Stop buying soundbrenner. They restrict features that you have bought with your device and now try to force you into a lifetime subscription to unlock them again.
I have both Core Steel and Core Steel Limied Editon. What's fun is I can use the app to connect 2 at the same time. so my teacher or me can change and feel the metronome at the same time.
I wish I'd watched a few more reviews before buying the Core Steel. I was super enthusiastic for this, being a guitarist. But, I've found so many flaws with it from both a conceptual and practical angle. Firstly, I went for the Steel so that I'd have a watch I could just wear. In reality, it doesn't feel like a watch I'd use all day. It's not particularly comfortable, and it's not especially well featured beyond basic notifications, time, and the metronome feature. The additional cost for the Steel is really not worth it. Now, the metronome - as a guitarist, I put it on my left arm. I then found that my wrist points down while fretting. This meant that the watch hangs down beneath your arm while playing. If it is then not on really tight you cannot feel the pulse as it is not in contact with you. Of course, having it tight on your wrist then starts to restrict your tendon movement - not great when you are trying to play quickly. So, I tried it on my right arm. Better, but still not great as it needs to be on tight. Maybe fine for pick players, but again not great for finger style if you need that dexterity. So, next I tried upper arm. After a length of time it either slipped down or if I tightened it up became uncomfortable quite quickly. Next I tried it on my upper leg. Same problem, it needs to be on tight to transmit a pulse strong enough to feel over your instrument. Lastly, I tried the body strap. The only place that felt 'useful' to me was to have it right on my collar bone. There it could be slightly looser, but I'm guessing it works because it was largely cooperating with gravity. Next - practically problems. The contact tuner is not great. I bought the extra magnets and made the mistake of sticking on to a beloved guitar. Don't do it - regardless of what they claim it is not easy to remove and can damage the finish of your instrument. On top of that the tuner response is below par. I have used other contact tuners, and all have performed better than the Core. I am quite technical, but still had massive trouble synching with Logic Pro on the Mac. Had to run through the setup a few times before I could see the Core in the Midi devices. After some teething problems I managed to get the pulse synching with my project tempo. BUT - I found a flaw. The temp sync ONLY works correctly if you run your track from the very start. Not great if you want to over record parts later in your project. I also found that if you have repeat cycle turned on, the pulse is suddenly one beat out of sync with your project. The delay might actually be an arbitrary amount, but I found between 80 and 120 bpm it seemed to be one beat out after each repeat. I've not tried it with tempo changes in the project yet. Another issue - the double tap to start is fine, but having triple tap do a tap-tempo is REALLY annoying. The number of times I have tapped once to wake the watch, then twice to start the tempo and it has read it as a tap-tempo and set my tempo to some random number. I really would like the option to turn off tap-tempo. I pretty much always want to pick a specific tempo. This is a really irritating and time wasting feature. Finally - Soundbrenner told me that they endeavour to ship from stock in your own country. I ordered in the UK. They have stock showing on their Amazon UK account. I emailed them before ordering and they said if they don't ship from UK they would repay and duties and taxes incurred as a result of shipping from outside the UK. I placed the order and saw that they had shipped from the USA. I emailed them again and was promised that I just need to email them the fees invoice and they would repay the costs. They acknowledged receipt of my email for costs, but to date have not refunded my additional fees as promised. This means that I paid a lot more than $300 - more like $460. This watch is worth nothing like that amount! So - if you are outside of the USA, I'd recommend not buying - they lured me in with a promise that they reneged on. In short, I'll probably be using the 30 day money back guarantee - but I'll be out of pocked for shipping costs. I think they should be paying that, since their product really doesn't live up to their claims, so this is a clear case of mis-selling. Luckily I bought on my Visa Credit, so I have some additional buyer protection - so Visa can chase them for the money back on my behalf.
Mariya, try it on your ankle. It’s a little awkward to turn on and off if you’re not using the app, but you don’t hear the metronome as much. I have one and wear it on my left ankle, and I find a standard metronome very annoying. I use the Soundbrenner whenever I practice with a metronome.
@@WithMariya Sorry for the delayed response. I don’t use the soft pedal or sostenuto to much, so no negative effects with having the Soundbrenner on my left ankle. I think the secret is to have the Soundbrenner tight enough that it doesn’t vibrate on the skin surface and tickle. Having it relatively tight transfers the pulses to the bone, and the pulse if felt a little deeper. Hope that’s helpful.
Here's my first impressions before using this watch: The fact that you have to download an app to use this and make an account is ridiculous. And who wants to stick a mount to their guitar? These don't look like they come off easily, and there's no labels guaranteeing that it wont ruin the guitar. Also, I don't like how the watch does not lock into place. It has a magnet, yes, but the twist feature to lock it does not click or anything, there is no guarantee that your watch won't come undone as a result, and you'd be lucky if your watch doesn't fall off randomly because of this lack of security. The set up is not intuitive enough, and requires too much work. You can't just open the watch and use it. I also don't like how the scrolling feature hits a dead end, so you can only move one direction with the buttons, and when you scroll to the end, you must scroll all the way back, the user interface is clunky because of this, in my opinion. It takes too much time to do any navigating on the watch. I would agree with other's reviews that this is not a touch screen smart watch. I don't like this product and I wish I never spent $250 on this. Big mistake.
A well-considered review video and valuable demonstration, Mariya! Yes, that thing is too loud, and its unintended noise artifact is irritating to me even on unaccented beats which are the least noisy. Back when I played in rock bands, the ability to fit with ebb and flow of the band's time was how we stayed in the groove, and an essential element of the music. These days many bands are playing to a click in their in-ear monitors, which I find sterile. I suspect that practice came with the advent of Beat Detective and the misguided notion that music must stay precisely on a beat, with most things dragged to a strict grid. For that aesthetic I can see how this could have a use, but not for any music that I play. Even for solo practice, I prefer a traditional metronome or even a drum track. I got sucked into the "feel the beat don't hear it" marketing, so quickly came to regret that purchase and the time I wasted trying to tame the thing when I realized that "silent" just isn't a word that applies with Soundbrenner. Wish I'd seen a video like yours before I laid down my hard-earned cash. Truly an honest review. I've subscribed because I think you do a great job of giving your unadulterated opinion.
Mount only goes on one instrument. It would be better to include a clip like a regular clip-on tuner. This would be a great purchase if they made it like a smartwatch without all the fitness and health stuff. Like ability to controll apps like spotify, music, RUclips etc. Maybe in a future update they will.
@@WithMariya No I have not used one. for what these do I think they are overpriced. As I said make them a full smart-watch but replace the fitness stuff with the current Soundbrenner Music stuff then it would be a better product. I can get a clip-on tuner, metronome, dB meter (on my mobile ph), and a smatwatch total $100-150. Yes there are cheaper smart watches that can do more than soundbrenner smart watch features
I wonder as well.. I don’t imagine it would be any more comfortable, because you’re always using your hands/arms to play any instrument? Just my thoughts…
I'm an older man and wear this to remind me to slow deep diaphragmatic breathe via nose @23bpm. Super relaxed my aches and pains all gone. Also use it for work outs and qigong.
I also plan to use it for workouts in the gym. But I do not want to raise any attention to other people with vibrating sounds. Hence my question: Is the vibration audible to others if the gym is relatively silent (no music, no talk)?
That thing would drive me INSANE! I can't stand wearing anything in the first place let alone when I am playing! Even wearing a wedding ring took A LOT of time to get used to; it felt like a huge weight on my fingers!
u r very good pianist! watching this for the product, subscribing for being awesome human being.. so lovable!!
Stop buying soundbrenner. They restrict features that you have bought with your device and now try to force you into a lifetime subscription to unlock them again.
Oh no, that sounds terrible! Thank you so much for watching and commenting!!
Whaaat the fuck
I have both Core Steel and Core Steel Limied Editon. What's fun is I can use the app to connect 2 at the same time. so my teacher or me can change and feel the metronome at the same time.
Hey! Thanks for this review. What do you think of the metronome now, a year later? :)
I wish I'd watched a few more reviews before buying the Core Steel. I was super enthusiastic for this, being a guitarist. But, I've found so many flaws with it from both a conceptual and practical angle. Firstly, I went for the Steel so that I'd have a watch I could just wear. In reality, it doesn't feel like a watch I'd use all day. It's not particularly comfortable, and it's not especially well featured beyond basic notifications, time, and the metronome feature. The additional cost for the Steel is really not worth it.
Now, the metronome - as a guitarist, I put it on my left arm. I then found that my wrist points down while fretting. This meant that the watch hangs down beneath your arm while playing. If it is then not on really tight you cannot feel the pulse as it is not in contact with you. Of course, having it tight on your wrist then starts to restrict your tendon movement - not great when you are trying to play quickly. So, I tried it on my right arm. Better, but still not great as it needs to be on tight. Maybe fine for pick players, but again not great for finger style if you need that dexterity.
So, next I tried upper arm. After a length of time it either slipped down or if I tightened it up became uncomfortable quite quickly. Next I tried it on my upper leg. Same problem, it needs to be on tight to transmit a pulse strong enough to feel over your instrument. Lastly, I tried the body strap. The only place that felt 'useful' to me was to have it right on my collar bone. There it could be slightly looser, but I'm guessing it works because it was largely cooperating with gravity.
Next - practically problems.
The contact tuner is not great. I bought the extra magnets and made the mistake of sticking on to a beloved guitar. Don't do it - regardless of what they claim it is not easy to remove and can damage the finish of your instrument. On top of that the tuner response is below par. I have used other contact tuners, and all have performed better than the Core.
I am quite technical, but still had massive trouble synching with Logic Pro on the Mac. Had to run through the setup a few times before I could see the Core in the Midi devices. After some teething problems I managed to get the pulse synching with my project tempo. BUT - I found a flaw. The temp sync ONLY works correctly if you run your track from the very start. Not great if you want to over record parts later in your project. I also found that if you have repeat cycle turned on, the pulse is suddenly one beat out of sync with your project. The delay might actually be an arbitrary amount, but I found between 80 and 120 bpm it seemed to be one beat out after each repeat. I've not tried it with tempo changes in the project yet.
Another issue - the double tap to start is fine, but having triple tap do a tap-tempo is REALLY annoying. The number of times I have tapped once to wake the watch, then twice to start the tempo and it has read it as a tap-tempo and set my tempo to some random number. I really would like the option to turn off tap-tempo. I pretty much always want to pick a specific tempo. This is a really irritating and time wasting feature.
Finally - Soundbrenner told me that they endeavour to ship from stock in your own country. I ordered in the UK. They have stock showing on their Amazon UK account. I emailed them before ordering and they said if they don't ship from UK they would repay and duties and taxes incurred as a result of shipping from outside the UK. I placed the order and saw that they had shipped from the USA. I emailed them again and was promised that I just need to email them the fees invoice and they would repay the costs. They acknowledged receipt of my email for costs, but to date have not refunded my additional fees as promised. This means that I paid a lot more than $300 - more like $460. This watch is worth nothing like that amount! So - if you are outside of the USA, I'd recommend not buying - they lured me in with a promise that they reneged on.
In short, I'll probably be using the 30 day money back guarantee - but I'll be out of pocked for shipping costs. I think they should be paying that, since their product really doesn't live up to their claims, so this is a clear case of mis-selling. Luckily I bought on my Visa Credit, so I have some additional buyer protection - so Visa can chase them for the money back on my behalf.
What's the problem with putting it tight on your left leg (above your ankle)?
@@raulromani7357 its a horrible device
Mariya, try it on your ankle. It’s a little awkward to turn on and off if you’re not using the app, but you don’t hear the metronome as much. I have one and wear it on my left ankle, and I find a standard metronome very annoying. I use the Soundbrenner whenever I practice with a metronome.
Hmmm I’ll try that! Thank you 🙏 Does it affect pedalling at all?
@@WithMariya Sorry for the delayed response. I don’t use the soft pedal or sostenuto to much, so no negative effects with having the Soundbrenner on my left ankle. I think the secret is to have the Soundbrenner tight enough that it doesn’t vibrate on the skin surface and tickle. Having it relatively tight transfers the pulses to the bone, and the pulse if felt a little deeper. Hope that’s helpful.
Many thanks for this review. Much appreciated
Here's my first impressions before using this watch:
The fact that you have to download an app to use this and make an account is ridiculous. And who wants to stick a mount to their guitar? These don't look like they come off easily, and there's no labels guaranteeing that it wont ruin the guitar. Also, I don't like how the watch does not lock into place. It has a magnet, yes, but the twist feature to lock it does not click or anything, there is no guarantee that your watch won't come undone as a result, and you'd be lucky if your watch doesn't fall off randomly because of this lack of security. The set up is not intuitive enough, and requires too much work. You can't just open the watch and use it. I also don't like how the scrolling feature hits a dead end, so you can only move one direction with the buttons, and when you scroll to the end, you must scroll all the way back, the user interface is clunky because of this, in my opinion. It takes too much time to do any navigating on the watch. I would agree with other's reviews that this is not a touch screen smart watch. I don't like this product and I wish I never spent $250 on this. Big mistake.
What metronome app do you use on your iPad? It looks cool!
Thank you for watching! It was the app that came with the Metronaut watch!
I love you reaction 👍
A well-considered review video and valuable demonstration, Mariya!
Yes, that thing is too loud, and its unintended noise artifact is irritating to me even on unaccented beats which are the least noisy.
Back when I played in rock bands, the ability to fit with ebb and flow of the band's time was how we stayed in the groove, and an essential element of the music. These days many bands are playing to a click in their in-ear monitors, which I find sterile. I suspect that practice came with the advent of Beat Detective and the misguided notion that music must stay precisely on a beat, with most things dragged to a strict grid. For that aesthetic I can see how this could have a use, but not for any music that I play. Even for solo practice, I prefer a traditional metronome or even a drum track.
I got sucked into the "feel the beat don't hear it" marketing, so quickly came to regret that purchase and the time I wasted trying to tame the thing when I realized that "silent" just isn't a word that applies with Soundbrenner.
Wish I'd seen a video like yours before I laid down my hard-earned cash. Truly an honest review. I've subscribed because I think you do a great job of giving your unadulterated opinion.
Mount only goes on one instrument. It would be better to include a clip like a regular clip-on tuner.
This would be a great purchase if they made it like a smartwatch without all the fitness and health stuff. Like ability to controll apps like spotify, music, RUclips etc. Maybe in a future update they will.
Interesting… have you used the soundbrenner yourself? I would love to hear your thoughts 🤗
@@WithMariya No I have not used one. for what these do I think they are overpriced. As I said make them a full smart-watch but replace the fitness stuff with the current Soundbrenner Music stuff then it would be a better product.
I can get a clip-on tuner, metronome, dB meter (on my mobile ph), and a smatwatch total $100-150. Yes there are cheaper smart watches that can do more than soundbrenner smart watch features
Great review. Thanks! btw i've learned about the visual metronome with you. huge!! thanks
Love this type of video! ❤ I wonder how someone playing Guitar or Violin would use this. Maybe they'd run into similar problems? 🤔
I wonder as well.. I don’t imagine it would be any more comfortable, because you’re always using your hands/arms to play any instrument? Just my thoughts…
@@WithMariya Its fantastic for the drums, especially to protect the ears
@@LearningDrummerSam Ah 😅 That makes sense!
Love it on guitar! Takes a lil getting used to at first
I'm an older man and wear this to remind me to slow deep diaphragmatic breathe via nose @23bpm. Super relaxed my aches and pains all gone. Also use it for work outs and qigong.
I also plan to use it for workouts in the gym. But I do not want to raise any attention to other people with vibrating sounds. Hence my question: Is the vibration audible to others if the gym is relatively silent (no music, no talk)?
That thing would drive me INSANE! I can't stand wearing anything in the first place let alone when I am playing! Even wearing a wedding ring took A LOT of time to get used to; it felt like a huge weight on my fingers!
Yeah I’m in the same boat… hard to imagine how anyone would feel comfortable wearing this??🙈
Hello my friend great Video as usual more creativity good luck what is coming 🌷🌹🙏🙏🙏🙏
Thank you so much for watching, my friend!! Great to see you back on the channel 🙏❤️
OMG YOU PLAYED LA CAMPANELLA :D
Something big is coming soon 👀 I may or may not have filmed it that same day!
@@WithMariya 😮😮😮😮😮😳😳😳
thanks for the honest review, i always suspected it's an overpriced piece of garbage lmao
Omg 🙈 Did I say that? Haha