Hammond Teaser ???

[FatFingers]

I placed my pre-order today for the 73 key Pro. I don't know the MSRP prices and can't share the price I paid, but those numbers are probably in the ballpark for MSRP.

[ElmerJFudd]

That"s interesting. Maybe street price will be $2499.99 - $2799.99. Guesstimating.

[Delaware Dave]

Given that the XK5 is $3600 and with the SKPro you're getting the XK5 engine, a 'similar' XK5 keybed, hopefully an improved leslie, a mono synth and the SK1 extra voices with 'improvements' in sound (hopefully), the price isnt bad and significantly lower than the Stage 3. Interesting........ Still a high priced board for me though especially given the times we're in from a gigging perspective.

[Mighty Motif Max]

Wow, look what I missed! Totally glossed over this thread - needs a new name!

[Mighty Motif Max]

From the brochure:

 

â The SK PRO incorporates the state-of-the-art 'Modelled Tone Wheel 1' (MTW1) sound engine pioneered by the Hammond XK-5 Organ, recognized everywhere as the standard in digital "tone wheel" sound.

â The newly developed Virtual Multi-Contact system replicates the keyboard performance of a vintage Hammond Organ, allowing the player to experience the distinctive Hammond 'feel' in every detail. For even greater versatility, our optional Hammond MIDI Pedalboards such as XPK-130G, XPK-200G or XPK-200GL can trigger this Virtual Multi-Contact system for the pedal sound.

â A built-in new-generation Digital Leslie brings deeper authenticity, including the airflow of Leslie rotors, faithfully reproducing the Leslie"s unique tone and three-dimensional effect.

â A new tube modeling system provides the essential Hammond 'tube-warmth".

â A special system emulating the Matching Transformer of a vintage Hammond Organ adds striking authenticity to the Hammond Drawbar tones.

â In addition to the great Drawbar sounds, the SK PRO also models the Italian, British and Japanese transistorized Combo Organs which have come back into style in today"s music.

â The player can also call upon a full range of Classical Pipe Organ Voices, and for the first time in any modern keyboard a range of Theatre Pipe Organ Voices is now included.

 

Rear panel - I messed with some contrast and color settings - don't pick on it for looks, the color is screwy because I was trying to bring out the rear panel details. It is NOT that color lol.

 

 

Things I'm noticing from the brochure: individual outs in addition to the main stereo out, Rotary Out and Bass Pedal Out (!). We still get 5-pin MIDI (yay), though there's still no MIDI Thru just like the SK1/X boards.

 

Silly as this may sound, this line "...for the first time in any modern keyboard a range of Theatre Pipe Organ Voices is now included" makes me really excited. I'm a TO guy to the core but I never found anything to my liking in modern boards. Plus this still has the pipe organs too.

 

SO glad we now have pitch and mod wheels. That was the biggest thing I felt was missing from the SK boards. I wonder if the faders can be assigned to control other things over MIDI as well...same with the knobs in the synth section. This could be a good controller.

[AnotherScott]

A few days ago, I can swear I saw a page listing the board's highlights, which included modeled clav sounds, but I can't find it again. Anyone else see that, or did I hallucinate??

[dfcas]

I.m a little confused about the 'rotary output' and the 11 pin leslie output. I"d want to use it with my leslie 145 and i currently use a preamp pedal with the SK 1, so i assume/ hope i could still do that. Anybody able to see the back panel connections better than me?

[zxcvbnm098]

I.m a little confused about the 'rotary output' and the 11 pin leslie output. I"d want to use it with my leslie 145 and i currently use a preamp pedal with the SK 1, so i assume/ hope i could still do that. Anybody able to see the back panel connections better than me?

 

You could still do that for sure with the regular 1/4" out, but if you get the 11-6 pin 145 adapter, you can use the 11 pin output and cable which would allow you to control the speed from the organ and not need the preamp pedal...

[Josh Paxton]

Then there's this...

 

[Jim Alfredson]

It's up on the Hammond site with some demos by yours truly.

 

https://hammondorganco.com/products/portable-organs/skpro/skpro-details/

 

And my general overview is up on my YouTube:

 

[stoken6]

Nice demo and playing Jim, as usual.

 

It's obvious Hammond have thought hard about this instrument. As I've mentioned previously, adding pitch/mod to an organ board makes it much more flexible, and the internal PSU gets my support every time. Plus this board surely wins the AnotherScott Award for Assignable Audio Outs (AAAAO?) 2021: 11-pin, rotary, bass AND two assignable outs is above and beyond, Hammond! No aftertouch, but I can see why Hammond would not want to mess with the feel of their action.

 

Key questions for me:

- can Ensemble voices be modulated? E.g. modwheel controls a filter sweep on a polyphonic sawtooth synth patch?

- can more than one Ensemble voice be used simultaneously? E.g. a violin/trumpet split? Or layer two brass-section patches an octave apart?

- what kind of MIDI "slave" capabilities does it have? Can I play a piano/strings layer from a separate controller while running an organ/monosynth split (or even organ/brass - see previous bullet) from the SK pro's own keyboard?

No manual at Hammond's site yet, from what I can see.

 

Cheers, Mike.

[nadroj]

Jim, that was great - sleek looking video. It felt like you addressed it specifically to us! Thanks for covering the things we'd been asking about.

 

Looking forward to your deep dives, excited to see some of the board's deeper capabilities.

 

Mods, this looks like it's the official SK-PRO thread now - any chance of getting it renamed?

[niacin]

- can more than one Ensemble voice be used simultaneously? E.g. a violin/trumpet split? Or layer two brass-section patches an octave apart?

 

Yes. In the video Jim gives the example of hitting the 'ensemble' button and scrolling through the menu to select a piano patch and then assigning it to the right side of a split and a rhodes from the same menu but selected from the 'piano' button to the left side. So all the extra sounds (those other than organ or mono synth) can be found in the menus for both the 'piano' and 'ensemble' sections.

 

I'm not sure I understand the effects options though. There's Leslie, overdrive, 2 reverbs with sends separate for each of the 4 sections. Then there are either 2 multi fx per section or 2 multi fx total with separate sends for each of the 4 sections? Probably the latter but it's not very clear.

[stoken6]

Yes. In the video Jim gives the example of hitting the 'ensemble' button and scrolling through the menu to select a piano patch and then assigning it to the right side of a split and a rhodes from the same menu but selected from the 'piano' button to the left side. So all the extra sounds (those other than organ or mono synth) can be found in the menus for both the 'piano' and 'ensemble' sections.

 

Thanks Niacin, I must have missed that bit of the video. Similar solution to Yamaha CP range.

 

Cheers, Mike

[Kurt W]

I'm looking at 13 knobs on the Nord versus 10 sliders and 5 knobs on the Hammond.

 

My Nord Stage 3 has a synth section with 19 knobs (potentiometers) and in addition 15 selector buttons(SKPro has 3). I don"t see how you find the SK Pro synth to have «far more performance controls than a Nord Stage synth»?

[ElmerJFudd]

Great job getting through everything on this instrument, Jim. It is both similar and different from what I expected from the teaser and brochure. Definitely gets high marks on the Swiss Army knife keyboard list - Scott is going to have to update his spread sheet!

 

The page is live now, lots of info and sound demos.

https://hammondorganco.com/products/portable-organs/skpro/skpro-details/

 

Do we have street price yet?

[CEB]

Tree Fiddy.

[AnotherScott]

all the extra sounds (those other than organ or mono synth) can be found in the menus for both the 'piano' and 'ensemble' sections.

That's excellent, addressing what I thought might have been one of its shortcomings, if it were unable to do a 2-way split where one of the sounds was not a piano, organ, or mono synth. I even saw in the video that you can split/layer two Piano-category sounds if you want. So yeah, the split/layer flexibility here looks quite extensive.

 

I'm also glad to see what looks like easy access to independent octave controls for each part of asplit/layer combination (on the screen).

 

Also there's plenty of editability for the ensemble sounds (I saw full envelope controls in a menu, for example), and the Duo synth mode appears to be indeed be dual-oscillator.

[Outkaster]

Jim great video. I have an Xk5 but this seems to be a great board. I loved the wall wart/ power supply thing in there....LOL

[dickiefunk]

Man this looks like another great keyboard on my shortlist! I'm currently weighing this up with the Yamaha YC-61. From the brief demos I've heard, the SK Pro has the edge regarding the rotary simulation and the mono synth seems way more comprehensive. However, I think I prefer the acoustic pianos, rhodes and clavinet on the YC-61. The acoustic pianos on the SK-Pro sound a little lifeless and plasticky? The tone of the acoustic pianos sounds quite hard overall and I can't quite tell how it would sound when played softly!? Do the pianos on the SK Pro have sympathetic string resonance? Also, the Rhodes lacks the mechanical character of the Rhodes I'm used to playing? Both the SK-Pro and YC-61 have a nice workflow. Is there a full list of sound on the SK-Pro available anywhere yet? Does the clavinet have all pickup's sampled and do they have release samples as well?

It will be interesting to hear and see more demos of this to get a better idea of how the two compare!

[Adan]

Great video by Jim A. Hammond could not ask for a better demonstrator.

 

The good news here from my perspective is the acoustic piano is much improved. Without putting it under a microscope, the AC's clearly have moved out of the "unuseable" category many felt characterized the previous SKs. The rhodes and Wurlitzers might be slightly improved? Can't tell from these examples. But they were pretty good to begin with.

 

The problem I had with previous SKs was not just in the quality of the pianos but in the dynamics, which were more difficult to get under control relative to some other keyboards such as Nord that use the same Fatar action. The dynamics weren't terrible, but comparing to the Nord you could see that they could be better and that the shortcomings weren't in the mechanics of the keybed. So we'll have to see how it plays when it gets into some of the bigger music stores that will actually stock it.

 

The product demos on Hammond's website are consistent with Hammond's traditional posture of being heavily gospel-forward in their marketing. Nothing wrong with that, of course. It's just interesting to note that's where they continue to see the majority of their sales, or so I infer from the demos.

[ElmerJFudd]

I"d like to hear those piano sounds played off something like a Kawai ES-110 over MIDI.

[Adan]

. However, I think I prefer the acoustic pianos, rhodes and clavinet on the YC-61.

 

I would have to agree. Hammond would have to have hugely upped their game in the pianos department to contend with the YC-61. I didn't expect that to happen, and it didn't. As a YC owner, I feel like Yamaha definitely got some things very right with the organ, but badly missed on some other aspects, mainly leslie sim (which might be improved) and non-high trigger keyboard (which probably can't?). So in my mind the overall contrast between the YC and the SK Pro is:

 

The YC is very strong on pianos and epianos with a flawed by still very useable organ. The leslie sim can be compensated for with a Vent, but lack of assignable outs prevents that from being a real solution. And if you're not comfortable playing pianos on 5-octaves, then the YC's strongest points is to some extent wasted for you. Unless and until Yamaha fixes the leslie, the YC is more like a piano-forward board with not enough keys.

 

The SK Pro, based on this brief peak at it, remains an iconic instrument for the Hammond afficionado, and now with the improved pianos can truly be thought of as an all-in-one gig solution. In my opinion, it's still primarily for the organ-focused player.

[Mark Schmieder]

Really helpful demo, Jim. I seriously doubt we need any others at this point, for decision-making and learning the instrument as well.

[dfcas]

It fits my SKB case so I must buy it. Late 1st quarter tho?

[Al Coda]

I"d like to hear those piano sounds played off something like a Kawai ES-110 over MIDI.

 

Me too !

And I´d like to see a MIDI implementation chart.

 

A.C.

[AnotherScott]

My main questions at the moment...

 

Jim, at 10:38 in your video, you talked about there being space to save 100 user combinations, and also, you thought, 100 individual sounds (e.g. organ drawbar regsistrations, mono synth sounds, your own custom edited piano or ensemble sounds)... Can you confirm that 100? And can you break them up any way you want (like 20 organ sounds, 30 synth sounds, etc., any combination of individual sections sounds that adds up to 100)? This could be a really big advantage compared to some of the other boards. Boards like VR09/VR730, YC61, Vox, only let you save combinations (calling them registrations, live sets, scenes), NOT any individual sounds. If you want to save a tweaked individual sound, it can only be saved as one of those "combinations" -- which makes it nearly impossible to split/layer your own customized sounds.

 

Also, is there a screen that shows you what 10 Favorites are currently assigned to the 10 patch select buttons (which would vary depending on what bank you're in)? Assuming there is, can you leave that up as the default view while you play? Also, is there a mechanism for re-ordering them?

 

Does the clavinet have all pickup's sampled and do they have release samples as well?

I would say yes, because the SK1 did.

 

I'm currently weighing this up with the Yamaha YC-61.

Sound and action aside, just in terms of features, based on what we know of the SK Pro and assuming it has the other features of the SK series, I see these remaining YC advantages: audio over USB, LED ring endless encoders, 4-zone MIDI control instead of 3, hands-on real-time effects controls. SK Pro advantages: 4 split/layered internal sounds vs. 3, high trigger on the organ (plus simulated multi-contact), fully editable synth/ensemble/piano sounds, hands-on real-time mono synth controls, MIDI CC from more controls, assignable outs, better display. Some things are a tougher call. YC61 has 160 savable user combinations instead of 100 but that advantage could flip the other way if SK Pro also has 100 savable individual sounds. YC61 has the LED drawbars, but the SK Pro has a nice display that shows you the settings for both drawbar manuals at once. It looks like the YC gives you one more continuous foot pedal, but one less footswitch. Ergonimics for certain operations could favor either one over the other. Hammond has the advantage of coming in a 73 (also providing some free panel space which can be useful), but that may be addressed before long.

[ProfD]

. However, I think I prefer the acoustic pianos, rhodes and clavinet on the YC-61.

The SK Pro, based on this brief peak at it, remains an iconic instrument for the Hammond afficionado, and now with the improved pianos can truly be thought of as an all-in-one gig solution. In my opinion, it's still primarily for the organ-focused player.

Agreed.

 

IMO, KB players will gravitate to the Nord and Yamaha offerings. Organ purists benefit from Hammond offering additional sounds and features.

[wineandkeyz]

Jim, at 10:38 in your video, you talked about there being space to save 100 user combinations, and also, you thought, 100 individual sounds (e.g. organ drawbar regsistrations, mono synth sounds, your own custom edited piano or ensemble sounds)... Can you confirm that 100? And can you break them up any way you want (like 20 organ sounds, 30 synth sounds, etc., any combination of individual sections sounds that adds up to 100)? This could be a really big advantage compared to some of the other boards. Boards like VR09/VR730, YC61, Vox, only let you save combinations (calling them registrations, live sets, scenes), NOT any individual sounds. If you want to save a tweaked individual sound, it can only be saved as one of those "combinations" -- which makes it nearly impossible to split/layer your own customized sounds.

 

From Hammond's website (https://hammondorganco.com/products/portable-organs/skpro/skpro-details/), the memory is organized like this:

 

Favorites: 10 banks x 10 numbers (Combination), 10 numbers (Page)

Combination: Factory: 100, User: 100, Bundle: 100, Manual

Organ Patch: Factory: 100, User: 100, Bundle: 100

Piano / Ensemble Patch: Factory: 300, User: 400

Mono Synth Patch: Factory: 100, User: 100, Bundle: 100

Custom Tone Wheel: Factory: 4 x 3, User: 4 x 3

Custom Pedal Registration: Factory: 3, User: 3

Custom Pipe: Factory: 3, User: 3

Custom Cabinet: Factory: 8, User: 8

[AnotherScott]

Combination: Factory: 100, User: 100, Bundle: 100, Manual

Organ Patch: Factory: 100, User: 100, Bundle: 100

Piano / Ensemble Patch: Factory: 300, User: 400

Mono Synth Patch: Factory: 100, User: 100, Bundle: 100

Excellent! Thanks!