Enjoying a Portable Record Player Lifestyle, Part 3: Experience a New Way of Listening to Records with the KORG handytraxx play!

The KORG handytraxx play is a record player that lets you casually enjoy record playback.
In Part 1, I introduced LPs you’d want to listen to while relaxing and enjoying a cup of tea as you gaze at the handytraxx play.
In Part 2, I showcased 7-inch singles that make great conversation starters when getting together with friends.

• A Guide to the Portable Record Player Lifestyle 5 Tea-Time LP Records to Enjoy with the KORG / handytraxx play
• A Guide to the Portable Record Player Lifestyle Part 2 Legendary 7-Inch Singles to Spark Conversation with the KORG / handytraxx play

And now in this part, I’ll introduce the various features built into the handytraxx play that allow you to not only listen to records, but also add a new layer of color to the sound itself.
If you’re someone who’s been curious about trying scratching, these features will draw you deeper and deeper into the world of this record player!

Delay

Simply put, this function adds reverb to the sound of your records. When used on melodic tracks, it can even create an ambient or shoegaze-like atmosphere!

If you suddenly stop the record while the delay function is ON, the sound at the moment you stopped will echo out—ba-ba-ba—like a mountain echo.

Let’s also try tweaking the two knobs available in the delay function.

Depending on the track, adjusting the TEMPO knob can give you a totally different kind of coolness compared to the original music.

Also, quickly turning this knob from left to right can create an effect somewhat like a scratch. It’s like a special audio trick.

The FEEDBACK knob adjusts the length (or number of repetitions) of the delay effect.

This knob also controls the echoing sound when you suddenly stop a record, as mentioned earlier.

Filter

Press the TYPE button to choose from three types of filters, and use the left knob to adjust them.

When you press the button, the LED changes color.
For example, with the green LED lit, turning the knob to the left gradually muffles the sound.
You’ve probably heard that kind of muffled beat in trance music—it gives you exactly that kind of filtered sound.
Also, when the LED is green, moving the knob back and forth gives you a wah-like effect.

With the orange LED setting, turning the knob to the left gives you a bass-heavy sound with the main instruments still loud and present.
Turning it to the right gives you a unique sound that seems to cut out just the melody with main instruments or vocals only.

With the red LED lit, turning the knob to the right gives you a tone somewhat like a theremin.
Turning it to the left gives you a filtered theremin-like sound.
If you speed up a blues record and use this function, you might get something like anarchic blues in the style of Jon Spencer!

Now, there are many other interesting features, but first, I would like to play around with these two easy-to-enjoy functions using three hit rock songs!

01. Fleetwood Mac / Albatross

Early Fleetwood Mac—this melodic, breezy slow instrumental from 1968 is exactly what it sounds like.
It’s said to have even influenced the Beatles’ “Sun King”.
Let’s start playing around with it on the handytraxx play!

Set the FILTER TYPE button to red and turn the knob left and right—
as I mentioned in the feature explanation, the wah-like effect truly blossoms with this track!
It really paints a picture of being underwater.
Turning the knob all the way to the right creates a flood of tremolo.
Raising it gradually builds into a beautifully uplifting moment.
Since it's a quiet track, I kept the delay button and tempo adjustments subtle and I really enjoyed it that way.

02. Roxy Music / Virginia Plain

Roxy Music’s debut single that’s one of their signature hits.
With its disco-like upbeat rhythm and rich, fantastical synth sounds clashing with slightly mysterious, dandyish vocals, what happens when I play around with this track?

Playing it with delay ON, even during the break sections, creates a storm of echoing vocal delays, and the instrument sounds that should’ve already stopped also linger and resonate.
Honestly, that alone really brings the energy up!
The highlight during the guitar solo, I set the FILTER LED to red,
then wildly swing the knob left and right—
Suddenly, a theremin-like sound takes flight across the dancefloor!
I might just say this single alone is reason enough to buy the handytraxx play.

At the final break, if you stop the record and let the delay loop out the sound,
you’ll have a super cool custom version to end on.

03. Joy Division/Love Will Tear Us Apart

A legendary song by one of the most iconic bands of the post-punk era.
Some might feel hesitant about playing such a sacred track in a club-style setting,
but based on my personal belief that UK rock and club culture are inseparable,
I think using the handytraxx play to explore different ways of expressing the greatness of this song is one of the many free and fun ways to enjoy rock music!

First, in the intro, I set the FILTER TYPE switch to red, and slowly turned the knob from left to right.
Then, right as the keyboard comes in, I bring it back to the center.
That buildup created such a sense of joy—it felt like it was elevating the song’s dynamism.

As the track approached the ending, I gradually added delay,
raised the TEMPO and FEEDBACK, and for the final touch, swung the filter knob left and right intensely.
It felt like I was staging a musical out of this song. What a blast!

Now, over these three parts, I’ve enjoyed exploring the KORG handytraxx play,
and I really felt that it's a portable player that offers so many ways to enjoy music—
whether it’s just watching records spin as you relax and listen,
gathering with friends to chat about music over records and a meal,
or casually enjoy DJ-like play.

The ways to enjoy the handytraxx play I introduced here are just the beginning.
Why not create your own rich and fulfilling vinyl lifestyle with the handytraxx play?