My housemate is going to Japan, what should I get him to pick up for me?

I want some nice electronic music gear. Does anyone know any good places to check out stuff like a Space Echo or an MS10 or 20?

This maybe should have been in I Make Music, but I reckon people who don't check that forum might know somewhere there for pro-audio or vintage consumer electronics?

He'll be in Tokyo.

Anything I should pass on to him to check out is welcome also.

i'm not a musician but when i was there i thought koenji seemed a good neighbourhood for shopping for both music gear and vintage electronics, plus it's full of cool little bars w/ live music etc. definitely worth exploring.

Where will he be staying in Tokyo? Does he talk Japanese? Tokyo isn't that difficult if you don't speak Japanese but outside Tokyo it is harder.

Food is awesome, he'll have no problem gorging on food without gaining any weight. :-) (Then again, when I was there the first time I did manage to gain weight. hah)

My parents live in Nakameguro. I... like the place but been there so many times, my desire to go back has evaporated really.

all my male friends who have gone to japan gained weight while there! apparently it's hard to resist proving yr manliness by eating the biggest bowl of rice available on the menu.

There was a big fuss about three years ago over the "PSE law" - an electrical safety law that was updated to make it very very hard for retailers to sell or re-sell electronic/electrical goods that didn't have the PSE mark (like a kite mark, a guarantee of basic safety, brought in in 2001) on them. People complained, obviously, and they re-worded the law, but I'm not sure quite how (something to do with installing pse-certified adaptors?)-- if your housemate's going vintage gear shopping, it'd be best to know how that law works out in reality. There are a few guides on vintage gamer sites, i think?

get him to pick u up some sushi and some shmups