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new rig daydreaming - recommendations?


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It all depends on how Tim wants to work and if he uses a tablet app for patch control. In terms of hardware Korg SetList is still king whether it"s a fly by the seat of the pants or a have everything pre queued in advance gig. I have two set list which organize my favorite sounds by sound type for those bread and butter sounds only sub jobs. It"s still my favorite interface.

 

I really like the Roland SP404 based samplers so I have high hopes for the Fantom. I rely heavily on the keypad sampler in the FA-06 in Pop gigs. I"m hate extraneous doo-dads. It"s the smalls that kill setup time and increase the chance of failures and loss. To have everything I need in the most compact 2 board package it would be the Kronos and Fantom. I wish the Kronos handled two CV pedals.

 

But if SetListMaker running from a tablet handles patch control then options are mo" better.

 

For my ultimate Pop rig right now I would like a Kronos LS and. Fantom 7. Epic Grand loaded onto the Kronos would be nice but I have my Kronos goto pianos working OK most nights. I thought I hated the Kronos pianos so I took out the opportunity this summer to break out the S90XS for a blues sub gig and man I missed the Kronos pianos. LOL.

 

Sad thing is tone wise my favorite sound libraries are Yamaha but now everything sounds good enough that workflow trumps sounds.

"It doesn't have to be difficult to be cool" - Mitch Towne

 

"A great musician can bring tears to your eyes!!!

So can a auto Mechanic." - Stokes Hunt

 

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In terms of hardware Korg SetList is still king whether it"s a fly by the seat of the pants or a have everything pre queued in advance gig. I have two set list which organize my favorite sounds by sound type for those bread and butter sounds only sub jobs.
That sounds like a good way to set it up, providing you don't need to also be able to mix and match different sounds on the fly (i.e. in splits/layers, like picking a new RH sound to play over a continuing LH sound), which is where Kronos is still a bit weak. But if you've got two boards, that further reduces any need one might have to do that.

 

Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-)

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Yes. You need to program some typical splits and layer setups. I do everything as combi. Even if it is just a single zone. It"s a quirk of mine. I like only have to navigate the same screens to do things.

"It doesn't have to be difficult to be cool" - Mitch Towne

 

"A great musician can bring tears to your eyes!!!

So can a auto Mechanic." - Stokes Hunt

 

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@timwat -- getting a decent AP experience (keybed, voices, etc.) is sort of at the core of my priority system. Seems to be yours as well. Not dissing the Casio action (actually, quite pleasant), but just goes to show how much keybed matters. Nail the APs (EPs, DPs, etc.) and I've found it easier to dial in the rest of the requirements (organ, synth, etc.) .

 

I want an emotional experience when I play APs. I nail the AP stuff, it's joyful. The rest is along for the ride.

 

As we both know, amplification matters with APs, so I'm sure you're good there. I think you might be evaluating the possibility of a do-it-all top board, with a suitable weighted controller down below. While there are all sorts of pros and cons, I've evolved to the point where simple matters, as it greatly increases the pleasure of playing out.

 

In other news, I now have a ton of stuff for sale locally :)

 

 

Want to make your band better?  Check out "A Guide To Starting (Or Improving!) Your Own Local Band"

 

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FWIW - my suggestion was ditch the 73 and go with the Kronos 61 instead. You can keep all your programs and combis. Running the audio through it is something you COULD do, but don't have to if you don't mind submixing 2 boards. But if you wanna work that way, setlist mode is nice and would simplify things DURING the show, while making pre-work more complicated. Your choice. But the main point was a good weighted DP with a Kronos 61 (not 73)

Dan

 

Acoustic/Electric stringed instruments ranging from 4 to 230 strings, hammered, picked, fingered, slapped, and plucked. Analog and Digital Electronic instruments, reeds, and throat/mouth.

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How about:

 

Fantom/Genos

 

or

 

Genos/Fantom

 

Not sure which has to go on top ;)

 

You'd be dawless with every option and sound under the sun.....short of eurorack, and the latest analog goodness could be added if needed, like Behringer D etc.

RT-3/U-121/Leslie 21H and 760/Saltarelle Nuage/MOXF6/MIDIhub, 

SL-880/Nektar T4/Numa Cx2/Deepmind12/Virus TI 61/SL61 mk2

Stylophone R8/Behringer RD-8/Proteus 1/MP-7/Zynthian 4

MPC1k/JV1010/Unitor 8/Model D & 2600/WX-5&7/VL70m/DMP-18 Pedals

Natal drums/congas etc & misc bowed/plucked/blown instruments. 

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I can relate to the feeling piano players have that going to an unweighted bottom board is a bridge too far. But still, I think it's worth crossing that bridge just as an experiment. You can always cross back.

 

Solo piano or jazz ensembles are one thing. I would always want the "right" action for that, whether it's weighted piano or waterfall organ.

 

But for rock/pop bands, having weighted keys for piano yields very diminishing returns, and those returns are mostly in the form of my own feelings of satisfaction at digging into a weighted board, not anything the audience is likely to notice.

 

Everyone needs to hash this out for themselves, my point is just to try it before writing it off. And by try it I mean do at least a few gigs, not just one.

 

 

Gigging: Crumar Mojo 61, Hammond SKPro

Home: Vintage Vibe 64

 

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Building on Adan's point: if you're not sure whether you want weighted or unweighted downstairs, a "master + controller" setup puts the majority of the investment in the master, and the controller can be a cheap thing, to the point that owning two controllers (weighted and unweighted) is not such an extravagance. (That's another reason why the suggestion of the Kronos 61+controller is a good one)I've used a Yamaha NP30 as my "piano" board on occasions where load-in is tricky and a long way from the car park.

 

Cheers, Mike.

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If lightest weight is the priority, then unweighted bottom board can be a workable solution...A Numa Compact 2/2X is 15.6 lbs for a decent sounding, decent feeling 88, at something approaching half the weight of the 28.7 lb PC4 that a number of us have suggested here. But if it's not beyond the weight threshold, the Kurz is in another league in just about every way.

 

If you don't need 88, the Nord Stage 3 which has been mentioned a number of times in this thread is unusual in being available in a lightweight (22 lb) semi-weighted 73 AND a lightweight (27.5) hammer 76, and people might find either suitable as a bottom, where it arguably beats the Kurz for for piano+organ+synth, while weaker on patch recall, split/layer flexibility, and most acoustic instrument sounds. The Nord (or Numa) on bottom means more stuff for the top board to cover (compared to a PC4 on bottom), but there's lots of options there...

Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-)

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I have replaced CP4 with CP88, and here are some of my observations:

 

The resampling of CFX sounds better in octaves above middle C. CFX sounds different than on CP4 but one gets used to that quickly.

I could play that '78 Rhodes all day.

I think the warm Wurlitzer sounds are also improved right out of the box.

I think small amounts of 'drive' can be added to Rhodes or Wurlitzer even if you are not going for distorted or amped sound.

Edits are 1000% easier on CP88 than CP4. Night and day difference. I can actually make easy edits while playing live. But some of the switches are small, eg, turning on effects for particular sounds.

New sounds in 1.2 are greatly appreciated.

CP88 lacks filter editing of synth sounds, which I used frequently on CP4. I think I will miss this most.

The AUX input with level control provides significantly more gain than CP4. Great for optimizing Mojo61 level through CP88.

One cannot PAN the internal sounds, so no ability to send organ or bass to a dedicated external effect, like Vent or bass cabinet.

For me, the keybed playing experience is more pianistic on the CP88, and I love the texture on the black keys.

One can layer 3 sounds on CP88 vs. two on CP4. I am also using 'advanced mode' frequently, mainly to layer two synth sounds or to split other 'sub' sounds, one of which is processed thru the AP or EP section.

The organ sounds and Leslie sim are inferior to a dedicated clone, but that is old news. Passible organ if forced to use it in non-organ centric gigs.

 

I"m ecstatic about the CP88. I find myself looking forward to playing it multiple times per day. Frequently more often than my Steinway! It"s sound set is almost perfect for 95% of live bread and butter playing. I could also see people using it as a controller. I want the additional sound palette and FM sound creation of my Montage. I think I could see replacing Montage8 with Montage6 if CP88 proves to be a great controller.

 

Barry

 

Home: Steinway L, Montage 8

 

Gigs: Yamaha CP88, Crumar Mojo 61, A&H SQ5 mixer, ME1 IEM, MiPro 909 IEMs

 

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Casio PX-S3000 does it all for me. I don't see the need anymore for expensive boutique keyboards when the 25 pound Casio does everything I could ever need.

 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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CFX is more compressed on the CP88 then the CP4.

 

Rhodes and Wurlis are much better, yes.

Interesting, since I think the CP4 still had the widely praised SCM EPs of the CP1/5 (and Reface CP), and I think the CP88 goes back to straight samples. (I haven't actually played/heard any of those EPs myself, except a brief go at the Reface which hardly counted because it was only through its internal speakers.)

 

Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-)

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Casio PX-S3000 does it all for me. I don't see the need anymore for expensive boutique keyboards when the 25 pound Casio does everything I could ever need.

 

While it's hugely improved from past models, and I certainly could play one on a Jazz gig, it would not be my first choice. Now if it were a gig that fell under the "jazzy" category accompanying singers doing Standards, yes it would be fine. But for a serious blowing Trio or Quartet thing where there wasn't even a mediocre piano and I had to bring a keyboard, I'd play my CP4 before the Casio.

 

We're also starting to get farther from what the OP asked about, since he also needs organ, synth, and the ability to load custom samples. Keep in mind he's coming from a Kronos + Nord Wave. He may not need everything those offer, but asking that much of a PX-S3000 is a stretch,

Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-)

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I would prefer a CP4 too if I had a roady and great stereo speakers . But I don"t. I threw out my back moving my old 35 pound FP4 a couple years ago. So, 25 lbs is my new limit. Plus it has built in speakers so I can tolerate less than primo stereo speakers, I can get away with a basic little amp.

 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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