Thanks to PCMag's Associate Editor Kyle Monson and Audio analyst Mike Kobrin for their commentary on this rather odd audio accessory!
KYLE: Here's the gist of the Gemini iKey: you connect any audio device's headphone or line-out jack to the iKey's line-in jacks and connect a USB mass storage device to the iKey's USB port at the other end. The iKey takes the audio signal from the line-in source and converts it to an MP3 or WAV file on the USB device (a mass-storage class MP3 player or USB key). You can record your analog phonographs, or any analog or digital music, onto an MP3 player, and once they're MP3 or WAV files, you can do what you want with them.
But there are a lot of things I don't understand. Lots of MP3 players have line-in recording capabilities, including the latest iPod (here's PCMag.com's complete list). Some of them even cost less than the iKey, they're ALL smaller, and they aren't just plastic boxes that don't do anything else. So why would you pay $150 for a middleman? [[UPDATE: The price has dropped since we posted this--CM.]]
Plus, the iKey is remarkably poorly designed. To put in the four AA batteries (not included, natch), you have to unscrew four tiny screws on the faceplate. And the bottom of the device gets quite hot when you use it for more than 10 minutes. And the iKey's pretty big, considering it has no screen, no onboard storage, and no navigation buttons to speak of. Add a B&W screen with a progress bar or something and maybe I'd be more of a fan.
MIKE: Well, it is an audio interface meant for devices that don't have one, not ones that do. But even so, many MP3 players that do line-in recording only do so in either WAV or MP3--not both. This gives you a little more flexibility.
But I think the main thing missing here is that if you hook it up to a mic and a preamp, you've got a portable live recording interface for a USB device. And even more important, although the iPod does do line-in recording, there's still no mic/line adapter for it (though a couple have recently been announced) and it's been out for quite a few months already. Also, think bigger, and forget MP3 players for a moment. You could hook up a 300GB hard drive and record a whole 3-hour rehearsal in WAV.
KYLE: About the 3-hour rehearsal, that would indeed be useful (especially for bands that just jam around for snippets of ideas like mine does), but I'd be nervous about relying on a device like this for that simply because it doesn't give any indication that everything's going smoothly and working right, and there isn't a convenient way to check.
MIKE: I agree; it is indeed poorly designed, and the craftsmanship looks crappy. But as for the purpose, I think it could have been a valuable tool if it had been designed better (and cost less).
So what do our readers think? Is there some great use for this device that both Kyle and Mike are missing? Sound off in our comments.
For more info on the Gemini iKey, visit www.ikey-audio.com.
Stumble
Digg
del.icio.us
Slashdot
June 9, 2006 5:48 PM
I can't see this thing's design flaws making up for any of its possible benefits; without a display, not only can I not tell if the device is working properly or encoding my music, or has a problem of any kind, even with the USB device that it'd be connected to, but I can't even tell if the 4-AA batteries underneath that tiny little faceplate are charged or about to die. My only indication that there'd be a problem with the device is after I've tried to record with it and nothing happened or I got no results. Also, the ability to encode in mp3 AND wav isn't really a selling point, when it's so easy to reencode from one to the other from any device that can do one but not the other. If the device had other audio formats that it could encode in, even if those other formats aren't popular, then I'd consider it more of a benefit. It could definitely be a great tool, especially for folks like me who are DJs and love to record their sets but don't always want to drag a laptop with you or record to something that requires media (last set I recorded was to a minidisc player, now THERE'S a format nightmare)-I would love to have a device like this to hook up to my turntables, but I've got no way to monitor the thing to make sure everything is okay. Good idea, especially for musicians and performers, but bad bad BAD implimentation.
June 9, 2006 8:21 PM
Lots of MP3 players have line-in recording capabilities, including the latest iPod Up to this point none of the ipods have built in voice recording. With a couple of the older models, you could plug a special mic into the headphone jack and record memos that way, but since it was a proprietary format, that doesnt really count. The new Ipod w/ video has no input built into the headphone jack, but i have seen mic attachments that connect to the docking port on the bottom.
June 12, 2006 9:54 AM
The iKey let's me record my DJ sets diectly into my ipod without itunes. I just plug the ikey into the output of my club's mixer, plug the output of the ikey into my ipod and I'm ready to rock. At the end of my set, I plug my ear buds in and listen on the drive home. iKeys only cost $99 at Guitar Center (I think iKey lowered the price and you have old information) and it interfaces perfectly with any ipod alive. The GC sales guy told me that bands were buying them to record sets, concerts and even individual parts and samples. He also explained that older people were buying them to convert their phono records to MP3. Anyway mine rocks, I use it alot and it sounds fine. The LED level control is a little tricky but it works fine. What else could I have bought so inexpensively to record me digitaly without a computer? Marantz field recorders and M-Audio's boxes cost much more and the iKey plugs into any usb 2.0 driverless storage device. With 32 million ipods in America (many belonging to DJ's and musicians), the iKey makes perfect sense. Do you get it now?
June 12, 2006 10:33 AM
I've been using the iKEY for awhile now, and I find it a very useful tool... To assume that it doesn't give you any "indication that everything's going smoothly and working right" is simply wrong, the iKEY's LED lights give you the ability to see when the recording is in progress, and the CLIP indicator flashes rapidly when you are overloading the input. As far as there being "no navigation buttons to speak of," I feel that this is also incorrect! There is only ONE function of the unit - to record! So there's a button to Start/Stop the recording, and a button to select the bitrate! What more "navigation" do you really need? "Lots of MP3 players have line-in recording capabilities, including the latest iPod." Sure, some of them have line-in recording capabilities, but if you actually put one side-by-side with the iKEY, you will find that the quality of one of these aforementioned MP3 players is horrific, and there are not many bitrates to select from, and usually no clip indicator! Plus, the unit is $99, not $150. I think you guys are really off the mark on this one, especially being that this specifically an audio product, not a PC product - and that seems to be how it's being examined in this case. You wouldn't review a DJ CD player with an SD card slot as a PC product. Just because you're an associate editor of a PC magazine really doesn't add any heir of legitimacy to your review. Nor does the fact that you really haven't done enough research on the product to know what it actually does!
July 11, 2006 12:42 PM
Your Idontgetit guy harshes on this piece too much. It is very limited in its uses, but within those parameters it will be worth it to some folks. It works for me. It is just a removable mp3/wav encoder that will work with various usb media, such as a compact flash card or a memory stick. I think that is useful. Generally, the IKey would be good for somebody who wants to record a lot of things to MP3 or wav, in a recording environment where being able to monitor the input is not crucial. For instance, at home, where you can record to a compact flash card, take it out, stick it in the computer, listen to it on your computer headphones, adjust the volume settings, record again with the IKey, take it out again and listen on your ...repeat as necessary until you get it right, and then leave it in place, i.e., set and forget it. Imagine recording a whole stack of vinyl to mp3, or recording the same TV show every day, using the same equipment. Once you know where the volume settings need to be under fixed conditions, you should be able to record to a compact flash card over and over, thereby freeing up your computer or whatever for other things. And why do this rather than use your ipod or whatever? Because contrary to what Mr. Idontgetit says, most mp3 players and such do NOT have line-in recording. The Ipod once did, but abandoned it 2 years ago or longer. It isn't too easy to find an mp3 player that does actually record nowdays. And the high-end stuff just isn't there quality-wise yet. Compared against the Edirol R-1, the Marantz PMD 660, and the M-Audio whatever, I would rather not choose, at least at that price. For a hundred bucks though, I can take the IKey. Regarding the other complaints the Idontgetit guy had, I don't see the problem. So it heats up while it is working a little bit. Big deal. So the battery compartment is held on with screws. How many battery compartment covers have you lost in your life? I bet you won't lose this one, because guess what? It's screwed on! And take it from a guy who has done some serious comarison shopping: you can't get a device that records to compact flash for less. And when you spend 4-6 times the amount, you will get hardware that has its own troubles, as well. I sent my Marantz back, because it sounded so bad. My biggest complaint, aside from being unable to monitor my input, is that it doesn't really work with all USB 2 devices. I have tried this with 2 laptop hard drives and it has not worked with either. If this could power a laptop hard drive and record to a 20 gb drive, that would be the very best. I record to a 1gb compact flash, with little difficulty, having gotten over the crude user interface this device has. I will probably buy an IKey plus, when they finally come out on the market.
July 19, 2006 10:23 AM
I recently purchased the Ikey and found it to be the perfect tool to digitaly record my sets. I use a third party mp3 player. two big cons are that I had to do an update in order for it to work with my mp3 player. The other than that this tool has a learning curve and reading the led requires practice. The battery is not an issue due to the power cord provided. for best result I found that using a simple EQ gives you the best quality. The big upside is that a new IKey Plus was announced and it has more features.