Jazz Times
Gear Head Review by Chip Stern
The PSD230 offers exceptional music reproduction when employed as either a portable or a home deck (with a digital out to drive a more upscale D/A converter should you be looking at future upgrades); it reads both CD-R and CD-RW formats; and possesses interactive features that can enhance your practice habits and streamline your analysis and transcription of solos and songs.
The PSD230 allows you to increase the rate of tempo by up to 50% or decrease it by 33% without changing key; its tuning control allows for adjustments in pitch so that you can can practice a song in whatever key is most convivial; the musical key of a CD can be raised or lowered incrementally by a whole octave; mic/line mixing allows you to plug in a microphone or a line-level source (XLR or 1/4"), and to adjust level balances for practicing along with a CD; and a special Superscope processor reduces the volume level of vocal tracks by varying degrees on different CDs. The PSD230 is not just a fine portable CD deck, it’s a revolutionary educational/practice tool.
Excerpted from the March 2001 edition of JazzTimes. (c) 2001 JazzTimes, Inc. On the Web at www.JazzTimes.com.
