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Showing results for tags 'techmoan'.
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Submitted for your perusal, a cheap, plastic turntable bearing a famous name. "Techmoan" found this at Costco, in various guises from "speakers in the feet" to a less costly basic version. Is this cheap thing better than a Crosley "record player in a Pizza box"? Press "PLAY" to continue...
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I don't recall ever needing another display screen for Ye Olde Desktop computer, but "Techmoan" remembered a time when he could have used one with a spreadsheet program. Presented as a gift idea for "someone who has (almost) everything," the Portable Monitor! What uses could you imagine for this kind of display? Press "PLAY" to continue...
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It's 1976, the weekend is here, but you're bored, since there's nothing to do. Your uncle Bob drops by with a small package, which he opens up and there are people singing outside the shower like Pop stars! The print's all in Japanese, you say? But of course, this is a portable Karaoke machine that appeared just before the format took the world by storm. How does it work? How does it sound? Press "PLAY" to continue.;)
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Is the heat of Summer getting you down? "Techmoan" has two more monochrome thermal printers for you! First, for Adults (and sophisticated kids) there's a mini printer that works with your SmartPhone to print out the latest celebrity faux pas or a QR code to send along to folks who text: Stop Sending That Crap To Me! Then, for kids (or child-like adults) with low expectations, you can have a 2-way camera along with a built-in printer. Will the camera+thermal printer bring out the Ansel Adams in your toddler-photographer? It's Andy Warhol/LOMO camera results will surprise and delight their grandparents, at least. It's cheaper than film, and these tiny, ethereal prints will fade faster than an ankle-biter's memory, so have some fun this Summer!;)
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Submitted for your amusement, something to look for on your next hospital dumpster dive. "Techmoan" shows how to use an ex-medical thermal printer at your next social gathering. Hipsters will be horrified, "it's in black-and-white! How can anyone use such OLD crap?" Matt eschews the color/dye sublimation versions due to the likely discontinuation of such specialist media. Look for monochrome thermal printing paper, instead.
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Father's Day is coming up. and "Techmoan" has a doozy of a "Fix-It Felix" piece of tech that would puzzle most "all-things-audio" experts. Submitted for your befuddlement is a background music player for your local Piggly Wiggly or Wal-Mart of the 1970's. As a business owner, you could regale your customers with your taste in Muzak, sprinkle the day with limited time sales announcements, and drive your staff to distraction. But the behemoth "needs a few repairs." Will Matt be able to play the one 1/4 inch tape cartridge he has? Press "Play" to find out...
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Summer is just over the horizon and you're itching to play your Classic "Beach Music" in LP form at the next "unmasking on the shore." Using Amazon Japan, "Techmoan" bought a retro version of the 1980's Columbia Japan GP-3 AC/DC portable record player. So, can this copy of a kid's/teen's record player make The Beach Boys come alive around the "Jaws' campfire" by the shore? Press "Play" to find out...
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So you don't know where in the world Kolkata is? Fear not, "Techmoan" has found a "world turning" package to brighten the day of Geography-challenged folks everywhere. You DO have a SmartPhone, right? (I don't.) A trip to Amazon Japan will net you a lightly textured plastic world globe and a multi-purpose App for your Apple phoe or iPad. A virtual Political map overlay with national flags will make if possible to distinguish Albania from Zaire. Is the eight-year-old child in you mad about Dinosaurs? There's an overlay for that. Is this package worth $40 US? Can you use the App on another globe? Play the video and find out...;) P.S.: Did you know that "AR" means "Augmented Reality"? I had to look it up, since "Techmoan" says nothing about it in the video.
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Are you stuck getting a unique gift? Fear not, "Techmoan" has a DIY IPS LED clock that can display more than mere "lit digits in the dark." It comes in Colors! You can upload different display Fonts! Hanker to display tiny pix? View this video right away; your imagination is the only limit!;)
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Step right up, folks, we have a wonder from The Middle Kingdom. "Techmoan" looks at a Bush cassette tape recorder that is a blast from the past. (1960, that is.;) Imagine spending 20 Euros for this, this, thing that makes any pre-recorded compact cassette sound awful. This AA battery carrier reminds me of the original Norelco cassette dictation recorder, but let Mat tell you more about it...
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Submitted for Head Bangers and Gear Gurus, "Techmoan" looks at "one-armed-bandits." The UK's celebrated gearhead has a surprising confession: he likes Slot Machines! (The mechanics inside, of course.) What does this have to do with Motorhead guitarist "Lemmy"? The celebrated (who's this "Lemmy"?) guitarist had an otherwise-wall-mounted one-armed bandit in his dressing room at venues across the UK. With this tenuous connection, "Techmoan" looks at a German wall mountable slot machine of the sort that Lemmy had back in the day. So, got your UK Pennies ready? Let's gamble away family treasure!;)_
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Is your morning slice of toast too dry? Fear not, a Japanese company will "put the steam" back into that dry, semi-burned slice of bread. "Techmoan" was enticed into importing a unit from South Korea (power issues) to test out the "toast steamer." It's available on the U.S. market, but no in the UK, just yet. What does "Techmoan" think of this "toast moisturizer"? Read on, and find out about UK "hair cutters" and Tripe merchants...;)
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Does your analog meter "Man Cave" need dressing up? Fear not, "Techmoan" has found flashing light bars to show off your audio bandwidth! For cheapskates, American Audio has a 40 LED display to show off a dB range from -57dB to 0dB coming off "The Dark Side of the Moon." For rack mounters, Fungeneration's RTA-31 will show if your music collection can span a range from 20-20Khz. How much does this light show cost? For "Techmoan" in the UK, the American Audio Mk.II dB meter was 33 Pounds Sterling before Value Added Tax+shipping and handling. The Fungeneration unit, 79 Pounds+VAT+S&H. Is it necessary? Of course not. But it is fun to look at.;)
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I've always washed the dishes and utensils "the old fashioned way." Dish Washer? That's for rich folks that set the table with real silverware and Wedgwood China. So I'm not much more advanced than a Boy Scout, washing Ye Olde Messkit in a bucket set on a fire in the woods/camp. Dann.Tech, a French company, contacted "Techmoan" to address this domestic task with a unit that "delivers squeaky clean" glassware in a tiny space, that consumes very little counter space, using at most, a gallon of water per cycle. Take a look at this modern marvel; I'm still a Kitchen Neanderthal with plastic plates/cups and stainless steel utensils.;)
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Here's a blast from the component audio equipment past! "Techmoan" has found an 89 Pounds Sterling, "Dual" Turntable. Yessir, for your next cosplay party, you can dress up as a 1980's DeeJay and play your old LPs on a "cosplay Technics" turntable. But is this better than "the usual Crosley, Pizza box" turntable? Put on your battered copy of Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon" and see what "Techmoan" DISC-overed.;) Here's a "Horrible Piece of Rubbish" mechanism to Avoid at all costs!
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Do you hanker for an interesting game of skill and timing? Do you like trains? "Techmoan" has a game for you; be a Japanese train driver and see if you can arrive on time and at the station stop sign. Too bad there's no "Tarin to Busan" segment.;)
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Submitted for your "March of Time: How Far Have We Come?" file. "Techmoan" has friends all over, and a Finn sent him a corporate-level slide projector with a recording system. Imagine yourself at a district conference where new products are being discussed/rolled out, and you can comment on each image/product. Just the thing for a "mid century corporate" collector or Ye Olde Antique Shoppe.;)
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For that difficult person on your Christmas gift list, toothsome audio! Yessir, if you don't mind sending away to the UK for a chocolate 45 RPM record, this will get noticed, used, and eaten. While "Techmoan" tries to get chocolate off his Audio Technica stylus, play the video and "take a giant step backward" into Edison wax cylinder-level sound. There definitely is "chocolaty midrange" in this disc.;)
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The Digital Compact Cassette, thought to have been bypassed in a world dominated by MiniDisc and MP3s, continues to exist and prosper! Oy, wot's a "digital compact cassette"? Allow "Techmoan" to take you down the late 1990's audio rabbit hole before MP3s, and you will see what can be done with .WAV files in 2020. (Sorry, no "Moan Family" puppets.;)
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Welcome to The Audio Museum! Submitted for your entertainment, "Techmoan" has gathered a number of media types that can/cannot be played/seen on various kinds of hardware. Yessir, some of this stuff "belongs in a museum" because of circumstances beyond the control of the music makers. Step into the Audio Wayback machine, (some of it) will be a "sound and light" show!
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Here's a convoluted tale about how Philco Ford started to make small 331/3 speed mini records, which could be played on a Japanese mini record player that sported French (!) labelled controls, and may have had something to do with Americam PocketDiscs. Submitted for the budding Sherlock Holmes or "Alice Liddell," here's a 1960's saga that is stranger than fiction. Got your climbing gear and flashlights ready? It's "Indiana Jones" time, in a search for a lost record disk format.
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Salesman: "Step right up folks! Those ION electronics boffins have spared no expense to recreate a 'Retro Style' Boom Box for your next block party! Just $100 will buy you the greatest neighbor-annoyer money can buy!!" "Techmoan" imported a U.S. market "Street Rocker" Boom Box in hopes that he'd get a good buy for the money. Unroll the video and see how far his much-more-than-$100 actually bought. (Spolier alert: Nope!)
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So you've been banned from every horse race track in the state and adjoining venues? The local church/volunteer fire department/community needs money to operate? Combine your need with theirs in a "Race Night!" Is this legal? That depends on local gambling ordinances, but rest assured, there are random endings to each race, just to "keep your bookie straight." Get your matches/pennies/game tokens together, there's gonna be some horse racing tonight!
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Were you a "Tween" just after" the turn of the century"? Do you remember this begging-to-be-collected/traded "edited down to a minute" Pop music on a chip? "Techmoan" takes a look at this pre-Teen musical collector's item, which I'd never heard of, then or now.;)
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Submitted for your amazement, great prints from a pocket size printer! Yessir, for a sizeable investment in equipment and materials, you too can turn out magazine quality tiny prints that can be stuck on any convenient surface. Pay up and get ready to do things in sets of ten, as "Techmoan" shows you the ins and outs of the Dye Sublimation process. You want bigger prints? "Techmoan" has a (somewhat) less pricey alternative via Canon Dye-Sub. Get ready to see things "going back and forth" as "waterproof stickies get layered.";)
