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Hammond SK Pro� Your opinions


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Haven't played one, but am a Hammond loyalist - had an XK3c and a SK2. The SKPro has the XK5 engine, but somehow it doesn't sound as good as the flagship (probably due to the Tube Saturation). But, pianos, synths, lightweight, and half the price. Definitely a sensible alternative to the Nord Electro.

 

Aynsley Green Trio - Caravan

Upper: Sequential OB6 or Roland Fantom 06

Lower: Nord Stage 4 Compact or Yamaha YC88

Sometimes: Hammond SK2, Roland System 8, Roland SH2, Roland SE-02, Roland JX-08, Korg Prologue 16

 

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I've been gigging with one since around May. The pros:

 

1. Great organ sound. We would expect no less from them.

2. Key feel is good.

3. They addressed some of the big flaws in the SK-1 design, e.g., now there are pitch bend & mod wheels. The layout of E to E (I have the 73 note version) is much more practical for "only take one board" situations as opposed to the F to F.

4. The ability to play 2 sampled sounds at once.

5. There are some other personal preference improvements.

 

The cons:

1. I personally don't like some of the extra voices as compared to their SK-1 counterparts. As memory serves, I liked the Rhodes sounds in the SK-1 much better. The clavinet in the SK-1 was a standout sound. The SK-Pro clavinet, while giving you more variety, does not have that "dig" in the lower notes that you get from the real thing. I've ended up having to use the NeoSoul app on an iPad to get those sounds.

2. And this is a big con: the Pro is on it's way back to Hammondorganco as we speak. There's some problem where the display is stuck on a filter page and the unit will only play the organ from combination 1, no matter what combo you try to pull up & the extra voices don't play at all. I tried the factory reset & the screen lock/unlock procedures but to no avail. I sincerely hope this is a problem that will be limited to my keyboard only & will not pop up with other people's boards.

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I've had my SK Pro-73 for about a month now and so far it's definitely a keeper. (Although I'm hoping I don't run into any issues such as the ones experienced by BenWaB3!) I've never owned a real Hammond, but have churned my way through most of the clonewheel offerings out there, including the Korg BX-3 and CX-3; Roland VK-8, VR-760, and VR-700; Hammond XK3 and XK3c (with a Vent); Crumar Mojo 61; several Nord Electro models. The SK Pro appears to fit my needs better than any of those.

 

The Hammond tone and Leslie sim are legit and are far more customizable than the Crumar or Nords I've owned. The factory settings are "okay" but when I dug into the various tonewheel and Leslie cabinet parameters, I was able to dial up something that I really like. My previous favorite clonewheel rig was a Hammond XK3c (with Jim Alfredson's tonewheel set) and Neo Vent, but the SK Pro may have jumped ahead -- without the extra cabling and setup of the Vent. And it has the mono synth and other sounds. I'm gigging with it for the first time this weekend and am really excited to see how it sounds in a live setting. I'll only be using the organ and mono synth sounds, though.

 

Here are some random thoughts:

 

1. I like the keybed better than any of the other clonewheels I've played except maybe the other Hammonds or the Rolands. (It's been a while since I owned the Rolands, though, so I can't offer a good comparison.)

2. I bought the SK Pro mostly for its organ and mono synth capabilities, but am intrigued by the additional sounds it offers. I usually gig with two keyboards, a Yamaha S70XS and a Roland Jupiter-80, and add a clonewheel when space permits for more authentic Hammond tones. My plan was to use the SK Pro in that same way, but now my next step is to delve into the ensemble sounds to see if I can tailor enough of them so that the SK Pro could replace the Jupiter-80 in my two-keyboard rig.

3. Both of my current bands tune down a half-step. I like the fact that the SK Pro doesn't shave notes from the top or bottom when you transpose the keyboard. That always bugged me with some of the other clones (you know who you are).

Live: Yamaha S70XS (#1); Roland Jupiter-80; Mackie 1202VLZ4: IEMs or Traynor K4

Home: Hammond SK Pro 73; Moog Minimoog Voyager Electric Blue; Yamaha S70XS (#2); Wurlitzer 200A

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Thanks for reply"s and information.

 

One other question: Since the SkPro has 4 different tone sections, can each tone be assigned its own MIDI channel to receive.. if so, would it be possible for each tone section be able to receive its own midi program change? I"m thinking the SkPro would be considered true multi-timbrel??

Yamaha CP-80/S80/S90es/P125/DGX-670/AN1x/MOTIF XS-Rack/CS6R/Roland D-50/Prophet 5(Rev 3.3.)/OBX8/Prophet 5 (Rev 4)/OB-8/Juno-60/Jupiter-6/Studiologic Numa Organ with Neo Ventilator/Korg Kronos

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I had my first gig with the SK Pro on Saturday and had some more comments:

 

1. This thing sounds beast! I used an organ patch that I had tweaked to my liking and stayed with that all night, just using the drawbars to add color, etc. I'm using the Leslie sim "122 Wild" and "122 Back" settings and don't feel the need to add a Vent (as I had before with my XK3c). I may play with the rise/fall times and mic distance settings a bit, but overall I'm ticked with the sound I have now.

2. I wish the mono synth controls were on the left. It's a little awkward to be soloing with your right hand while reaching over to tweak the filters, etc. with your left. No biggy.

3. As others have noted elsewhere, it would be nice to have a knob for the drive settings or an assignable one for functions like that. Again, not a show-stopper.

 

I had one weird situation, though. I was soloing on the mono synth during one song and cranked the mono synth volume knob up a bit. When you do that, the SK Pro momentarily displays an inset window showing the volume values for each part of the combination you're using. Later I noticed that the little window kept popping back up, with the synth volume value fluctuating back and forth between two values (I don't remember now what the values were). It was as if I had the dial set in between two values and it kept switching between them. I rebooted the SK Pro, but when it came back up the volume window popped back up again -- as if I were still tweaking the synth volume. I was worried I had a situation like BenWaB3 described. For shits & giggles, I turned the synth volume knob down and the volume inset window went away after briefly displaying the new value. I tried to replicate the issue after the show and again this morning here at home but couldn't get it to reappear. It may have been a power issue at the venue or something, but I'm gonna have to keep an eye on that.

Live: Yamaha S70XS (#1); Roland Jupiter-80; Mackie 1202VLZ4: IEMs or Traynor K4

Home: Hammond SK Pro 73; Moog Minimoog Voyager Electric Blue; Yamaha S70XS (#2); Wurlitzer 200A

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3. As others have noted elsewhere, it would be nice to have a knob for the drive settings or an assignable one for functions like that. Again, not a show-stopper.

 

 

Hi,

 

I mapped the drive to the mod wheel.

 

As much as I like my SK Pro, I really miss the FX Knobs from the SK.....

Studio: Hammond XK5-XLK5,  Roland Fantom 8, Kurzweil PC3A6, Prophet 5, Moog Sub37, Neo Vent, HX3-Expander, LB Organ Grinder

Live: Yamaha CP88, Yamaha Motif Rack ES, Hammond SKX Pro, Hammond XB2-HX3,  Kurzweil PC3-61, Leslie 251, Roland SA1000, Neo Vent2

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3. As others have noted elsewhere, it would be nice to have a knob for the drive settings or an assignable one for functions like that. Again, not a show-stopper.

 

 

Hi,

 

I mapped the drive to the mod wheel.

 

As much as I like my SK Pro, I really miss the FX Knobs from the SK.....

 

Ooh, thanks for the tip!

 

Edit: That's works perfectly. Thanks again!

Live: Yamaha S70XS (#1); Roland Jupiter-80; Mackie 1202VLZ4: IEMs or Traynor K4

Home: Hammond SK Pro 73; Moog Minimoog Voyager Electric Blue; Yamaha S70XS (#2); Wurlitzer 200A

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