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This James fellow has been getting his hands on everything


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He lost all credibility with me after calling into question the character of Mike Martin and Rich Formidoni. He has nothing to say that I care to hear.

 

But he was right about the the Casio PX-S action. Regarding his classical background and lack of knowledge in digital pianos - I find that most of the value in his reviews is in DP actions, where his classical training is very helpfull.

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He lost all credibility with me after calling into question the character of Mike Martin and Rich Formidoni. He has nothing to say that I care to hear.

 

But he was right about the the Casio PX-S action.

 

Right? He called it dangerous. He's a little too far up his own ass.

9 Moog things, 3 Roland things, 2 Hammond things and a computer with stuff on it

 

 

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I've enjoyed any number of James' videos but I have only checked in on what interests me so I've missed some of the drama. He's young, and may yet grow out of some bad habits. From what I have watched, I think he has a good ear and appreciate his thoughts on keyboard actions. That's all good, but when it comes to electronic gear I share some of the misgivings others have expressed. He has a tendency to treat digital pianos like physical pianos - as if there's one sound they make, and that's the end of it. I was absolutely baffled by the comparisons he was making between a Kawai MP11SE and Yamaha CP88 where he was comparing tone of an out-of-box preset on each without mentioning which preset, or showcasing any attempt to pick comparable sounds. He did fiddle with EQ a bit on camera but only for a few seconds but only after everything else, and quickly abandoned that exercise.

 

There are plenty of sources for information, so I'm happy to take the best of what he offers and blend it with other sources.

Acoustic: Shigeru Kawai SK-7 ~ Breedlove C2/R

MIDI: Kurzweil Forte ~ Sequential Prophet X ~ Yamaha CP88 ~ Expressive E Osmose

Electric: Schecter Solo Custom Exotic ~ Chapman MLB1 Signature Bass

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I enjoyed his comparison of the Yamaha P515 to the Kawai ES8, something I have been wondering about. At least in that one he was specific as to the samples being played. I'm glad that he showcased the differences in their onboard speaker systems, think though that he should have included a segment where he disabled that on both boards and AB'd them through a stereo set of decent quality powered speakers- something I suspect he doesn't know much about. Players assign different emphasis to the quality of onboard speakers, with some it's a deal breaker and with others, not so much.
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He lost all credibility with me after calling into question the character of Mike Martin and Rich Formidoni. He has nothing to say that I care to hear.

 

But he was right about the the Casio PX-S action. Regarding his classical background and lack of knowledge in digital pianos - I find that most of the value in his reviews is in DP actions, where his classical training is very helpfull.

 

As I mentioned previously, it's not about if he's right or wrong. I said I actually mostly agreed with him. Again, it's not his conclusions, but the way he presents them, and treats ANYONE who has a different opinion as idiots. And again, creating drama where none existed.

It is obvious he can't handle the same kind of criticisms he doles out.

Subjective reviews are that, subjective. That's okay!

Just don't start talking down to anyone who may have a different conclusion about what you reviewed.

 

 

talent, alone, doesn't make you a decent human being.

David

Gig Rig:Casio Privia PX-5S | Yamaha MODX+ 6 | MacBook Pro 14" M1| Mainstage

 

 

 

 

 

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For all his flaws, and yes, there are many, he has taken an approach that I haven't seen anyone really attempt, which is to convey through a video how it FEELS to play specific DPs, ether alone or in comparison to another DP. As someone else said, that's what makes his videos worth watching, because "feel" is so vital to whether you can play your best on a digital piano. Other reviewers will discuss feel, but I'm not aware of anyone approaching it as methodically as does James.

 

Of course there is no substitute for playing one yourself. But there are all sorts of reasons why some people can't, or can't play two particular boards side by side.

 

Would I prefer it if someone older, wiser, and with some actual jazz chops were doing this instead? Absolutely. But no one else is. Gotta give the guy credit for seeing an unfilled niche and jumping in.

Gigging: Crumar Mojo 61, Hammond SKPro

Home: Vintage Vibe 64

 

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I'm somewhat conflicted to be busting on this kid more, but couldn't resist this. A few months ago he did a video reviewing a crappy DP (Williams Legato III). This is a full size 88-key keyboard which he suggested could be carried in a backpack! I found the comment I made & his response. There seems to be no way to link to a specific youtube comment so I just screen-capped it. He did not reply to my last post.

 

williams-backpack-comment.jpg

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And the hits keep coming. This comment I made is from a video he did comparing a Roland RD2000 to his Steinway D. The RD is presented in mono, and sounds awful.

 

Again, I'm a little conflicted about posting this because, well, the guy seems to have a great thing going with tons of subscribers that love him. As opposed to me! :-) As you can see though, I really feel I wasn't coming down too hard on him at all â I was genuinely curious to see his reasoning for making the RD sound the way he did.

 

Video is here if you want to see what I mean:

 

I wouldn't let a recording of ANY piano leave my studio if it sounded the way the RD2000 does in this video. BTW he did not reply to my comment.

 

RD-vs-acoustic.jpg

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I am on the fence with James" reviews. He goes into tedious detail about many things I don"t care about before he gets to what I am interested in: the action and the sound. So on the other hand I admire his attention to detail, Consider him a valuable reviewer, and generally agree with his opinions. James Is the first person to inform me that the TP 100 action in the seven would be too heavy for my wrists. That"s in valuable information for me.

Like James, I too am a fan of the Kawai ES 110 and the sounds of the higher model Kawais. I don"t connect with James" playing, especially his jazz playing. He doesn"t get jazz, IMO. Here is Max Tempia, a fine Italian jazz player, demonstrating the Seven piano and I think he shows that it could be fine on a live gig:

[video:youtube]

 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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Much better playing & presentation - but is that an acoustic piano or a wurly I'm listening too? I suspect it's an AP but honestly it has a somewhat "gutty" reed-type sound quality. Not really my cup of tea, but the guy can play and he obviously knows to present the sound of the piano in a proper format!
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And the hits keep coming. This comment I made is from a video he did comparing a Roland RD2000 to his Steinway D. The RD is presented in mono, and sounds awful.

 

Again, I'm a little conflicted about posting this because, well, the guy seems to have a great thing going with tons of subscribers that love him. As opposed to me! :-) As you can see though, I really feel I wasn't coming down too hard on him at all â I was genuinely curious to see his reasoning for making the RD sound the way he did.

 

Video is here if you want to see what I mean:

 

I wouldn't let a recording of ANY piano leave my studio if it sounded the way the RD2000 does in this video. BTW he did not reply to my comment.

 

RD-vs-acoustic.jpg

I don't think this video is serious. Look at his facial expressions to the camera at 2:03 and 2:17.

He's obviously doing a Larry Goldings Hans Groiner shtick.

J a z z  P i a n o 8 8

--

Yamaha C7D

Montage8 | CP300 | CP4 | SK1-73 | OB6 | Seven

K8.2 | 3300 | CPSv.3

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I am on the fence with James" reviews. He goes into tedious detail about many things I don"t care about before he gets to what I am interested in: the action and the sound. So on the other hand I admire his attention to detail, Consider him a valuable reviewer, and generally agree with his opinions. James Is the first person to inform me that the TP 100 action in the seven would be too heavy for my wrists. That"s in valuable information for me.

Like James, I too am a fan of the Kawai ES 110 and the sounds of the higher model Kawais. I don"t connect with James" playing, especially his jazz playing. He doesn"t get jazz, IMO. Here is Max Tempia, a fine Italian jazz player, demonstrating the Seven piano and I think he shows that it could be fine on a live gig:

[video:youtube]

 

 

Action is always subjective. I got a good hour or two on the Seven and A/B"d with the CP88. There"s no comparison on action, the Seven isn"t even close if you want it for acoustic piano. What the Seven does have is a lot of vibe and the action is very Rhodes like - at least a consistent Rhodes action across the board (not like the crap one I have in my MkI). But for acoustic piano, clav, no. Max Tempia is a wonderful player. He"ll pull a good, maybe great, performance out of anything. And honestly I believe a lot of the players here can as well - at least on a few numbers. The question is what do you need. A really cool digital Rhodes or a board that has a great action for acoustic pianos that (if you came up as a piano player) would work well regardless of what you"re playing. Knowing your jump from PX-360 to PX-Sxxx to Kawai ES-110, I am certain you would not like the Seven"s action. The CP-88 feels heavy but fast, like a Yamaha acoustic grand. But I think you"re happy with the size and weight of the ES-110 and I can see why, it"s great for the price point (faster than the ES-100 by the way).

Yamaha CP88, Casio PX-560

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I don't think this video is serious. Look at his facial expressions to the camera at 2:03 and 2:17.

He's obviously doing a Larry Goldings Hans Groiner shtick.

 

If he's doing a Hans Groiner shtick then he deserves an Academy Award â so his whole channel is some kind of performance art? That would be something else! No, I suspect you might be mistaken in your assessment of that video (did you sit through the whole thing?) He is definitely serious in comparing his D versus a digital piano going through a Roland KC amp, or at best, mono through some recording chain we're not privy to. Unless I'm mistaken, that's one audio cable coming out of the RD:

 

RD-closeup-better.jpg

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I don't think this video is serious. Look at his facial expressions to the camera at 2:03 and 2:17.

He's obviously doing a Larry Goldings Hans Groiner shtick.

 

If he's doing a Hans Groiner shtick then he deserves an Academy Award â so his whole channel is some kind of performance art? That would be something else! No, I suspect you might be mistaken in your assessment of that video (did you sit through the whole thing?) He is definitely serious in comparing his D versus a digital piano going through a Roland KC amp, or at best, mono through some recording chain we're not privy to.

Sorry, I was being facetious. The ridiculousness of the whole video while him being serious about the comparison makes him unknowingly come across as Hans.

J a z z  P i a n o 8 8

--

Yamaha C7D

Montage8 | CP300 | CP4 | SK1-73 | OB6 | Seven

K8.2 | 3300 | CPSv.3

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I have encountered some really talented players who don't know squat about amplifying their keys in stereo. The most in-demand (for piano bar type stuff) local player plays a Yamaha CP33 through a Roland KC 150 and thinks he gets a good sound. When a venue decides to incorporate a piano bar, they often consult with someone on the basis of their talent and rep on what DP setup to use. That's why the local places have Roland KRK grand-piano shaped objects, that even the patrons go out of their way to say sound harsh, tinny or just not as good as a decently tuned acoustic. But they look like a grand and power up when it's time to play.
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You make a good point. Hearing that pianists don't know squat about amplifying a piano is not a surprise. Piano bars aren't places I would go expecting to hear a decent sounding piano, either sampled or acoustic! And for piano players that primarily play those gigs, imo the sound quality of the piano has nothing to do with them doing or keeping the gig. So why should a venue invest in anything but the cheapest gear? And if venues and pianists don't know or care, Joe & Jane sixpack sure won't! Unless you're talking about the high-end "cabaret" type bars that book & advertise talent â i.e., they advertise "names" to bring an audience in. In that case you might see a decent piano but even that isn't a given, in my experience. But the main factor, as I see it, is that the pianists that do these gigs are just not versed in the tech at all. To them it's "oh, ok, an 'electric' piano... I guess I have to plug it in to an amp." Period. They don't know what they don't know! I think this is what may afflict mr. Shawcross to some extent, though by now he should be in a position to know a little more about the subject.
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More a rant than anything. Didn't mean to slam Roland, I have an RD-64 I really like a lot for the sound and especially for the connection I get when playing it, so much I would like to get the 88 key version if I knew what it was. It sounds much better than the KRK in question.

 

Forgot to mention, there is also a piano bar #2 where this same friend also plays, or did before COVID. It has a slightly newer and less top-of-the-line model KRK (no textured key surfaces) but one that is much more tolerable to play, because or maybe in spite of my stereo- oblivious friend's amplification scheme: A single Yamaha DXR10 up high on a stick. I own a DXR10 and would never use it alone for a solo gig, with my Yamaha DP's. But one works pretty well with this particular KRK, no phasiness and the bass response is just right- not boomy like KRK #1 with it's amplification set up by the MUZAK company (of all people). A happy accident.

 

Talented musicians who are ignorant about gear would make a good separate thread.

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In his second video response concerning the Casio keyboard action he did a lot of talking- especially with folks who weren't there to respond. But when he actually took the piano technician's weights out he only briefly demonstrated one at the end of one white key.

His whole premise was that the black keys were lighter than the white ones. So why, instead of going on a tangent about whether the keys were heavier at the front or back, didn't he simply take several black and white keys and drop the weights on them and show us empirically that he was correct as far as his issues with the action?

I kept waiting for the moment of truth, but it never arrived.

Instead of showing us straight up that the black keys we're lighter than the whites he left the issue suspended as a case of he said, she said.

I've sat through a few of his grand piano A B comparisons that were interesting but like many here I find his manner ultimately windy and off-putting.

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In
he spends 20 minutes "defending" himself against the implied Casio corporate shills Rich and Mike.

 

Taking a whole 20 minute video to poke back at Casio, creating a sense of back-and-forth bickering, when in fact Rich and Mike were replying to someone else entirely during a live stream, reeks of self-importance and a lack of perspective.

I stopped paying attention when he started showing videos of acoustic piano action being measured with a weight. You bought a sub $1k digital piano. As we say in the office...you are arguing about the wrong side of the decimal point. I would have preferred "The action isn't to my liking, so I'm not going to keep this piano."

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as the owner of a similar sized channel to James. I'm baffled when he showcases a new high-end keyboard every few weeks and claims they are purchased using ad revenue from his videos. i'd love to know the secret to his success.

 

other than that, i find james to be a charming young man, he's a great presenter with some outspoken opinions that make for an entertaining watch.

hang out with me at woody piano shack
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as the owner of a similar sized channel to James. I'm baffled when he showcases a new high-end keyboard every few weeks and claims they are purchased using ad revenue from his videos. i'd love to know the secret to his success.

.

Indeed - i'm seeing a few vids in the 100,000 + territory, but many in the sub 10K range. That's not a lot (in YouTube dollars). Must have alternate streams.

BTW - love Woody's Piano Shack!

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In
he spends 20 minutes "defending" himself against the implied Casio corporate shills Rich and Mike.

 

Taking a whole 20 minute video to poke back at Casio, creating a sense of back-and-forth bickering, when in fact Rich and Mike were replying to someone else entirely during a live stream, reeks of self-importance and a lack of perspective.

I stopped paying attention when he started showing videos of acoustic piano action being measured with a weight. You bought a sub $1k digital piano. As we say in the office...you are arguing about the wrong side of the decimal point. I would have preferred "The action isn't to my liking, so I'm not going to keep this piano."

 

I wonder how long it takes the national shops to figure out James sends most of the keys he buys back in the 45 day trial period.

Yamaha CP88, Casio PX-560

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Maybe his parents are famous wealthy people, maybe he wrote a hit song, maybe his YT advertisers pay mega bucks. I've wondered how he has all the latest gear, actual grand piano$ and now from what I understand his own studio... he's doing something right (or wrong) or has a big ass loan from somewhere!
You don't know you're in the dark until you're in the light.
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Got almost an hour to kill? He has a new channel for his "recording studio." If you have GAS or are prone to being jealous of 20-year-olds with lots of toys, don't watch this! I had to fast-forward through a lot of it, as he can get a little long-winded â like the first few minutes where he takes us on a tour of the trailer he used to transport his gear across the country. I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess that he's not financing his gear acquisitions through youtube subscribers. Not begrudging him - my mom lent me almost $5K to buy my OBXa when I was around 22 years old, there was no way I was gonna do it on my own. James does take it to a slightly higher level, as you'll see if you hang in there! There's something for everybody to lust after - blackface Fender amps, multiple guitars and basses, a mint-condition B3 and Leslie, a $15K marimba, harpsichord, A few old Rhodes, etc.

 

I especially liked the part where he talks about his Steinway D - saying with a straight face that eventually he "might upgrade" to a C Bechstein or Fazioli but for right now the Steinway "honestly doesn't sound that bad." :laugh:

 

[video:youtube]

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Maybe his parents are famous wealthy people...

 

 

I've read they own a piano business. This may or may not be true. But it would explain the access to the gear.

9 Moog things, 3 Roland things, 2 Hammond things and a computer with stuff on it

 

 

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...Chick + Herbie 1985 SHRED spoof on YouTube :)

 

Wow, I hadn't seen this video before - incredible performance!

 

Honestly, this is the funniest thing I have seen in ages...I had to stop watching, I was laughing to hard.

 

Cheers,

James

x

Employed by Kawai Japan, however the opinions I express are my own.
Nord Electro 3 & occasional rare groove player.

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