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Ken Beaumont

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Posts posted by Ken Beaumont

    OT: (maybe??) So, am I mad or not? - this is a topic about adding an M1 mac mini

    in The Keyboard Corner

    Posted

    I recently bought the M1 Mac mini with 16GB and 512GB for recording and some video editing. I added a thunderbolt dock with another 2TB SSD in it.

    This thing rocks, I replaced a windows machine with 32GB of memory and smaller drive. The M1 out performs the windows machine by a substantial amount.

    I can have more plugins loaded than the old machine struggled with and it does it with ease and no fan noise. On the laptop DaVinci Resolve would regularly crash editing 4k video files. The M1 flies through them without issue. 

    • Like 1

    Intel grabs Apple M1 Engineer

    in The Keyboard Corner

    Posted

    Competition is a good thing! I just bought an M1 Mac Mini 16GB with 512GB SSD and a dock with another 2TB. Really seeing a big increase in speed from my Dell especially editing raw 4k video files. The dell would crash hard and often in Da Vinci Resolve. No issues with the Mac. Only downside was I had to purchase a DAW. So far I bought studio one artist and have a 90 day trial of logic. Haven't decided which to go with yet. On the Dell I was using Cakewalk for free and was pretty happy with it. Almost all of my purchased plugins work just fine. Didn't lose anything important. All in all I'm happy how easy the transition was.

    Sorta OT: Why Did/Do Guitarists Reject Synthesizers?

    in The Keyboard Corner

    Posted

    It took many years for the tracking to get good enough. I have owned several units including an Axon ax100 and a Roland GR-55 that use a 13 pin interface. You have to play differently to get it working well. You have to play precise lines but they track well. But it still can mis-track if you play really fast lines. There are quite a few players out there still using the GR-55 system and older Roland gear. But most guitar players just want to plug in and play. Pedal boards and things like the fractal audio, line 6 and other gear can get you a ton of sonic goodness. When I used it regularly, I did a lot with the AX-100 which is bi-timbrel. You could use a sustain pedal to play a chord as a pad or arp and then solo over it with a different sound from the AX-100 or a sound module I used a roland sonic cell with it. The only thing I liked about playing guitar synth was the fact you could bend pitch very naturally if your playing a violin or cello sound or even woodwinds the sounds were very convincing. You can get that kind of articulation with keys and the pitch and mod wheels or a breath/ribbon controller, but it just comes naturally on a string instrument. In the end I just decided it wasn't worth the effort. So my AX-100 sits in a rack in my studio, just in case I get nostalgic. Guitar synths are a bit like keytars are you a keyboard player wishing you were the guitar player or a guitar player wishing you were a keyboard player? For me, playing both it was only curiosity that drew me to it initially.

    The http to https thing

    in The Keyboard Corner

    Posted

    No blue envelopes in UBBT77-Dark no highlighted titles in unread. Default theme used to have unread post in bold. Not anymore. There is no way for me to know what I have read other than memory.

    Firefox both Mac Big Sur & Windows 10. Safari showed one blue envelope in Dark mode.

    Sweetwater Soliciting Calls

    in The Keyboard Corner

    Posted

    My sales rep Robert has rarely if ever called me out of the blue. He has been my rep for about 12 years, he always calls right after I order something just to let me know when I can expect it. Sometimes he will ask if I'm currently gigging, that kind of thing. Of course he always ends with, 'if I can help you with any future needs call me". When I ordered an MPC One he asked me what my plans for it were because I have never ordered anything like it in the past. Robert has always been friendly and is good at building rapport. I have never ever felt pushed to buy anything. And he has never suggested I buy anything I haven't asked his opinion about. Which is never because all my orders have been through the website. I do a lot of research before I buy.

    Wow! Say it ain't so. (Sweetwater)

    in The Keyboard Corner

    Posted

    I too share the skepticism, I've seen way to many times that in these situations the founder of a company is eventually forced out and senior management is offered "take this generous severance or else" deals.

    It doesn't happen quickly, tyrannical domination starts showing its intentions after about 2 years. Cynicism? Hell yes, but it is based on past experience. Good luck all the employees of Sweetwater, I hope I'm wrong.

    Powering your iPad during live performance

    in The Keyboard Corner

    Posted

    Being able to connect an iPad to electric socket makes too much sense for Apple, like being able to easily replace battery. Except, it doesn't work on the financial side to ever becoming a multi-billion dollar company.

     

    Plugging directly into 120-250v approximately 15 amp source depending on your country, directly would be ridiculous. You would have to build it big enough to hold a power supply, have a large power port and shield the hell out of it. It would also be capable of killing you instantly in case of a short. What they did is fine, it can be built exactly the same no matter where its used, is small and lightweight . Plus has the added benefit of not killing you, unless you walk into traffic while using it. Powering it is not difficult.

     

    There are plenty of power strips out the with usb power ports. I paid about $29 for mine at amazon. A USB-C to standard USB adapter and a long enough cable to reach the power strip and the strip can power other things on stage too. That's what I use to control my mixer. It will charge an iPad albeit slowly, but keeping it powered it works perfectly.

    Need a 73 SW

    in The Keyboard Corner

    Posted

    Roland VR-730 has acoustic piano, EP and synth sounds in addition to its organ engine and is only $1,649.99.

     

    73-note waterfall keybed with semi-weighted action for legit organ and EP playing feel

    Dedicated panel sections give you immediate access to organ, piano, and synth sounds

    Vintage electric pianos and rich acoustic grand pianos

    Broad selection of SuperNATURAL synth sounds, from vintage classics to modern must-haves

    Onboard sound library expandable with free downloads from Roland's Axial website

    Anyone using line array speakers (such as Bose "sticks")?

    in The Keyboard Corner

    Posted

    I have two TurboSound iP1000 systems that I use mainly for front of the house in small to medium sized gigs. I have DJ'd outdoor events and weddings with them too. They have never let me down in the 4+ years I have owned them. I like how they sound and my band is very happy with them. I had originally bought just one as a monitor for my keys, and for solo piano & acoustic guitar gigs. I quickly realized these speakers were capable of much more than what I was using them for. I use a digital mixer X-air 18 so inputs aren't an issue.
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