Beamz – Laser Beam Music Performance System
March 30, 2008 
27 Comments
The Beamz is a laser-based invention that is connected to a computer via USB. This allows you to play hundreds of musical instruments in a true Jean Michel Jarre style by breaking the laser beams with your hands.
The beamz system has a “W” shape, with six laser beams spanning the two sections; connect via USB to your PC or laptop, and hook up some speakers. The simple, intuitive computer interface makes it easy to choose any of 30 included songs in 19 musical genres for laying down a complementary rhythm track. The beamz library includes original works in jazz, bluegrass, classical, hip-hop, reggae, heavy metal and more.
Breaking the laser beams with your hands automatically generates pre-authored pulses, streams, riffs or loops of musical notes or sounds from an incredible variety of instruments from around the world — guitars, steel guitar, strings of all types, percussion, keyboards, winds.even cowbell. Sophisticated high-fidelity sounds seem to pour from your fingertips like magic!
The Beamz Music Performance System stands 19 inches tall and is available from The Sharper Image for $599.95 (software and USB cable is included).
Saw your earlier post about the beamz – that fascinating new music laser product.
Check out the beamz in action on this brand new You Tube video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpDZ3WotLXY
And the Web site just went live:
http://www.thebeamz.com
The product will be available in Sharper Image stores in 2 weeks.
Very cool, thanks a lot for the links Megan!
A post with the video and info about the new website is now up here.
UPDATE: The beamz is now $499.95 and can be purchased through the company’s site: http://www.thebeamz.com. You can download and purchase additional songs there as well.
Thanks for the update Matt!
Here’s another update: This gadget is still incredibly lame. Just check out the slam it got on Gizmodo(though I think they were being too kind by half). Surely anyone with 5-600USD burning a hole in their pocket can think of better things to spend it on than this junk. This is another sign of the endtimes. After we’re gone and a highly evolved alien races comes to settle and repopulate Earth, they might come across the promo video for this and wonder why and how humanity didn’t destroy itself earlier.
LOL, you’ve got to be kidding me! this thing costs $499? And that’s after a price cut? Haaaave mercy!
“The Beamz is a laser-based invention that is connected to a computer via USB. This allows you to play hundreds of musical instruments in a true Jean Michel Jarre style by breaking the laser beams with your hands.”
- I can’t imagine how great it is! Can you imagine playing play hundreds of musical instruments in that laser beam. Isn’t great!