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Crumar Seven


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Well the Z-Stand came in and I removed the legs on the Seven and put it on the Z.

 

The difference in rigidity is night and day. No more shimmying. With the legs just my warm up of playing scales would be enough to start rocking the boat. Now rock solid and finally a joy to play without being distracted by the flex.

 

After playing this daily the last several weeks, I am working on my list of quibbles which I'll be sure to post here.

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Well the Z-Stand came in and I removed the legs on the Seven and put it on the Z.

 

The difference in rigidity is night and day. No more shimmying. With the legs just my warm up of playing scales would be enough to start rocking the boat. Now rock solid and finally a joy to play without being distracted by the flex.

 

After playing this daily the last several weeks, I am working on my list of quibbles which I'll be sure to post here.

 

Knowing that other owners are not having a stability issue with the legs, mojo, why haven't you looked underneath to see if there is something wrong and contacted Crumar and/or your dealer for a solution or replacement?

 

Can you share a short video of this side to side motion you're seeing/feeling?

Yamaha CP88, Casio PX-560

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Right now, I can say after a dozen gigs with the Seven, it is not only stable, and wobble free, but usually makes a sonic statement when I use it.

 

What do you think of the action? Are you using it in its hard case? How are you finding the weight?

 

Cheers, Mike

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Yeah doesn't make sense that one user would have wobble issues and no one else comments on it. Sounds like a defective unit.

 

A review from TonySounds would be very useful, but perhaps he's too busy playing. Mine just shipped so should be here in time for a gig next Saturday.

Gigging: Crumar Mojo 61, Hammond SKPro

Home: Vintage Vibe 64

 

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Right now, I can say after a dozen gigs with the Seven, it is not only stable, and wobble free, but usually makes a sonic statement when I use it.

 

What do you think of the action? Are you using it in its hard case? How are you finding the weight?

 

Cheers, Mike

 

The action: It is the truest emulation of a Rhodes action I have ever played. A great Rhodes, but it definitely feels like a Rhodes.

 

I use it in its hard case. Im not touring it, so jammed in my vehicle with everything else, its fine. The weight is a breeze, HONESTLY!

My 20lb SK1 in its SKB case is a lot heavier than the Crumar in its own case. But that case isnt suitable for any other kind of hauling.

 

 

Hitting "Play" does NOT constitute live performance. -Me.
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I've had mine for two weeks now and play it daily. Unless the leg assembly is somehow defective or misaligned, I don't even see HOW it can be unstable. I agree with Tonysounds about the Rhodes 'feel'. I wasn't a fan of the original key action and am not real crazy about the key feel of the Seven either. To many years of playing organs and synths I guess. The only other 'gripe' I have is that the tone stops dead when you change presets (not something you'd do often with typical 'Rhodes' playing. Also, the AP is tolerable but certainly not great. Other than that, I love it. I have lots of other good sound sources and only wanted it for 'Rhodes', but if I were gigging with it, I'd probably want several more basic voices, a better AP, and a slightly lighter (ie. semi-weighted) keybed. But for my purposes, it's a keeper.
Legend Exp,NC2x,Crumar Seven,KeyB Duo MK111,Nord C1,Nord C2D,Triton Classic,Fantom G7,Motif ES,SonicCell,BK7m,PA1x pro,VP770,TC Helicon,Leslie 3300,MS Pro145,EV SXA250(2),Traynor K4,PK7a,A70,DM10 Pro.
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I use it in its hard case. Im not touring it, so jammed in my vehicle with everything else, its fine. The weight is a breeze, HONESTLY!

 

Thanks Tony for taking the time to reply. I'm not really in the market for one, but... I'm looking for a hammer-76 controller to sit under my unweighted Nord, and the Seven has the same TP100 action as the Studiologic SL73 - AND I'm playing a lot of Rhodes in the funk/soul/disco band I'm playing out with.

 

Cheers, Mike

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Just received mine, set it up, played for 20 minutes. Great timing as I have a gig tomorrow, that should be just enough time to learn my way around the buttons.

 

A couple quick first impressions and I'll write more after the gig.

 

Does it wobble? Not really, no. Maybe the slightest bit but it's not an issue or a distraction. If I hadn't read MGP's complaints I probably wouldn't even have thought about it.

 

How's the action? Well, it feels like TP100. I had an Electro HP a few years ago, and this feels like basically the same action. A little quieter, which is nice because the Electro was annoyingly clunky. I think that's a function of the casing, not the action itself.

 

I think the mechanism of the action works well enough. But the responsiveness, which is as much about the software as the hardware, is exceptional. So regardless of how you feel about the TP100 action, the responsiveness of the keyboard gives the Seven an expressiveness that's above the normal digital keyboard experience.

 

The acoustic piano sounds better than I expected. It's not among the best, but right off the bat it sounds perfectly useable for band work, maybe even for solo work. Not sure I'd record with it, but I haven't done any tweaking yet.

 

The highlight of the Seven is the Rhodes, which is stunning, and the Wurli, which is also great but perhaps not as exceptionally good as the rhodes.

 

The legs are solid and heavy. If you don't pack the legs into the case, it's a pretty easy lift.

Gigging: Crumar Mojo 61, Hammond SKPro

Home: Vintage Vibe 64

 

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Gigged with it last night. This is with a funk band where I'm using 60% rhodes, 30% Clav, 10% wurli. The Seven sounds absolutely glorious through a Motion Sound KP500. Slapping low notes on rhodes, hearing that crunch, it's remarkably close to the experience of playing the real thing. Same with wurli. Clav on weighted keys is not ideal and I'd have to listen to it more to figure out whether I think clav belongs in the discussion of best in class, but it was very satisfying nonetheless.

 

I didn't have my presets down as much as I would have liked, and fiddling with the knobs was a little frustrating, but that's to be expected having only played it for a couple hours pre-gig. I may or may not have minor issues with how effects and presets are implemented, at this point I don't really know.

 

Didn't use acoustic piano during the gig. Playing it during soundcheck reinforces my early opinion that it's not impressive but it's good enough for band work.

 

All in all, very happy with the Seven so far.

Gigging: Crumar Mojo 61, Hammond SKPro

Home: Vintage Vibe 64

 

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I think the mechanism of the action works well enough. But the responsiveness, which is as much about the software as the hardware, is exceptional. So regardless of how you feel about the TP100 action, the responsiveness of the keyboard gives the Seven an expressiveness that's above the normal digital keyboard experience.

 

The acoustic piano sounds better than I expected. It's not among the best, but right off the bat it sounds perfectly useable for band work, maybe even for solo work. Not sure I'd record with it, but I haven't done any tweaking yet.

 

The highlight of the Seven is the Rhodes, which is stunning, and the Wurli, which is also great but perhaps not as exceptionally good as the rhodes.

Having just spent three days playing one at Gearfest (and watching/listening to a bunch of other people play it), I'm inclined to agree completely. :thu:

 

dB

 

 

:snax:

 

:keys:==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <==:rawk:

 

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I think the mechanism of the action works well enough. But the responsiveness, which is as much about the software as the hardware, is exceptional...

The highlight of the Seven is the Rhodes, which is stunning, and the Wurli, which is also great but perhaps not as exceptionally good as the rhodes.

Having just spent three days playing one at Gearfest (and watching/listening to a bunch of other people play it), I'm inclined to agree completely. :thu:

 

dB

 

 

I was one of the guys who got to play it, and I agree its responsiveness makes it a pleasure to play. However, I thought the more aggressive sounds like the distorted Wurly and the clav were the most fun to dig into. :)

><>

Steve

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Having just spent three days playing one at Gearfest (and watching/listening to a bunch of other people play it), I'm inclined to agree completely. :thu:

Thoroughly enjoyed playing the Seven at Gearfest, and listening to others play it, as well. Closest experience Ive had to playing a Rhodes since I sold my Mark I. Sexy looking axe too, much more than the pictures can portray.

"We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing."

- George Bernard Shaw

 

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Glad everyone finds the action to their satisfaction. I still find it hard to play softly. It takes a certain level of velocity for the key to even sound (or at least on mine it does). I tried playing it with a controller but the sound is different when played with the controller unless you play it at full velocity. Obviously, the velocity curve is set differently between the controller and the Seven's keyboard. I suppose there is the possibility that I have a defective keybed but I don't think so; I think it's just playing technique...IOW, it's MY problem. Love everything else about it though. Hoping I'll adjust to the keybed.
Legend Exp,NC2x,Crumar Seven,KeyB Duo MK111,Nord C1,Nord C2D,Triton Classic,Fantom G7,Motif ES,SonicCell,BK7m,PA1x pro,VP770,TC Helicon,Leslie 3300,MS Pro145,EV SXA250(2),Traynor K4,PK7a,A70,DM10 Pro.
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My feeling is the TP100 action works well enough that it doesn't get in the way. Is it the best possible action for the seven? Probably not, but if the Seven was much heavier than it is, I might not be interested in it. That's just me, lots of folks are happy to have a heavier keyboard if it means a better action.

 

Rhodes and wurli styles typically don't involve the kind of fast single note runs where the TP100 would show its physical limitations (yes, I realize the preceding sentence is just an invitation for someone to post a video of Chick playing fast single note runs on a rhodes).

 

Maybe the ideal set up is an unweighted keyboard on top of the Seven for triggering just the clav sounds. On my first gig with the Seven I had the Mojo 61 on top, so that was taken care of except the Mojo of course lacks the adjustment buttons of the Seven and changing effects on the Mojo is much more cumbersome.

Gigging: Crumar Mojo 61, Hammond SKPro

Home: Vintage Vibe 64

 

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Maybe the ideal set up is an unweighted keyboard on top of the Seven for trigginer just the clav sounds.

...or a weighted keyboard under a Mojo for triggering just the piano sounds...?

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Maybe the ideal set up is an unweighted keyboard on top of the Seven for trigginer just the clav sounds.

...or a weighted keyboard under a Mojo for triggering just the piano sounds...?

 

The acoustic piano on the Seven, while still not great, is far better than what's in the Mojo. At least it's useable. Also, the Seven allows you to change effects in real time from the control panel.

 

Pairing keyboards gets very much into the weeds of what each individual needs for their gig. I could see someone putting an organ or synth on top of the Seven and splitting it to trigger the Seven's clav voice on one half so as to have unweighted action.

Gigging: Crumar Mojo 61, Hammond SKPro

Home: Vintage Vibe 64

 

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I could see someone putting an organ or synth on top of the Seven and splitting it to trigger the Seven's clav voice on one half so as to have unweighted action.

Kind of like this, Rocco?

 

Not exactly, no. I mean, that's my setup (minus the module), and it's awesome. But I what I was getting at was whether it's worth trying to play the Seven's clav sounds from an unweighted keyboard. If you have a Mojo 61 on top, then you essentially have those sounds up top to begin with. But what if you put, say, a Legend Solo on top of the Seven. In that case, you might want to split the Solo, triggering clav from the Seven on one half with B3 on the other half.

 

Or just suck it up and play clav on the weighted Seven's keys. I think doing so forces you to change your approach somewhat, but it can still sound cool.

 

 

Gigging: Crumar Mojo 61, Hammond SKPro

Home: Vintage Vibe 64

 

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Hah, I never even saw this thread until just now, after clicking a link in the PDF manual for VB3 II and then noticing that Crumar has additional hardware I didn't know about.

 

I thought, "where'd THAT come from", and then noticed Kraft has it listed as "new" and "out of stock", so then I searched this forum and found this was a topic I had never bothered opening because it is titled "Crumar Seven", which meant NOTHING to me as I assumed it was Rev 7 of the Mojo.

 

Having read through all 24 pages now, my only reservation is the keybed, but I'm going to compare ALL of the specs and sounds tomorrow to other options, because I mostly need a controller that can handle demanding playing techniques (read : excellent escapement), and on-board sounds matter more to me if they make a nice set for a jazz gig, which this one does.

 

BTW, I probably only read one out of 300 or so topics here. It is extremely rare that I read a topic without participating, so if you don't see any posts from me in a topic, it probably means I've never even skimmed it. Keys are a pretty tiny part of my life the last few years; I am focused more on acoustic instruments (winds, ethnic stuff, etc.).

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Unfortunately, not impressed by the demo at Kraft Music. I too have Neumann KH120 speakers, which are about as flat as they get. The sounds would have to be as good as what I get with my computer-hosted sources for me to be inspired. But I like the keyboard's interface.

 

My impressions might be different if not for Scarbee's new release last year, and the one from Soniccouture. Those are so dynamic and three-dimensional that most others sound flat to me in comparison -- even Pianoteq's (although less so).

 

I'm trying to find a demo of the vibes sound now, as that is really important to me, and one that I felt was pretty good in the old GEM series.

Eugenio Upright, 60th Anniversary P-Bass, USA Geddy Lee J-Bass, Yamaha BBP35, D'angelico SS Bari, EXL1,

Select Strat, 70th Anniversary Esquire, LP 57, Eastman T486, T64, Ibanez PM2, Hammond XK4, Moog Voyager

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Here's a three-way comparison of Nord vs. Crumar vs. Kawai:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brsMOe1khX0

 

I couldn't find any vibraphone examples, unfortunately.

 

And oops, the video above is NOT a comparison, but rather it is multiple videos glued together, so there are no common parameters.

 

Having said that, the Nord Electro sounds BY FAR the best to me of the three, for those sounds. The most dynamic and three-dimensional.

 

Interestingly, the only Crumar Seven sounds that I like, from anyone demoing it, are the DX sounds. Those sound more full and developed.

Eugenio Upright, 60th Anniversary P-Bass, USA Geddy Lee J-Bass, Yamaha BBP35, D'angelico SS Bari, EXL1,

Select Strat, 70th Anniversary Esquire, LP 57, Eastman T486, T64, Ibanez PM2, Hammond XK4, Moog Voyager

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I heard a brief demo of the vibes. I think it was earlier in this same thread somewhere . I thought they sounded fine.

 Find 660 of my jazz piano arrangements of standards for educational purposes and tutorials at www.Patreon.com/HarryLikas Harry was the Technical Editor of Mark Levine's "The Jazz Theory Book" and helped develop "The Jazz Piano Book."

 

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Hmm, maybe I'll find that vibes demo link if I flip through all 24 pages again tomorrow.

 

The Rhodes does seem to be the biggest strength of this piano, but I felt the FM Rhodes had more dynamism and depth than the physically modeled Rhodes (well, I guess physical modeling was used for the FM too, or does it have an FM engine -- I've read both answers from different people).

 

I've already decided I'm going to pass on it. If it had TP40 vs. TP100 I'd have more incentive to pay it more attention. But other than Yamaha's new entry, I'm pretty set on Kawai action at this point, as I have never been able to live with the compromise of any Fatar keybed for very long.

Eugenio Upright, 60th Anniversary P-Bass, USA Geddy Lee J-Bass, Yamaha BBP35, D'angelico SS Bari, EXL1,

Select Strat, 70th Anniversary Esquire, LP 57, Eastman T486, T64, Ibanez PM2, Hammond XK4, Moog Voyager

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