brother. I would recommend the blanket as a unique quality gift for any guitar lover, and the seller as reliable.

The fame of karaoke all over the world is phenomenal but its origin has never been uttered. Nowadays, karaoke bars are becoming more popular in various countries. As a matter of fact, most restaurants offer machines with songs in different languages for free. Nevertheless, the mere thought of going to karaoke bars often raise some eyebrows. On the other hand, those who complained but gave it a chance, it has been hard for them to withdraw themselves from the fun it gives.

Where does this well-known form of entertainment really come from? Although the exact story of the emergence of it is vague, we can still track its etymology. The word 'karaoke' comes from 'kara', empty (short for karappo) and 'oke' (short for okesutora), orchestra. As known, karaoke tracks only have music accompaniment. The vocals are provided by a "singer", amateur or not, who holds a microphone and sings while following the words displayed on a screen or in a book.

With the evolution of technology, karaoke has been brought to every home. Its first real technological advancement is the development of home sets that allows you to sing at anytime. There were also karaoke tapes that have been made available to the public. Then, the birth of compact disc made it even exciting as it offers hundreds of songs in just one disc. These music paraphernalia comes with a lyric book and can be played with or without vocals.

Going back to its roots, the congestion of Japanese neighborhood have become a major problem in setting up karaoke sets. With houses built closely to one another, many complained about too much sound coming from other houses. And so, entrepreneurs took advantage of this issue and created the soundproof karaoke boxes. The box is a converted freight car with closed-door insulated rooms and soundproof. This is marketed as a venue where one can sing so loudly without creating inconvenience to other people. The first karaoke box was developed in 1984 in a rice field in the countryside of Okayama Prefecture. Sooner, Karaoke Boxes became popular and were put up in open spaces in both rural and urban areas.

Time flies and we're now embracing the continuous development of portable Karaoke Microphones. This sound device has a built-in program and a chip that houses thousands of songs. And because it is portable, playing it anywhere you want is possible as long as there is a television.

I'm selling the famous Enter Tech magic mic. I also love to read magazines of various topics and an active contributor of the music blog.

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