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Company
 

• Q:  Where does the "Pilot" in Karaoke Pilot and what is the image of the airplane on your logo?
  A:  The "Pilot" in Karaoke Pilot comes from the fact that Mike, one of the founders of Karaoke Pilot, is a current US Air Force Reserve Pilot and served on active duty in the Air Force for over a decade.  The airplane image is a C-17A Globemaster III which was the last aircraft Mike flew in combat operations.  Mike has flown the C-17A Globemaster III, the C-21A (executive airlift Learjet), the T-1A Jayhawk, the T-37 Tweet, the T-38 Talon, as well as several civilian aircraft with over 2000 hours of flight time.
  
   
• Q:  There are others selling Karaoke burners on eBay and the internet.  Why should I buy from Karaoke Pilot?
  A:  Very simple!  The drives we sell are the best value on the internet!  If you purchase any drive from us and it doesn't work as advertised with all Power Karaoke software you will be entitles to a full refund.   (See our policies for details.) 

  We are also very experienced with Karaoke burning and it is our specialty to work with customers who are new to it.  with you, even if you are not familiar with this process to ensure you are happy with your purchase.  Furthermore, Karaoke Pilot is a member of the Better Business Bureau of Alaska, Oregon, and Western Washington.  Our site is certified by McAfee as being Hacker Safe so you can shop with us with peace of mind.  We are member's of Square Trade, eBay Power sellers and have been a member of the eBay and Paypal community for over 8 years.

  
   
• Q:  I recently sent an email to your sales (or other) department but did not receive a response, why?
  A:  We will always respond to customer emails within 1 business day and usually within a matter of hours.  If you have not received a response to your email within this time, your email client (Outlook, Outlook Express, Hotmail, etc) has likely marked our response as a "junk email".  You should be able to find it in your "Junk Email" folder.  You should also be able to avoid this problem by adding "@karaokepilot.com" to your safe senders list.  (Consult your email client's help for instructions on how to do this.) Note: Karaoke Pilot NEVER sends unsolicited email or SPAM so you can add us to your safe sender's with confidence.
  
   
• Q:  I recently sent an email to karaoke pilot via eBay's email system but have not yet received a response, why?
  A:  Sometimes we answer eBay questions from a Blackberry device by simply hitting reply.  This will show the email as originating from a karaokepilot.com account rather than eBay.  As mentioned in the above answer, please add "@karaokepilot.com" to your safe senders list to ensure you will receive all our emails. Note: Karaoke Pilot NEVER sends unsolicited email or SPAM so you can add us to your safe sender's with confidence.
  
   

Policies
 

• Q:  If I place an order today, when will my order be processed and ship?
  A:  We process and ship all orders based on a set shipping schedule which is detailed in our site's Terms and Conditions. As a general rule, you can expect your item(s) to ship the business day following when we receive your cleared payment.
  
   
• Q:  What is meant by "cleared" payment?
  A:  If you pay by a credit card, your payment will clear immediately afterwards. If you elect to pay by an eCheck, then your payment will likely clear within 3-4 business days.
  
   
• Q:  Why order an item listed as "out-of-stock" now?  Why not wait until the expected in-stock date to order?
  A:  When our stock of an item is replenished, we will fill orders for that item in the order they were received.  Some of our items are very popular and can be difficult to keep in stock.  Ordering now, rather than waiting, will help ensure you receive an item out of the next shipment.  As always, you have the option of cancelling your order up until the item is shipped.  (This does not apply to eBay listings which are not posted unless we have stock in hand.)
  
   
• Q:  Do you ship on Saturdays?
  A:  Not at this time.  Orders placed after 5PM (Pacific Standard Time (PST) on Thusdays will not usually ship until the following Monday (unless if Monday is a federal holiday).  Please contact us (before purchase) if you need for your item to ship sooner and we will be happy to inform you exactly when to expect shipment.
  
   
• Q:  What do you do with my name, email address, etc?
  A:  Any personal information such as your name, email, etc will be used for responding to questions you ask, providing you support, obtaining software unlock codes for which you have purchased, and processing orders.  We DO NOT sell your information to anyone or send any unsolicited emails to our customers.  Please see our Privacy Policy for more information.
  
   
• Q:  What do you do with my credit card information?
  A:  Karaoke Pilot does not directly collect any sensitive financial information including credit card information.  All our credit card processing is handled by Paypal (or Plimus for "Buy Now" software purchases) via secure servers.  They do not share your credit card information with us and they take significant measures to protect your information.  Please see our Privacy Policy for more information.
  
   

Service Plan
 

• Q:  Why purchase a service plan with my drive? Isn't there a manufacturer's warranty that applies?
  A:  The service plans we offer are designed to eliminate the hassle of a manufacturer's warranty claim as well as extend the period of coverage.  Your only expense would be shipping the drive back to us.  Making a claim is simple as well!  Just contact us within the warranty coverage period and we will take it from there!
  
   
• Q:  What is the price of a service plan?
  A:  Presently, the plans are available for only 15% of a drive's regular price.  Any additional items (including software) purchased with your drive do not affect the cost of the service plan.
  
   
• Q:  If I purchase an service plan, what is covered and for how long?
  A:  Service plans offer both primary and secondary coverage.  Primary coverage is in effect for one (1) year after drive purchase and covers 100% of any necessary parts and labor.  Secondary coverage is in effect from the moment primary coverage expires until three (3) years after the original drive purchase date.  Secondary coverage covers any labor charges associated with the drive repair, but not parts or return shipping.  Please review the complete service plan coverage for details.
  
   
• Q:  What is covered if I do not purchase a service plan?
  A:  Even if you do not purchase a service plan you are still entitled to some coverage.  Please review our web store policies for details.
  
   
• Q:  I live outside the United States, can I purchase a service plan?
  A:  No.  Service plans are only available to customers with US shipping addresses.  If you inadvertently purchase a service plan, your plan will be refunded when we process your order.
  
   

Products
 

• Q:  What is the Karaoke Software Suite CD?
  A:  This CD is an exclusive offering of Karaoke Pilot!  It contains product information and trial versions of all the Power Karaoke and Karaoke Pilot software we sell, a digital version of the Quick Start Guide and Power CD+G Burner User's Guide as well as a few other extras.
  
   
• Q:  What are the minimum system requirements for these drives and Power Karaoke software?
  A:  You should have no problems with running this software on a modern computer.  We recommend Windows XP or Vista, 1GHz processor, 512 MB of RAM, and a decent sound and video card. The software requires DirectX (latest version is recommended).   Some programs and drives have more restrictive requirements which are detailed on their respective information pages.
  
   
• Q:  What are the minimum system requirements for the external drives?
  A:  Meet the hardware requirements above and you must have an available USB 2.0 port. USB 1.1 ports may work, but the data transfer rates are too slow to practically burn CD+G discs (or any other discs for that matter).
  
   
• Q:  What are the minimum system requirements for the internal drives?
  A:  All the internal drives available from KaraokePilot.com are standard IDE/ATAPI drives and install no differently than any other IDE drive on the market.  You will need an free slot on an IDE cable in addition to an open 5.25" drive bay.  Most computers with less than four (4) drives installed between CD/DVD drives and hard drives should have a free slot on an IDE cable.  There are detailed instructions included with the internal drives that the average do-it-yourselfer could follow with success, but if you are not comfortable opening your computer case then we recommend the purchase of an external drive or professional installation by a local computer technician.
  
   
• Q:  Can I make Karaoke mix or compilation discs with these drives? (i.e. take 1 or more songs from one disc and 1 or more from another disc and combine them onto a single disc)
  A:  Absolutely and it is very easy to do with detailed, step-by-step instructions provided!
  
   
• Q:  Can I make copies of my Karaoke CD+G discs with these drives?
  A:  Yes, very easily!  (Detailed instructions provided)
  
   
• Q:  Can I make copies of ALL my karaoke discs with one of these drives and Power CD+G Burner software?
  A:  Power CD+G Burner will only recognize standard CD+G based discs (the most common karaoke format).  There are a few other new DVD based karaoke disc formats (such as Super CD+G) that for which Power CD+G Burner is not designed.  Standard CD+G is CD based technology that has been around for many years.  The newer DVD based technology has the benefit of holding potentially hundreds of songs on a single disc, but the formats are proprietary (not a universal standard) and are engineered to be difficult or impossible to copy.
  
   
• Q:  Can I rip my entire standard CD+G disc collection to my hard drive?
  A:  Yes!  You can rip karaoke songs from CD+G discs to your hard drive into the "MP3+G" or "BIN" format for burning later, or playback via a software karaoke player or karaoke hosting software.  Note: A very small percentage of discs employ a copy protection that Power CD+G Burner may not be able to overcome.  This is uncommon, but possible.
  
   
• Q:  Can I download karaoke music for burning with these drives online?
  A:  Yes,  there are a few sites where you can download karaoke music in the "MP3+G" format for burning with the drives and software available here at Karaoke Pilot.  We recommend our own Tricerasoft Portal, but you can also purchase karaoke music at CAVS and BuyKaraokeDownloads.com. 

  We DO NOT condone or offer any advice on how to obtain karaoke songs for free as this practice is a violation of federal copyright laws.

  
   
• Q:  Are there sites out there where I can download FREE karaoke music?
  A:  Any site claiming to offer FREE karaoke music is either a scam, or simply in violation of federal copyright laws.  There are a number of sites where you can download karaoke music legally including our own Tricerasoft Portal.  Legitimate karaoke download sites usually charge between $1-$2 per song to ensure the hard work that goes into creating this music is compensated.
  
   
• Q:  Can I play the Karaoke CD+G discs created with these drives on the professional Karaoke players used at Karaoke venues?
  A:  Yes you can.  The discs created with our drive when used with Power CD+G Burner and the settings we provide will work on virtually all professional karoake players (both the lyrics and music).  Note that a small number of karaoke players may require some "Trial and error" with the burn settings and music CD-R media.  A tiny number of karaoke players (we estimate less than 0.1% will not play discs burned with our drives and Power CD+G Burner regardless of what blank CD media or burn settings are used.  If you buy one of our drives and it will not work for you after a reasonable amount of troubleshooting, you are entitled to a refund subject to our Terms and Conditions.
  
   
• Q:  Can I play the Karaoke CD+G discs created with these drives on my home Karaoke player?
  A:  Yes!  Karaoke discs created with these drives will work on any Karaoke player, guaranteed!  (Certain home karaoke players read the graphics information differently than do professional players.  If you purchase one of our drives intending to burn discs for use on a home karaoke player the burn settings may require some slight modification, but it will still work.  If the standard settings we provide you do not work, please contact us at support@karaokepilot.com for assistance.)
  
   
• Q:  Can these drives replace my current drive?
  A:  Yes!  In addition to these drive's unique Karaoke reading/writing capability they also work wonderfully as standard CD and/or DVD drives!
  
   
• Q:  Do I have to use Power Karaoke software like Power CD+G Burner with these drives for it to work?
  A:  Not necessarily, we've tested it successfully with a few different software programs such as and Nero and Microstudio, but the Power Karaoke suite is by far the simplest and therefore the software we recommend and support.  There are some software programs that may not work with these drives due to using different methods to read/write CD+G sub codes, but we do guarantee Power CD+G Burner and other PowerKaraoke software will work.  See our Store Policies for details.
  
   
• Q:  Isn't CD+G Burning the same, regardless of what drive or software you use?
  A:  No!  Unfortunately, there are a few different ways for a software program to instruct a drive to read or write the CD+G sub codes.  These different methods are not always compatible with each other.  To further complicate matters, some of the older methods to access this sub code data are no longer supported be newly manufactured drives, including Plextor (which have traditionally been compatible with the older CD+G access methods).  There are still newer software programs that access CD+G using the original methods which can lead to a lot of confusion.  If you are not presently "tied" to a particular software program, then this is not important because our drives are designed to work with the Karaoke software we support.  If you are using a software program other than the software we support, you may have to change software or search for a refurbished or used drive that can access the CD+G sub codes using the older methods.
  
   
• Q:  What brand are these drives?
  A:  The drives we sell are either LITEON or HP drives and are all very high quality and include their respective manufacturers warranties.  The external drives are identical to their corresponding internal drive except they are professionally installed into an INOi enclosure, EXCEPT for the HP drive, which is installed by HP into a factory enclosure.
  
   
• Q:  What are the model number(s) of the drives you sell?
  A:  At this time, we do not reveal the model number of the drives we sell for two reasons:

  1. Drive manufacturers continually change the model number of their drives. We frequently will not know the exact model number you will receive until we are actually processing your order.  Model numbers can change as frequently as weekly.

  2. Part of what we offer our customers is a portion of the results of our extensive research and testing.  We have spent many hundreds of hours testing a large percentage of the drives on the market today and we maintain the resulting short list of the specific drive model numbers that will work with the software we offer as private proprietary information.

  You can rest assured that the drive you will receive will meet or exceed the specifications listed and will be of top quality and work as we advertise.

  
   
• Q:  Do your drives include karaoke burning software?
  A:  We do offer the full version of Power CD+G Burner as a bundle with our drives where specified.  (When clicking "Add to Cart" on a drive with the bundled software, Power CD+G Burner will be added to your cart as a separate entry along with the Power CD+G Burner User's Guide.  When making a purchase through our eBay store, the listings that specify "W/Software" do include a full license of Power CD+G Burner.  We also offer the full line of Power Karaoke software as the perfect compliment to our drives.)  Click here for a comparison chart for clarification.
  
   

Technical / Support
 

• Q:  I am not a computer expert, will you provide support to help me get started?
  A:  We provide excellent documentation with each drive we sell that is geared toward out customers who are new to karaoke software.  If a review of the Quick Start and/or Power CD+G Burner User's Guide we include does not provide you with success, we are here with extensive experience to help.  Just email us at support@karaokpilot.com, let us know what you're having difficulty with, and we'll steer you in the right direction.  Everybody can make Karaoke discs with these drives and software, and we'll assist you until you are successful!
  
   
• Q:  I have purchased and installed a Power Karaoke program from the Karaoke Software Suite CD, but I can't get the software to unlock.  What might I be doing wrong?
  A:  In order to unlock the software you must either enter, or copy & paste the name, email address, and unlock code exactly as they appear in your unlock code email. 

  Tip: You can also open the unlock code text file (or email containing your unlock code), press "CTRL-A" to select all the text, and then "CTRL-C" to make the text accessible to the program for which you are unlocking.  Now when you open the "unlock" window within the program, all the fields should be filled in.  If not, you may have to copy and paste them individually, or enter them manually.

  
   
• Q:  Why do I need a special drive for reading and writing CD+G (karaoke) discs?
  A:  CD+G is a special format of audio CD.  It utilizes a special portion of the disc, known as the "sub-codes" for storage of the graphics data which is used to display the lyrics on the screen.  Most CD and DVD burners are not engineered to read and write these sub-codes.  We have done extensive testing to determine which drives work and which don't.  We offer for sale some of the best drives available for reading and writing karaoke discs when used with the Power Karaoke software suite.
  
   
• Q:  I have a(n) XXXX model drive; will it work with Power CD+G Burner?
  A:  Possibly.  The only way to know for sure is to test it using the correct settings.  At a minimum, Power CD+G Burner must be set to use the "CDRDAO burning engine" with the "MMC-RAW driver" and "Raw subchannel mode".  If your drive can burn a karaoke disc using these settings without generating an error, than your drive is likely compatible.  You can test this using the trial version of Power CD+G Burner.  Of course, if your drive does not work, we guarantee ours will!  See our store policies for details.
  
   
• Q:  What is the difference between an internal and an external drive?
  A:  Internal drives must be installed into your computer which involves opening your computer case and connecting a few cables.  External drives are self contained units that do not require installation into a computer, but are connected via a USB cable in a matter of seconds.  External drives are also portable and can be relocated and used on a separate computer easily.

  All our drives, both internal and external, (once connected to your computer) burn karaoke music with the Power CD+G Burner software or play karaoke music with any of the karaoke player software in the exact same way.

  
   
• Q:  I purchased an internal drive and now I would like to use the drive on more than one computer or with a laptop computer.  What can you do for me?
  A:  You can purchase an external enclosure kit to convert your internal drive to an external drive compatible with USB 2.0.  Upon receipt of the kit, all you will need is about 5-15 minutes time and a Phillips head screwdriver.  Simple but detailed instructions are included as are all necessary cables including a USB cable.  If you are not comfortable with the installation and you purchased your internal drive within the last 30 days, we can do the conversion for you.  Please contact us for details.
  
   
• Q:  Why will my drive play a CD+G disc with Power CD+G Player Pro, but not burn a disc with Power CD+G Burner?
  A:  Many drives are capable of reading the "sub-code" data used for karaoke, but not capable of writing (or burning) it.  In order for a drive to burn a karaoke disc that will play in a professional karaoke player it must be burned using a specific method that very few drives are capable of.  Reading the "sub-code" data on a CD+G CD is much more straight forward for a CD or DVD drive.
  
   
• Q:  I purchased a drive at a retail store that stated it was compatible with CD+G on the box, but it does not seem to work with Power CD+G Burner. Why?
  A:  Your drive is likely using a different method than Power CD+G Burner to write the CD+G sub-codes.  There a few different software and hardware methods for writing CD+G sub-codes on blank CD media.   Successfully burning a CD+G disc requires a special drive AND software that when combined with the correct settings will yield a professional quality CD+G disc.  Karaoke Pilot is the only company offering all three of these (drive, software & settings) in one package.  We provide excellent documentation and support to get you burning karaoke CDs in no time!
  
   
• Q:  What blank CD media do I need to burn CD+G with your drives and software?
  A:  We recommend good quality "Music CD-R" media.  Sometimes it may take some trial and error to find the best media to work with your karaoke player, but Music CD-R discs will usually give excellent results and the most compatibility.  It is possible that standard CD-R discs will also work for you.  CD-RW media and and DVD media will NOT work to make CD+G compatible discs.
  
   
• Q:  I want to host a completely digital Karaoke show, what software and equipment do I need?
  A:  Digital karaoke shows are becoming more and more popular because they save you from transporting many discs and from having to replace discs frequently due to damage from normal use.  Hosting a digital karaoke show requires some equipment that will vary based on the scale of your show.  If you plan to host a very large show with 20+ singers and thousands of songs, you will want a full featured hosting solution than can manage singer rotations and song lists, in addition to the normal functions (playing karaoke songs, adjusting the key of the music, etc).

  If you are hosting a smaller show and would like features such as dual monitor support (one to manage the show, and the other to display the lyrics), play lists (for managing multiple songs), key transposition (to adjust the key of the music to match the singer's voice), recording capability (to record the singer's voice), etc, then we recommend the Siglos Karaoke Player/Recorder.  It is very reasonably priced for what it does and is a great tool for hosting relatively small karaoke shows.

  The Siglos Karaoke Player/Recorder works will all the drives available on this site and is compatible with the "MP3+G" format (the standard for digital karaoke tracks).  For more detailed questions about the required hardware and software for your specific situation, contact us and will will point you in the right direction.

  We also offer a new software program, Pilot Song Book Creator, that can be used hand and hand with Siglos Karaoke Player/Recorder to help you to more easily manage your karaoke song library while hosting a show.  You can simply drag songs from your easily searchable song library in Pilot Song Book Creator to the playlist window in Siglos saving considerable amounts of time!

  
   
• Q:  I received my external drive today in a box labeled "Media Burner..."  I thought I ordered a LITEON drive, what is this all about?
  A:  To offer the highest and most consistent quality we do two things:

  • We Install all our LITEON brand drives into an INOi enclosure (Model DW-560U).  These enclosures are of superb quality, are very quiet, and are a very attractive addition to your home or place of business.
  • We ship the enclosure with the professionally installed and tested drive in the original enclosure's box for the best possible protection during shipment.  We include all pertinent paperwork and software that came with the drive, along with the karaoke paperwork that we prepare specifically for our valued customers.
  
   
• Q:  Can I make Super CD+G discs with these drives and software?
  A:  Super CD+G discs are DVD based, not CD+G.  Power CD+G Burner does not support Super CD+G Discs.  The DVD drives we sell may be capable of creating Super CD+G Discs with software available from CAVS.  Click here for more info on how to do this.