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The Keyboard Corner
Synths, pianos, software, analog, digital, modeling, virtual instruments, programming tips - this is the place on the web for discussions, debates, opinions and assistance...and the occasional sports thread.
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Trending posts on MPN
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Yep, bad guys will find out who is their real boss. -
By Aynsley Green · Posted
Ah, clearly I am not up to date. Gave the new Crumar Classic a look - does sound pretty good, and quite a bit cheaper, but not a full set of drawbars, and still looks a bit ugly. -
By Dave Weiser · Posted
After leaving Kurzweil R&D full time in 2013, I experimented with creating and selling sounds for Kurz boards. I quickly found that there just wasn't enough volume to make third party sound design in and of itself worth my while, especially since I was only creating sounds for Kurzweil, which is a smaller brand. It was a different story back in the golden years of hardware. I remember there were plenty of companies that seemed to do very well creating third party content in the 90s. The sales numbers for hardware back then were HUGE compared to now, so you had a lot of potential customers out there. Also, back in the day, many keyboard sounds that used samples were only one or two layers deep, which meant creating sample sets for multiple platforms wouldn't be as labor intensive as it would be today. I did end up finding a business model that worked for me. I've created large-ish sound sets for recent and current Kurzweil boards, like PC3/K, Forte, SP6, PC4 and K2700. I've tried to fill in any gaps in the factory sets and try to offer more flavors for things like piano, EPs, bass and analog synth sounds. I give these sound sets away free of charge to members of this forum and the Kurzweil Facebook groups, while asking the recipients to mention me and my Kurz dealer business online. Word of mouth referrals drive my sales, and this model has worked fairly well. Still, I don't make my living from keyboard sales - the volume just isn't there. But it's enough to justify the time spent on sound design. (My main gig is programming keys for theater shows, and renting gear to a small subset of these shows.) I'm also happy to share the sounds for free, as it's a small way of giving back to a company and community that has opened up lots of doors for my career in music. If it weren't for Kurzweil and their customers, I'd still be waiting tables and bartending in Boston. Anyone with a Kurz board, feel free to hit me up and I'll send you my sounds. weiserdav@gmail.com Also, Malc, the guy behind Enjoythesirens.com is absolutely brilliant. His work is top notch - I give him my strongest possible endorsement. -
Greeting from NYC, folks. The below pertains to professionals; if you're more of a hobbyist, whatever. But...... You're talking about my religion here. We make our living as musicians, and our work has value. In my very strong opinion - the charts are: 1) The fruit of hard labor on your part, as well as 2) highly-developed computer notation skills (I presume.) They're also 3) the product of deeply caring about the gig, your band and your own performance. My charts fit all 3 criteria above, and custom-writing charts for others is a significant part of my income. As far as writing charts for my own freelance gigs - I do what needs to be done, without having to be asked. This might be in a situation where I'm subbing once for a band that I might never play with again. This can possibly be - and often has been - a ton of work. We all know people who get by with none of the above - with varying levels of success. However, I accepted the gig, and just because the bandleader and/or musician I'm subbing for have been too shortsighted - and ignorant - and lazy - AND CHEAP -to realize that, above all, high-quality charts aren't for the guy that already knows the book - they're for subs, new hires and emergency situations - notwithstanding that, I do the work. I know - having a work ethic is almost unheard of these days, but that's what a professional does. (Of course, I don't accept every gig, and it makes sense for all of us to turn something down if it seems like a chartless trainwreck-to-be.) By the way - clean, accurate charts (which in most cases don't have to be extremely complicated, and don't require covering the page in flyshit) also come in handy when going out of town, hiring local musicians etc. Get some good readers/players, and watch how smooth and quick the rehearsal process is. Don't do that, and face the consequences. There's nothing worse than wasting time in rehearsals deciphering shitty charts. Henry Mancini could rehearse a 75-minute symphony show in 40 minutes. Sure, Hank had excellent readers at his disposal, not to mention top-tier arrangements and copywork.. But excellent readers can't overcome low-quality charts. And if the charts DO require flyshit, put on your grownup pants, buy some more toner for your printer, and get writing, kids. So, guess which side of the argument I fall on folks? Your work has great value, even if others don't respect it. Sell it for an appropriate price (if you wish). Do not undercharge. For those who think I'm the reincarnation of the Grinch (wait, I think he's still alive) - of course, to get through a gig, I'm happy to let someone read over my shoulder. But GIVE THE CHARTS AWAY? No way. People think nothing of asking me to give them not a single chart, but their band's whole book, etc. Clueless. I abhor musical laziness. 2 more points: 1) My son, an up-and-coming keyboardist on the scene here, gets anything he wants, of course. But he's been well-trained to not share the wealth. 2) In this day and age, when letting anything escape from your control means it will crisscross the internet/world instantly, it's even more foolish to give your work away. I feel better now. Maybe this weekend, they'll let me leave the asylum. -
By KuruPrionz · Posted
I used to own a KSM 32, great mic! I also owned a Shure KSM 44, their top of the line large diaphragm condenser mic. That one had a 3 way switch - Cardioid, Figure 8 and Omni. My T-67 will do cardioid and Figure 8, the MXL mics are cardioid. There are LOTS of fantastic mics on the market now. I rarely use 3 mics, sometimes 2 and usually just one. I also have a Tech 21 Q-Strip and that's my go-to for bass and sometimes acoustic guitar. 2 quasi-parametric mid range EQs, low mid and high mid. Plus bass and treble. If you can get your tones correct going in it saves time when mixing. I can get some great tones with my Tech 21 Para Driver DI too. That has a SansAmp for distortion but unlike most distortion pedals there is a Blend knob so you can mix clean and distortion tones. That's a great feature. It also has a single quasi-parametric mid band. Love Tech 21 gear, they have features that I enjoy and use.
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In MPN’s GEARLAB
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I remember seeing the ads in Keyboard and a picture of the Odyssey on the Musicians Friend catalog. I really wanted one but ended up with the MiniMoog because it was available. In the late 70's you didn't have a lot of choices in a small rural town. Was very interested when this came out but reviews of the horrible touch pads scared me away. Wish it had more jacks for interfacing with the Behringer 2600. Still, maybe someday. Wonder how it compares to the Korg version? -
Carlo, you make that Oddy sound fabulous! I have a black-face Oddy and Axxe in my garage, have had both since the '80's, and both need new sliders, probably new caps, and a ton of cleaning. But hearing you play it made me feel nostalgic for that sound! Given the price of the Behringer, it'll probably be cheaper to just buy a new one than to fix mine. -
By John Tweed · Posted
OT - just a comment on the original white face Oddy - I modified mine so I had an octave up/down switch. Also changed the pitch knob to one which had a notch sticking out so that I could curl my little finger round it and be confident that I could return it to the neutral position. And I managed to rewire the modulation slider on the first oscillator so that the second oscillator modulated too. It was all very ambitious of me, with not much real understanding of what I was doing, but it worked nicely. i hung onto it for years, only selling it off about 10 years ago. Nowadays I occasionally use the app on the iPad. It’s close enough for me.
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