Jump to content


Please note: You can easily log in to MPN using your Facebook account!

Keyboard simulator pedals.


Recommended Posts



  • Replies 13
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Top Posters In This Topic

Surfer Girl, we have had examples of these pedals in the past and the one I like the sound of best is the B9. It would come in very handy on a lot of old rock and roll classics (especially the doors and a lot of blues soul tunes! Check out this demo:

 

 

[video:youtube]

 

:cool:

Take care, Larryz
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have enjoyed the few I have, and plan to round out the set. I have liked each one. IMHO, they track pretty well and sound pretty close to what they claim to emulate,

 

But Winston is our resident expert. I believe he has all of the EHX boxes AND the keyboard experience to compare them to. Ill see if I can get him to drop in.

Sturgeon's 2nd Law, a.k.a. Sturgeon's Revelation: âNinety percent of everything is crapâ

 

My FLMS- Murphy's Music in Irving, Tx

 

http://murphysmusictx.com/

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have the B9 & the Mel9. The sounds are pretty amazing. They will take some real getting used to. You can't just play what you always play. The B9 doesn't handle polyphony all that well, so I mostly stay with single line stuff. It can get pretty messy & indistinct pretty rapidly so I try to stay on the sparse side with it. I've used the Mel9 on one gig. Again, you really need to spend time with it to get optimal tracking & a sound which isn't just mud. On my last gig I was wanting to use it on lap steel & it just didn't handle chords well at all, so I bailed on it. It worked better with my Gretsch. They're quite interesting pedals, they take some real work to get the best from them, & they're slightly one trick ponies.
Scott Fraser
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Not for me, but for our lead player. He has been looking at the EHX B9, C9, KEY94. Any one have any experience with these pedals or any similar pedals

 

I have and use the Key9, Synth9 and Mel9.

 

Plus an Earthquaker Devices Organizer (multi-octave organ simulator pedal) and a Pigtronix Mothership synth pedal. And a Line 6 FM Filter Modeler pedal that has some synthy sounds in it.

 

I've used them to fill in for a keyboard player in a cover band...

 

The Key9 is awesome... but you need to either use it directly into a PA or through a Keyboard amp... guitar amp circuits are designed to bring out the best in the guitar's voice and that pedal sounds bad through them. The Mel9 and Synth9 sound alright to me through guitar amps but are probably better through a full-range thing.

 

What exactly is he looking to do?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I thought I heard a knock on my cell door?

 

Not much to add to what everyone else has said, other than to echo p90jr's question, which is what are they trying to do, in terms of what sounds or tunes did they have in mind? Also, is there a Guitar shop anywhere nearby so they could do an A/B comparison of any of them?

 

The sounds are cool, with no modifications required to your Guitar, but they all require some compromise in terms of playing technique. Tracking is good, if not stellar, but don't get sloppy, or try playing too fast. Simple chord voices are best. Adding a little Reverb after them tends to smooth out the sound, IME.

 

The big challenge for a lead Guitarist is re-thinking how to approach solos, because they're "playing" a different Instrument, especially with the Mel9. If there are some cover tunes in your repertoire, the best way to start is to emulate the original Keyboard parts, before improvising on them; get a feel for how the Keyboard parts are played, not just what notes they're playing.

 

Also, treat the B9/C9 or whichever like an Instrument voice unto itself, which means put it at the very front of the signal chain. The only thing I might put between the Guitar and one of the X9-series pedals would be a Compressor. The X9 pedal will appreciate the slightly contoured input signal from the Compressor, and that way, you won't have the Compressor trying to boost low-level noise from the X9 pedal, and yes, they all put out some low-level noise.

 

You can have a lot of fun running these through other effects, like Phaser or Rotary for the Organ sounds, and Phaser, Tremolo or Overdrive for EP. (EP through Tremolo is a classic 70's KB sound.)

 

Main consideration would be the Bang-for-the-buck factor. New, any of them go for just over $220US, used ones for around $165US - that's not cheap, especially if it's only going to be used for one or two songs, once in a while. It's still much cheaper than any polyphonic Guitar-to-MIDI system.

 

I liked them but didn't really love any of them, however, you have to remember that I'm comparing their sound to some of my high-powered Synths, so there's no way a fairly simple pedal with all of two parameters is going to match up. The Mel9 was the most interesting and amusing to my ear, and fairly convincing. Definitely has that slightly grainy tone I associate with the original. Key9 had the least appeal, all around, such that I never got one.

 

A lot of players are using some version of the EHX POG, or the EQD Organizer to emulate Organ tones. The POG is nearly as expensive as the B9/C9, but the Organizer is around $35-40 less, and it's more compact. Neither of them exactly emulate classic Organ sounds, but the Organizer gives you a lot of control over your sound.

 

Good hunting . . .

"Monsters are real, and Ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win." Stephen King

 

http://www.novparolo.com

 

https://thewinstonpsmithproject.bandcamp.com

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm not sure it is worth the price, we have done well without one. He would have to choose between playing lead or keys. Anyway it was just something we were kicking around at coffee the other day. We would use our expense fund for it, so it will have to wait till we get a PA system. I'm starting to wonder if we should do that at this point also.

Thanks for the feedback and we will take a trip to the music store to give them a try at least. The store we use has a B9 and C9. That seems to be the only ones available here. Not much beyond the major brands available.

Jenny S.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

You can have a lot of fun running these through other effects, like Phaser or Rotary for the Organ sounds, and Phaser, Tremolo or Overdrive for EP. (EP through Tremolo is a classic 70's KB sound.)

 

My big idea with these pedals was to put a poly-octave pedal* behind one in the chain, set so as to effectively give myself the equivalent of an 18-string guitar. Using the Pipe Organ setting split thus into 3 simply sounds majestic.

 

Not much beyond the major brands available.

 

Thats why credit cards and the Internet were invented.

 

(Well, not really, but sometimes it seems that way.)

 

If you find something you want that isnt available nearby, just ask, and we can help you find a reputable retailer. Or even a good deal on used gear.

 

 

 

 

 

* specifically, the POG circuit of my EHX Epitome.

Sturgeon's 2nd Law, a.k.a. Sturgeon's Revelation: âNinety percent of everything is crapâ

 

My FLMS- Murphy's Music in Irving, Tx

 

http://murphysmusictx.com/

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The B9 and C9 are great pedals for emulating classic keyboard sounds with your electric guitar! A LOT of FUN. I got a lot of satisfaction out of getting convincing key-like sounds without those, but they're excellent pedals and much simpler and easier to get good results with- one pedal, stomp, play...

 

Note that they work best with the bridge-pickup, guitar-volume full-up, first in line after the guitar- no other pedals turned on in-between them and the guitar, with the possible exception of a clean-boost or compressor before the input. Maybe.

 

The B9 doesn't handle polyphony all that well, so I mostly stay with single line stuff. It can get pretty messy & indistinct pretty rapidly so I try to stay on the sparse side with it.

 

They're quite interesting pedals, they take some real work to get the best from them, & they're slightly one trick ponies.

 

Now... I also have a B9 and have test-driven the C9, Key9, and Mel9- and personally, I've found them to be surprisingly very good at tracking chords, quite able to "handle polyphony"- even surprisingly complex extended chords- BUT, I also happen to always play fingerstyle, without a pick, and pride myself in my damping and muting with both hands, and simultaneous string-plucking with my picking-hand fingers, as well as using my "touch" to trigger and control envelope-controlled pedals like "volume-swell" effects. This approach rrreeeaallly lends itself to controlling the B9 and other "9"-series keyboard-simulating pedals from EH and their ilk. "Your Mileage May Vary".

 

Additionally, I've found them to be too bright with my tube-amp set for my usual guitar tones; if I were using them a lot, I'd either find a way to EQ 'em to tame the treble, or, run them into a dedicated amp. Again, "Your Mileage May Vary".

 

 

Surfergirl- I'll also highly recommend pairing the Boss RT-20 "Rotary Ensemble" with those EH '9 pedals for even better Leslie/rotary sounds, ESPECIALLY if run in stereo, or run Left Out to a guitar-amp, and Right Out to the PA and monitors. Incredible huge rotating stereo imagery! Maybe a used one could be found for a good deal... A B9 or C9 set to organ-sounds run through an RT-20 sounds amazingly convincing. Turn up the (Key) "Click" on the B9 or C9 through an RT-20 and you're really cookin'!

 

Similarly, good dedicated phaser or tremolo pedals go well with and make more convincing keyboard sounds from these EH '9 series pedals.

 

The built-in rotary effects in the EH B9 and C9 pedals are nice and enjoyable, but can't compare to the RT-20 and other dedicated Leslie-simulation pedals.

Ask yourself- What Would Ren and Stimpy Do?

 

~ Caevan James-Michael Miller-O'Shite ~

_ ___ _ Leprechaun, Esquire _ ___ _

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Now... I also have a B9 and have test-driven the C9, Key9, and Mel9- and personally, I've found them to be surprisingly very good at tracking chords, quite able to "handle polyphony"- even surprisingly complex extended chords- BUT, I also happen to always play fingerstyle, without a pick, and pride myself in my damping and muting with both hands, and simultaneous string-plucking with my picking-hand fingers, as well as using my "touch" to trigger and control envelope-controlled pedals like "volume-swell" effects. This approach rrreeeaallly lends itself to controlling the B9 and other "9"-series keyboard-simulating pedals from EH and their ilk. "Your Mileage May Vary".

 

I also fingerpick exclusively, though I tend to hang out on the neck pickup, or both, & the B9 or Mel9 is 2nd in the signal chain, right after a Barber Tonepress. Close voiced chords have been the main problem for me. Wide open voicings tend to track better. Thus far I've been using them pretty much with effect full up & dry off. I suspect a 50/50 blend would reveal chord voicings more clearly.

 

 

Scott Fraser
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I also fingerpick exclusively, though I tend to hang out on the neck pickup, or both, & the B9 or Mel9 is 2nd in the signal chain, right after a Barber Tonepress. Close voiced chords have been the main problem for me. Wide open voicings tend to track better. Thus far I've been using them pretty much with effect full up & dry off. I suspect a 50/50 blend would reveal chord voicings more clearly.

 

Aaaahhhh... I believe that these EH '9 series pedals respond and track best from the guitar's bridge-pickup...

Ask yourself- What Would Ren and Stimpy Do?

 

~ Caevan James-Michael Miller-O'Shite ~

_ ___ _ Leprechaun, Esquire _ ___ _

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I also fingerpick exclusively, though I tend to hang out on the neck pickup, or both, & the B9 or Mel9 is 2nd in the signal chain, right after a Barber Tonepress. Close voiced chords have been the main problem for me. Wide open voicings tend to track better. Thus far I've been using them pretty much with effect full up & dry off. I suspect a 50/50 blend would reveal chord voicings more clearly.

 

Scott, one issue I found with the Mel9 is the "Vibrato" inherent in the voices; I could easily see where that would have an effect on close-voiced chords, making them sound badly de-tuned. While EHX maintains that it's integral to the original Mellotron sound, it seems more pronounced within the Mel9. An early review in Electronic Musician magazine also cited sample loops repeating as part of that sound.

 

EHX Mel9 Review

 

I finally went back to my hardware Synths for Mellotron sounds. I suppose I've been spoiled by the degree of control I get with them.

"Monsters are real, and Ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win." Stephen King

 

http://www.novparolo.com

 

https://thewinstonpsmithproject.bandcamp.com

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Unfortunately, your content contains terms that we do not allow. Please edit your content to remove the highlighted words below.
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...