A few weeks ago, I wrote a post about a magic prop that broke. That prop was ProMystic‘s Inception, so not a prop that can be easily fixed. I’ve had this prop for probably close to a decade, and this is the second time I’ve sent it to them; the first time, I cracked the screen. That’s a long life for a prop that performs as much as I do!
I just got my unit repaired until back from ProMystic and it works great!
They do a great job servicing their items, and the fix plus shipping was super cheap…and fast! It’s always great to have people who make products that can provide service for them after the initial sale. Many magic manufacturers will just tell you to buy a new one, which I understand; sometimes it’s cheaper/easier to replace than repair. It’s always a bonus when when I can just have the existing one fixed!
When a magic prop breaks, what is your plan? I’m not talking about if it breaks during a show, but while you’re on the road traveling. Recently, I got to a gig and was setting up, and the prop wasn’t working. It’s an electronic prop, and if you’ve read this blog, you know that I try to use analog methods whenever possible. However, there are times when an electronic prop is the best way to do it. I’ve planned what to do if they fail during the show.
At the show recently, I was setting up and noticed that I had left my Inception unit on, so it needed to be charged. After charging it, I got this screen:
That’s not good. That’s where my backup plan kicks in. I have a Blackbox Magic Mental Voice in my case. This is my emergency backup unit, as my routine is an 8 minute chunk of my show, so a large part of the show.
I’ve had the Inception since it came out; I was part of the preorder, so I’ve had this for a long time! I sent it back for a repair once because I managed to crack the screen. I have a feeling that it may be time to buy a new unit. This one has served me well for YEARS! I’ve contacted ProMystic’s customer support, so we’ll see what my options are for repair. They do a good job supporting their product after the sale, unlike many magic companies!
When Promystic’s Inception came out many years ago, I immediately got it. My routine with it has become a highlight of my show! It like everything about it, the only downside (and I don’t really think this is) is the price. The unit is about $1k, and for me it’s totally worth it! I use the heck out of it!!
I’ve been looking for a solution for a back up that’s not quite as expensive. Basically I want a unit that I can have around in case of an emergency and something happens to my Inception. In the past I’ve tried Alien Mind Reading and Echo. I didn’t like either of them because they required you to be connected to your phone via bluetooth. The more things you have attached and more connectors the more than can go wrong. Promystic’s Inception is a stand alone unit, there’s nothing additional you need and it’s not wireless connected to anything.
Recently Mental Voice by Blackbox Magic Creations came out and priced at about $200. It’s a stand alone unit and I would say it’s basically a stripped down Inception that’s got a few design flaws.
Here’s what I don’t like about Mental Voice:
It doesn’t have any sort of low battery indicator. They say it will last a month or so with regular use. I don’t want to have to remember which day it was charged last or how many shows its done since it’s last charge.
It has a physical volume sliding lever. This lever sticks out and the volume setting is easy to accidentally change.
The shape of very thick and kinda round near the metal panel. This shape make it difficult to get the bone conductor flat against the person’s head. It’s not hard, but you have to pay attention.
If you have more than one message on it, it’s clunky to toggle between them. If you want to use track #1 for your first show and track #2 for the second and don’t have access to a computer you’ll need to push a button twice for the second track. While this doesn’t sound like a big deal, during a show it is. There’s no feedback (haptic) or visual that you’re on the correct track.
Can’t use other props with it. I know I said that I prefer props that don’t have external things connected to it and that’s true. However I’d be lying if I said I’ve never used Inception‘s ability to connect to other Promystic devices. Mental Voice isn’t compatible with other magic/mentalism props.
With that said, I would say that Mental Voice is Inception with 1/5 of the features for 1/5 of the price. It’d be a good intro to using a bone conduction gimmick to work out a routine before investing in Promystic’s Inception. Then the Mental Voice becomes your emergency back up unit. I play on keeping my Mental Voice, but it will be my backup unit.
One more thing, I would NOT recommend buying direct from Blackbox Magic. I ordered from them it was a sh*t show getting the product shipped to me. I may write a blog post about my horrible experience dealing with Blackbox Magic. Murphy’s now distributes it, so order it from a dealer like Hocus-pocus.com or another reputable dealer.
