Customer Reviews

Suzuki QC1 QChord Digital Song Card Guitar with A/C adapter (QCA)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Think of the Q-Chord as a digital autoharp that never goes out of tune, plays 84 chords instead of 21, includes a built drum machine and has a midi output pickup, and you will be pretty close to the mark.

I tried a Q-Chord at a local music store as a possible songwriting tool for some musicals I have just about finished. I didn't buy on the spot, mostly because there are just to many darned buttons to figure out! As usual in America today, the sales clerk had no idea how to make the Q-Chord rock.

Impressed by the hype, but baffled by the machine, I found the owner's manual online. That's were I learned it really WILL play major, minor and seventh chords each with the touch of one button. By combining two buttons, you can also play major 7th and minor 7th chords, plus augmented and diminished chords in all 12 keys. With 10 different rhythms (20 more available at extra cost) and a choice of accompanyment modes (chord mode; chords, bass and drums; or bass and drums only) and much more, I should be able to finish my musicals fairly quickly.

Before making up your mind about this fun musical tool/toy, read the owner's manual by going to qchord.net/docs/qchord-manual.htm.

This instrument is just great! I'm one of those guys that couldn't carry a tune in a bucket. I'm sure you've heard the term "advsersity inspires creativity"? Well, things have been pretty "adverse" for myself and my little grand daughter. I'm disabled, in a wheelchair, absolutely no talent whatsoever. Very little income, bla, bla, bla. Well, I've been hoping to find a means to earn a little extra, so I can better provide for my grand daughter a few of the things every other kid seems to have.
I see beggars all the time. They seem to earn enough to stay drunk 24 hrs/day. So, I figure, if I just had some kind of talent to offer as a "street performer", it's a step above begging and I hear they do pretty good. So along comes the Q-Chord. A magnificent instrument, easy to learn, even a no-talent like myself can make some pretty good noise come out of this thing. With an A/C inverter connected to my wheelchair batteries I can play my Q-Chord all day, and never run low on power. So if you ever see an old man in a wheelchair playing his Q-Chord on a street corner in Northern California, drop a dollar in his hat. I'm sure he'll appreciate it!

I got the Qchord to play Christmas songs for myself since my piano skills just aren't up to accompanying anybody. While there are indeed lots of buttons, the basics are incredibly easy. However, given practice, you can make the Qchord rock! Check out [..]; start with the Quaint Cute Qchord Song for a great demo.

The power user has plenty to keep him or her busy (MIDI capability and more), but I just strum along with myself to Jingle Bells and am plenty happy. For a great beginner book that walks you step by step with Cd accompaniment, try the McGuffey Eclectic Qchord Reader. Plus, the online community is simply fantastic--what great grassroots support!!

If you wish you were musical, try the Qchord. You'll be amazed at the music you can make!

I am just learning to play the Q-Chord, but I really like it. I have never had much interest in stringed instruments, I guess I have never tried very hard to learn how to play them. What attracted me to it included the headphone jack so you can quietly practice (this also pleases my wife that she does not have to hear it). The best way to find out about the Q-Chord is to do a "Google" and check out the website. Also, join the user forum. I think between playing with the Q-chord and keeping up on the user group, most people that get one don't have much time to post info on Amazon about it. Get the case, too if you plan on taking it anywhere and you also don't need to worry about storing safely. Good for people with limited use / mobility of the hands and vision problems, so I hear.

I find the Q-Chord to be a fun and entertaining instrument for anyone who can't play any other instrument. As the box says, 0 to Musician in 9 seconds. I have not had to time to play from anything other than the music cartridges, so I cannot speak for playing the Q-Chord any other way. I have never plugged it into an amp or listened to it through headphones. Playing from the built-in speaker it sounds a bit much like muzak/elevator music. The Country Cartidge sounds authentic and the Strangers in the Night cartridge is fitting for this type of sound. While listeners know the songs and enjoy the Lennon and McCartney cartridge, the sound does not come out anything like The Beatles or any other 'rock' sound. All of that being said, if you don't have a piano player or guitarist in the house to entertain company, this is a great way for a 'no-talent' like me to do it! Might also be fun at the local Moose Lodge or at church. They have a Religious Standards and Religious Favorites cartridge that might be used there.

I have been playing the Q for about a year now and play it every Sunday in Church in both services, the traditional and contemporary. I think the Q is kind of getting a bad rap about not being a serious instrument. Yah, you can play it in 9 seconds out of the box if you just want to strum to some dumb canned song but that is not what I do with it. I just wish Suzuki would not have put the feature on there because every time I turn it on I have to automatically push two buttons so that dumb song won't start, annoying. Other than that though the Q is as serious an instrument as you wish to make it by putting tons of practice into it and work on technique on the strum plate for each genre of music. We play at least eight songs a week in all kinds of different keys so that can be challenging on the Q. To solve the problems of this I use the Nashville Numbering System and convert all my music to that before performances. Then I can do less thinking and put more of my concentration into singing. Before I did that my mind was just having to do too much thinking and I had to glance at the Q too much which equaled stress. If however, you are just going to play in a few different keys though it would not be a problem at all. Some of the music, such as the old hymns can be pretty complex so the ability to change chords properly while strumming the plate with proficiency using all the octaves successfully is an important thing to master. I also play pennywhistle which is another instrument that people assume is easy to learn. I guess it is but it is not easy to play skillfully. I think the Q kind of fits into that too. Yes, anybody can pick it up and work out a simple song on it but consistently putting out good music is going to take time and practice. As far as how well it is received by people, it is received very well. The people in the traditional service love the hymns done on it (I am backing up a 12 string guitar in that service), and most worship music is great on the Q. I don't like it so much on some of the harder contemporary stuff so I opt out and play pennywhistle or just sing on the few we do. I like the default strum plate (guitar) setting for the strum-sounds but have not found another one in all the hundred that I would use. Some are so-so and others to me are just plain silly but to each their own. I never use the rhythms at all because I just hate canned rhythm of any kind and am backed by the best drummer in the world but I have a friend that likes them so it is probably just me. To respond to the reviewer that said they wished it were not plastic because it makes it look like a toy, I disagree there. I play with other musicians that think it is rather fascinating and never thought it looked like a toy and the last time I checked there were not any keyboards that were metal. I don't know what else it could be made of. It isn't a guitar and should not be compared to one. One more criticism I have is that it "weirds out" sometimes. Kind of gets this funky sort of osculating tone. I have to shut it off and back on to clear it. It only happened once during a solo in church but I just played it out and nobody noticed. Maybe it is just the nature of the Q or maybe it is just mine. If you just are in love with music and sound I would recommend the Q. You can play it at whatever level you wish and enjoy it and isn't that why you want to play your own music? If not, maybe it should be.

I have tried everything from steel guitar to harmonica without
success. I had given up, now that I'm 47, on ever playing anything.
I saw this and tried it out, WOW! I can actually make it sound
like the songs I grew up loving. Only drawback, I wish it wasnt
plastic...makes it look like a toy.

My Qchord just arrived a couple of hours ago and I've been playing non-stop since then. I only stopped to rest my hands.

It is amazing! I used some of my piano music and played the chords with my left hand and did "anything I felt like doing" with my right hand and have actually perfected 1 song already - "Washed in The Blood".

1. It looks good! It gets covered with finger prints pretty fast, but it has a nice "curb appeal" to it anyway.

2. It is lightweight. It is easy to carry and hold while playing, yet it doesn't have that "toy" look or feel to it.

3. It sounds great. I didn't like the demo song, I find that I prefer to play the chords myself. I initially started playing chord progressions I play on my other "real" instruments.

4. Easy to play out the box - There will definitely be a learning curve for the more advanced features, but you can enjoy this instrument right out of the box.

thank you for a quick safe delivery. I really like the Qchord and am having a lot of fun with it. I like that you can make just about any chord you need and that I can play it with one hand when my right hand is hurting. It's about half the weight of the autoharp I replaced with it and it never needs tuning. great little instrument, Perfect for accompaniment when singing for church.

I give the QChord I ordered five stars. I love it and am still learning about it, I took it to the Nursing Home where I volunteer and they all liked it. I didn't know if the Assistant Activities Director was going to let me bring it home.
Now she wants one for Christmas.
I will order from Amazon again
Thank you, Jean