Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Mima: El Pozo --> Mini review/reseña ...

Hace un tiempo atrás estaba “janguiando” con un pana del trabajo en su apartment ready pa quema.... erm... una sesión de Rock Band y PS3 "geekyness" y me dice: "Mano, tengo música nueva en ese Pen Drive... a lo mejor te gusten par..."

So, me lleve el pen drive, lo puse en la “compu” y veo que un Folder se llama "Mima"... Por un momento pensé que era un folder que contenía "porno" (hehehe) pero cuando vi y le di play (aparte de la decepción de que NO era porno ;-)) fui totalmente transportado a otros mundos y así fue como descubrí a Yarimir Caban o simplemente Mima.



Su primer CD es sencillamente una de las mejores producciones que yo he escuchado de artistas del patio en cuanto a calidad musical, interpretación, ambientación, etc. Aunque sus letras son un poco "artsy" y poéticas (yo soy muy cafre para seguir muchas de ellas... :-p) todas las canciones del disco se sentían originales y brindaban (al menos a mí) una sonrisa al escucharlas. Fui "fan" automáticamente.

Como todo un "fan", fui a varias de sus presentaciones a cantar como "loquita" y veía que a la gente, aunque no eran muchos, gozaban de sus canciones y de las interpretaciones con su grupo musical. Así que cuando escuche que iba a tirar una producción nueva me puse mas feliz que un cisne con dos lagos!



Hace varias semanas, gracias a Puerto Rico Indie, me entere que en la UPR Mima presentaría/vendería su CD nuevo. Entre a su pagina, le envié un e-mail por medio de "la tiendita Mima" a cualquiera que estaba encargado (quizás hasta el mismo Mark Underwood... chequeare mi email...) y le pedí un invoice para el CD nuevo Y el viejo también. A los varios días, el CD era mío!!!

Del primer "playthrough" lo único que me dije fue:

"QUE CARAJO ES ESTO?!?!?!?!?!"

Que le paso a mi Mima juguetona?!
Que le paso a mi Mima brasilera?!?
Que le paso a las canciones pegajosas como Santo Camino Furtivo y Menos mal que no?
Por que hostia hizo otra versión de mi canción favorita, Ojo Avizor?

AARRRGHHHHH!!!!
He estado esperando anos para esto?!?!

Pero yo me conozco... me pasa lo mismo con muchos artistas y discos. Lo mismo me pasó con Taking Back Sunday, Armor for Sleep, Mew, etc. y después de varios "listens" como que yo mismo caía en tiempo, prestaba mas atención y terminaban gustándome.



Asi que tranquilo en mi casa, puse el CD en la compu, prendí mi Nuforce Icon HDP, connecté mis Sennheisers HD600 y le di "Play". Sinceramente en cuanto a la instrumentación e ingenuidad, las canciones son un A+!!! No se como puedan hacer todo en vivo pero la grabación esta súper completa. Me encanto la percusión en sus canciones y los efectos "lo-fi". Fui canción por canción primero analizando y después
escuchando y aquí me di cuenta de varias cosas. Pero primero,


En la Carretera:
Comienza con un corito "eerie" q por poco hace que me cagara encima! hehehe Una guitarrita con un poco de "Wah" y medio psicodélica con la percusión perfecta. El mood en la canción es totalmente diferente al primer CD! Creo que es una canción excelente para comenzar el disco por que básicamente te dice: "Sip, así es el CD completo... totalmente experimental, un poco "Worldly" en cuanto a tiempo para que los músicos se luzcan en la instrumentación, con efectos por todos lados y lento con cojones!"

Así que si no les gusta esta canción, no les va a gustar el CD (mi opinión por supuesto!)

Seguimos con:

El Pozo o la Tumba: Definitivamente una de las canciones favoritas para mi. Seguimos con el sonido "dark" e "eerie". No se que acordes están tocando con la guitarra acústica (los buscaría pero.. meeeh!) pero me encanta la progresión! Nuevamente, efectos medio psicodélicos, percusión diferente a la canción inicial, un poco "sparce" pero igual de efectivo. Me encanta como Mima canta: "Yo estoy cavando este hoyo, si no me sirve de tumba. Llegara el día de mí
suerte y encontrare el agua profunda...". Para mi la canción es súper efectiva pero nuevamente el mood es totalmente diferente al CD original.

Como en un anuncio: De todo el CD esto debe ser la canción más "comercial" (ni tanto... pero vamos!). Es un punk/garage/lo-fi rock anthem. El que escuche el CD y no se pompee, le doy un puno en la cara!!!! Esta buena la canción... y ya puse una línea como estatus de Facebook: "Es que hay demasiadas cervezas por beber, demasiados negocios que atender para yo ponerme a componer..." En realidad no estoy componiendo por vago!!! Pero ven! Siempre hay excusas! HAHAHAHA

Damen: Aquí se pone buena la cosa. A sonido de buena percusión quizás un estilito medio Hip Hop, sonidos de vientos, efectos (nuevamente) y la tremenda interpretación de Mima, esta canción esta muy buena (otra de mis favoritas). CREO que como que había escuchado una versión de esta canción antes pero no recuerdo. Anyway, no hay mucho que decir. Si hay que escuchar otra canción que "define" al Caribe rítmicamente, debería ser esta.

La Parusía: Regresamos al ritmo monótono con un "corito que nunca termina", diferentes efectos de percusión y... mas nada... Canción mega aburrida y viajera. Quizás si me arrebato, me gusta...

Oigo Voces: El ritmo vuelve a adquirir velocidad al ritmo de aplausos con un bajo bien decente. Esta canción es como un hibrido de hip-hop con funk/soul. Otra de las mejores del CD y es la única canción que yo diría q tiene un coro súper pegajoso... bueno, la canción completa es MEGA pegajosa. Considero que del CD esta es el "Santo Camino Furtivo"... totalmente "likeable".

La princesa: Este tema es bien "vocally-driven" y en este Mima sabe bien lo que hace. A mí al menos me encanta su voz y la manipula súper en esta canción la cual es otra experimentación con géneros incluyendo el funk/soul de nuevo. No me pompeo mucho...

La Ducati: Meeeehh... Otra "vocally-driven" song, bien minimalista en cuanto a instrumentación y de hecho, el ritmito es como que algo juguetón. Me recuerda como que una canción que uno canta cuando se esta mofando de alguien o cuando es chiquito o algo así. Creo que ese fue el propósito de la canción para ir con la letra medio psycho. Otra canción viajera-aburrida... NEXT!

Agua Fría: Otra canción que es para "lucirse" en vivo con su banda. Bien world music / caribeña / jazz contemporáneo experimental. Pero súper aburrida... Ya la había escuchado en sus presentaciones. Esta cool tenerla con buena calidad pero al fin, es una que le puedo dar "skip" sin pensarlo.

Ojo Avizor Remix:
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!! Mi canción favorita de su primer CD ha recibido un mega cambio! Y en mi opinión, para mal. Es como medio "soul" también con mucho efecto, guitarra con el "wah" como que con un poquito de "chorus" metío a la vez (q mucho usaron "wah" en el CD!?!) aarrgh!! Cuando salieron los "vientos" violando mis oídos (ambos) a 55 grados en el stage (más o menos!) por poco me cago encima!!!

:-(

Yo quiero Andar: Sigue nuevamente un ritmo monótono bien wordly pero tiene cierto "charm". Hay algo de la canción que me llama. Quizás es que los vientos finalizando la canción me recuerdan a un track de Final Fantasy (sip.. la serie de videojuegos!) Ahora, eso no significa que me encanta, pero SI considero que es buena.

P.S. La ultima canción tiene una “napita” a los 12 minutos y pico…

Para estar seguro de lo que escuchaba, le metí tiempo al CD en mi trabajo con mi portable set-up (Shure 940s with JDSLabs Cmoy) y aparte de las diferencias entre los Senns y los Shure's no escuche nada diferente.



En conclusión, PARA MI... as in… MI OPINION, el CD es súper aburrido! Entiendo que Mima quizo algo diferente pero quizás la influencia de DJ Nature y de la misma Rita Indiana (Los Misterios) llevaron al CD por este camino. Que conste, ESO NO ES MALO! El disco demuestra el nivel al cual están estos individuos. Bien caco-style, esta gente esta "BIEN POR ENCIMA"!! Se ve que a todos les gusta bregar con sonidos, con estilos, con musicalidad, con texturas, etc. pero esto no siempre hace que la música sea del disfrute de las masas. Es como un CD de Robi Draco. Todo el mundo sabe que el tipo es un “mostro” y le “mete” pero al final del día prefieres poner un cabrón CD de Pitbull!!! HEHEHEHE Ok... quizás no tanto pero ustedes entienden... (espero...)

Ahora, esto no significa que he quedado defraudado… al menos NO DEL TODO ;-).

Quisiera ver/escuchar “El Pozo” en vivo. La próxima vez que Mima ofrezca una
presentación, definitivo que voy a verla. Quizás es que yo decidí “dormir” (quedarme con el sonido, estilo del CD viejo pero efectivo) y ella simplemente se puso a “andar”…

Rating: 3 chocolates de 5

Ahora voy a escuchar el "re-release" del primer CD y gozármelo completito! Dudo mucho que le de rotación a "El Pozo" como le di al primero pero quien sabe, quizás hago una asignación con el… (i.e. arrebatarme en algo full y volverlo a escuchar en los “loudspeakers” de casa…)

Check it! :-p

Sunday, October 2, 2011

HORROR FEST!!! October Horror movie challenge..

Hola!

So... I decided to indirectly participate in DVD Talk's 7th Annual "October Horror Movie Challenge". What is that? Basically the goal is to watch 100 movies in 31 days. Of course, not everyone is able to achieve that so in my case (as a lot of people) I plan to watch 1 each day so at least 31 in total. My list is quite weird, but it's mostly made up of movies I have in my collection.





I already started so I will keep updating the blog with mini reviews for the movies I see each day...

October 1: Final Destination --> So where the hell is Devon Sawa!?!? Is he alive? Anyway, decided to watch the first Final Destination on the first day of this challenge because:

1) It's an entertaining movie
2) It's fast paced
3) it's the first one I picked randomly from my collection! :-p

I still think that this is the best of the series, maybe not the best "death" scenes but at least they were more believable (take that word lightly though...) Loved the acting of Devon (I also liked him in Idle Hands... which is more of "horror-comedy") and a few others. And of course, the cameo by Mr. Candyman himself.

Anyway, I enjoyed it yesterday like I enjoyed it the first time so that must be good right?!

October 2: A Blade in the Dark --> Now, here's a movie about another Italian director trying to be bloody and artsy at the same time. Like most of their "thrillers", almost no story, slow paced and the acting is terrible. Voice dubbing almost killed it too! (It better be dubbing because it was atrocious!). The ending you could see it coming a mile away and it shows that director Lamberto Bava will never live up to his dad's work!!! This is an hour and forty eight minutes that could really be cut to an hour and make the movie more effective (i.e. pick up the pace a bit!).

Maybe I'm being too critical due to seeing work from other Italian directors in the 70s and 80s but good God, I did not like this one too much. If I was to rate it I would give it a 1.5 out of 5 (because I liked the Villa atmosphere and the main "song"... gotta love those synths sounds!!!)


And that's it for now... I'll probably create new posts or just keep on editing this one! :-p

Check

Sunday, September 18, 2011

eBay is my savior!!!

Yes you read it correctly... eBay is a gift!
But as our pal from the T.V. series "MONK" would say, it's also a curse.

Why my savior?

It's being known that I buy a lot of stuff that usually stays picking up
dirt in a closet or a room. I'm kind of a hoarder for technology, games and all that stuff. And although I had used eBay before, lately I've been wanting to "clean up" the house and this auction site has been a great help!

What have I sold?

As of today, these past few months have basically been tech stuff and games.

1) Kodak Pocket Zi8 HD Camcorder
2) Super Nintendo Games Bundle (including Super Metroid, Actraiser 2 and bonus)
3) GameBoy Advanced RPG bundle (Golden Sun series, Final Fantasy series)
4) Michael Jordan Basketball Cards with RARE BUNDLE!

etc.

Why is it a curse?

Come on... simple... I'm a compulsive buyer and eBay is the perfect place to lure people like me in! ;-) I have sold all that stuff but I have also bought a couple of things. Thing is that I'm being more careful and I'm only buying stuff that I KNOW I WILL USE!!!! It seems I'm learning right?!? Right?!? Better late than never!

What I'm currently selling?

Couple of things:

Sony Handycam DCR-TRV460 Camcorder with EXTRAS



I bought this camera to transfer old 8mm tapes and once I did, I didn't used it anymore... maybe a couple of times but not enough to warrant staying with me... so.. IT NEEDS TO GO!

Miscellaneous PC parts --> Hard Disk Drive



This "pull" was from an old Dell Precision that was sold from work. I used it a lot actually but once the Power Supply from those big ass machines went out, I didn't wanted to spend in PSUs (proprietary PSUs BTW)... so out the PC parts go!!! :-p

Sony Playstation 1 Games



Sold a couple of games locally but still have a couple lying around so.. THEY NEED TO GO. Final Fantasy VIII was good but not great (I actually enjoyed Final Fantasy IX more than this one) and Crash Bandicoot was entertaining enough...

Old PC Game LOT



Who didn't use to play PC games?
All geeks did (do!).

Here I put up for auction a bunch of old games including favorites like: Entomorph, Full Throttle, etc.

Anyway, as you can see, I have stuff I wasn't using and was not going to use so, eBay, I LOVE YOU!!!!!


;-)

Bye

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Monoprice MHP-839/Kicker HP541 DECALS!!!

Hello...

Remember my review from a long time ago (like 10 minutes ago!?!) where I talk about how the Monoprice headphones are really CLONES of Kicker headphones? Well, since they are so similar, there are decals that go right with it and I did buy one of those just to test them.

Decalgirl offers a bunch of decals for kicker headphones. I decided on a weird looking one:



If you remember long ago (a couple of years), I did buy decals from this very same company for my Playstation 3. I liked it a lot so I went with the same company and I can safely say that the quality is still top-notch, easy to use and looks great.



Pretty straight-forward to "install" on the cups... and the end result.



Gave it a bit more life than a boring "Monoprice" or "Kicker" logo would have.
Quite satisfied.!

:-p


See ya!

A bit more active...

Yeah I know...

I'll try to post a bit more, I just need to find the time to do so.
Hopefully with all the movies I have lying around and all the things I've been buying and selling, I can probably have content to keep on talking/writing shit!

Talk to youse later!

Monoprice MHP-839 Pro Headphones == Kicker HP541 ?!?

STOP RIGHT THERE!!!!

If you are thinking of buying Kicker HP541 headphones, DON'T DO IT! Why? Because, why waste $50 bucks if you can spend $21 and get the same cans!?

Yes, that seems to be the conclusion over at head-fi's! So I decided to give these budget cans a try.



As you've probably seen from my other mini reviews, I love mid-centric headphones. The Shure sound seems to be something I crave whenever I listen to ANY headphones but that also limits me because some genres just don't sound as great. The Shure 940s are my main headphones now and general conclusion is that those are bass-shy/light cans. I concur of course. So I needed something with a bit of punch, with a warmer signature, so I decided on these (Ed. Note: I just ordered another pair of cans which are much "bassier" so I'll probably sell/give these). Also, those will be connected to my work laptop and my Shure's to my MP3 player.

Anyway, let's continue.

Specifications:

Driver Unit 50 mm
Impedance 40 ohms
Sensitivity 100 +/- 3 dB / 1mW (S.P. L at 1 k Hz)
Frequency Response 20 Hz to 20 kHz
Wire Length 3500 mm (11.4')



What's in the box?

Pretty bare box. Contains:

* 1x MEP-839 Pro Headphones
* 1x 11.5 ft long 3.5 mm M/M audio cable
* 1x 50 inch long 3.5 mm M/M audio cable
* 1x 3.5 mm F to 1/4" M adapter plug

and that's it. Oh yes... you noticed that right?
DETACHABLE CABLES!!!! (for $20 cans, this is a great addition!!)

Sound and my views.

First of all, I don't find these all that comfortable. Pads are too little (and NO GUYS, I don't have GIANT ears!! LOL :-p), headband cushioning is not that good, and it's a bit flimsy. Of course, these are $20 headphones so I wasn't expecting the feel of my beloved Shure's nor the most comfortable headphones ever the Audio Technica's AD700.



Sound-wise though I was REALLY surprised.
These $20 cans actually comes close to the sound reproduction of the Shure 440s.
Ok ok before you bite my head off, the clarity is not at great NOR are the highs and mids, but these budget cans are good. What's best than my 440s though is BASS RESPONSE and ATTACK. These Monoprice headphones are really bassy but they don't drown out the mids nor highs. I've been listening everything from acoustic to DnB and they perform well! They WONT take the place of the Shure 440s at home, but for something you can carry everywhere without worrying of breakage, etc. these are awesome.



If they were a bit more comfortable, it would be hard to suggest headphones like the Shure 440s and even the Audio Technica's M50s! (which I know for a fact have more recessed mids than the monoprice cans!).

The main thing here though is... VALUE!

Kickers HP541 == $50
Shure 440 == $70
A-T M50s == $120

You might be questioning my sanity when I say these $20 headphones do a better job than higher priced cans but I can safely say that... I'M NOT INSANE!!! (I think! :-p). Yep, they sound quite good but...

Are they for me?

If you:

1) Are looking for closed-cans with Ok isolation...
2) Looking for cans with detachable cables
3) Looking for bassy/warm sound reproduction without sacrificing mids/highs

then definitely $20 will go a long way.

Now, if you:

1) Value a more balanced sound
2) NEED comfortable headphones
3) Don't care to spend more than $50

then definitely look for different cans.

I tell you, what KILLS it for me is the feel of the headphones and the lack of pad! If they were bigger and more comfortable, I would be selling my 440s... but they are not so they are relegated to budget-abuse status.


Hope you enjoyed the mini-review!




You can buy these from monoprice.com at: Monoprice

PS3 Wireless Stereo Headset -- Short Impressions/Mini Review

Hello.

It seems I just like to spend money... but I SPEND IT WISELY... I think... lol
Anyway, amazon.com had a MEGA deal not long ago with these "cans". Now, I had my eyes on them but when I saw the price on the deal I HAD to jump on them.

Suggested price: $99
Amazon Deal: $65

Yep, I bit!
And I'm glad I DID!



Introduction:

I have to confess, I don't play too much online. Although I have an Ok amount of online-enabled games, I rarely play them, not because I don't like it, I sometimes don't feel the need to do so (plus I usually suck! LOL!) Still I've always had a thing for having a cool headset. Not any type of headset, but wireless. As everyone knows, there's a few companies out there that have their offerings, in fact, I have tried Turtle Beach X41 cans long ago and found that:

1) They popped and clicked like crazy (even though my router is on another room and I had fresh rechargeable batteries!)
2) They sounded "tiny" EVEN with the bass boost
3) They weren't all that comfortable
4) Movie watching with them wasn't too much fun
5) Mic didn't work with PS3 (it did with Xbox)

So I definitely looked to other brands but dismissed all of them due to price! But Sony has just stepped up!



Specifications:

Sony SUCKS!!! I don't know why they didn't provide any specifications OTHER than functions/features.

* 7.1 digital surround sound (wireless).

* Built-in rechargeable battery delivers seven hours usage on a single charge.

* On-screen headset status updates.

* Easily access headset volume and microphone mute controls.

* Retractable microphone for use only when you need it.

* Enjoy your wireless stereo headset on your PC or Mac®.

COME ON!!!!
Where are the driver sizes? Where are the frequency responses? WTF?!?!
Disappointed!



What's in the box:

Pretty simple:

1) Headset with attached mic
2) USB dongle
3) Small instruction booklet

and that's it! This headset is rechargeable via USB and they didn't include a USB cable.



Functionality:

I do have to say, this headset is pretty much complete! Although, it's a "budget" stereo headset, it includes a couple of functions that are included in more expensive sets, not only that, they are extremely accessible and within reach.

I'm not going to list all of them but as you can see on the pictures below, you get an idea of what it offers...









There's no sound customization though (i.e. if it had some type of equalizer settings or even PRESETS, these would have KILLED!)

Also, be prepared to be frustrated a bit: YOU CANNOT LISTEN TO YOURSELF OVER THE HEADPHONES!!!! Mic sound is not routed to the earpads!!! Or is there a setting hidden somewhere?!?!?

Feel and Sound Reproduction:

Based on my short time with these, I can surely say that MUSIC reproduction SUCKS ASS! Too boomy, not enough details, I don't even know how a frequency graph would look like. It doesn't matter if surround is off or on, I can't enjoy the sound coming out from them. Maybe I'm spoiled! I mean, I have "real" headphones which cost hundreds of dollars and greatly reproduce details from all over the spectrum but when I say that my MONOPRICE DJ HI-FI CANS SOUND BETTER (their cost is $20) that's saying something!

Headband is flimsy but it's comfortable and so are the pads. They are big and cover up your whole ears. Although they look like monsters, they don't weight that much. The fit is great and it looks good too!



Gaming sound reproduction though it's another story. The boomyness is not as palpable, you can actually hear the details (highs seem to be the emphasis but bass response is quite alright.), speech is crystal clear, etc. I haven't played any first person games or things of that nature so I'm not sure if the simulated "surround sound" actually works but I wouldn't be surprised if it did.

Have not tested it with movies yet... (maybe I'll update this post once I do so!).

Conclusion:

Though it sounds like these are a waste of money from my views, actually they are quite alright... FOR GAMING. You get good sound reproduction (gaming), you get a mic, all wireless, integrates great with the PS3 and as a bonus you can use them on your PC and the cost is less than $100. It's a good bargain but I wanted these to be all-around headsets. I wanted to enjoy them with music also!

Should you get it?

If you are looking for:

1) Wireless cans, no fuss, no setups
2) Integrated microphone, good functionality (i.e. control the music/chat volume, don't have to deal with external batteries, etc.)
3) PS3 integration, easy to use
4) Ok sound reproduction (best for gaming)

Then I say you will be pretty much set with these.!
If you can find a good deal on them ($80 or less) I'd say JUMP ON THEM QUICK!



At $100 I still think they are good but I wouldn't buy them.
If you already have a good set of headphones, you might want to look into the Astra Mixamp. Though, you will lack microphone, if you are looking for great sound reproduction, that would be the way to go!

Rating: 3.5 out of 5


Bye.