Showing posts with label rock. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rock. Show all posts

FTS: Battle Bands... free-to-try until Feb. 22!

 

Aerie Digital’s Rock & Roll Roguelike Battle Bands Shreds Steam Early Access on March 17

Open beta is live now! Take your Band to the top in the new fantasy deck-builder featuring co-op and competitive multiplayer, free to try until Feb. 22

PORTLAND, Maine — Feb. 15, 2022 — Aerie Digital has announced that Battle Bands, the multiplayer deck-building game set in a rock & roll fantasy land, will release on Steam Early Access for PC on March 17. But you don’t have to wait that long! You can try out this amped-up battle-of-the-bands experience with friends right now with the game’s free open beta, going on today until February 22 on Steam.

Your deck is your instrument in Battle Bands — choose from guitar, bass, keyboard, or drums, then craft your deck with hundreds of unique unlockable cards. Take on roguelike co-op campaigns for up to four players against challenging AI rivals in Tour Mode, and create or join a band with other players in online tournament team play for up to 64 bands in Royale Mode. Customize your group’s look and instruments, deck out your van in style, and hit the stage like a rock star.

Early Access Features:

  • Co-op Tour Mode: Full roguelike campaigns with challenging bosses for 1-4 players
  • Competitive Multiplayer Royale Mode: 64-band online tournaments supporting up to 4 players in each band
  • 4 Instrument-based Decks: Each with 30 levels of unlockable cards
  • Free Season 1 Backstage Pass with 50 levels of unlockable cosmetic items
  • Customize your characters, instruments, and van in a variety of ways

Early access gives Aerie the opportunity to work together with players to create a better Battle Bands experience, consider feedback, and develop iteratively with the community. As early access progresses, Battle Bands will expand with new content and customization options toward its official launch.



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Mask Up Mondays: Muse Dash - Breaking Dawn

Masking up is what these particular videos are all about, but also do your best to start your week out on the right foot... in a positive mood. On that note... stay tuned for the upcoming podcast episode where I dive deeper into applicable info that can impact your mood, health, and even... relationships. Level up!

Let's Rock'N'Scroll with Valfaris!


Valfaris

1More Triple Driver Over-Ear Headphones... Reviewed!


Its that time again... and it's always exciting when a product arrives just begging to be unboxed!
That said... let's get to it. The video has been recorded with all of the sounds included so that new owners of these headphones can hear the various sounds.




The retail packaging is nice and durable (I wouldn't throw it away), and as you see in the video... it really took some effort to get the box out of the sleeve. The box, has a gold plated magnetic clasp like some of the other 1More products in a certain price range. It doesn't make or break the actual product, but the quality presentation goes a long way.

Not only are your headphones protected by the packaging, they're also protected by the... hard travel case that they're inside of. I wasn't expecting a case to be included, although I shouldn't be surprised based on one being included with the quad driver in-ear headphones... I had the pleasure of reviewing. They didn't just stop there though, they included a cloth storage bag, so... you have a few options.

Inside the deluxe travel case... as seen in the video, you have a detachable storage pocket that you can use to store your cable and adapter. There is also a Velcro strap you can place the cable in, so you get a few options to keep your cable and adapter contained. There's room inside this case to lay your storage bag inside to keep it all together.



Going back to the detachable cable, its an audiophile-grade oxygen-free copper wire, which is cool.
For those of you that are unfamiliar with this type of wire, its a form of copper refined in an electrically charged solution that consists of copper sulfate + sulfuric acid for electrolytic refining. This process causes the copper to have a really low level of oxygen... less than about 0.0001%.

So what the heck does that mean? I'm glad you asked, self. That means that the oxygen-free copper wire delivers better clarity in terms of sound... and it lasts longer compared to other (not so pure) copper wires. I'm sure you can imagine the difference in quality. An associate says that oxygen-free copper wires are for... audio snobs, but I beg to differ (as we go around and around in circles). Nothing wrong with appreciating good audio, especially if you've made the investment but... that's a discussion for another day. It does make me think of something though, because there are some pretty headphones out there... and some are super cheap. It doesn't make them bad, but pretty doesn't equal quality... find out what type of quality they're working with.


Add a +1 to that cool due to the Kevlar core braided sheath this wire's inside of. That steps up the durability and also prevents tangles, which can compromise the quality of the wire with enough bending. I'm dealing with an Xbox One controller with a faulty cord right now, gotta love that (in the most sarcastic way possible and)... I can't have that in my headphones too. I really appreciate the detachable cable, seriously. A hard yet... quick snag can possibly affect the upper wire, but being able to detach the cable increases the life of your headphones by... I don't even know how long (because you can replace the cord for much less than if they were permanently connected).

Diving deeper into the 1More Triple Driver Over-Ear headphones, you don't just have a nice pair of headphones to... rock your hip-hop... rock... and j-pop. These are studio-ready headphones with three drivers. Drivers are the element inside a pair of headphones that converts an electrical signal into sounds (yep, time to get a little technical). These headphones have 40 mm graphene dynamic drivers, ceramic tweeters, and... bass reflectors.



These are hi-fi headphones and I can't really explain it... but the sound is freaking cleeeaaannn (clean) and they take you there... whether that's the vocal booth or the open stage for a blues number as far as clarity of sound is concerned. Those little "boom boom... tish tish tish boom tishes" of the drums... from HiFi playback is one of my favorite sounds. The combination of sounds that make a song unique... is most appreciated, I just like hearing how clean the drum sounds the most.

I give credit to the Grammy award-winning sound engineer, Luca Bignardi... that actually tuned these headphones. When you want to make a pair of headphones... and get the job done right, bring on someone with a reputation to uphold. The sound isn't masked or distorted at all from what I hear, I can actually hear where the drums are being hit. You know how the sound is deeper towards the center of the drum's membrane? I can hear the difference clear as day and it puts a smile on my face.


Speaking of instruments, you can use the gold plated 3.5 mm to 6.3 mm (1/4") adapter that's included to plug into your (pocket) amp to jam out on an electric guitar... so that you don't annoy the neighbors at those hush hush hours of the day or night. In other words... if you make the investment, get the most use out of your headphones as possible. Me, it's music (duh of the day) + gaming (mark this as the second... duh) + movies + other forms of audio like ASMR... which is very relaxing to me.

Gaming headphones are cool, but... sometimes the bass kills the other sounds (in some). I don't get that with these while gaming. Speaking of gaming, if you want to enjoy surround sound... there is software that will embrace any pair of headphones (including these) and give you virtual surround sound. I won't say that it rivals true surround... but you do have an option.

The red and white inputs on each side represent L & R for your cord. No confusion necessary... its color coded unless you're colorblind. I don't know how that would work.

The headphone body is stainless steel, the earphone cups are an (anodized) aluminum alloy, and its cushioned with leather in the headband and ear cups... it feels nice and soft. Which brings me to the comfort and a con for me (personally). While they do feel good, I have a lower tolerance wearing these compared to the 1More Spearhead VR headphones from a previous review. Don't get me wrong, I can wear these for hours but... I don't know, these feel a bit firmer... pressed around the ear. This isn't something everyone will feel... but I use headphones often.

Literally, I use headphones so much so... that I'll share one of my tips with you: I extend the headphones when I want to decrease the pressure around the upper area around the ear, and the opposite for the lower area. This helps me with over-ear headphones. You can dance back and forth or just take them off once you've gotten your wear out of them for that point in time. Even if you don't wish to have them on your ears the entire time... based on your tolerance level. These are DJ-style headphones with cups that swivel... so you can just wear them around your neck. I appreciate this feature being added to these fold-able headphones because... I hate wearing portable headphones that don't swivel. You need the ability to turn your head and headphones that lack this ability sort of prevents that and it feels uncomfortable to me. So this is another thumbs up.


Price wise... these headphones come in at a solid $249, and based on the quality of the manufacturing + sound + comfort... they're worth it. There are certain headphones I can only wear for maybe an hour, some less than 30 minutes, so... I'm not going in on these too hard for 2 - 3+ hours. I'm not even including the design in the value of these headphones at that price, but the design is a plus. They look nice (and they won't look odd when paired with a suit)... so you aren't stuck with headphones designated for the studio based on appearance, even if they can be used in that setting.

Overall, the 1More Triple Driver over-ear headphones are a nice clean looking pair of headphones that you can use in various settings... and they're also clean in regards to sound playback. The price is on the money and the manufacturing makes me confident that you will more than get your money's worth.


Sound 5
Quality 5
Comfort 3
Price 5

4.5 out of 5 Cool Points


Brought to you by the... Baby Fu Clothing Co!
These headphones were supplied by 1More for the purpose of this review!