zephonic

Cameroon's Aboubakar earns doofus of the tournament award. Scores the goal for his team only to be send off with red because he takes off his shirt...

South Korea is through! Go figure, this tournament is nuts, so much fun.

idk, Saudi Arabia beat Argentina. Granted, some questionable stuff there, but still…anything could happen!

Yes, if the US had an international-level striker, it would be a force to be reckoned with. As it stands, I still think they have a good chance at holding the Netherlands back. The Dutch have a wider pool of talent but so far it hasn't really come together as a team. But there have been a lot of surprises this tournament, so who knows... Lukaku was crying after the game, I really felt for him. I've heard some Belgian commentators say that there's a lot of tension and disagreement in the team, no unity. Yes, to me it appears that solid team work and spirit is what paid off for these countries, I've loved watching them. As happy as I am with Japan's victory, I will say that 2nd goal was questionable IMO. It definitely looked over the line to me.

Who's watching? Netherlands are playing the USA on Saturday. I gotta say I've found the USA a lot more convincing than my guys. We may have wider selection of talent, but in terms of team play and cohesion the US got it where it counts. I love the USA, but when it comes to soccer, Dwayne Perkins said it best:

I suppose they could do the "official" Rhodes plug-in or offer a digital alternative to the Korg SV/ Nord Electro. Let the real thing be a halo loss leader with volume sales coming from digital derivatives. I suspect the majority of Hammond sales are their digital portables.

But the Nords do?

I would think a more logical replacement would be the Yamaha MODX8?

My solution was to move to places where we don't ride no stinkin' trains! (or at least not when schlepping gear)

My parents' Bechstein grand also had a very light action, something I did not know until I got to conservatory and the pianos there were all way heavier than what I had been used to.

I thought my take was pretty much in the middle? Don't love them, don't hate them.

You bet. Not just once, no sir, I'm the guy who left his Nord Lead on the train twice. Think I've told it before here on the forum, many years ago, so apologies to those who already know it. It was back when I lived in the Netherlands, I had done a late night session at some studio and took the night train back to my home town. Fell asleep to some Snoop on my DiscMan and nearly missed my stop. I woke up with a start and rushed out of the train just before the doors closed. I didn't even realize I had left my keyboard behind until the next day. I panicked, called the station, and the next station where by some miracle it had been found on the platform. You can imagine my relief. But as great as my relief was, it was not as great as my self-loathing when I left it on the train again a few months later. This time it was a train that went all the way to Paris, and it was not found again. I replaced it with a NordLead2 which had four times the polyphony, but somehow it never had the magic that my original one had.

I was the first one to purchase the original Nord Lead when it was released in the Netherlands. Replaced it with a Nord Lead 2 when I forgot the original one on the train. Now those were great at the time, and virtual analog wasn’t as ubiquitous then as it is now. However, I eventually sold the 2 when I emigrated and with the proliferation of ever better softsynths I felt no need to replace it. Bought a used Nord Piano 1 in 2012, which was great at the time, but I wouldn’t have spent the MSRP money on it. I sold it a few years ago as I needed a more versatile bottom-tier board. I can’t say I miss them. I like the immediacy of the NL, with the one button-per-function, but at this point I feel the competition is just as good (or better) at lower prices. edit: I will say that non-keyboardists seem to think Nords constitute premium instruments. They take them a lot more serious than most keyboardists I know.

Retiring to California? Now that's ambitious. Most folks leave California to retire.

Born and raised in The Netherlands. Lived in Indonesia for a year, Kenya for five years, and now already eleven years in SoCal.

Interestingly, the Ford Transit Connect, Mercedes Metris and Nissan NV200 have all been discontinued, or will be discontinued next year. I guess the American public just doesn't care for Euro-sized vans. As for my earlier point, I'm in Amsterdam right now and the cops drive Vito's:

The ID Buzz is nice, but I’d love the Canoo if it ever makes it past the vaporware stage: https://www.canoo.com

I LOVE my Metris. It’s a perfect size, bigger and roomier than a minivan, more economical and cheaper than a full-size van. In Europe it’s called the Vito and they’re a dime a dozen, as ubiquitous as a Ford E or Chevy Express/GMC Savana are here. The contractor drives one, as does the florist, it’s a taxi and a police vehicle. It’s truly a commercial van, with all the advantages/disadvantages. Service intervals/oil changes are at 15,000 miles, try that with a consumer vehicle! I would recommend you get one with extended warranty though. It has a 4-cylinder 2.0l turbo that pulls like a V6/V8 and gets relatively good fuel economy (I have a lead foot and get 22mpg with a lot of LA traffic. Freeway is 24-25 easily and I floor it). But it’s a Mercedes, which means parts and labor is gonna cost you. I just had the turbo replaced last week, thankfully under warranty. I read online others had to pay $3K for that. As a Euro-expat I was already familiar with the Vito, but Mercedes has done a poor job marketing it in the USA, and the Metris will be discontinued after the 2023 model year. But there is an enthusiast community, and I feel this could become like a Vanagon/Eurovan in the future. It’s already a great gig-mobile, and I’m planning to gradually convert mine into a mobile work space, with solar panels etc.

Whoa!: The Time Run DMC Yellowjackets Funky Knuckles Meh: Herbie Hancock/ Wayne Shorter/ Stanley Clarke/ Omar Hakim Wu Tang Clan Mariah Carey

It's odd, I have Genelecs at home, aluminium enclosures and they sound fantastic. So I know wooden cabs are not required for great sound. But these plastic powered PA speakers just don't do it for me. And it took me only 15 years to figure that out. I'm still gonna give the Yamaha DXR's a whirl at some point, but right now I'm leaning toward a Schertler or some bass amp.

Yes, about the only thing you'd run thru a Roland KC amp is a chainsaw, I know. But after many years of back and forth with a wide range of powered PA speakers I have to say that the KC-550 at one of my churches has a satisfyingly warm tone that I can't get out of any of the plastic cabs. It's not neutral or accurate or anything, but there is something about that amp that just works in that sanctuary. I'm not gonna go out and buy one myself now, too big and heavy for my schlep. But I am looking at bass amps or acoustic guitar amps now to see if I can get some of that warmth there. I can't believe I've been gigging here for ten years with sound I don't like.

Isn't Ravenscroft also built here? Like in AZ?

I've always been a Roland guy, and as such I was positively surprised by how easy to navigate both the MODX and Montage are. I used the manual to find out how to transfer files from the computer, but that was it. Everything else was kind of self-explanatory. The only thing I still need to figure out is how to assign tap tempo to a footswitch. But the MODX permanently resides in my van, it hardly ever comes in the house. Really need to make an effort one of these days.

Although I could see myself buying an 88, I think it's a bit perplexing that Korg ditched the aftertouch but kept the high weight for Nautilus. And I dislike the C-C on the 73, not sure why they think that's better. As for MODX+, my local GC says they have four of them in stock, but he couldn't tell me when they would be released. He'll let me know tomorrow.