Toronto Karaoke Info

Karaoke Review: The Tennessee Bar & Restaurant w/ Peter Styles

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Thu, 05 Mar 2015 02:45:00 +0000

2015-03-01

Although I haven't written in quite sometime I have been watching events, restaurants, and trends. One thing I've definitely been seeing is restaurants having more attempts at Karaoke on Thursdays and Sundays. It's a interesting day for karaoke carousing as most of us have to work the next day. The big advantage is you get a LOT more songs in for the evenings. Generally not as packed as a Thursday or Friday night. When I was told by Peter Styles he was doing karaoke at a new venue on Sundays I was curious. First time I'd seen him doing that day. A few other restaurants doing are trying to use karaoke their customers base on typically slower days. It will be interesting to see if this experiment will start a new trend.

The Good: I've got admit, I don't find a lot of good karaoke venues in the Parkdale area. I'd seen another karaoke event at a bar will remain nameless because, frankly, it had no real food, decor or to put it bluntly, class. The Tennessee Bar & Restaurant was a pleasant surprise. It is a venue under new name and management, but the owner is going all out to make an impression and in my eyes it's a good one. Plenty of seats but not overly packed. The stage for where bands play is actually an ideal spot for karaoke singers as you can see almost the entire place. There are speakers throughout the ENTIRE Restaurant so you are sure to be heard. The sound quality is excellent. Significantly better than the Gladstone as are the sound levels. Peter's collection of around 40k songs is enough to keep virtually everyone happy. (Only Jason Rolland has more songs I think). What really got my attention is the food. Actually had the best macaroni and cheese I think I've ever had in Toronto (it didn't taste like processed cheese but more like rossotto), nice portions, and the drinks were reasonably priced. (an increasingly rarity) You can actually have a decent meal there for around $15 which these days is a big deal with restaurants averaging $20+ for a meal in TO. It's easy enough to get to on the Queen Street Street Car. Oh, wait times? No problem. You'll get at least 2-3 songs an hour. The MC, well it's Peter Styles who always has a flair for hosting shows. I'd love to see some modern jokes (some of his jokes are a little old between rotations) but he keeps the show flowing and fun. Still the only guy I know with an "Applause" sign.

The Mixed: This is tough. Okay, one thing: Karaoke Books. Karaoke hosts like Peter Styles and Jason Rolland have so many songs it get's troublesome to keep up a paper copy. Still, I wish Peter had at least one book with a bigger portion of the collection (It would be a HEAVY book as Jason Rolland has proven). Typically you just give a song title and he'll have it 80% of the time. There is a website that was recently restored after being down for a bit and rumor of a site that will allow entry of songs through a smart phone. I'll keep you posted on the developments there.

The Bad: There just had to be something, didn't there? Fortunately only one thing: Service. I had trouble getting anyone to take my order so I wound up going up to the bar to order my food. It was probably just an oversight on a slow evening (Sunday's being what they are) but still..when I have a menu and I'm ready to order food, you expect some service. The food is worth the trouble though and I'll go back for that because I'm used to getting not so great food at high prices. Hopefully the new staff at a new venue will have the kinks there ironed out.

Summary: Summary, I'm sold. With the exception of food service, the value on the food is the best I've had in a long time, the quality and the price. The stage layout is very good, the song selection likewise, the host is an old pro, and the sound quality is way up there. You'll also get to sing plenty of song with a reasonably short rotation. What else is there to say? I'll check out the venue on a Thursday which has another karaoke host to see how he fares. But as for the Sundays, I'd say come at 8 PM sharp and have a blast. Cause you will. Assuming the wait staff gets it together, this could be a first class karaoke venue.

Final Score: B+ (had to take off something for having to order food from the bar when menus were on the table, I'd give this a solid A- otherwise).

Facilities: 9.0 (Overall good size and layout, would be perfect if stage was near the window )
Equipment: 8.9 (Great sound, balance, and even sound through the whole venue)
Song Selection: 8.9( 40k songs, but Jason Rolland is still king here, but gap is closing)
Food Selection:7.8 (Sandwiches, Salads, Pasta and Burgers. Overall good balance)
Food Quality: 8.8 (Sampled the Fish + Chips and Mac & Cheese was very pleased. only thing that might improve would be to season the fries a bit)
Food Prices: 9.0 (The food prices here are amazing! Especially these days)
Location: 8.2 (Adelaide a one way street. All parking is paid. Small walk from John/Queen or King off the Street car)
Host: 8.8 (Peter could freshen up his in-between rotation commentary, but he's always engaging)
Wait times: 9.5 (You'll get to sing lots of songs, that could change of course depending on crowds..)
Food Service:7.0 (The staff was quick to deliver the food, so I gave a 7, but having to get up from the table to get food ordered, I'll consider it kinks in a new venue to be ironed out. A repeat however and I'll have to lower the score here)

Venue Information:
Peter Styles, Sundays
Tennessee Bar & Restaurant
1554 Queen Street West
Toronto Ontario
(416) 532-2570
http://www.peterstyles.com

Peter Styles confirmed Wednesdays at Jazz Bistro

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Thu, 27 Mar 2014 16:04:00 +0000

For Peter Styles fans, news: I've received firm confirmation from the Sinatra of Karaoke himself that he'll be doing Wednesday nights at the Jazz Bistro (http://www.jazzbistro.ca).

Address: 251 Victoria Street
Toronto, Ontario M5B 1T8
Phone: 416.363.5299

I have some high hopes for this venue as it appears to be a place truly focused on the Jazz Scene, and a great mix for Peter's Style. (Pun intended). He'll be on the top floor starting April 2nd (Wednseday). I'll be there to do a review of the place. Later today I'll a late lunch there. I'll keep you Peter Styles fans on top of what is going on with him. They'll also be a karaoke database makeover (busy with a few other projects but hopefully by Monday I'll have it done) seeing as Peter is no longer at the Gladstone and his song selection has increased. Some mobile optimizations I hope to be in the mix as time permits. Stay tuned for additional info and reviews!

Update: I've been to the venue during a sound check. Looks VERY nice. I can't officially post a review yet but, the sound there will be very good to exceptional (depending on final setup). It feels like you're the star in a professional jazz club rather than a bar which is a nice feeling. Karaoke will be from 9 PM to 12 AM (maybe 1 AM...). In my opinion this is an excellent time as paying customers have to go to work the next day. I am cautiously optimistic..

Karaoke Review: Danny's Cash Karaoke at Garage

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Thu, 27 Mar 2014 15:52:00 +0000

Review Date: March 26, 2014

My first review after a 3 year hiatus. Man of man many things have changed. Fortunately I'm not out of the loop. What made it easier to do this review is I live only a few block away from this location. Wednesday nights are never exactly an easy one to fill;people working are tired or (like me) still working to meet deadlines. So I give credit to places that are able to keep Wednesday nights going with Karaoke. That said, let's get down to, "The Good, The Bad, and of course, The Ugly"

The Good: The location is easy enough to reach at the corner of Church and Wellsley (1 block south, East side to be exact).

Danny's equipment sounds as good as Jason Rolland who has always kept top notch equipment.

The average KJ has upped the ante on the song count and Danny is no exception. With roughly about 26k songs (rounding up) the classics and new hits are covered with only a few minor gaps in Weird Al Yankovic. :D They'll be a few odd classics you may miss but very few. The song selection is decent. (Yet to find anyone with a better selection than Jason Rolland however).

Balance is excellent. You'll sound like a pro here hands down. I'm amazed given I didn't see a sound check before things started off (a few short "ah,ah"'s, most KJ do one song to be sure.

The food service is excellent: friendly, fast and courteous.

Food selection is fairly good for a bar. Standard sandwiches, steaks, fish/chips with some exotic specials.

The Bad: Unfortunate "the bad" elements negate the positive aspects of "the good". The stage setup is among the worst I'd seen in years: The monitor is on the bar?!? I've no idea who came up with that idea but not only is your back to the glass garage doors (which faces Church street) but to the audience as well. And to make matters worse, people have to work/dodge around you to submit their selection.

KJs, many of you seem to miss the fact there are LCD Monitor Stands you can purchase from AV shops, including tripod variations (which are the most stable). Putting a desktop monitor on the bar is a really bad choice for a setup.

Karaoke stated 30 minutes late as well. The first 2 things everyone should remember in this business are "Time is Money", and "Never waste the customer's time". By telling everyone Karaoke starts at 10 PM and starting at 10:30, you tell people who arrive on time they are not valued and that creates irritation. Rightly so. As a consequence I deduct 1 point for every 15 minutes a karaoke host starts late. After all, it's not like the host will go an extra 30 minutes late to compensate, and on Wednesday nights people usually have to work in the morning. It's just bad form, especially on a weeknight.

To top this off, Danny seems to have trouble getting song selections in. On average it was around 1-2 minutes between each singer after they were done. I didn't look carefully at the software but it looked advanced enough to have a back queue. And even if it wasn't 1 minute between singers is a bit awkward/long especially when starting late. I did "Video Killed the Radio Star" and left the stage when my lyrics finished. There is a somewhat long outtro which I improve with sometimes. But to save time I got off the stage quickly, but Danny kept the track running the full length; 1-2 minutes after I had put down the mike and sat down. Why didn't he fade out? (or cut it short) for the next performer?. "Never waste the customer's time".

The Mixed: The food quality is an extremely mixed bag here. Ordered the lamb burger. Fries were excellent, but the lamb burger had raw fragments in it. Had to send it back. The server tried to convince me that for lamb this was okay (I've had lots lamb burgers, okay, raw chunks in the middle is undercooked) but they did bring me another one. Hopefully this is a simple matter of bad luck and no one else will experience it, but still. First time I actually sent food back. The better cooked burger was better. The food prices are a bit above average. $12 for a burger + fries for example. You won't be getting any bargains here. The lettuce/tomatoes on my burger were very fresh to Garage's credit, but at the prices for food I'd expect no less.

The decor is minimal but will be nice in he summer as 1/2 of the walls are garage doors which open up to the patio and perhaps they are optimizing for the summer months.Danny's style isn't the worst I'd seen, but there was little to no personality that I could see. I didn't stick around long enough to see the "Cash content" as I had work to do (school night) but that part won't be the biggest concern to true karaoke fans. I'd like to see more of the person behind the laptop. Perhaps it was just a weird night.

Layout of the restaurant will make it hard for people to reach the stage if the place is filled up. On Wednesday nights based on the low numbers I saw it may not come up as often as the owner would like. But if it does there will be pushing/shoving to through the narrow isle to get the stage and submit song requests from the back.

Summary: There are good things and not so good things. The equipment is top notch as is the balance. Song selection is certainly on par, and I'd even venture to say slightly above. The food prices are bit high and while the quality of the food is probably good, I managed to find a big chink in the armor in the food preparation quality, so the above average prices felt even more expensive. The stage setup makes for an awkward experience as your back is to people who are swarming around you to put in their selections, and simply because it was deemed to much trouble to get a monitor stand for better placement. (Again, on the bar is the WORST choice to put the lyrics monitor). Late starting times on a weeknight and long intervals between singers will greatly reduce the number of songs you'll get to sing, and take up time many of us don't have on a weeknight. Hope Danny will improve these issues quickly. Things as they are, Garage's karaoke feels like they have a DJ trying to figure out the KJ business, and contrary to popular believe, a good DJ doesn't make for a good KJ. There is potential, but the experience is at present a very mixed bag. Not exactly what people in the middle of a long work need are looking for when taking time to do karaoke on a Wednesday.

Summary Scores:

Facilities: 5.5 Not a large venue. Would estimate 200 tops. During the summer I'd add 2 points when the doors are opened.

Equipment: 8.0 (Good quality mikes. Wireless would be even cooler but not really a big deal. A 2nd mike for couples/duets would be welcome (and is fairly standard) but the quality and the sound is exceptionally good.)

Song Selection: 7.5 (It's on par with very few gaps. Doesn't quite match the selection of Rolland or Styles yet, but it's very good.)

Wait time: 6.0 (Long periods between singers, and failure to fade/cut out of long outtros. Not a good use of the customer's time. If it ever gets really crowded there will be many justified complaints.)

Food Prices: 6.0 (A bit above average and given the mixed food prep quality, not the best experience.)

Food Quality: 6.5 (What they do well, they do very well, but signs of carelessness on the lamb burger prep left irritation. Hopefully just a one time thing. But hard to be sure.

Food selection: 7.5 It's pretty good, but nothing amazing. The specials may catch your interest.

Service: 7.9 (Service was actually excellent, but I had to take 0.2 points for excuses made for the undercooked lamb burger)

Final Grade: C/C+ (There is potential for this place to be an excellent karaoke venue, but it's got some work to do to achieve it. May go back for a 2nd run review with hopes of improvement)

Venue Information:
Garage
477 Church Street
Toronto, ON
M4Y 2C6
(647) 352-5508
Karaoke: Wednesdays 10 PM to 2 AM (may start late)

KJ Information:
Danny's Karaoke
(416) 631-9102

A Tribute

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Mon, 24 Mar 2014 16:44:00 +0000

A Man of Styles

In my scribblings of places where humble amateurs,
give voices to the music which to their heart stirs,
There was this one fellow who was quite unique,
to this very day another of his ilk I've yet to meet,
his back was oft seen 'bove the wide window tiles
of the Gladstreet Hotel stage, this was Peter Styles

A skilled troubadour during his younger days,
and then for 12 years at karaoke shows stayed,
dressing in full tuxedos; cumberbuns, shirts and suits,
perhaps some had thought his style just a little aloof,
yet, where other hosts found lacking and often crass,
on and off the Gladstone stage Peter kept up his class

A man who strived to be true to his given word,
often at his expense was the humor I'd heard,
his audiences he treated as colleagues of his own,
as he shared on the stage mikes of his mighty throne,
a crooner himself his voice theirs oft enhanced
many others, some with lessor voices perchance

Inspiring classiness in others both far and near,
people came to his aid, for they all found him dear,
technology was added, his song collections grew,
both a library and web portal all came anew,
from the skills freely added where his own were gray,
"hey, I'm just the talent" is what he'd always say

the only man to this day hoisting an "applaud" sign,
he believed in this spirit despite of our jaded times,
like the motherland he believed that full participation,
was the key to success, as was a fair rotation,
like that great distant land with flag of the rising sun,
he kept the show pure and with great spirited fun

Yet as oft changes came and in recent times marred,
twas management, not video killed this karaoke star,
once before it was tried but the audiences wailed,
which kept Peter's loved show for a time off the rails,
but as main pipes burst later, t'was finally contrived,
Peter's show's termination, the Gladstone's Music died

We fans and I for one will not give up hope,
for the spirit still stands, and we shall not mope,
like the phoenix we'll bring back our beloved Style(s) anew,
as the Gladstone declines slowly, may write further reviews,
Closer to downtown, there I may have some cause,
to keep propped up my smile, there have been several calls

So Peter as I write this, please know I am so glad,
to have shared with so many, the good times that we've had,
the unique quality presence, that showed us the stuff,
that all karaoke shows should I believe be made of,
at greener pastures I trust your show shall be renewed,
thank you for your Styles, and for sticking this through

Back with sad tidings..Gladstone Karaoke is no more

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Mon, 24 Mar 2014 16:32:00 +0000

First of all folks...I'm back. Been living life as we all do but I'm back. Why, well...thought others were taking on the quest for up to date karaoke venue news. But not so much recently. And on top of all that, the Gladstone killed the Karaoke Star Peter Styles. Truth be told I watched the place move the karaoke from 10 to 11 (which people did not appreciate) and I always feared they were trying to kill it with that move. Whether or not that was the intention it didn't help. At the same time the food quality dropped significantly, food selection dropped about as much (had the driest fries I ever had one day and COLD), and food prices went up almost as much as the food selection dropped. A bit above par whereas it was quite decent before. So someone had some interesting ideas there. In the end the only reason I showed up in the last 1.5 years was Peter himself. But that is now gone. Have a strange feeling the Gladstone will start it up again with someone new but time will tell.

In any case...time to get back in the game. I'll be doing Karaoke Review about every two weeks Maybe more..Could really use donations to help offset the costs as food prices have increased in general by 30%. So, if you like reading my blog again, please consider helping to off set my costs. Believe it or not every review costs an average of $25 to write, and it also means time off from my day job. (I often work at night as well). Of course I'll let you know when Peter is up and running again. As Peter himself would say, "Don't forget the tip jar". Unlike the musicians, there are no ads, no one to buy my review ratings (and I've had offers). Please and thanks. Before my first posting on Thursday, it's cheesy but I figured I'd write up a tribute to Peter. And to literary critics, I realize I'm not a professional writer; please be kind. :D Thanks. See you in the reviews.

The Gladstone Hotel Renovations: What new changes mean for Gladstone Karaoke

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 14:06:00 +0000

Folks, I’ve gotten to see the renovations at the Gladstone Hotel and learn about the changes going on there. The renovations themselves actually give the Melody Bar a nice face lift. Like many restaurants today they are going for the night lounge motif. This makes party events easier to host and facilitates more mingling. The booths on the east side are gone in favor of a longer bench with separation tables making it easier to seat more people. The couch in the back is replaced with a small lounge seat and longer tables. The front has low table made of 3 large stumps slices giving a more formal look. The center now has a stand up table to expand the bar and some fashionable muffling material has been mounted on the ceiling to improve sound/noise levels.

The Melody Bar alterations I found positive but what will be disturbing for karaoke fans are the karaoke schedule changes:

Old Schedule: 10 AM to 2 AM
New Schedule: 12 AM to 2:30 AM

This cuts the karaoke show in half! Live Acts are being moved from 8 PM to 10 PM. This is a grievous turn for karaoke loves. Almost feels like they intend to eventually cut the karaoke all together. And with it could happen. This is the second change to the karaoke schedule in as many years. Earlier they cut the Thursday night karaoke although Thursdays don't draw really a large crowds on average. I spoke to one of the Gladstone managers about the changes and what motivated them. The response was the Gladstone is looking to generate more revenue from the dining crowd and requests had been made for more dining. The schedule change were the response.

We karaoke fans know most shows start at between 10 to 11 PM for the reason that they draw better crowds. Midnight shows tend to get people drifting in from nightclubs and few of those dine and often had had plenty to drink elsewhere. In my experience late start times like this draw a lessor crowd. A lower attendance may give the Gladstone a reason to cut the karaoke completely and thus reduce thus budget. Many places are under pressure to cut costs due to people dining out less on average owing to concerns about the economy. My fear is this could backfire on the Gladstone in terms of attendance and revenue. It will certainly hurt karaoke lovers. The best case scenario is the same audience attendence, inability to sing due to reduced show times and same long queue. The most likely case is karaoke lovers are turned off because of the later start time and reduced duration and go elsewhere. (Most Karaoke Restaurants start at 10 PM and there are numerous examples on this blog)

The food is still amazing (sampled quite of bit of the new food, I especially recommend the nachos) and I’m told an expanded menu has been done to draw more diners to the Gladstone.

If, like me, you feel that this schedule shift at the Melody Bar is not ideal for karaoke lovers or their business in general, please write to the Gladstone Management and owner and let them know what you think. Best people to e-mail to are Alec Badley, the Hotel Manager at alec at gladstonehotel.com, and Christina Ziedler, Hotel President at Christina at gladstonehotel.com. Hopefully we can convince the Gladstone management to find another way to allow people to enjoy the dining without endangering one of the great karaoke traditions in Toronto.

Karaoke Review Update: Gladstone Hotel w/ Peter Styles

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 16:45:00 +0000

** BEST KARAOKE BAR MC 2010 **
** BEST QUALITY FOOD AT A KARAOKE VENUE 2010 **

January 29th, 2011

The Gladstone Hotel has a Karaoke Champion in Peter Styles who is probably as much of an enthusiast as I am. Don't get the idea that this automatically makes for a good review. While it may be voted best karaoke place by Now Magazine, well as much as I like Now Magazine, I don't always agree with their reviewers, so I'm writing my own. That said, I'm updating the review as there are a number of details that have changed, some good some not so good.

The Good: The Gladstone Hotel has Peter hosting on Friday-Saturday nights. This as cut back from the original Wednesday-Saturday which pains me and many I suspect. Mr. Styles is STILL as good as rumoured: He's EXCELLENT at working the crowd, and being a professional singer himself when he does his vocal intro, people perk their ears. And the energy feels genuine. He's probably the greatest asset of this venue. Song selection is now second ONLY to Jason Rolland!! There are over 30k Songs in his collection. A few duplicates being sorted out, but make no mistake. Peter has upped the ante! Drink prices are quite reasonable and there is no cover charge. The location is fairly convenient: You can get there by Streetcar quite easily and there is street side parking available.

They've added food and the food is first rate! All produce home grown in Ontario. The selection is not as large as many other restaurants but there is enough for most people and specials that change enough keep you coming back. Food quality is second to none, save perhaps on the Sweet Potato fries which are a touch dry for me taste.

The monitors (there are now 3) are in a good a position as I could think of given the layout. The LCD monitor for the singer is mounted above your head (it had been knocked down a number of times), and the LCD Project er makes it easy to see your lyrics while appearing to look into the crowd. Which is actually quite cool.

The Bad: Service unfortunately needs a little work. Its been from fair to poor. Larger tables will get preferences and sometime smaller tables go entirely unnoticed.

The mixed: The facilities are fairly large but the configuration makes it difficult to balance sound. If you sit in the front, be prepared for LOUD volume. At times it was actually hurting my ears (the volume gets louder the later the evening goes) so I suggest the mid section. At the back its much harder to hear because speakers can't be positioned there. On the plus side, if you tell Peter its too loud he'll take the volume down a notch.

Peter has a sound engineer at the back who for some reasons isn't paying attention to balance levels much of the time. Peter has commented several times on this. Too frequently the sound engineer let balances go entirely to the point you couldn't hear the singer. Sometimes he's got the balance, but sometimes its as if he lets sounds levels go on automatic pilot.

In all fairness Peter tries his best to give everyone in a very large crowd a chance, but sometimes a new person coming at the last hour would come in front someone who waited for 1.5 hours.

While the selection is the best or 2nd best in Toronto, its not reflected in his books! The only books available have 7k songs out of the 30k and the old song codes which he doesn't really use much anymore (not he queries the songs based on author and title). I'm assured a book is being compiled with the new selections, but its a weak spot. There is a website you can view on your computer or mobile phone (done by yours truly) at http://www.evolveit.ca/gladstone_karaoke/karaoke_song_query.php, but its not well advertised. (I'm getting a new URL to make it easier).

The verdict: The Gladstone Hotel with Peter Styles is overall still a excellent venue (mostly) with significant improvements. While I'd say its in the top 3, a few things still need to be done to make the undisputed champ of the karaoke pub world.

1. A sound engineer that pays more attention to volume levels (I've had complaints about it at the Toronto Karaoke Meetup Group, that is how bad he is sometimes)

2. Printed books or at least a kiosk where people can have FULL viewing access to the songs he has instead of asking if he has a song (80% change he has it)

3. Wait staff need a bit of polishing up and not neglecting patrons at small tables.

What is good is VERY VERY good. Peter is still the only guy with an applause sign I've seen so far. (and its a powerful tool). You WILL have fun at the Gladstone in spite of a few rough edges.

Final Grade: B+
Excellent Host, fantastic song selection, amazing quality food. Sound balance between the front and back could be improved. Sound engineer that pays more attention to balance is badly needed. Wait times are tricky, popularity has its price.

Score Summary:
Facilities: 7.5 (Lots of Space, sound however is unbalanced in different sections)
Equipment: 8.0 (New speakers installed, but sound engineer needs to be more alert)
Location: 7.5 (Easy to spot, moderately easy to get to using the Queen St. Streetcar)
Song Selection: 9.0 (The spot for best selection is within the Gladstone's reach)
Wait Times: 7 (scaled:public venue,Peter will try to shuffle within reasons if asked)
Host: 9.5 (VERY entertaining, Pays attention to the crowd, you'll love this guy)
Food Prices: 7.5 (Prices are slightly higher than average but the food quality is well above)
Food Quality: 9
Food Selection: 7 (slightly limited in selection)

Venue Information:
Friday-Saturday
10 PM - 1 AM
The Gladstone Hotel
1214 Queen Street West
Toronto, ON
Phone: 416 531 4635
http://www.peterstyles.info
Info on the Host: http://www.peterstyles.info

Karaoke Review Update: Bar + Karaoke

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 16:08:00 +0000

January 22nd, 2011

Seeing the need to update reviews and venues change I'll start with the one Closest to where I live (because its easy :D) When I checked Bar + Karaoke There were positives and negatives. I had chatted with the owner about them both so let's see how its come along since then.

This is the first karaoke box I'd seen with either LCD or plasma screens. I'm happy to say this so far is the cleanest Karaoke box I've seen to day as well as the most convenient for me. I had made some comments on the equipment last time I was here. There have been a few improvement in the years since I write my first review of this venue.

The Good: Well the plasma screens were all in excellent order and the computer selection by song number makes it easy to add, remove or switch order of songs. The look of the place felt like karaoke box meets night club feel to it. The looks of the interior was actually very nicely thought out. The selection was identical to XO which is to say it was decent and there have been a number of songs added. A few hundred in the English category which isn't bad. The microphones/receiver are working significantly better and more consist ant then when I first arrived so someone had been looking over the equipment.

The service level is now fairly good level. For rooms, equipment, and food a red button will bring an attendant for any help required including food service (I should perhaps say "snack")

The Mixed: While the microphone and receivers have improved significantly there are still a few things missing which the original had in its favor before it fell into disrepair (and now has a new owner). There are key changes in SOME of the rooms but not all of them. Primarily the more expensive medium room have a key changes. I actually spoke with the owner on this. He says he's working on it. Not sure what the difficulty could be but I'll just say if the owner can get key changers into the small rooms as well, this will be the best Karaoke Box in Toronto. The other mixed issue is the remotes. The remote control key functions are not always consistant. Some rooms seem to have slightly different key mappings to the remove then others which can cahas risen to use confusion for regulars.

The food quality is actually fairly good but the limited food selection means you can't actually get a meal here. This place (as most of the Toronto Karaoke Scene these days), is primarily geared for alcohol. It would be really cool if one could order a real meal. For now, I suggest either eat before you come, or bring food for a party if your group is really hungry. Outside drinks are not allowed, so bear that in mind.

One qualm I have with the computer karaoke system is if you want to use the computer catalog, the song order seems to be questionable. In fact, I'd almost suggest only use the books for song selection. It may be a glitch in the software that makes the order of songs in English rather irregular, but still, it can be confusing. Again, I suggest sticking to the song books to find your selection.

The Bad: There is nothing that stands out as bad. (Hooray!)

Summary: The owner of this place perhaps should consider a career in interior decorating (or refer the person he hired) because he seems to think “westerns” have no knowledge of what karaoke is all about or what quality equipment is. Let's start with basics: People have different song ranges, so key changers are ESSENTIAL. Yes, ESSENTIAL so that everyone can participate comfortably. Not having simple key changers that will work on any analog audio system is, frankly, very discouraging considering the great work on initially done with XO. Not only that but cheap Korean equipment and radio signal feedback on the audio (when there was no radio component on these receivers or perhaps I should say preamp) also suggests that the owner was doing everything to get this operation up on the cheap using excellent decorating to hide the fact. After six weeks of telling them they should have key changers and even telling them where to get them with no results show lack of attention the customers. Every time I went to the place (generally Fridays) I didn't see much of a crowd. Perhaps its just as well given the lack of respect for Karaoke lovers. Perhaps this is why he has let XO become so run down it is now dangerous to go to in the summer due to lack of proper ventilation and working air conditioners which had not been repaired properly for at least 2 years. I had to stop bringing the Toronto Karaoke Meetup Group as a result. There may be a general trend of business and Karaoke Box owners trying to avoid initial business costs with the invent of computer based Karaoke song changers, but just because a computer can do the rotations doesn't mean you don't provide the basics if you are going to be in the karaoke business at all. Anyone looking to start a karaoke box be aware there are those of us who have been to Asia, know what standard karaoke is supposed to provide and we will let people know who respects their customers, and just as importantly, who does not.

Summary Scores:

Facilities: 9.0 (Nice rooms, really clean, furniture in amazing shape)

Equipment: 7.5 (Improved mikes, key changes in some medium rooms). Significant improvements here but can't give full marks without key changers in the majority of the rooms. The remote control system should be uniform throughout all the rooms as well.

Location: 8.0 (Block north of Dundas Subway. Parking will cost you a pretty penny at Yonge/Dundas however)

Food Prices: NA (Prices on drinks are average, but only snack food)

Service: 8.0 (Staff improved quite a bit since the last time I review this venue)

Selection: 7.0 (~7500 English songs, lots of Korean, Chinese, some Japanese, same as XO).

Wait Times: 9.0 (Its a computer AVI/MPG server. So this is expected)

Room Prices: 7.0

1-5 people: $25/Hour

6-10 people: $40/Hour

50 Large Room: $50/Hour

Final Grade: C+/B- (Its getting better, owner seems to be making an effort)

Venue Information:
Bar + Karaoke Lounge
360 Yonge Street
Toronto, ON M5B 1S5
(416) 340-7154

Valentine's Day Karaoke Event

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 03:39:00 +0000

Folks for those of you who believe karaoke can be romantic (and of your that includes yours truly), this may be the event for you:

Event Name: Heartbreak Karaoke

Date: Valentine’s Day: Monday, February 14, 2011

Where: Supermarket, 268 Augusta Avenue
Toronto

Time: 9:00 pm to 2:00 am

Charge:$5 if you wear red, $7 if you don’t

Map here: http://maps.google.ca/m?q=268+Augusta+Ave

For those of you who don't know,this is near Kensington Market.

Enjoy. I may be there to check it out. Hope to see a few of you there.

New Karaoke Act October 21st, Western Toronto

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 23:34:00 +0000

Folks, there have been changes and new acts coming out to replace old, or just new acts. One Karaoke premere is happening on October 21st! I'll be there to see the kick-off. Should be good. here are the details:

Jack Astor's Bar and Grill
Sherway Gardens
1900 The Queensway
Toronto, ON
M9C 5H5
416.626.2700

Thursday, October 21st, 2010
8 PM to 1 AM (5 hour!!)

I'll let you know later about the equipment, food song selection, all the good stuff.

I do apologize. Been busy making a living. (The reviews I write need to be funded somehow :D)

Anyway, review on this new venue will be here.

Karaoke Review: Fox & Fiddle 27 Wellesley Street East W/ Peter Rockwell

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Tue, 11 May 2010 13:22:00 +0000

2010-05-01 (Note: attended twice to check for consistency)

I've kept up with Peter over the years he's been doing karaoke in his original comic radio style. Some have imitated but none have duplicated...yet. More recently the mainstay karaoke hosts have actually improved, the venue setups were lacking of late. I'm hoping the venues take a few hints.

The Good: This venue actually has a room that is dedicated to Karaoke on Friday and Saturday nights. This is a VERY good thing (especially for Fight Nights, the show can still go on unlike the Fox & Fiddle at Eglington and Laird). The song selection is still good although a few have better. The comedy, so long as you are not offended by rated "X" humor (NOT for children), is classic and to coin a phrase, "We're not just laughing at you we're laughing behind you". Sometimes Peter makes fun of the songs (and the song selection doesn't matter, its all entertainment), makes jokes about you, or your audience. That's the point. The equipment performs well and while you won't sound bad, you may not be heard at all if you cover the mike with your hand. (A number of people didn't seem to get the message no matter times Peter joked about it or the audience yelled "Don't cover the mike")

The food is fairly good and the decor is much improved over the "Fiddler's Green" that used to be at the same location. It feels like a comfortable pub, or perhaps the scene from "Cheers".

The setup is nearly perfect. You are right in front of the audience, top larger screens help the audience sing right along and you have a monitor right in front to help you out. Only improvement I can recommend is an LCD screen at eye level for the singer instead of the CRT TV Peter still uses. Peter Styles now apparently has a LCD monitor at eye level at the Gladstone Hotel and Jason Rolland has apparently done the same things at Toby's and other venue with his custom built adjustable LCD stand. It's really worth looking into.

The Mixed: Pricing of food has generally been going up, but I felt the prices on food and drink had some room for improvement. Slightly above average. The room is of good size but it could get crowded. The advantage of a dedicated karaoke pub room can be overcome by larger audiences.

The Bad: I had hoped this section would have nothing in it but on Saturdays there is a serious issue. While all marketing material and signs say karaoke starts at 10 PM, Peter will wait until as late as 11 PM. I've mentioned in previous reviews this is not cool and Peter Rockwell knows how to work an audience of any size. It was implied that one reason was gets people to drink more. I consider that to be disrespectful to the audience. This also puts the rotation in the lower category in part because the host is waiting for the queue to be longer. Karaoke hosts in general, if you post a time and start later on a regular basis because you don't feel the queue is large enough, I'll take off marks and emphasis it. It's bad business. To pub owners who may be pushing their hosts to this sort of behavior be warned, your patrons will not appreciate it. Making people who come on time wait, and my group tends to have a full dinner before karaoke begins, wastes our dollars as well as our time. You want people to drink more, keep them HAPPY. Not irritated.

Conclusion: The Fox & Fiddle at Wellsley has GREAT potential. An excellent host for the younger and open-minded crowded, fairly good food, great location, good song selection and equipment. Unfortunately the karaoke business practices in regards to starting times, whether it's because of the venue owner, the karaoke host, or both, leaves a bad taste in one's mouth. Depriving audiences of up one hour of joyful, humors singing to push people to buy more drinks is bad practice either way. There were actually open complaints by my group published on the Meetup site comments because it happened twice in 2 months. I may need to move the venue as I don't wish to lose my most dedicated members. Karaoke MC's and venue owners reading I hope understand we karaoke lovers don't appreciate inaccurate starting times or being made to wait in an effort to push more drinks. I would have loved to give this place an unreserved endorsement. But if audiences coming at the appointed time are forced to wait for longer rotations to build its time BADLY wasted. You can sing just as many songs at the Gladstone Hotel with its huge crowds. The difference its, the crowds are why you wait, not the host.

Final Grade: B-

Summary Scores:

Facilities: 9.0 (Excellent setup, very imtimate, yet exposed to your "loving" public)
Food Selection: 8.5 (Basic pub fare with a few Indian dishes, nice selection on cakes)
Food Quality: 8.2 (food was overall quite good you won't be disappointed)
Prices: 7.0 (Prices are basically average)
Location: 9.5 (Right on top of Wellsley subway station, paid parking right next door, doesn't get better than that)
Song Selection: 8.2 (Strong selection, but others like Jason Rolland and Jeremy Sikloski are pushing the envelope)
Equipment: 8.5 (Excellent equipment, would love to see an LCD monitor mounted higher though)
Host: 8.0 (I would have given a 9.0 but as I said earlier, making the audiences wait an hour because the queues aren't large enough is bad practice. Especially by an MC of this high caliber. The bad taste it leaves makes one more likely to complain rather than buy more food or drink)
Service: 7.5 (The service was actually quite good some times, but other times it felt like we were forgotten. May have to do with staff getting busy with the opposite room where the bar is)
Rotation Times: 6.0 (Making people wait past the published starting time to push alcohol is NOT cool)

Venue Information:

Peter Rockwell, Pete Rock Radio Karaoke
27 Wellsley Street East,
Toronto, ON M4Y 1G7
Phone: (416) 944-9369

Pete Rock Radio Karaoke
Site: http://www.peterockradio.com and
http://www.karaokeisstupid.com

Bar 244 with Jason Rolland

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 07:59:00 +0000

Reviewed: 2010-03-10

Event Time: Wednesdays, 10 PM to 2 AM

Been a bit of a lag time for me. And while I've been getting out venues to write about them, been a dog of a time getting them written. Finally getting this one out. Jason Rolland, guy who for quite some time has maintained title for "Best Karaoke Equipment" for sometime now, has a new venue at University and Adelaide. Bar 244. Simple, name, close to Tequila Sunrise, one of Jason's oldest Toronto venues. Its actually impressive to keep 2 karaoke venues within the same block with the same MC. Identical equipment makes the scoring so much simpler, especially when its as good as Jason's.

The Good: Great to know the good things about Jason Rolland's shows haven't changed. Sound levels still dead on, wireless mikes, LCD screen, excellent balance and still the best official song selection in Toronto. (He's up to 37k+ now..). Being a Wednesday night, I found rotation times were fantastic, got in 3 songs in one hour. (I'm told the week before it was packed so I cannot guarantee the short wait times every week). Jason's actually improve as an MC: His jokes were surprisingly funny. We've been short of truly comic Karaoke hosts since Jeff Zedic left the country. One day I'll have to do a side-by-side comparison between Jason Rolland and Peter Rockwell. The stage feels like a stage, and all the people at the bar can look at you, their drinks, or each other. Nice to have a captive audience. :D Given that the prices of beers are better than average, you can be pretty sure people will cheer out of appreciation, or drunkenness. It works well either way. Location is also fairly convenient as well. Just go to Osgoode Subway Station and 5 minute walk. Drink service is excellent.

The Mixed: Nothing mixed.

The Bad: The decor reminded me of a typical American Bar: No real decor or theme. Its okay, but it LOOKS like a bar. So long as you keep the booze rolling you probably won't notice. Maybe that's the point. Another consequence of being a bar is no food. Eat before you arrive. (although I'm told alcohol goes to your head faster on an empty stomach).

Summary:

Bar 244 with Jason Roland is (and I told him as much) a quality Karaoke venue. Best for a karaoke version of the "after-dinner mint" because of lack of food. On the other hand, the price for the booze is right, the selection is the biggest in the city, the equipment still the best, and Jason Rolland actually gets plenty of laughs, no alcohol required. You may still want that liquid courage to sing songs you wouldn't dare try otherwise. Whatever those songs may be, Jason is likely to have them, this is the best you are likely to sound, and one of the better karaoke stages as well (bonus). So go for it! If you love Karaoke and drinks, you'll enjoy this Bar 244.

Final Grade: B/B+

Facilities: 7.5 (Great Stage, Good layout. A bar is a Bar I guess, but as Karaoke Bars go, this one's well above par, nothing run down looking, just no real decor)
Equipment: 9.5 (Jason Rolland's Equipment...nuff said)
Song Selection: 9.5 (Again, Jason Rolland...nuff said)
Food Selection: NA (What food?)
Food Quality: NA
Food Service: 8.0 (drinks only)
Prices: 8.4 (Quite good actually)
Location: 8.2 (Just a trip to Osgoode, walk south, then west)
Wait Times: 9.0 (Not many people in queue when I was there, be warned though some nights are busier than others)
Host: 8.2 (Jason actually seems to get better with time. He keeps the long songs shorter, and the rotation going as always AND his crowd interaction has come some ways. This may be the best I've seen him)

Venue Information:
Karaoke Wednesdays, 2 PM to 2 AM
Bar 244
244 Adelaide Street West
Toronto, ON
Phone: (416) 599-2442
www.bar244.ca

Karaoke Host Info:
Host Information:
Jason Rolland
http://www.jasonrolland.com/
jason@jasonrolland.com
(416) 809-4311

New Toronto Karaoke T-Shirt

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 18:21:00 +0000

After an amazing session at my Meetup's Karaoke Box meeting, I was inspired to design a t-shirt after my self proclaimed title, "Toronto's BIGGEST Karaoke Fan" so...here it is: I'm getting a few done for some Meeutp members who I feel have shown as much passion for karaoke as I do (maybe...:-)). Then I figured, why not share with others I haven't met who may THINK they can compete for the title. :D I have a GIMP draft but this site seemed convenient. Not quite perfect but it will do until I have time to tweak my design/images. If you'd like one of these shirts e-mail me at karaokeoffer at evolveit dot ca. This is of course only in Toronto only. (Who want's to wear a shirt like this outside of Toronto anyway...?) Need a general t-shirt size of course. If I get at least 10 requests I can get them in at ~$20 each and you can pick one up at a Toronto Karaoke Meetup or I can ship it to you for ~$5. Cheers All!

Groudhog Pub Closing March 31st, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 03:51:00 +0000

Folks, I've just found out the Groundhog Pub at Bloor/Sherbourne, a really nice place for karaoke, is closing is doors March 31st, 2010. So for those of you who would like to wish the venue, and its host, Jeremy Siklosi a "Bon Chance", now would be a good time. With a small whimper we say goodbye to a venue with good food (actually food was quite good), good karaoke, and awesome location (right next to Sherbourne Subway. We will miss it...

PS: If you know of any good places looking for a quality karaoke host, feel free to contact Jeremy Siklosi at the Groundhog on Friday/Saturdays until March31st. You can e-mail me the info and I'll pass it on to him. (Can't post his e-mail address here or he's likely to to come after me for painting a spam bullseye on him :-)

CAVS Optical Drive Test - Update

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 20:41:00 +0000

Folks, its been awhile I know. Between surviving an depressed (yes I said the "D" word) I am not totally unaffected and its hit my time for doing karaoke related reporting. But...an old client made it easier to get on board again. So news: The drives I found from my last posting on CAVS compatible drives are of course out of date. The drive I had found is no longer being manufactured by Asus. The newer model I've successfully tested, the ASUS DVD-E818A3 as well as the Pioneer DVR-117D are also discontinued. I have 3 of the Asus drives but 2 have just been requested by this client so I have only the one which I'm keeping. I could have used this opportunity to charge as much as the used Plextor drive guys at $100/drive but that seemed wrong somehow, especially in this economy. In fact this client had already bought 2 used Plextor drives at $100/drive and one of them lasted only 3 MONTHS before it died so I felt I needed to get this out in the open. That said, if you can find Asus DVD-E818A3 its a better alternative and is likely to be new. There is another drive I'll be testing: The Sony DDU1678A. I'm hoping it does the job although the number of people using CDG disks as opposed to the newer downloadable MP3+G files is probably decreasing rapidly. It makes sense after all. If anyone wants to help out with testing drives for native CD+G compatibility here are some links to help get you started:

Karaoke Builder
Nero Tools (Note: you want to download the Nero InfoTool, direct link here: Nero Info Tool)

The Nero Info tool is a MS Windows application. For Linux users it's reported not to work, even under Wine. So Linux uses try these tools: DVD+RW Tools.

I'd love to have a central list of CURRENT drives so people know where to find info for issues like this. Its all free info after all. there is another growing problem: PATA (IDE) Drives in general are going the way of the Dodo bird. There are few PATA(ide) optical drives (or even hard drives) of any kind in Canada as SATA is now all the rage. Aside from onboard RAID issues if an optical is on the same controller I have no problem SATA; The cables are WAY smaller, and the interface is faster. So I guess it up to us karaoke lovers to update hardware and more importantly, software, to the times. Easier said then done I know. For anyone with large collections of CDG disks, get converting to MP3+G, bin or some other computer savable format while your devices are still working. They all die sooner or later and are difficult and/or expensive to repair once the motor dies (unless you are an electrical engineer). Anyway, I'll keep you informed how this Sony works and send out more inquires to the optical drive manufactures. But if you, the karaoke loving public care to download the Nero Info tool (or Linux equivalent), test your IDE drives (or even SATA) and let me know your findings, I'd love to publish them here as well as my own. Frankly I don't have the budget to buy 12-20 drives and test them all. Thanks folks.

Children's Karaoke Event (Note: see link for admission prices)

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 07:51:00 +0000

Folks, there is a children's karaoke event happen November 29, 2009 from 12 PM to 3 PM. This event was is to my knowledge new to Toronto so I'm posting it here. Note there is a fee for admission.
Here is the details:

Date: Sunday, November 29th
Time: 12pm – 3pm
Location: Revival (783 College Street)
Cost: $10/Adult, $8/Child in advance. $12 at the door. Free for non-walkers.

Further details can be found here. Those of you with kids will find this a lot of fun. I may be there myself. Cheers all.

Karaoke Review: Toby's with Jason Rolland

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:43:00 +0000

Monday October 5th 2009

Toby's Bar/Restaurant hosted by Jason Rolland

Upon receiving a Facebook notice from Jason, I thought a place on Monday's would be cool, seeing its not everyday a place is willing to host Karaoke the first working day of the week. Certainly people like me would be interested as would those going to school (in Japan University is a 4 year vacation anyway, according to the natives). Jason of course has the largest selection of any karaoke host I've seen in Toronto and at 35k+ that's hard to beat.

The Good: As I mentioned, Jason has the largest selection of any Karaoke DJ out there. Of course I wish the "banned" labels (which count for little indeed) on some of his songs would disappear but its mostly for the college crowd sense of humor. Equipment is top of the line and Jason even has an LCD screen with a custom stand now. A HUGE plus: I wish more people would pay attention to recommendations I've been giving on this subject. LCD Panels are WAY safer and easier to read. Well worth the investment. (They are pretty cheap as well if you know where to look). The location is quite easy to get to on College street. Parking is around if you look to the side streets (free) or College parking meters. Jason maintains his usual good college student tuned humor although I have always felt Jason could have more of it. There are intervals when he does little but announce the next singer. The food prices are quite reasonable. You can dine for between $8-$20 and not go hungry which given the recent rise of restaurant prices this year (15%-20% on average) that is saying something. There is a fair amount of space, I'd esimate 200-250 person capacity.

The Mixed: The food quality was okay but not the best I've had. Food Selection is fair: Indian, Pub food along with steak dinners. Rotation time is around 1 hour but Jason is a fair as anyone can get: following the tried/tested rule of rotating newcomers with repeat people in the rotation.

The Bad: Service here was for me the low point of Toby's: After sitting at the bar for over 15 minutes just get a menu while the bartender is having a conversation with her friend almost right next to you is a bit of a turnoff. I suggest the manager of this restaurant tell his staff that they are there to look after customers, not have long conversations with friends while a customer sitting at the bar waiting for service. Even after I got the menu (finally), taking my order took some time as well. Had the feeling the staff were university students who don't take service duties seriously. The Stage setup was not good at all but in fairness, I spoke to Jason who indicated that the owner had his hands tied: Didn't want to use the front section (which would have been the ideal location for a stage) and the back section would make the karaoke invisible to people passing by. So he's literally in the middle, in direct line with the path the wait staff have to take to carry food back and forth. Not only is this distracting, but the monitor is on one side of the lane, and you are on the other, so that when staff pass by you need to memorize your lyrics for 2-3 seconds as the wait staff have to walk between you and the monitor. A newcomer to Karaoke would be quickly put off by this.

Final Grade: C+
With Jason in the house you won't get a better selection and his equipment actually got better with his LCD panel display at the perfect height. I didn't think he could improve his equipment by much. Unfortunately the venue was not nearly as pleasing: Poor service, a stage right in the middle of wait staff traffic, and the monitor that is blocked as people walk between the front and the kitchen. Restaurant owners: If you want to make a good impression you have to choose your battles. In trying to please people who want to sit near the outside and attract karaoke lovers at the same time, the owners created one of the work karaoke stage setups I've seen yet. I stress this is no fault of Jason Rolland.(without him this place would be a solid "D") Between the staff and the setup Jason is the only good choice the owner has made. If a restaurant owner wants to truly make karaoke a success in their place, the stage setup must be at least usable. I strong recommend the front of the restaurant, or the back being the 2nd choice. The middle pleases no one in the end and only a karaoke die hard would endure the constant distraction of traffic.

Oh, one note: Sometimes Jason takes pictures for his website. If you don't want your picture on the web, tell Jason in advance. Otherwise, you may find yourself on Facebook or Jason Rolland's main website.

Score Summary:
Facilities: 5.7 (Horrible stage setup)
Equipment: 9.5 (new high standard..Adjustable LCD Monitor)
Location: 8.0 (Easy to reach by Streetcar, some free/paid parking available)
Song Selection: 9.5 (have to leave room for some to top Jason...someday)
Wait Times: 7.0 (about average)
Host: 8.0 (Good, could use more audience interaction on the stage)
Food Prices: 8.5 (Very good, especially with recent restaurant price hikes)
Food Quality: 7.3 (good, but not great)
Food Selection: 7.0 (on par, but not amazing, good prices have their "price")
Food Service: 5.5 (Social conversation with one customer while the other is waiting for a menu? This is why tips are optional)

Venue Information:
Monday's 10 P.M. to 2 A.M.
Toby's Eatery
411 College St.
Toronto, ON
M5T 1T1
(416) 925-9908

Host Information:
Jason Rolland
http://www.jasonrolland.com/
jason@jasonrolland.com
(416) 809-4311

Note: I was just informed that the bartender who gave the poor service was fired. I'll return later to see if the service has improved.

A note on professional posion pills on my blog

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 15:50:00 +0000

There is a Karaoke DJ pair whose name I will not mention but they have been leaving posts on their competition...all negative at this point. In the author's view this is an attempt to improve their business by poisoning other people's reputations. While I am liberal on comments I do NOT approve comments from competition designed to hurt other people's business nor will negative comments from such Karaoke DJs be taken seriously. (Obviously there is a conflict of interest). I have removed one such comment (and everyone can have a bad night) and will show another to illustrate the point:

-- comment begins --
For hosts, until legislation is finalized on the rights and wrongs of laptops, the "legal" way is to have original discs. Everything else is a grey area until a licensing mechanism is approved for copying discs (see both the Copyright Act and the Trademark Act).

Even the use of laptops is gray, although hosts believe that if they have all the music as originals on disc, it is OK to copy this on to a laptop and use it at shows. The Copyright legislation states a personalized copy can be made -- it disallows a copy for the purpose of business, e.g., hosts who get paid).

We have reached a time when technology is ahead of legislation, and the use of laptops and copied discs is not policed in Toronto because there is just too many of them; however, there have been occasions where police have visited the bar and the equipment has been taken away, and fines delivered to both the host and the bar.

Food for thought.

-- comment ends--

Now this person wants to hurt the business of CAVS and anyone using electronic media or at least scare them. (Basically anyone who has potentially a technical advantage over them). I've been called at my very home by people playing these games and I'm sick of this nonsense so I'm putting this to bed right now. Here is a quote from an article on this subject:

"[I]t is not an infringement for the owner of a copy of a computer program to make or authorize the making of another copy or adaptation of that computer program provided ... that such new copy or adaptation is for archival purposes only and that all archival copies are destroyed in the event that continued possession of the computer program should cease to be rightful."

"That is, the owner of the Karaoke CDG, whether a professional who performs or hosts public shows or a private individual, is not trying to profit from copying and reselling the CDG. They are either backing up the content of the CDG, or simply moving the content from the CDG format to a Hard Drive format (for example) for ease and efficiency of use."

you can download the FULL article here in PDF format:
Karaoke Legal Info

The professionals are well aware of what is needed to be compliant so to people trying to cripple their competition with legal scare tactics: bugger off! Something else to people who are trying to poison use of laptops by the karaoke community: CDG's are NOT the primary method of selling Karaoke media: The primary method is now MP3+G and you can buy professional karaoke licenses for those for the purposes of use in karaoke pubs which are more expensive than the standard price. So the above comment by this karaoke KJ company is not only as out of date as it claims the laws are in relation to technology, it is not even accurate. What I am told over and over when I ask what is actually required is proof of licensing. "License" is the key word (as well as purpose of conversion according to letter and spirit of the law). I must stress this comment is not a legal opinion, and these Karaoke DJs are NOT lawyers. I am familiar with the few police raids and these were cases of blatant piracy: Someone had been buying CDGs and make multiple copies and selling (distributing) them to multiple business. I trust we are all clear on the subject now.

To any professional Karaoke DJ's (and we are only talking about one or two bad apples so far) trying to use my blog to scare or hurt their colleagues a strong warning (note I am not a lawyer): If you give ANY legal opinion and you are not a lawyer you can be charged and convicted for giving legal advice. (Paralegals have had a FUN time with this recently) So let me make this CLEAR: Anyone submitting legal information to me who is not a lawyer can have that comment removed. If they are Karaoke DJ's this goes double. I may feel like consulting my own lawyers on whether legal action is warranted. If any of you think you have a legal case against a colleague, call the RCMP. I'll be furthering my own research through lawyers on any potential issues. However, this is NOT a blog to be used for legal references. I always recommend consulting a lawyer, and preferably a specialist in the subject.

On a separate note lawyers should be consulted even with "simple" full time jobs contracts. Believe me...I'm glad I've consulted lawyers on employment agreements as recent contracts have slimy and sneaky clauses which I've had removed (and job offers not withdrawn). Legally (I am not a lawyer but I've been told be several lawyers directly), you have the right to take reasonable time for a lawyer to review any contract.

Gladstone Hotel Update: Peter Styles on new Laptop based system

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Fri, 23 May 2008 03:25:00 +0000

Folks you should know that in an effort to be more up to date Peter Styles is now setup on a PC Based Karaoke system. After using the VocoPro system with its awkward song changing system he decided it was time for a change. Sow now his system is PC based and its huge different from his VocoPro system attempting to navigate 6k songs with only a directional based remote control. So those of you who haven't see Peter recently, check it out. A new 17" LCD Lyric monitor is also in use and it does make reading easier (although I would like the monitor a bit higher myself). I've been a bit behind but I have karaoke KJ software reviews written in draft form starting with PowerKaraoke's Siglos Profession suite. Its been mentioned my blog was getting a little stale so I apologize but my research (and application of results) had been taking time. The good news is I can publish notes on going Laptop based on karaoke system and what pitfalls to watch out for should you make the leap yourself. Cheer

Karaoke Review:Chick N'Deli w/Nicholas with Hitsville Karaoke

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Fri, 23 May 2008 01:36:00 +0000

Reviewed: 2008-04-15

For some time I've been hearing about this venue so it was high time I checked it out to see if I got a few good cluckles or laid an egg. Wednesday nights is not the most active evening but this could be a great place to go for people who don't like to wait for songs. Off to the BBQ.

The Good: The service was fairly quick and food quality was also quite good. The food selection has a wide variety of bar food: Various Burger choices, Chicken (of course!) Whole, 1/2 and 1/4 sizes both BBQ and Jerk) , wraps Chili Salads Sivloki, Pasta, Wide dessert selection along with good appetizers selections with calamari, brushetta, calamari, wings nachos and onion rings.

Song Selection is above par with 8978 songs (approx) with a good spread of generes from oldies to modern contemporary hits by Radiohead.

There is a real stage which gives a nice feel as the stage faces the entrance.

The Mixed: food prices are around average: $7-$17 although combo salads with burgers are a tad high. While the equipment was good the monitor was too low and difficult to read. Audio monitors aren't really there and one cannot hear their own voice. Mike sometines not quite connected so guessing the cable was loose. The MC's commentary had some good moments but sometimes it just fell a little short. Brilliant moments but some luls in between. Wait times are within 1 hour which is average citywide.

The Bad: As much as I was trying to put this in the mixed but this is all about the user experience. Nicholas is not terribly in attention to sound levels. Sound Balances were mostly okay but WEAK SINGERS GET OVERPOWERED by the high music levels and the MC doesn't seem to notice. Bass was often much too heavy as well. As much as I dislike saying this is an MC's job is to make sure that ALL participants can sound as good as they can and I felt like this venue was geared for season karaoke participants and beginners are not really monitored. Also, Nicholas seems to do little more than change the songs. More personality please. If Nicholas is reading this please pay attention to this. The decor of this venue is not great either. It has a run down feel which could be improved with a little TLC (Tender loving care). There is potential for a better overall feel but at the moment it feels like a run down bar/restaurant.

Summary:

The Chick'n'Deli has a great food selection and excelent service. The stage for participants is excellent and song selection is on par with some of the better venues in Toronto. Unfortunately the MC attention is not only the main weak spot its a weak spot that is felt be anyone karaoke participant who is not seasoned and that makes it difficult for new participants. This really needs to get fix and the MC needs to be listening to levels of the weak singers as well as strong. Having seen others do an excellent job at adjusting sound levels for all classes of singers there is simply no reason for Nicholas the same. If he can fix this combined with some touch up on the venue decor this could be a really fantastic venue in an awesome location.

Final Grade: C+

Facilities: 7.5 (great stage and layout but overall bar decor needs some work. Feels run down)
Equipment: 8.0 (Speakers are good but loose cables get noticed)
Song Selection: 8.9 (Excellent spread of genres kept up to date)
Food Selection: 8.7 (Very nice sellection)
Food Quality: 8.1 (Portions good, salads very fresh, burgers pretty good but salads were better)
Food Service: 9.0 (Food service was great...worth a good tip along with it)
Prices: 7.1 (average)
Location: 8.0 (Just a trip to Eglington Subway Station and an eastbound bus or 20 minute walk gets you to Mt. Pleasent)
Wait Times: 7.0 (MC keeps the que moving, so it makes city avarage)
Host: 7.2 (Sometimes great commentary between songs, other times flat, doesn't appear to notice his volume levels overpower weak singers)

Venue Information:
Chick N'Deli
744 Mount Pleasant Road
Toronto, ON, M4S 2N6
Phone: (416) 489-3363

Karaoke Host Info:
Nicholas
Hitsville Karaoke (A Division of Bent Roots Music)
Phone: (416) 84307400
e-mail: hitsvillekaraoke@yahoo.ca

CAVS (and other karaoke systems) Compatible CDG DVD Drive FOUND!! Available from me cheap!

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 05:27:00 +0000

To paraphrase the great comedian George Carlin when he spoke of bumper stickers, "I have found him..I have CDG compatibility in the trunk!!" Yes FINALLY I have found a DVD optical device that will works with ALL Karaoke software requiring CDG compatible optical hardware. Now to the people on the Internet who have been selling discontinued plextor optical drives at exorbant prices (> $100!?!): Shame on you! To the Cavs people in Korea who are not answering the question of compatible optical devices publically: Shame on you too for not answering properly the questions of your customers, and for making me do your research for you. Greed seems to be a little out of control when it comes to manufacturers discontinuing CDG compatible drives according to an unfortunate KJ who got conned when his Plextor CD Burner died.

So without further ado, a compatible drive that is still being made and I have confirmed ample supply in with Canadian Distributors:

The Asus DVD-E616A3 DVD Rom/CDRW drive

(no it won't burn DVDs but karaoke people want CDG readability, right?) reads the CDG disks (really old ones over 10 years of age) perfectly, I can use it with a simple USB enclosure with karaoke software on a laptop, and it works. If you install it in a server it will work with any software including CAVS, if you use it through a USB on a laptop, the CAVS Karaoke Computer Software refuses to recognize any USB attached drives (CAVS software, well, no surprises there) but Audiograbber software and the Siglos Professional Software packages and Power CD+G Burner software read it perfectly and with Power CD+G burner you can make backups of those files for the day when CDG optical devices are impossible to get. Audiograbber is good but on a few odd tracks I noticed small spots around the lyrics that weren't present on the Power CD+G Burner conversion but bear in mind Audiograbber is free) So Internet sharks, I intend to stop your gouging with the following information: The Asus DVD-E616A3 is available CHEAP. VERY cheap. Try less than $30 CAD (so sharks, start lowering your prices or get stuck with your discontinued hardware), and a usb enclosure is between $30-$40 CAD. So that is between $60-$70 NOT $120 which I've had reported to me for long discontinued Plextor CD Drive models.

Just to make things interesting, I would like to make life easier for all Karoake KJs and karaoke lovers out there by personally offering to put together for anyone in Canada (but not outside due to taxes and high shipping charges) a USB enclosure using this drive for $55 plus shipping + packing materials (which should be no more than $15 dollars by Canada Post or Purolator (if I can get a discount from them). I won't ship by UPS...too many problems with receiving from them..poor service). The total cost is somewhere between $60-$70 plus Canadian Taxes, which I must charge by law, for identical functionality of what some people have charged >$100 dollars for on the Internet PLUS shipping. (so around $120-$150 PER DRIVE). If it doesn't work with your karaoke software I will refund the money IN FULL upon receiving the device back provided there are no external markings or damage. You can send order requests to me by sending me an e-mail with full shipping information to

karaokeoffer@evolveit.ca

and I'll send you a reply with full instructions on payment (paypal is probably the most convenient) which upon receiving, a full insured, tracked package will be in your hands within 1-2 weeks.

Obviously I'm not out to make money here. But its all good if it benefits the Karaoke community. Feel free to donate to my blog if you'd like to compensate me for time and money spent doing this research.

If there are any readers in the USA, sorry its a bit awkward doing research into legal issues in cross border sales, but you now know the name of the device and manufacturer, and I'll give you a list of USB Enclosures that will physically fit basic Optical Devices if you ask. Vantec and Mace make a few suitable enclosures.

so hope this helps you all out there struggling either to read CDG disks on your laptops or replacing your dying Plextor drives in your CAVS JB-99, JB-199 or other devices using IDE Optical devices. Oh, and if you want to properly backup your JB-199 files into something more universally usable (outside of the CAVS environment which I strongly advise) you can get your raw JB-199 files converted for reloading if your JB-199 dies here: KjAmp Converting services.

To the technicans and manufacturers as Asus: Thank you! Among the people and companies I've contacted (Plextor, LG, Lite-On, Teac, Asus and Sony) only you delivered a robust and accurate answer as well as a product that resolves a widening technology age gap in the karaoke world. Plextor technicians, I thank you for giving me an accurate (if not positive) answer to my inquiries. I received an incorrect answer from Lite-On (which they corrected after I called them to complain about how the model they referred me to failed the CDG and Nero Info test) and the others I've had no reply from in 3 months just so you know. I hope this is of help to all frustrated Karaoke Profesisonals and lovers everywhere.

Karaoke KJ Software SHOWDOWN!!

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 16:58:00 +0000

Okay, its been awhile I know. Hey, popularity has its price and my IT Business has been getting popular (nice to know people recognize my work with a pay cheque) Yes, I've been promising this for awhile. Bear in mind this is not software for Karaoke Boxes but for KJs. Still trying to get more data for karaoke boxes. Its all Korean and Chinese so far. The software contenders best computer (laptop) based Karaoke KJ Software are:

1. Siglos Karaoke Professional
2. CAVS PlayCDG KJ DELUXE
3. KaraWin Pro (French.. Merci)
4. RoxBox Karaoke Suite
5. autOKdj with Winamp (autokdj is free so please consider donating)
6. PyKaraoke (free but its a bit technical and full professional features need separate components are beyond non-technical people but I include it for Linux users so they can have fun too but don't expect a stellar review)

So here are the contenders. Watch the blog over the next week as I download demos and test on my laptop. Haven't had the resources to review the ultimate karaoke laptop yet. Someone offered to buy a custom built laptop with HUGE space from me which truly would have been the ultimate karaoke KJ laptop but 2 months later and nothing so...nothing. If anyone wants to buy such a laptop from within Canada let me know. we're talking 500 GB on the hard drive (which you won't find in any store for a few months yet at least). Anyway, Stay tuned for the showndown. I'll be reviewing in the order listed above.Feel free to check them out yourselves as well and give comments.

CAVS compatible Players: Progress report

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 19:20:00 +0000

Folks I'm setting up my own system to test compability with the CAVS CDG disk processing software. I have tested it with the latest Lite-On drives after being told by a technician that they should all support CD+G at a native level. It did NOT support it on the native. The DH-20A4H08C (I purchased) didn't even pass the Nero Info test. So, to the guy at Lite-On Tech support who incorrectly informed me, I must now assume that NONE of the Lite-On drives will support CD+G natively. So because this fellow informed me incorrectly (and its clear Lite-On isn't taking the requirement seriously where as Asus was very specific) I am advising people not to buy Lite-On or LG Optical Devices if you need to use CAVS software. All of them will most likely fail. I will soon test the Asus CD/DVD Combo drive (have one on delivery). The Other model recommended by Asus (DRW-2014L1T) is a SATA. I don't know if the CAVS software will support SATA devices. Will try it but a warning to people with SATA raids, do NOT put an optical device on the same controller as your SATA RAID: It may break it on a RAID 5 and will could corrupt a RAID 1. Most motherboard built-in SATA RAID controllers are cheap, and assume anything on the controller is meant to be used for a RAID. If you have only one controller for SATA RAID and you have RAID configured, buy a separate PCI SATA Controller and put the SATA optical device on that. CAVS, really, UPDATE YOUR SOFTWARE. CD+G native drives are becoming an endangered species. Again, Plextor has officially ceased all production of ALL CD+G native drives. There are some people taking serious advantage of this and charging over $90 for an out of production Plextor CDRW only drive that was used by CAVS. Its disappointing to see people taking advantage of this situation and I intended to find drives to put a stop it.

Karaoke Announce: The Safari Village Temporarily suspends Karaoke

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 19:19:00 +0000

Folks, due to low turnout The Safari Village is temporarily suspending their Karaoke shows until sometime in March 2008. Will let you know when karaoke is back in full swing there.

Karaoke Review: Sports Centre Café w/ Rick Marcoux, Showtime Karaoke

noreply@blogger.com (Jonah A. Libster) — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 18:14:00 +0000

Reviewed: 2008-01-11

Okay, back the the world of karaoke reviews. This is another venue recommended by the Toronto Karaoke Meetup Group membership. The neighborhood is trendy enough but would it hold up to what some karaoke hosts have called an unreasonable standard. (remember I've had calls asking for "adjustments" in criteria). I have no intention of changing my criteria so let's see if we have a "home run" or "foul ball". (okay its not Hockey but its too violent/expensive for me :D)

The Good: The space of this place is HUGE although you wouldn't guess it from the entrance. When you initially enter it looks like an average sized bar. Go into the back section and it opens up, dramatically. It's almost like going through the entrance of a cottage and discovering it opens up into a palace. The Sports Bar lives up to its name so if sports (or even TV) is your thing you'll be in love. Nearly every table has an LCD television either right next to you or 3-5 feet away. One large Projector TV is in the back area great for parties and there is a game room that is truly a game room. Pool, mini-hockey, pinball. seriously, this is indeed a sports bar! The Decor lives up to its namesake, sports star photos all over the walls. Kind of mixed with an old Saloon feeling in some parts which is to say its enjoyable. Almost like an old movie in some ways.

The selection of food is very decent with cool sports names for the dishes (nice touch).

The sound of the karaoke system was second to NONE. Even Jason Rolland's equipment which I consider to be of VERY high standard, would have a run for his money here. Its almost impossible to sound bad unless you are tone deaf. Rick, the MC, is constantly monitoring for sound balance and it shows. Without a doubt the best sound balance and quality I've experienced at a karaoke venue so far. His song books are the MOST organized I've ever seen: Different versions with performers MARKED. Bravo! Karaoke hosts, this is the book standard to shoot for. Seriously. Oh, and finally we have an MC that uses an LCD TV as the song monitor. About time we got away from the fragile and energy consuming CRT screens. Kudos for that as well. With a song selection of around 13653, there are plenty of songs to choose from of nearly every variety. (Jason Rolland still holds the record for song selection with over double this number).

The Mixed: While I love this MC's equipment, song books and attention to sound I didn't really see much of HIM. Which is to say, the technical part was outstanding, but I would have liked to see more of his personality. It should be noted that it was an exceptionally busy night and he did take the time to talk with various patrons between song including myself. Still, I felt I'd really like to see more of his personality between songs. Everything else he hit's bull's-eye and perhaps for this reason it sticks out in my mind. It really is the only weakness I can find. which is high praise from me. Funny enough, there is more than enough energy from the participants at this venue that you wouldn't notice. The audience provides the non-musical (and sometime musical) entertainment, much like in the Gladstone, though Peter Styles does get personality as well, but then his sound system isn't as good as this one nor his selection as rich. Perhaps this is intentional and with different audiences he asserts himself more. Still, it would be icing on the cake to see the MC entertaining at this venue.

The stange setup is awkward but I can see the reason: The back area has a stage that would IDEAL for a karaoke setup (almost as good as the stage at Hollywood on the Queensway) but its in the back area so you could eaisly miss it coming in. Often venues like to have their karaoke events at the "front of the line" so no one misses it. But the singing/dancing area is a bit small, and getting to the "stage" in the lefthand corner can be awkward on a crowded evening (like this one). I don't know whose call it was but I'm not sure there is anyone to blame. Although I would put it to the venue owner as to would the karaoke event suffer in attendence if they used the exceptionally stage they have in the back area? With that kind of setup, there are few venues that would be able to match it in terms of ideal configuration. Plus the Projector TV would be a really cool touch. could also be because its used for private parties. But I hope the venue will at least consider it.

The rotation is difficult to fault and Rick really does make an effort to keep it fair. But the crowd this evening was nearly as numerous as the Gladstone. So its impossible to keep the rotation faster than 1 song every two hours. Now that being said, I was told its not always this crowded. Its testomony for a good venue, MC and equipment but popularity has its price as I always say.

The service was quite fast initially but much slower after order my drink. Although forgetting one of the condiments could be a one time fluke, it should be noted.

The Food quality was similar to its service.: Lackluster. It was average as were the food prices ($7.50 - $13). On the plus side, the desserts are exceptionally good. The best burgers I've had at a karaoke venue so far are at The Groundhog Pub and the best food for the price overall is funny enough at the Gladstone since they added a kitchen (although the service was poor last I was there). the burgers here were acceptable but not amazing. The Salad, actually had one or two decaying leaves in it so note to the chief, lack of attention to freshness of food shows in the Salad more than anything else at first glance. So please respect your patrons a little more in the future. Overall, the food here is a little above average (with the exception of desserts).

The Bad: There is nothing that is strictly bad.

Summary: The Sports Centre Café has a lot going for it both as a sports bar (again, truly lives up to its name) and as a karaoke venue. They have exceptional food selection (except pub food), amazing facilities (LCD TVs all round and real game room), great service and an amazing karaoke system with the best sound quality and song book organization I've ever experienced. I'd like to say one of the best karaoke MC's as Rick's attention to detail in equipment, sound and rotation are second to none. I didn't see as much of him as an entertainer as I'd like. But its hard to judge as the energy of the participants was equal to the levels I've seen at the Gladstond as was the crowd. Which lead to equally long rotation times. Its a testimony of an exceptional venue and the vast majority of the patron seemd to know the system so I strongly suspect most of them were repeat customers and I was one of the few first timers there. Its a strong quality venue and you'll love the way you sound and the wide song selection and you'll find everything easily with the quality of the song books. I will have to revisit it see if I can see more of Rick as a entertain as I already know he is a first class Karaoke technician of which I've yet to see an equal. The location is easy to reach at Yonge/St. Clair (go west about 2-3 blocks on the south side of St. Clair). Its a worthwile experience.

Final Grade: B/B+

Facilities: 8.8 (excellent layout overall, would be a 9.5 if karaoke was on stage in the back area)
Equipment: 9.5 (Best sound I've heard, LCD monitor wonderful)
Song Selection: 9.1 (Very little missing, selection 2nd only to Jason Rolland, best song book preparation ever!)
Food Selection: 8.1 (fairly wide selection, cool names)
Food Quality: 7.3 (Portions good, great desserts, Salads:fresher leafs please, fairly good entrees)
Food Service: 7.8 (Its okay but annoyingly slow after initial drink order. Watch the condiments)
Prices: 7.5 (average)
Location: 8.3 (VERY Close to subway, parking paid unless you don't mind walking a bit)
Wait Times: 7.0 (with crowds and wait times similar to the Gladstone, can't fault it but its still a wait)
Host: 8.3 (I didn't really see Rick assert himself on stage but quality of sound, sound balance, exceptional song selection, and getting one-on-one feedback from audiences give him a solid score. Will return to see if I can increase this because my gut tells me with such attention to sound quality and books, there's a first rate showman that hasn't come out to play yet.)

Venue Information
Sports Centre Café
49 St. Clair Avenue West
Toronto, ON M4V 1K9
416-928-9525

Karaoke Host:
Showtime Karaoke
Rick Marcoux, Chief Entertainment Officer
Email: showtimekaraoke at rogers.com
Phone: (416) 518-9255, (705) 436-5853
Fridays, 10 PM - 2 AM