area51recording Posted April 22, 2019 Share Posted April 22, 2019 Hello all. I've been bringing my Electro 3 as a one keyboard rig on some jazz trio gigs, since I tend to play a lot of rhodes and some organ in those situations. However, there are some tunes that really want an acoustic piano sound, and I can't find any pianos in Nord's library that really work for me, especially in mono. I've been thinking about getting the Ravenscroft app, along with a Korg Plugkey, and playing it on my iPhone 6. So I was curious if anyone here is using it in that configuration, how it's performing for you, etc....thanks in advance for any info.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drawback Posted April 22, 2019 Share Posted April 22, 2019 I'm wondering what is it about any of the pianos in Nord's library that aren't working for you? Have you tried their mono samples? Ravenscroft iOS stereo presets summed to mono might give you questionable results anyway. Quote ____________________________________ Rod Here for the gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noah DC Posted April 22, 2019 Share Posted April 22, 2019 I use that Ravenscroft/Plugkey combination with my iPhone 6s and do not have any issues with latency. I've generally only used it at home in stereo with monitors, though, so I couldn't speak to the sound quality playing in mono. Quote Numa X Piano 73 | Yamaha CP4 | Mojo 61 | Motion Sound KP-612s | Hammond M3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Piano Man Posted April 22, 2019 Share Posted April 22, 2019 Get in ears, play your Nord in stereo and never look back... Alternatively, load up the Grand Lady D, Bright Grand and th Petrof Upright and try each in mono with the dedicated mono switch engaged. What amplification are you using? I own a Nord Stage 2 ex and also an iPad pro with Korg Plugkey and Ravenscroft. I really dont think it compares to the Nord Piano Library. Quote Kurzweil PC3x Technics SX-P50 Korg X3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LX88 Posted April 23, 2019 Share Posted April 23, 2019 I am far too underinformed regarding ways to use the Ravenscroft sample. I actually spoke to VI labs a few years ago to ask for help. Nothing ever came out of it. I would like to use the full version of Ravenscroft or even this app if it sounds good . I have heard so many good things about it, bu8t I am technically limited as far as setting it up. Any help appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
area51recording Posted April 24, 2019 Author Share Posted April 24, 2019 Get in ears, play your Nord in stereo and never look back... Alternatively, load up the Grand Lady D, Bright Grand and th Petrof Upright and try each in mono with the dedicated mono switch engaged. What amplification are you using? I own a Nord Stage 2 ex and also an iPad pro with Korg Plugkey and Ravenscroft. I really dont think it compares to the Nord Piano Library. I checked out the pianos mentioned above, in stereo, in mono, played from both the E3's keyboard and a weighted controller, in my studio monitors (ADAMS) as well as Sennheiser headphones. What I don't dig about them is they have a VERY pronounced attack, which makes it tough to play smoothly in a ballad style. Also, the sustain portion of the tone is really thin sounding. Any of them would work in a band mix, but for more exposed playing probably not. Honestly, I like the piano sounds I have in my Px5S a WHOLE lot better, but I'm trying to find a solution for the gigs I would only bring the Nord to..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drawback Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 There is not a lot of editing you can do to the iOS version, but there are some tone controls available, and you can save your version to call up. You might find Ravenscroft to be more even dynamically than the problems you're having with the above Nord library. That said, when I had a Nord Stage 2, I was using some other samples with broader dynamics such as the Italian and Studio Grand 2. I didn't have a chance to try Velvet or the Royal 3D which might be best yet. I still think you should give those a try before committing to purchase a PlugKey and the Ravenscroft iOS app. I use Ravenscroft iOS as an appendage to the Mojo so any improvement on its acoustic piano is better, but I don't believe you will get a better piano out of an app than you will from Nord's library, at least right now. Quote ____________________________________ Rod Here for the gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam CA Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 I am far too underinformed regarding ways to use the Ravenscroft sample. I actually spoke to VI labs a few years ago to ask for help. Nothing ever came out of it. I would like to use the full version of Ravenscroft or even this app if it sounds good . I have heard so many good things about it, bu8t I am technically limited as far as setting it up. Any help appreciated. Are talking about using Ravenscroft iOS as a standalone app? I have the older iPad Pro. I use IK Multimedia midi Rig 2 to connect my midi controller to the iPad. That's all there's to it pretty much. I have no problem with latency. It's quiet a playable library...and so is Korg module. Quote www.youtube.com/c/InTheMixReviews Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drawback Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 I am far too underinformed regarding ways to use the Ravenscroft sample. I actually spoke to VI labs a few years ago to ask for help. Nothing ever came out of it. I would like to use the full version of Ravenscroft or even this app if it sounds good . I have heard so many good things about it, bu8t I am technically limited as far as setting it up. Any help appreciated. Are talking about using Ravenscroft iOS as a standalone app? I have the older iPad Pro. I use IK Multimedia midi Rig 2 and connect my midi controller to the iPad. That's all there's to it pretty much. I have no problem with latency. It's quiet a playable library...and so is Korg module. I was wondering what LX88 was talking about here... "help" at what? and with which operating system? Quote ____________________________________ Rod Here for the gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam CA Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 ... I was wondering what LX88 was talking about here... "help" at what? and with which operating system? Yeah, it's not clear what kind of problem he's having. Quote www.youtube.com/c/InTheMixReviews Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drawback Posted April 24, 2019 Share Posted April 24, 2019 ... I was wondering what LX88 was talking about here... "help" at what? and with which operating system? Yeah, it's not clear what kind of problem he's having. LX88, you can PM if you need some help with this. Quote ____________________________________ Rod Here for the gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
area51recording Posted April 25, 2019 Author Share Posted April 25, 2019 Ok.......Velvet Grand. Perfect sound for the gigs I would play it for. But in stereo, and played from a weighted keyboard. So......down the rabbit hole I go.......dammit...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
area51recording Posted April 25, 2019 Author Share Posted April 25, 2019 Soooooo......on the question of in ears....how do you guys deal with a small gig where not everything is running thru the PA? Drums not mic'd, bass thru amp only? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drawback Posted April 25, 2019 Share Posted April 25, 2019 Maybe ask that in the In Ears thread? This months edition is on page one right now. Quote ____________________________________ Rod Here for the gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
area51recording Posted April 25, 2019 Author Share Posted April 25, 2019 Maybe ask that in the In Ears thread? This months edition is on page one right now. Yep. Only asked if here because someone suggested it earlier.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Needskeys Posted April 26, 2019 Share Posted April 26, 2019 I had the same issue as the OP. I used an Electro 3 and an Electro 5 for years. While its a great gigging board, its not particularly suited for acoustic piano. It is very difficult to consistently trigger lower velocities. At one point I emailed Nord about this issue. I finally moved to software pianos but triggering with the Nord still gave similar results. Using a computer I could see the velocities being triggered. I found that velocities of 30-40 on other keyboards were registering at 70-80 on the Nord. I played around with velocity curves but I was never able to get the electro to respond the way I wanted. That being said you should definitely try the royal grand or imperial grand, although I think they use about all of the electro 3s memory. Or maybe the mellow upright or upright grand. Id also recommend the qsc k8 or k8.2 for amplification. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
area51recording Posted April 26, 2019 Author Share Posted April 26, 2019 Part of my issue with the E3 and AP is the velocity control as well. Weird thing is I have no problem playing the Rhodes samples on the E3's unweighted keys at all, which is one of the reasons I default to Rhodes if it's a one keyboard type of situation.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drawback Posted April 26, 2019 Share Posted April 26, 2019 I hear you! I struggled on my NS2/73 for AP for a long time. I used to say it was worse than trying to play upright bass on a ukulele. But I still would rather have played Hammond, Clav, Synth or Strings from that keyboard than hammer action, and working with one board was so appealing I finally stopped trying to fight against it and just worked on controlling what I could digitally (ie Dynamics, Sample, EQ) and physically adapting to the rest. Isnt everything a trade-off? Controlling Ravenscroft will make no difference from that keyboard, my 1.4 cents CDN. Quote ____________________________________ Rod Here for the gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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