Singing Coach Unlimited [Old Version]

by Carry-A-Tune Technologies

Product Features

• 20-lesson singing tutorial with real-time pitch recognition technology
• Automatically adjusts songs to specific vocal range; sheet music view
• Edit songs or compose new songs with compose mode
• Learn to sing with proper breathing and posture; measure performance
• Imports MIDI's; microphone headset included

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B0006SE5BQ
• Item model number: CAT320
• Date first available at Amazon.com: November 24, 2004
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (70 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,574 in Software (See Top 100 in Software)
  • #15 in Software > Video & Music > Software > Instruction
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Carry-a-Tune is the fun way for everyone to sing better! As your pitch improves, your confidence will build. As your confidence builds, your singing will be better and you will have more fun!

Singing Coach’s animated characters will make learning to use the software and learning to sing easy and fun.

Pitch Tracking Line:

Singing Coach’s Pitch Tracking Line displays what note you are singing and the note you are supposed to be singing on a musical graph. This representation helps train your ear to know the exact pitch you are trying to sing.

Singing Lessons:

Singing Coach's Singing Lessons are an introduction to both Carry-a-Tune and to some basic singing concepts. You will first learn about the basic Carry-a-Tune controls, then about warm-ups for preparing your voice to sing, and techniques for correct singing.

The remaining lessons start with simple exercises and progress to complete songs. You will learn to sing on pitch and see your scores as you practice each exercise.

Determine Vocal Range:

Carry-a-Tune's Custom Vocal Range displays songs and exercises based on your voice or "vocal range." Your vocal range is the range of notes, from lowest to highest, that you can sing comfortably. In order to display songs and exercises in the best key for you, Carry-a-Tune needs to know what your vocal range is.

You will sing up to a high note, then down to a low note. These notes define your vocal range, and you can see how your vocal range compares to the standard vocal ranges such as Tenor and Alto. Carry-a-Tune will automatically put songs and exercises into your personal vocal range so you can sing comfortably without straining your voice.

Compose Mode:

Carry-a-Tune's Compose Mode allows you to compose your own songs by pointing and clicking to enter the melody and lyrics. You can also use the piano keyboard at the bottom of the screen if you prefer to enter pitches that way. If you have the sheet music for one of your favorite songs, you can easily enter the song into Carry-a-Tune.

Compose is simple enough to allow you to easily create short songs, and has the power to let you create quite complex songs and exercises.

Sheet Music View:

Carry-a-Tune's Sheet Music View is a unique graphical display providing a simple and effective method of showing you how you are singing on pitch. Many people are more familiar with sheet music, and Carry-a-Tune allows you to sing songs using Sheet Music View. You will see the familiar staff, time signature, and musical notations. Carry-a-Tune's Pitch Tracking Line effectively shows you whether you are hitting the notes on pitch. You can even use Sheet Music view to sing the songs you have composed.

Product Description

Learn to sing with the help of a patented real-time pitch recognition technology. Twenty lesson tutorial. See your voice on screen. Microphone headset included. Compose Mode. Imports MIDI's.System Requirements:Pentium II 400 MHz 128 MB Memory Video card for 16-bit color CD-ROM 200MB free disk space Display resolution 800x600Format: WIN MENT2000XP Genre: REFERENCE / LIFESTYLE UPC: 183561000020 Manufacturer No: CAT320

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

73 of 76 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I WAS SKEPTICAL AT 1ST, BUT NO LONGER!, January 30, 2006

By 

C. W. Lawson "OracleMagician" (SF East Bay, California: United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Singing Coach Unlimited [Old Version] (CD-ROM)

The designers have done a very nice job. Excellent user interface--I don't see any "bugs" at all! Extremely well designed and fun to use. No regrets. (No I don't work for them!)

A few of the reviews have suggested this tool is more suited for beginners--but it's not. Here's why:

1) You can choose from a variety of easy/med/difficult songs; It might be pretty easy to sing "Hot cross buns" but not so the more challenging songs;

2) You can adjust the precision level to your ability, so that your pitch must be more precise to get the same "score." In other words, you can make it as challenging as you want.

I especially enjoyed the feature that lets you see your vocal range. (It confirmed my bass range--So I shouldn't keep trying the Barry Manilow songs.)

I heartily recommend this program. I am very glad I spent the money. Both fun and educational, all in one!

64 of 68 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good Technology, But the Presentation is Really for Kids, August 29, 2005

By 

See Me, Hear Me - See all my reviews

This review is from: Singing Coach Unlimited [Old Version] (CD-ROM)

The software appears to work quite well, and I believe that using this product will improve my singing. The real-time pitch tracking is a tremendous aid for anyone who (like me) has trouble finding notes with their singing voice. On this basis, I would have given the product 4 1/2 or 5 stars. However, the bad news is that the presentation of this product is really designed for kids. There are characters who guide you through the process, and unfortunately there does not seem to be a way to turn them off. It is a bit like watching an episode of Barney in terms of the level of hokiness (e.g., an opera singing octupus who talks like Chef Boyardee. Yuck!) Ideally, Carry-A-Tune should design a professional version designed for the over 13 crowd. The new version would just contain the core technology and do away with the annoying characters and story line. But as I said, the technology seems to work so I guess that I will suffer through the cartoonish qualities.

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Caution, June 6, 2005

By 

Matthew Maddin - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Singing Coach Unlimited [Old Version] (CD-ROM)

This could definitely be something to buy for your children, but be warned: It's very buggy. Expect glitches in the voice recordings analysis. Some notes don't even register in the software when hummed to (which is a very important part of learning a new song).

The cartoon characters are fun, but there is no way to turn them off in the lesson mode. In lesson mode the characters talk, demonstrate the lesson, and then it's your turn to practice. There is no way to bypass the first two steps, which means that you must listen to their entire dialog every time you want to repeat a practice lesson. This gets _very_ annoying when you've repeated a lesson for the 15th time.

The music editor/composer is a nice thing to have, especially for teachers. There are many software glitches here too. The editor is very unintuitive, and has no easy way to copy and paste parts of your composition. This makes creating drills and other practice lessons extremely tedious. Also, the undo and redo operations are very buggy: use at your own risk.