My Experience with TrueLang – Affordable WordPress Translation Plugin

I’ve recently switched my website from Polylang to TrueLang, and I wanted to share my experience. I’m not getting paid for this recommendation. I simply think it’s a useful tool that even small businesses can afford.

Affordable AI translation

TrueLang lets you use your own AI API or the TrueLang API, which even includes free starting credits. There are several models to choose from, and Google Gemini Flash 3.6 has worked particularly well for me.

The best part? Translating my entire website, including the WooCommerce webshop costs less than one dollar per language.

Of course, the actual cost depends on the size of your website and the model you choose.

On top of that, you have the price of the plugin itself, which starts at $99 USD. It’s worth mentioning that this is a lifetime license. Subscriptions are a deal-breaker for me.

Useful tools and flexibility

TrueLang comes with a few features that make managing translations easier:

  • TrueLang Editor and Page Translation: Manually adjust individual parts of your website.
  • Fix Gaps: Find and translate strings that haven’t been translated yet.
  • Translation styles: Choose between Neutral and Contextual, which takes your brand voice into account. I’m using the neutral style and am happy with it.

Switching from Polylang

The migration from Polylang was automatic, including redirects for URLs that were no longer in use. That saved me quite a bit of work.

My website has been around for about ten years and has a few peculiarities. Theo, the developer behind TrueLang, was incredibly helpful whenever I ran into issues.

His support is probably what impressed me most. He’s smart, friendly, hardworking, and genuinely takes the time to help.

My conclusion

TrueLang does what I need at a very reasonable price. For my particular website, it was not a completely hands-off process, but very close to it. Whenever I ran into issues, Theo would immediately help. I already rate Truelang 5/5 and it is still getting better every week.

I’m not earning anything from this recommendation. I simply had a good experience, and I think Theo deserves some credit for building a useful tool and being so helpful.

Check out Truelang here: https://truelang.io/

US Shipping Is Back — Finally a Clean, Reliable Solution

We’re happy to share an important update: we can now ship to the United States again.

After months of searching, we’ve partnered with a small freight-forwarding company in Germany. They handle the entire export and customs process for us. As soon as the shipment enters the US, USPS takes over for the final leg — straightforward and without extra paperwork on your side.

All orders to the US now arrive duty paid, so there are no unexpected fees when your package is delivered. The shipping price stays at €9.99.

For customers outside the US, nothing changes. All other international destinations continue as usual.

This new solution finally provides us with a reliable way to serve musicians in the US again, and we’re delighted to have it in place.

All the best,
Dieter / Songbird FX

SOCIAL MEDIA: Please follow our Instagram and tag us whenever you post about your #birdcord or #birdcordpd.

New U.S. Import Fees

Due to a new U.S. executive order, international shipments under $800 will no longer be duty-free starting August 29. For the first (up to) 6 months, U.S. customs will charge a flat $80 fee on many small parcels — including Birdcords. After that, a more reasonable 15% tariff is planned.

👉 So if you’re in the United States, now’s the time to act.

💡 WHAT CAN YOU DO:

➡️ Order before August 12 to ensure delivery before the new rules take effect.

➡️ Stock up now — this may be your last chance to get Birdcords without extra cost. Order here

🌍 OUTSIDE THE U.S.?

No worries — these changes only affect U.S. imports. Customers in the EU, UK, Switzerland, Asia, and elsewhere can continue ordering as usual with no added costs or delays.

One excemption: Norwegian customers will need to pay a handling fee (around €4) and a modest VAT (typically €1–€4) when receiving their order. 

It looks like Songbird FX is facing tough times. I hope it won’t be too bad — and I truly appreciate your continued support. Thank you!

All the best,
Dieter from Songbird FX

SOCIAL MEDIA: Please follow our Instagram  and tag us whenever you post about your #birdcord or #birdcordpd.

birdcord pd 9v 12v 15v 20v power delivery songbird birdcable elektron battery mobile portable charger

PRESS RELEASE: New Birdcord PD-Series Finally Released

Songbird FX Introduces New Birdcord PD Power Cables

It‘s now possible to portably power musical devices via USB Power Delivery!

Molln, Austria – January 30, 2023 – Songbird FX has unveiled their new Birdcord PD power cables, designed for easily powering various audio devices from a USB Power Delivery charger.

Features:

  • 4 Different Voltage Versions
    9V, 12V, 15V, and 19-20V versions are available.
  • High Output Power
    With an output current of up to 3A, the Birdcord PD power cables are significantly more powerful than other USB power cables. That‘s enough current to power multi-effects pedals, 12V Elektron devices, amplifiers, synths, samplers, and all sorts of other demanding DC devices.
  • Play Your Music Outside!
    Get many hours of grid-independent and noise-free power by using a USB PD portable charger/power bank.
  • How Does It Work?
    The Birdcord PD makes use of the new USB Power Delivery (PD) fast charging standard. It communicates with the USB PD portable charger (or USB PD wall charger) to negotiate the desired output voltage. The voltage conversion then takes place inside the PD charger.

See the Birdcord PD demo video:

The new ‘Birdcord PD‘ power cables are the successor of the very popular series of ‘Birdcord USB‘ voltage converter cables. A lot of experience and customer feedback ran into their development to ensure highest practicability.

Each voltage version of the new Birdcord PD power cable is currently available at a price of €18.99 (approx. $20) directly from the Songbird FX webshop, where they provide fast and inexpensive worldwide shipping.

# # #

Songbird FX was founded in 2016 by hardware design engineer Dieter Höller in Molln, Austria. Their goal is to provide innovative portable power supply solutions for musical devices. Along with the new Birdcord PD (Power Delivery) power cables they also offer the original Birdcords, which are voltage converter cables for standard USB ports. Songbird FX are selling their products directly from their website. They provide fast and inexpensive worldwide shipping.

Birdcord PD Pre-Release

The new Birdcord PD series of converter cables is now available. It’s a brand-new concept based on the fast-charging standard USB Power Delivery (USB PD).

We decided to do a pre-release without social media posts, press releases, and advertising to gather valuable feedback from loyal customers before ramping up sales.

KEY FACTS

  • 9V, 12V, 15V, and 19-20V versions are available
  • significantly more power thanks to USB Power Delivery (enough to power multi-effects pedals, 12V Elektron devices, amplifiers, synths, samplers,…)
  • up to 3A output current
  • grid-independent power in combination with USB PD power banks

For more details check out the product descriptions of the specific voltage version you are interested in:

birdcord

Shipping restrictions for some countries

We get a lot of questions recently if ordering is still safe in times of the Coronavirus. The answer is yes. You can still order and we can ship your order, except for orders from some small islands. If you’re not sure you can contact us via email to get up-to-date information on your country or check the list of restricted countries here (CSV File “Letter Mail” written in German language).

As a precautionary measure, non-EU orders are being shipped as registered priority mails (with tracking number). Customers from EU countries now have a choice between unregistered shipping (Priority) and registered shipping (Registered Priority). Your order will be delivered by your country’s postal operator.

We observe the situation daily and update this post as soon as something changes. (Last updated in August 2022)

New Birdcords Finally Released! (USB→6V, USB→9V, USB→12V, USB→18V)

We just released the long-awaited new series of Birdcord voltage converter cables. It’s now possible to power your 6V, 9V, 12V and 18V devices from any USB port! Best use them in combination with ordinary USB power banks to get many hours of grid-independent and noise-free power! No more one-way batteries! No more hum, buzz and hiss!

Here’s a little demo video we made:

Details on the different voltage versions:

Birdcord USB→6V Converter Cable

  • Converts USB 5V DC (USB Voltage) to 6V DC
    Plug it into any USB port (wall chargers, computers, USB portable chargers,…) to power your 6-volt devices, more specifically devices in the range of 5.7V to 6.5V!
  • Compatible with Roland PSD devices
    Perfect choice for powering devices that would usually need the 5.7V PSD power supply from Roland. This includes many keyboards, amplifiers, and synthesizers like the Micro Cube GX, the Go Keys, the Cube 10GX, the JD-Xi Synthesizer and many more.
  • Technical Specifications
    Output voltage: 6V DC, peak output current: 1500mA, polarity: center negative, cable length: 55 cm (21″), output plug dimensions: DC 5.5 x 2.1 mm
  • More Infos

Birdcord USB→9V Converter Cable

  • Converts 5V DC (USB Voltage) to 9V DC
    Plug it into any USB port (wall chargers, computers, USB portable chargers,…) to power your 9-volt devices!
  • Compatible with Guitar Pedals, Mini Amps and more!
    The 2.1mm DC plug and the center negative polarity make the Birdcord compatible with the vast majority of guitar pedals out there. In addition, it can also be used for powering some mini amplifiers, keyboards, synthesizers, samplers, and more, including the Marshall MS-2, the Boss Katana Mini, the Roland SP404 Sampler, Cube Street, and Mobile Cube, and many more. With our optional Korg/Casio Adapter it can even power devices like the Korg Minilogue or the Casio CTK-1500.
  • Technical Specifications
    Output voltage: 9V DC, peak output current: 1000mA, polarity: center negative (Boss style polarity), cable length: 55 cm (21″), output plug dimensions: DC 5.5 x 2.1 mm
  • More Infos

Birdcord USB→12V Converter Cable

  • Converts 5V DC (USB Voltage) to 12V DC
    Plug it into any USB port (wall chargers, computers, USB portable chargers,…) to power your 12-volt devices!
  • Compatible with many different Portable Amps, Keyboards, and more!
    Perfect choice for powering all kinds of 12V devices, including devices that would usually need the power supplies Yamaha PA-130, and Yamaha PA-150, but also lots of devices from other manufacturers like Vox, Roland, Startone and more.
  • Technical Specifications
    Output voltage: 12V DC, peak output current: 750mA, polarity: center positive, cable length: 55 cm (21″), output plug dimensions: DC 5.5 x 2.1 mm
  • More Infos

Birdcord USB→18V Converter Cable

  • Converts 5V DC (USB Voltage) to 18V DC
    Plug it into any USB port (wall chargers, computers, USB portable chargers,…) to power your 18-volt devices!
  • Compatible with many Guitar Pedals and other Devices!
    Perfect choice for powering 18V audio devices. Especially overdrive and preamp circuits can often be powered with 18V which gives them more headroom than a common 9V power supply.  Some examples are the Pigtronix Philosopher’s Tone, the Fulltone OCD, the Headway EDM-1 and EDB-2 preamps and many more.
  • Technical Specifications
    Output voltage: 18V DC, peak output current: 500mA, polarity: center negative, cable length: 55 cm (21″), output plug dimensions: DC 5.5 x 2.1 mm
  • More Infos

Make sure to get your Birdcord now, here in the webshop. We provide fast and inexpensive worldwide priority shipping and although the pricing is in Euro, you can pay in any currency using your credit card or Paypal account.

Birdcord: New Packaging and Technical Upgrade

Almost one year ago the Birdcord USB→9V Converter Cable has been released and as you can imagine I learned a lot of things and got a lot of feedback from you since then. I now integrated these lessons into the Birdcord to offer you an even better product.

new packaging birdcord pouch velvet bag drawstring output current usb 5v dc to 9v converter cable 5v center negative boss style effects pedals tip negative

New Packaging: It turned out that the acryl box is very unpracticable because it’s hard to put the cable back in (too small). I now replaced it with a beautiful drawstring pouch with the Birdcord logo on it.

Cable Length: Due to popular demand I changed the cable length from 50cm (19.7″) to 55cm (21.7″).

Soft Start: Powering bigger devices like the Boss RC505 or RC300 Loopstations or the Digitech Trio+ from USB power banks has been a problem before because these devices need a very high initial current/startup current. Even though the Birdcord could handle this current the power banks would shut down. Not anymore! I now integrated a soft start circuit into the Birdcord that allows starting up these devices without overloading the power bank. It works with any USB power bank with an output current of 2A or higher (small devices still work from any USB port of course).

More Output Current: The new revision of the Birdcord is capable of a maximum output current of 1000mA@9V. Having said that I still recommend not drawing more than 700mA for permanent use to have some margin left for short current peaks and to ensure a long life of the Birdcord and your USB power bank.

Thank you all for your support 🙂
Dieter

P.S. I didn’t update the product pictures in the webshop yet because I’m going to release new voltage versions of the Birdcord very soon and will combine the photoshoot for all the different versions.

Great Reception Of The Birdcord | Product Of The Year

It has been about 7 months now since the release of the Birdcord USB to 9V Converter Cable and many musicians around the world already got one. Most use it to power their pedalboard, but there are also some who use it for powering synthesizers, drum machines, portable amplifiers and more. The feedback that I get is extremely positive. More than half of the sales come from recommendations. Thanks to everybody who bought a Birdcord, to everybody who provides me with feedback and product wishes and of course thanks to everybody who spreads the word online and offline, you are amazing!

Here’s an extract of the online reception of the Birdcord:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BgJIMuZAuiv/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet

 

Join The Power Supply Revolution! The Birdcord Can Now Be Ordered

Our newest innovative product, the Birdcord, is now available for purchase. The Birdcord is a USB to 9 Volt Converter Cable. It can power your 9 Volt guitar pedals (from any manufacturer) and mini amps from any USB source, be it a computer, a wall charger or a USB powerbank. Make sure to catch it at the lowered market entry price! Any questions? Write us to support@songbirdfx.com 

birdcord usb to 9v converter cable songbird fx join the pedal power supply revolution