Customer Reviews

Buddha Machine

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

MARK TEPPO's igloomag.com REVIEW ::

The Buddha Machine looks like a cheap transistor radio and, in a lot of ways, it's even simpler. It has a volume dial, a toggle switch, a headphone jack, and a DC line in. Its speaker isn't much bigger than a quarter and it has about three minutes worth of music on it. So why are the ambient experimentalists buying them by the handful? Why are they the coolest musical accessory of the season? Because -- and it really is this simple -- it makes meditatively evocative noises. Randomly.

Based on machines found in Buddhist temples that loop drones and chants endless, the Buddha Machine contains a tiny chip with nine loops on it. You can actually download the loops from the website. The ten loops range from five seconds to forty seconds in length and swirl across a variety of ambient landscapes (though, with their brevity, they aren't much more than wisps of tone and hints of melody). Given a modern MP3 player -- hell, you could slap 'em in a playlist and put it on your iPod and repeat for a century -- you can make your own Buddha Machine.

But that completely fails to capture the magic that has been created by Christiaan Virant and Zhang Jian (who record as FM3 and who are responsible for this clever little box). It is meant to be heard from a crappy speaker, because ambience just isn't about the notes, but it is also directly connected to the manner in which you listen, in how the sound is made, and in the environment in which you listen. The loops are built from traditional instruments: the Mongolian fiddle called the Matouqin is captured in a speaker-rattling tremolo, the stringed Koto whispers a tiny fragment of melody, and the Chinese mouth organ exhales a fragile tone that decays almost instantly. Virant and Jian craft tiny ghosts of sound that are flush with promise, with innocent tonality, and as they are melded and transformed by the limited technology of the hand-held Buddha Machine, the sound becomes phantasmal poetry.

A Buddha Machine costly roughly 1/10 the price of a robust MP3 player. It has no manual, no cables, no DRM or EULA, and certainly has no operating system requirements. A Buddha Machine is a defiant piece of retrograde technology that asks: what is the value of sound? What is worth listening to? The space between sounds, and the accidents that rise from random creativity. The Buddha Machine reminds us how to listen. Every elevator in the world should have their Musak channel replaced with a Buddha Machine. Buy one, take it with you in public, and turn in on in the thick of the crowds. Watch how the world changes.

<< igloomag.com <<

I've heard the Buddha Machine described with a lot of different names, but my favorite is Installation Art. I'll skip all the physical description; the Machine is not just something you come across, chances are if you're here that you have already heard much about it. Installation Art is what I want to focus on. With installation art the audience witnesses more than just the aesthetically pleasing, they witness a functioning apparatus. Art can exist as an extension of, a commentary on, and an escape from the real. With installation art, proven by the Buddha Machine, art takes on a synchronous role with the functioning real. The Machine is not elevated from the environment, it is consistent with it.

Let me take you to my living room about four hours ago today, around noon. The smoke dancing in the sun-rays piercing through the horizontal blinds, my cat lounging on the couch adjacent to mine. I am sprawled out, half way writing in a journal/halfway lost in thought. All the while my sky-blue Buddha Machine looping either track six or seven (maybe five, its the one I've named "Echos Over the Ocean"). Even after I knew I was going to be late for work I could not bring myself off of the couch. The sonorous frequencies of the Machine were so entrancing. It is more than just sound for pleasure, it is sound produced for the production of pleasure. Allow me to explain...

The absence of a silent medium such as the disk, the tape, or even the computer file, gives this audio-artifact a sort of permanence compared to conventional sites of sound. That is the first aspect of its difference to mere "music", the other, more important difference, lay in the quality of the sound loops produced by FM3. The inability to seperate the sound from the artifact (except through rudimentary recording techniques) makes the Machine a tool rather than an object of entertainment. I have a hard time calling my Machine a mere toy, because it's character has made me experience it on a use-value level more often than on a symbolic-value level. Of course, use yours however you want...

The Machine can be used for mood/evironment alteration and enhancement, it can be used as a musical instrument, it can be used for meditation, the uses are numerous. Maybe you are scratching your head at my extolling of the Machine as a tool asking, "Can't you do all that stuff with a cd or mp3?" And the answer would be yes, but the artifact of recorded music does not beg to be placed and put to labor the way the Machine does.

The Buddha Machine's primary function might end up differing from it's intended purpose. It could become the filler of every silence; the genesis of the day when all situations are suffused with their own cinematic soundscapes. The Buddha Machine is a concept that stands the chance of transcending mere trend and merging itself with the most banal of human occurrences.

But perhaps I am looking too deeply into it. But I do believe that the gentlemen in FM3 have the chance to, with something rather simple, push their way into a new marketplace. Imagine if you will a Buddha Machine installed into the walls of your home...while your doing that I'll be making a recording of Track #3 playing alongside a fishtank and an untuned guitar.

The small package arrived from Forced Exposure yesterday, and I couldn't wait until June. Kiddle received it last night. The pretty, vividly colored cardboard packet enclosed was ensconced in a plastic bag- "How inane!" Kiddle exclaimed. We opened the plastic, opened the candy colored box, and found the machine, enrobed in yet another bag of plastic! More wasteful inanity. The Buddha Machine itself? A cheaply made, yet pretty, oyster shell white plastic box, looking like an mp3 player might in a fuzzy dreamscape, with the cheapest of inputs and outputs, we were entranced. Cheap can be fun. After all, we're fun, and we can be cheap, like a boniato in the tropics. We saw the batteries, uh-oh. Cheap Chinese batteries, and we knew that our recyclables would never fit in this machine. We vowed to find a proper 4.5 volt adaptor in the boxes of electronics, and opened the machine's rear end for some battery input, so that we could listen.
No one will tell you this, so we will- THE BATTERY COMPARTMENT IS NOT ENGINEERED PROPERLY FOR THE BATTERIES TO FIT, SO THE MACHINE BENDS IN AN EERILY SICKENING WAY WHEN YOU INSERT BATTERIES, AND THE REAR COVER DOESN'T EASILY STAY CLOSED WITH THE BATTERIES IN, EITHER. With such a high profit margin on this item, that's an immense disappointment. Other than that, the machine is wonderful fun. The sound loops are interesting, but not so fascinating or complex that you MUST pay your full attention at all times in order to appreciate them. That's a plus for something with such limited sonic information contained therein. The Buddha Machine, we've concluded- it's cheap, as in cheaply made, but not cheaply priced for what you get. And it's fun, albeit a bit frustrating if you like your toys to be well made. So, cheap and fun, the description fits, but not as you might expect. A mixed bag, in a box. And a couple of extra bags, too.

I love the Buddha Machine, don't get me wrong. I've bought three in the last two years and offered two of them as presents. Everyone I know who's owned one liked it. It might be hyped up like crazy, but the basic idea of The Buddha Machine is great. You get to choose from nine different loops you get to switch with a toggle; you find one you like and you let it loop for as long as you want. It was NOT meant to be played randomly, it doesn't have a shuffle feature, but that's where the trusty toggle comes in handy. Pretty simple no?!

My only problem with The Buddha Machine is the sound quality. This isn't your hi-fi gadget, so as soon as you raise the volume a bit, you'll easily wind up getting some pretty nasty and detracting distortion. Some loops aren't as affected by others, but depending on your favorites, the sound can get quite ugly at times (like an old computer game at times). I do realize this is basically a cheap little plastic gadget that looks like it's been made for dollar stores, so maybe I'm not supposed to expect great sound, but considering it's quite expensive, I was hoping for something slightly better.

I've found a solution however. What I did is, I downloaded the loops from FM3 (the creators)' website and put them on my iPod. Simply put your settings at "repeat one" and VOILA! your very own little Buddha Machine with much better sound quality! But since I do want to encourage the creators, I urge anyone who doesn this to also buy a real Buddha Machine (it's still pretty neat and a great conversation starter)!

My workplace has some toxic people in other cubicles, and listening to their negative conversations and chronic complaining each day really brings my mood down. I needed something that would help somehow without the sensory deprivation or inconvenience of headphones or ear plugs. So I bought this machine and tried it.

It is a cheap little plastic box about the size of a pack of cigarrettes, like an old transistor radio, comes in assorted colors. You just turn it on, and it plays one of 9 different short tracks of mellow "Zen" like tones, like you would hear in a monastery. It has a volume control that also turns it on/off, plus a toggle switch (it took me awhile to realize that you have to move it back and forth to hear another of the various 9 sound tracks.) I found one particular track that I like best, it's very mellow and relaxing, and I leave it on in my cube at very faint volume, so that I can just barely hear it. It has a very subtle subliminal effect, helping me feel less irritated and stressed, and less aware of the negativity surrounding me. It is sort of the same concept as "white noise." I'm thinking it would also be a great item to have in the bedroom to help one fall asleep.

When I bought it I thought that it would automatically cycle through the various sound tracks, but I think I like it better this way. Staying on one series of mellow tones has a calming, almost meditative effect.

The machine is light enough and small enough that you could keep it in a shirt pocket, and perhaps subliminally affect others around you also, with the volume set very low. I'm thinking it might also be a good item to have in a baby's bedroom to help them sleep or stop fussing.

My buddha machine is an amazing device. As all of the other reviews state, it has 9 tracks that you manually change with a little switch back and forth until you get to 2 or 4 or 7 or 9 whichever one you love the most.

However, the thing that I think is cool about the buddha machine is the meditation that it forces me into. I am instantly thoughtful. And getting the free downloads on the website is no fun, the machine crackles and hisses which only adds to the beauty of the drones. While the quality is not great, it makes it more beautiful. These little machines are based on drones found in Buddhist temples so they're really great little machines.

The best ipod-replacement you'll ever own.

BUY ONE NOW!

This is a great example of something that piques people's interest after they read raving review after review and you figure you want one. Expect to pay a lot more than this thing costs to make, as while it's simple enough it should be fine, it's cheaply made.

First off, it's hardly environmentally friendly ("green"), coming with batteries manufactured by a Chinese company with a terrible environmental track record. And as they run out, you'll be adding double AA batteries to the landfill at least once or twice a week if you use this as intended, although I doubt you will.

It's simple enough to operate: a dial for volume for the built-in cheap speaker and line output plug; an LED to show it's on, the possibility of plugging in a power supply which is unusual and will cost as much as this box but it cheaper than batteries in the long run, and a switch to change loops, because contrary to what another reviewer wrote, this does not play random loops, it plays the same nine loops (2 to 42 seconds in length), in the same order and requires you to push a switch to change the loop. A "random play" mode would make this much better, although you can also avoid loops that are the most annoying, although they all are at some point. Again, this does NOT play loops randomly nor change them without your direct interaction.

Which does lead to the question of whether or not this is a based on "buddhist principles" - it does make you live in the "hear and now" because I find myself having to get up to change the loop in every 2-5 minutes because they start to become so repetitive they're annoying. The loops are static, and do not change in any way. There's really nothing "organic" about this, it's purely mechanical. If it's meant to create at atmosphere for relaxation or meditation, then it fails, as you cannot really work towards either when you're thinking all the time about changing it, unless, as another reviewer put it so well, "you want to hear the same five second sound 120 times in a ten minute period."

I love the music of Steve Reich, Philip Glass and Brian Eno and the idea of process music, but their works change over time no matter how repetitive they seem. They're not static, which is all you can get from this box, and that static is more like the so-called "Chinese Water Torture" in the way it doesn't vary in the least amount, which at some point starts to become torturous, not relaxing.

It's also difficult to read or listen to interviews with one of the creators who talks about spending "15 to 20 days tweaking each loop to get it just right" when you can go to their Web site and download the same loops from the Machine and listen to them, which I recommend doing. If they spent more than 15-20 minutes recording them I'd be surprised. At least one has a high-pitch whine that's grating like fingers across a chalkboard, others are more noise than musical in sound, and most are hissy, noisy and poorly recorded.

You should, again as another reviewer suggested, download these loops, and load them into your iPod or MP3 player or computer, and just play them on repeat, and decide if you like what you hear. If you do, then this is for you. But personally I'm glad I received this as a gift, as I'd be extremely disappointed if I'd paid for it, as this provided about as much entertainment as a movie, but at much more the cost.

The band is milking it for what it's worth: a limited edition "black" version for 50% higher price (if you want black, it's easy enough to spray paint one.) They also have a brass pin you can wear, and their performances have tons of tapestries with the Machine on them, and the rider for their "live shows", which is basically them setting up a couple of them and letting them play for 35-45 minutes, is worth downloading from their Web site for a laugh. Not quite as ridiculous as the old Van Halen rider expecting a bowl of M&M's (tm) with all the green ones in a separate bowl, but close.

In the end, I guess my expectations were very high, but I know clearly how this could have been correctly - soothing loops that are all longer, with not only some way to set how often they change, randomly or in order, and with a random amount of quiet added between each loop, just to vary it. The potential for something really great was here, but it falls far short of what it could have been. Buy a Steve Reich or Brian Eno CD instead, and put it on a quiet volume on repeat, and you'll be much more likely to find the ways music can help one relax or meditate. Like Public Enemy said, "Don't, don't don't - Don't Believe the Hype!"

Reading the rave reviews on this little machine makes you want one now! So, I got me one at Gaiam at a great price.
However I was very dissapointed with the performance of it.
It comes with batteries included (2 AA), disc for on/off and volume, and a tiny toggle button. Its speaker is small.
This little "radio" has 9 different music loops ranging from 5 to 40 seconds each, which are supposed to play randomly.
The problem is you have a five second loop playing over and over and over... until you hit the toggle button. And for a unit made to create an ambiance of relaxation, that's a huge flaw. You cannot relax and enjoy if you have to think about going to "change the channel" continually, unless you want to hear the same five second sound 120 times in a ten minute period.
If you are really interested in the machine, go to fm3 website and download the loops, listen and decide if you want to have one of those loops playing over and over. If you like what you hear, then it's good for you.

What is wrong with these reviewers?...complaining till the cows come home, sound quality, irritation...look the BUDDHA MACHINE is basically for people who UNDERSTAND & ENJOY ambient sounds...the low-fi aspect is part of its charm, it's not just the sound of the loops. If you have two or more machines then you can set them to play against each other, especially with version 2, with it's pitch control...it makes for a wonderous experience. Playing it through expensive speakers is dumb and insane. A TRUE ambient fan understands this machine, others ...well just stay away.

The Buddha Machine. I really would give this four and a half stars (Amazon should really have that option because all of us have read a claim similar to this I am sure). Its elegance as well as its possibilities lie in its simplicity. Yes, the speaker is quite bad, you can easily get the loops off the Internet, and this little box is probably over-hyped. However, I am reviewing this item not as a listener but as a musician. My Buddha Machine is a green one, named Mao (in irony, not admiration). I have circuit bent mine so that it plays the loops at a rate about four times the normal speed and also projects from that tiny speaker an obscenely loud drone that can be manipulated by the volume wheel. This drone can reach painful frequencies and when the volume wheel is just in the right place it starts giving off a random, glitched-out assault of sounds. Brian Eno (I would assume) did not buy these for his listening pleasure, but to use as a tool. Open up these guys and start connecting solder dots. I could only fit two toggle switches while keeping the machine in its original case. If this had not been the case, my Buddha Machine would be able to play the loops at several different tempos and I could probably achieve more control over the drone. I will most likely buy a second one quite soon and do some mods on that one as well. This machine's simplicity invites all sorts of creative uses, and this does not necessarily mean tearing the thing apart and attaching some wires. Although perhaps not an excellent example, one only needs to look at the Jukebox Buddha compilation to see how the Buddha Machine can inspire artists to create. If you just want to buy into the fad, do not get one of these; you will be disappointed. If you just want the loops, get them off the web; it is cheaper. If you are a musician with a taste for the ambient and experimental who is just aching for a new project, you might want to consider investing in one of these little guys.