talkmagic.co.uk

What a superb review!

Sorry to bump this, but I always tend to wait a while, for reviews to stack-up' before getting the 'latest/greatest' thing on the market.

That's me sold - no doubt!!

I'll add some thoughts of my own when mine arrive

Rob

I have had these for a few weeks and I must say the system took me ages to get used to....still getting used to. Saying this though it conversely means that a spectator wont see anything untowards at all.
I've only managed to test this out on friends and have had good reactions if a little less than expected but this is completely because they know me well and know it isn't because I have mystical powers.
I am sure that once I have tried some of the ideas on an M.O.P (member of the public) in which I can create more of an atmosphere of mystery that these will go down a storm.

Righty-ho!

Well, I've had my BESP2 for around a week now, so thought I'd drop a few comments into the mix.

As others have already commented upon, the quality of both the props and the booklet really are first-class and, in some ways, it's actually quite difficult to see how MagicBox are able to put these out for anything less than £20 and still make a profit

It is, perhaps, a shame that - as originally-planned - the cards cannot be used with a s/sharpie (hopefully we'll see that addressed with BESP3 ), but certainly doesn't detract from any of the solid routines as supplied.

Like other buyers, I spent a good 10 minutes examining the cards, to see if I could figure out the marking-system - bloody hell, it's clever! After giving up, and flipping to the relevant page, I was up-to-speed within 15-20 minutes; folks who say they have trouble 'seeing' the marks really could do with visiting the optition (no disrespect intended, but I can't see how anyone would struggle, unless their vision really was quite poor).

Running through the deck for the first couple of practice-sessions is actually quite an odd experience - if you really did possess ESP-abilities, this is exactly what it would feel like, I suspect!

The supplied routines are fairly wide-ranging, and there's some great stuff there from Dobson, Osterlind and Banachek; the real jewel of the lot, however, is Murray's own 3SP - an absolutely spectator-flooring 3 phase routine, which builds nicely to an almost-impossible climax.

The only real critisism I could offer is that this is exactly the type of product that would benefit from it's own forum (much like the recently-opened 'Between The Lines' froum @ MagicBox); I've a strong feeling that there's so much scope for the development of additional effects, using this deck, that this seems to be a missed opportunity.

In short, however, I think you could say that I'm more than impressed with BESP2, and would recommend it in an instant, if mentalism is your thing

robstanley1 wrote:

Like other buyers, I spent a good 10 minutes examining the cards, to see if I could figure out the marking-system - bloody hell, it's clever! After giving up, and flipping to the relevant page, I was up-to-speed within 15-20 minutes; folks who say they have trouble 'seeing' the marks really could do with visiting the optition (no disrespect intended, but I can't see how anyone would struggle, unless their vision really was quite poor).

I worked out the principle, though not the details, of the system as soon as I took the pack out of its box. But I have great difficulty in using it reliably, and there's nothing wrong with my eyes - I went to the optician a couple of weeks ago.

Barry

Personally, I have had no trouble. However, I can see how some people may find it difficult to read them correctly and consistently. The marking system is very subtle and I think there is definitely a knack to it. I guess the more you use the cards, the easier it will become. I think it is an ingenious system and well worth the effort.
(Edited slighty by Mods to preserve the 'mystery' )

Well, it's happened twice so far, but I will have to be careful when talking to my TM chum, Mr Markdini.
Firstly he convinced me to purchase the Heirloom wallet and was 100% accurate as to how good it was and his peruasive talk pushed me over the threshold and now I have Beyond ESP2 in my possesion. (I shouldn't have recommended him those books on suggestion and hypnosis)

And I have to say, this is a fantastic tool which I'm sure will provide me with the inspiration to create some routines for it. I personally found it quite easy to notice the 'marks' (as such) after 20 minutes practice.

The system used is so subtle that a lay person will be totally floored. This could be used in such a convincing manner that you could convince almost anyone you're a genuine telepathist.

The astonishing thing is the value for money. This deck could be sold for twice as much and still represent a good value purchase. The booklet is well written and contains some excellent routines and the gaff cards, envelopes, etc provide you with all you need to perform these effects.

To think, my worst ever magic purchase (c) was only £3.00 less than this and it's streets ahead of many of the decks out there. I hope Mr Murray produces more effects of this high standard.
Magicbox were pretty high in my estimation before and they're even higher now. Superb.

I'm more than happy to echo Lord Freddies and others sentiments about these cards. I've had mine for a few weeks now and they are superb. Every now and then if my concentration lapses I mistake a 1 and 3 but only in practice when I'm tired and in poor light. I'm too alert to miss the subtleties during a performance. It's not as if you only have the opportunity of a fleeting glance during most 'experiments'. The quality and what you get far exceeds what many others pass off as value. I really don't want loads of YouTube types getting hold of these so hope the price shoots up and the rest of this review thread is full of comments about poor quality, extremely hard to master, takes weeks if not months of dedicated practice, lots of very long words in the accompanying booklet....

A must have for the mentalist fraternity.

The accompanying book really is excellent, 3SP is great but there's a move involved which is too 'cardy' for a mentalist routine. My current favourites which I'm enjoying performing are Mind Prowler ESPecial by Banachek and Richard Osterlind's Direct ESP.
Both are killer routines when performed well and when the system for each is learnt, leaves you with a lot of space for cold reading, dramatic performance etc.

i ordered one of these a few days ago, very excited about it's arrival based on the comments in this thread. also very pleased to read the accompanying book is worth owning!

Everything included is worth owning!

They've left no stone unturned here, you are even provided with envelopes for the prediction effects. Worth every penny.

Some of the best money on a magic deck you will ever spend. With a bit of practice, reading the cards will become natural and you can really perform mentalist miracles with these cards.

Hats off the Michael Murray for producing something that lives up to it's promises.

thanks for the further heads-up Freddie, looking forward to it! the "extras" in things like this are often c*** (not the best) used to help justify the cost, sounds like the extras here add EXTRA value.

NB. I agree, the original review was EXCELLENT. cost me money but excellent none the less.

The extras are not only good, but usable. What you receive sets you up to perform whatever routines you like with the deck without having to make anything else.
A lot of thought has gone into it and it's amazing the price it's being sold for. The booklet alone is excellent value. Not just obvious suggestions like
most of them are, but well thought out, usable routines from top mentalists.

I recieved this on Tuesday I think and I will say that these could be possibly the best buy of the year for me. In my eyes they are an absolute must for any mind reading magician. The system I think is easy to read and impossible to notice by speccy's. There are just limitless possibilities to these decks. I really can't praise these enough 10/10 from me.

You'll find that when you get a suspicious spec, their 'solutions' become more riduculous when they are the sort who want to fathom out how you are doing it. Marked deck theory goes right out of the window when they see the plain black backs.

Just wanted to thank everyone for the kind comments! I hope you all have as much fun as I have had with them.

Thought i'd share a funny little story about a recent performance of mine with the deck -

After performing the first stage of 3SP I was unable to continue the routine since the spectator and her husband demanded to know how i knew that they had recently made a big decision about where they were going on holliday!

The cold reading i gave (Those who have the booklet will understand) really hit them hard! It was one of those times where you just revel in the moment with a smug grin across your face!

Best Wishes Michael