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Posts Tagged “

Rock Band

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gaming

Guitar Hero IV's Drums Will Have Six Pads, Two For Cymbals

Cymbals! That's what was missing from the Rock Band drum kit. Not missing, since some of the pads changed to cymbals whenever necessary, but it didn't have two upper pads dedicated explicitly to them. No more. Game Informer says the upcoming Guitar Hero IV will have a six-padded drum set, but a custom-designed guitar due to the legal problems Activision had with Gibson. You'll supposedly be able to create your own songs as well, but we're not sure if you can just import an existing MP3 and go from there, or if you have to create it from scratch. And by "scratch," we mean copying your favorite songs as best you can. [Primo Technology]

3:30 PM on Tue May 13 2008
By Jason Chen
8,906 views, 60 comments

Latest by null: Soooooo, when does the Pan Flute Queero game come out? I mean, Zamfir has some wicked stuff out. more »

gaming mods

Rock Band Bot Can Get 100% On Expert Song, But You Still Suck

Robotics maker Mark Single hooked up a Rock Band guitar to Christmas light show software and scored 100% on Green Grass and High Tides on Expert, one of the hardest songs in the game. He's detailed how he did it so you n00bs can try your hand at it too. I've never really understood the point of modding a game to play itself, but in case you were one of the lame asses who needed to cheat to get sweet scores in Guitar Hero III and panicked at the thought of actually playing to pass songs in Rock Band, Pure Pwnage has got you covered. Though, at the end of the day, is it really worth it to get a perfect and still feel so empty? [Pure Pwnage via HacknMod] More »

6:30 PM on Sun May 4 2008
By Elaine Chow
5,577 views, 31 comments

Latest by mrAnderson: I wouldn't mind making a robot that can play the game using a webcam to watch the screen. I think that would be a great project to learn about image analysis and robotics control. But learning new things more »

gaming

ezGear Guitar Hero/Rock Band Guitar Stand Costs More Than Regular Guitar Stands

At $15.99, this ezGear Guitar Hero stand is actually more expensive than some regular guitar stands—we bought a bass one for only $9.99—so we're not sure why you would go with this instead of a real stand. However, it is a happy medium between the all out super stand we reviewed last week and just propping up your guitars against a wall. Unless you're already in a relationship, or you're confident in your skills, we wouldn't recommend keeping this out in the open where females can see it. [ezGear - Regular stand for $6.99]

2:23 PM on Mon Apr 28 2008
By Jason Chen
1,849 views, 17 comments

Latest by se7a7n7: WARNING!!! If you try to store a regular guitar on a bass guitar stand, the stand will blow up. more »

review

Lightning Review: Rock Band Stand Keeps Your Guitars, Controllers and Mics in Check

The Gadget: A wooden stand that keeps your Rock Band and Guitar Hero guitars, mic, and various controllers in check so they don't otherwise destroy your living room in a mass of plastic and cabling.

The Price: $55 for the standard stand, plus $10 extra if you want extra microphone holder holes.

More »

2:30 PM on Tue Apr 22 2008
By Jason Chen
9,382 views, 51 comments

video games

Guitar Hero IV To Feature Mic, Drums, Copyright Infringement?

Guitar Hero lost some of its luster when Rock Band came along and improved on the concept by adding drums and a microphone, making the game more versatile and party-friendly. Now Guitar Hero hopes to steal the show once again by reinventing itself as...Rock Band? Activision CEO Bobby Kotick told Portfolio that the upcoming GHIV is "not just about guitars. We'll include a lot of other instruments, vocals." More »

2:00 PM on Tue Apr 22 2008
By Benny Goldman
8,073 views, 73 comments

mods

"Circuit Bent" Toy Guitars, My New Geek Fetish

Circuit bending is by no means a new idea. Through the clever short-circuiting of normal electronics, modders have been inventing some pretty incredible sound effects for years (the Speak & Spell is a notable example). But with the rise of Guitar Hero, or more appropriately, Guitar Hero knock-off toys, circuit bending may be experiencing a Renaissance. Preloaded with both music to manipulate and speakers to celebrate the distortion, cheap toy guitars are the canvas. Rocking out with miniature, pink plastic guitars is the art.

Here are some of our favorite examples of circuit-bent toy guitars.

More »

10:55 AM on Mon Apr 21 2008
By Mark Wilson
6,780 views, 19 comments

Latest by chaos421: these guys need to get a life, and use all that time learning to play a real guitar. more »

gaming

Weird Combo of the Day: More Cowbell Hat With Purchase of Rock Band or Guitar Hero III

If there's one thing Canadians know how to do, it's party it up with either Rock Band or Guitar Hero III. Seen in this flyer by reader John, you get a free "More Cowbell" hat whenever you buy either of the two games. Walken, who made another appearance on SNL over the weekend (monologue was great, the rest was meh), would approve. [Thanks John!]

8:45 PM on Mon Apr 7 2008
By Jason Chen
7,481 views, 24 comments

gaming

Rock Band Drum Kit Crochet Covers Prevent Eviction

Are you one of those people who has to bang on the Rock Band drums as hard as humanly possible, leaving yourself open to a possible eviction notice? Here's a $40 purchaseable custom-made Rock Band drum kit crochet cosy set, made just for softening your blows and keeping you on your lease. All four are color-matched to the real drums, and come at only $7 shipping. At $47, it's cheap enough for most people without crocheting grandmas to consider. [Etsy via Technabob]

8:30 PM on Wed Apr 2 2008
By Jason Chen
4,492 views, 14 comments

Latest by FunkieFresh: What you all are forgetting is that these SWEET cozies are made with *love* in Long Beach, CA by a 27 year old girl...not a sweat shop in Asia filled with grannies. Thanks for the post! Come get yours here: more »

deals

Dealzmodo: Rock Band For $147

There's no question that we're big fans of Rock Band here, which is why we'd totally get in on this $147.99 deal if we already didn't all own a copy. That's a good $22 off the normal price, which means you're getting $22 worth of extra enjoyment out of it. Do it! Do it now! [Amazon]

3:00 PM on Wed Mar 26 2008
By Jason Chen
3,628 views, 24 comments

gaming

Rock Band Has a June 22nd Gig on the Wii

Finally, Harmonix has announced that Rock Band will rock its way to the Wii starting on June 22nd for $170. A special edition bundle will include the game, drums, a guitar and a mic. Gamers can also grab standalone instruments if they choose. The game will feature 63 songs (including five bonus songs), but our friends at Kotaku have discovered that there will not be any downloadable content in the foreseeable future. More »

7:30 PM on Mon Mar 24 2008
By Sean Fallon
5,973 views, 28 comments

Latest by phor11: People should just stick with GH3 if you have a Wii...It's cheaper, has online multiplayer, and best of all you don't have to listen to people completely ruin your favorite songs when they think they can sing... more »

modding

Rock Band Drums Modded to Use With Pencils

Someone called David Yoon has reconverted his Rock Band drum kit into what any student (former or not) will recognize as the One and Only True Form of Drumming: pencil drumming. He replaced "the smallish stock piezo transducers with bigger ones from Radio Shack" and reconverted the pedal with a foam and CD sandwich. This way, David says he can do the Ringo at 2am without waking up the neighbours. [Flickr]

2:22 PM on Tue Mar 4 2008
By Jesus Diaz
4,127 views, 12 comments

gaming

Rock Band Standalone Instruments Get Ship Dates, Price

The days of only being able to buy Rock Band instruments in a gigantic pack are about to come to an end as the creators just announced dates and pricing on their instruments. The drums will be $79 on February 12 and the guitar will be $59 on April 1. The PlayStation 3 version of the guitar will work on both PS3 and PS2, and will also get the $59 price tag. There's no announcement for the USB microphone, however, but you can rig up your own mic by using a standard USB mic or just the Xbox Live headset and a controller. [IGN]

6:00 PM on Thu Jan 24 2008
By Jason Chen
5,548 views, 14 comments

Latest by JohnnyRobbs: Could that mic be like a 3rd party item? I defiently think that wireless is the way to go, when we all play it's a mess. Dont like the marketing though, now i'll want to buy all the wireless ones, more »

business

Darth Vader Leaves Galactic Empire CEO Job, Joins Rock Band

ORLANDO, FL. (Agencies) - Following disagreements with the Galactic Empire President and Emperor over the arrest of Santa Claus last year, Darth Vader resigned today from his post of Imperial CEO effective immediately. Citing personal reasons, Lord Vader's spokeswomen Lucy Lamarr pointed out that the Dark Lord will now join a rock band. "And by 'joining a rock band,' I mean playing guitar in Rock Band on his PS3 with his pals, back in his home city of Dyersburg, Arkansas." Later this morning, however, Lord Vader clarified his position: More »

11:40 AM on Fri Jan 18 2008
By Jesus Diaz
13,025 views, 18 comments

Latest by gokor: That's not Darth, that's his brother, Chad. more »

music

SoundTech Ediface Will Play Guitar Hero With Real Guitar

SoundTech, makers of some interesting computer/music peripherals, has announced a new guitar attachment called the Ediface. So what's it do? How about giving your guitar all the flexibility of a synthesizer, converting notes to trumpets or...like the headline says...playing Guitar Hero and Rock Band with your real guitar? More »

10:22 PM on Mon Jan 7 2008
By Mark Wilson
10,116 views, 21 comments

gaming

Mad Katz to Make Wireless and Wired Rock Band Instruments

Mad Katz, maker of mediocre third-party gaming peripherals, has just signed a deal with MTV and Harmonix to start pumping out instruments for Rock Band of both the wireless and wired variety. On the one hand, having cheap, wireless Rock Band equipment would be awesome for people who want to get a bass player rocking with them. On the other hand, if the first-person peripherals are failing left and right, what do you think the rate of success on Mad Katz's take on them will be? 75%? 50%? It might not be pretty. After the jump, Mad Katz's announcement as well as an amazing video of Conan O'Brien and his staff playing Rock Band. More »

11:30 AM on Fri Jan 4 2008
By Adam Frucci
5,033 views, 7 comments

Latest by JrezIN: What about fixing the typo in the article (the correct name is how it's spelled in the press-release) more »

gizmodo's new year's workout

Gizmodo's Illustrated New Year's Workout for Geeks...With Nothing But Gaming Gear

Does the image above remind you of this past New Year's morning? Have you made a resolution to get back in shape this year? The press loves to talk about a Wii Workout as if all it takes is a shudder of the Wiimote to make a gamer's gut melt into nothingness, which isn't true. I don't know many other gamers that would willingly leave the house or spend money on a gym membership, either, though. So here's a real workout built around only gaming and gaming hardware you already own, developed with the consultation of a professionally certified personal trainer (me). Happy sweating, tubby! More »

Feature

7:30 PM on Thu Jan 3 2008
By Sean Fallon
7,483 views, 21 comments

Latest by jesusdiaz: @GumbyJump: Bill is doing karaoke. They have to start teaching pop culture in schools. asap. more »

guitar zero

Activision: By Guitar Hero III/Rock Band Guitar "Agreement," We Meant "Money"

Remember how Harmonix wanted to release a patch to let you use Guitar Hero III guitars on Rock Band for the PS3, but then Activision blocked it and Harmonix told everyone about it, and then Activision said Harmonix just didn't wanna play ball, where it pretty much seemed like Activision meant Harmonix didn't want to pay cash monies but we weren't absolutely certain? Hey, guess what? We're certain now. More »

5:40 PM on Thu Dec 20 2007
By matt buchanan
31,130 views, 26 comments

giz tech tip

Giz Tech Tip: How to Sing and Play Rock Band Simultaneously

If you've been playing Rock Band as much as we have, you've tried to sing and play guitar/drums at the same time at least once. Unless you've got a mic stand lying around, you had to use either a human mic stand (I tried that; she got tired and started choking me with a Wiimote) or somehow dangle the microphone from something. No more! Here's an easy way to play and sing: disconnect the microphone, then plug in the Xbox Live headset (the really cheap one that you get with everything) into a controller. More »

11:45 AM on Wed Dec 19 2007
By Jason Chen
11,991 views, 25 comments

Latest by mhockey14221: I do this all the time on my 360 at school and, maybe its because my headset is so old and beat up from Halo, but the real mic on my PS3 works 5x better. The headset can barely more »