There are several advantages of using the Musical Mushrooms in your singing bowls. Take a look at our blog post on the subject found here

The Musical Mushroom® unit has soft rubber feet and is simply placed at the bottom of the bowl. An optional silicone o-ring can also be placed underneath it.  A small exciter coil (similar to a speaker) needs to be secured to the inside wall of the bowl during a performance.  To do this, a small plastic threaded mounting disc is glued to the inside surface of the bowl using a small strip of special double-sided tape.  This disc can either be left inside the bowl permanently and won't affect its resonant characteristics should the bowl be played with a regular mallet.  It can also optionally be removed by applying a steady pressure with fingernails and won't damage or leave residue on the bowl.  Replacement discs can be purchased should they be required.  Once the disc is secured, the exciter is simply screwed onto it and can be unscrewed when no longer needed.

You may remove the Musical Mushroom® from the bowl and unscrew the exciter at any time to allow you to play it in the traditional manner using a mallet.  It is important to note that if you chose to leave the exciter mounted in place while using the mallet, the bowl's output will be dampened to a varying extent depending on the bowl's properties.  This dampening effect is more pronounced on very thin lightweight bowls and less pronounced on thicker heavier bowls.  As a result, we don't recommend using Crystal Tones / Alchemy singing bowls with super thin walls.  All other bowls such as frosted/colored/clear ones with thicker walls work well.  You can always use the mallet to strike the bowl while using the Musical Mushroom®.  However, rotating the mallet in the usual way around the rim of the bowl while using the Musical Mushroom® is unnecessary and will cause your arm to interrupt the gesture sensor light beam which is used to electronically control the bowl.  It is also possible to mount the exciter on the outside surface of the bowl and move the Musical Mushroom® outside the bowl.  In all cases, playing the bowls using the Musical Mushroom® itself is not a problem since it actively drives the bowl using its internal energy source rather than the mallet.

You don't necessarily need one Mushroom per bowl.  Some people only need a few Mushrooms to hold drone notes in their larger bowls in the background while they play their other bowls manually at the same time.  Others prefer the ability to play all their bowls using hand gestures so they install one mushroom per bowl.  It is a matter of personal preference. Just be aware that you should space your bowls about 1 bowl apart when they have mushrooms installed so the hand gesture sensors don't interfere with each other.  You might want to start with a few bowls at first and add more later on.

The Musical Mushroom® was designed to work with crystal singing bowls.  Metal singing bowls and gongs are not recommended because their irregular surfaces make exciter installation difficult and their more complex harmonic structures are less compatible with the Musical Mushroom's operating principle.

The Musical Mushroom® was designed to work with crystal singing bowls.  Generally speaking, all crystal singing bowls (frosted / colored / clear) work well with the Musical Mushrooms® with the exception of the higher end super thin-walled bowls like the Crystal Tones Alchemy which get dampened too much by the weight of the exciter and are not recommended.  They are also taller than other bowls and trigger the laser sensor on the tall rim edge unless the Mushroom is elevated from the bottom.

Not only can you control the bowl via hand gestures, but you can also control it via a direct USB Type C cable to a computer using the MIDI protocol.  3rd party Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) software can be used to control the singing bowl using MIDI (such as Ableton Live).  Perfect for live as well as pre-scripted shows!

A pair of hand reflectors (or reflective wrist band) is included in every kit.  The hand reflectors are simply used to improve the strength of the reflected light pulse from the laser range sensor to detect the hand position.  Most people don't need it at all.  The main scenario where it might be needed is when playing your bowls from a standing position where your hands are farther away or if the light level in the room is very high.

The Musical Mushroom® uses invisible infrared light pulses to measure the position of the hand using a time-of-flight technique.  Because these light pulses are very faint and sunlight has a lot of infrared energy, it interferes with the operation of the sensor and therefore it is not recommended to use outdoors in full sunlight.  Indoor use is best.

The Musical Mushroom and Whisperer units are both charged using a standard USB Type C cable and wall charger adapter included in the kits.

The Musical Mushroom® is sold as an electronic musical instrument enabling users to mechanically vibrate an existing musical instrument in response to hand gestures.  It is NOT a healing instrument.  We do not claim to heal, cure or ameliorate any health condition with this equipment. It is the client's responsibility to do their own research and seek professional medical advice in every instance. No individual should use the information found on this web page for self-diagnosis, treatment, or justification in accepting or declining any medical therapy for any health problems or diseases.  Any person using or reselling Musical Mushrooms® and making any such claims are not endorsed or condoned by us.

We have directly tested dozens of bowls outfitted with the Musical Mushrooms over many years and have never damaged a bowl as a result. We also have shipped units worldwide for a several years to hundreds of users without incident. We also do NOT recommend using high-end bowls with very thin walls like the Crystal Tones Alchemy series as is indicated on our website.Although extremely rare, it is always possible that crystal bowls have some internal imperfections leading to damage (whether using the Musical Mushrooms or not). It is also possible that a user accidentally drops a Mushroom, mallet or exciter into their bowl during setup causing accidental damage. Those are standard risks associated with crystal bowls and not specific to the use of the Musical Mushrooms.

Yes, the Musical Mushroom and Whisperer both support the MIDI protocol over USB.  MIDI stands for Musical Instrument Digital Interface.  It is a standard for connecting musical gear to a computer or to another MIDI device.  MIDI over USB is the modern standard which replaces the bulky 5-pin legacy cables of the past with a USB cable, allowing your computer to talk to your instrument.  MIDI over USB does not transmit audio. It sends digital data—essentially a high-speed stream of instructions—telling your instrument exactly how and when to play a sound.   Each Musical Mushroom has a built-in USB port which supports the MIDI over USB protocol as an output device.  This allows MIDI instructions sent to it by a computer to control the ON/OFF state of the bowl as well as its volume in real-time for more complex wave-like modulation effects.  The same USB cable also powers the Musical Mushroom (or Whisperer) keeping its internal battery fully charged during a performance. ​ The Whisperer can be optionally used as a transparent wireless MIDI bridge broadcasting MIDI messages to all its paired Musical Mushrooms (bandwidth limitations apply, wired USB connection is recommended for best performance and reliability).

You may purchase all of our latest products directly from our online store. We ship Worldwide from Canada! Your local retail sales taxes, tariffs and duties will be collected by DHL or UPS on delivery depending on your specific country. By purchasing directly from our website, you get:Lowest advertised price (*taxes, tariffs, duties extra).Latest product versions.Free power plug adapter for your destination country. Direct support for our products from us.We also have a number of distribution partners in various countries which eliminate local import fees. Some of them even have showrooms allowing you to try before you buy! *Please note that distributors set their own pricing in their respective market in consideration of import fees, local marketing and support costs. ​If you purchase your product through a distributor, you need to get local technical support from them and also follow their policies for any product returns.

I get this question from time to time, and it's a fair one.At first glance, the Musical Mushroom looks like a small electronic device, so it's easy to compare it to mass-produced gadgets. But it's actually a very specialized musical instrument that's built for a tiny niche of musicians and sound practitioners.Unlike consumer electronics that are made by the tens or hundreds of thousands, I build the Musical Mushroom by hand in relatively small batches. That means nearly everything costs more—from the electronic components and custom parts to manufacturing and packaging.Every unit is also assembled, programmed, calibrated, and thoroughly tested before it leaves my shop. That takes time, but it's the only way I can be confident that it will work properly when it arrives.Another thing people don't often see is the years of development behind the product. The Musical Mushroom didn't happen overnight. It took countless hours of designing, prototyping, writing firmware, testing different ideas, and refining the product until it performed the way I wanted it to.The price also covers much more than the hardware itself. It helps pay for ongoing product development, customer support, documentation, warranty service, packaging, and all of the behind-the-scenes work that goes into running a small manufacturing business.My goal has never been to build the cheapest product on the market. I'd rather build something that is reliable, performs well, and lasts for years.I know the Musical Mushroom is a significant investment, and I genuinely appreciate everyone who chooses to support a small independent Canadian business. Every purchase helps me continue improving the product and developing new ideas for the sound healing community.EricPresident & FounderMusical Mushroom Inc.

Purchases on our website ship Worldwide from Canada. The billing transaction will be billed in Canadian Dollars ($CAD).  If you do not reside in Canada, the final amount billed to your credit card in your local currency will be converted by your credit card provider.  The currency converter provided on this site is simply an estimate for your convenience provided by www.xe.com but doesn't represent the exact final amount billed by your credit card provider.

All products are shipped from Canada.  If you purchase goods from us for delivery to a destination outside of Canada, your purchase WILL BE SUBJECT TO YOUR LOCAL TAXES, TARIFFS AND IMPORT DUTIES COLLECTED BY THE CARRIER (UPS/DHL) UPON DELIVERY TO REMIT TO YOUR LOCAL GOVERNMENT.  You are responsible for paying any such duties, taxes, tariffs or brokerage fees.  Please contact your local customs office for more information before making a purchase.  We are not responsible for the payment of any such duties or taxes and are not liable for any failure by you to pay them.  ​​Below are some general guidelines based on past customer purchases.  However, they are NOT a guarantee as international trade regulations are subject to change at any time.  Please verify this before you purchase. ​​​​CANADIAN CUSTOMERS:  For domestic shipments within Canada, standard HST/GST will be collected at checkout based on the destination province.  No additional fees will be collected by the carrier (UPS/DHL) for domestic shipments.​UNITED STATES CUSTOMERS:  Depending on your state, your standard local state tax should be collected by the carrier (UPS/DHL) along with a small nominal duty fee.  The tariffs seem to be ever evolving, but generally speaking, as of May 2025, USMCA goods from Canada are tariff exempt (please confirm before you purchase).  Our goods are assembled in Canada and USMCA qualified.  We provide a certificate of origin.  By purchasing, you agree to be responsible for these fees.​AUSTRALIAN CUSTOMERS:  Please be aware that, as a general guideline, any products imported into Australia worth over AUD$1,000.00 are subject to 10% GST + 5% duty + brokerage fees which can amount to approx. 20% fees due upon import collected by the carrier (UPS/DHL).  If you are a registered business entity, make sure to use your business name on the order page so that it appears on the commercial invoice along with your ABN/VAT number.  By purchasing, you agree to be responsible for these fees.​UNITED KINGDOM CUSTOMERS:  Standard 20% VAT will be collected by the carrier (UPS/DHL) along with a small nominal duty fee.  If you are a registered business entity, make sure to use your business name on the order page so that it appears on the commercial invoice along with your VAT number.  By purchasing, you agree to be responsible for these fees.​​EUROPEAN CUSTOMERS:  As a general guideline, you can expect to have your local retail sales tax (VAT or equivalent) collected upon delivery by the carrier (UPS/DHL) along with a small nominal duty fee.  By purchasing, you agree to be responsible for these fees.​

This Limited Warranty applies to physical goods, and only for physical goods, purchased from Musical Mushroom Inc. (the "Physical Goods").   This Limited Warranty covers any defects in material or workmanship under normal use during the Warranty Period.  During the Warranty Period, Musical Mushroom Inc. will repair or replace, at no charge, products or parts of a product that proves defective because of improper material or workmanship, under normal use and maintenance.  Musical Mushroom Inc. will either repair the Product at no charge, using new or refurbished replacement parts.  The Warranty Period for Physical Goods purchased from Musical Mushroom Inc. is 180 days from the date of purchase. A replacement Physical Good or part assumes the remaining warranty of the original Physical Good or 180 days from the date of replacement or repair, whichever is longer.   This Limited Warranty does not cover any problem that is caused by: conditions, malfunctions or damage not resulting from defects in material or workmanship.  To obtain warranty service, you must first contact us to determine the problem and the most appropriate solution for you.

Worldwide Dealer Purchases - Products purchased through our authorized worldwide dealers are subject to the dealer's own return and refund policies in their respective territory. These policies are independent of Musical Mushroom Inc. and are not controlled by us. Please contact your dealer directly to inquire about their return policy prior to purchasing.Direct Website Purchases - If for any reason you are not 100% satisfied with your purchase from our website, you may return it within 30 days of the original purchase date in 'like new' condition for a refund, subject to the following conditions:Request an RMA — You must contact us at contact@musicalmushroom.com prior to returning any item to obtain a Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA) number and return shipping address. Returns received without an RMA number will not be accepted.Return Shipping — Return shipping costs, including any brokerage fees, are at your expense.Inspection — Once your returned item is received, it will be inspected to verify it is in 'like new' condition. Items that show signs of use, damage, or are missing components may not qualify for a full refund.Refund Amount — Approved refunds will be issued for the original purchase price in Canadian dollars (CAD), minus the original outbound shipping fee charged to deliver the product to you.Tariffs, Taxes & Import Fees - Musical Mushroom Inc. ships all website orders from Canada. Any tariffs, import duties, local sales taxes or brokerage fees paid to your shipping courier upon import into your country are your responsibility and are non-refundable by us. You may apply for a refund of these charges directly through your country's customs office, however Musical Mushroom Inc. does not submit or manage customs refund requests on behalf of customers.

Buzzing sounds are usually indicators that the maximum volume is set too loud, leading to clipping. Here is a video explaining how to resolve the issue:

Calibrating a bowl is a complex operation that includes many variables. Every bowl is different, so it is possible that the calibration finds several resonant frequencies of your bowl but selects the wrong one by default. Usually, if that happens, you will feel the bowl vibrating but not hear it very loudly. This is usually fixed by pressing MENU 4 times until "SELECT RESONANT FREQUENCY", then press SELECT, then press SAVE. This simply moves up to the next found resonant frequency.If that doesn't solve it, here is a comprehensive tips and tricks found on our support page stepping you through every step to try and even doing a manual calibration when all else fails.

One of the most common support questions we receive goes something like this:"My bowl is a 432 Hz bowl, but the Musical Mushroom calibrated it to 513 Hz. Is something wrong?"Or sometimes:"I thought my bowl should measure 440 Hz. Why is the Musical Mushroom finding 349 Hz?"The good news is that nothing is wrong. In fact, if your Musical Mushroom is finding a frequency other than 432 Hz or 440 Hz, it's probably doing exactly what it should. The confusion comes from a very common misunderstanding throughout the sound healing community: people often confuse a tuning reference with a bowl's actual resonant frequency.Please read our full blog post on the subject found here.

The Musical Mushroom is able to drive any bowl frequency between 100Hz and 1,500Hz. However, when using the automatic calibration feature, the Musical Mushroom will only seek resonant frequencies in the range between 150Hz to 1,500Hz. It will ignore the very low frequency range between 100Hz to 150Hz, which corresponds to C3 or D3 bowls which are at the lowest end of the range of typical signing bowls. The reason it does this is that other resonances are often found in this range due to cable vibrations which don't belong to the bowl. This can result in a miscalibration where the Mushroom vibrates the bowl at an incorrect frequency (the bowl vibrates but does not make a loud sound). In order to improve client experience, this frequency range is being intentionally skipped to minimize the chance of this happening.For those users who have low frequency bowls in the 100Hz to 150Hz, the good news is that it is possible to manually calibrate the Musical Mushroom to access this range. This is done using a computer and a USB cable. You need to know the exact resonant frequency of the bowl. If you don't already know the frequency, you can use an Android app called Spectroid to measure it. Alternatively, we can measure it for you if you email us a 5 second video or audio clip of you tapping the side of your bowl 5 times and then making it sing. Once you know your bowl's exact resonant frequency information, you can simply follow the video above to guide you through the process or alternatively read the document below starting at section (9) on STEP 2.