stoken6
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Posts posted by stoken6
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I've never noticed a problem with polyphony since I graduated from my 6-voice Roland Juno 2. I've had keyboards with 32, 40, 64 - I genuinely can't remember what my Nord Stage 2 can do (although I remember it's 18 synth voices), but I know it's never held me back.
Cheers, Mike.
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New iPad mount, to replace the Stagg thing I had previously which got too stiff to reliably open the ratchet mechanism to release the iPad.
Nice thing about this one: I wanted one that would mount on a regular mic stand, plus I wanted the clamp (with a mic thread on it) for other purposes. This product comprises the two parts. It's not the greatest quality - the rotation of the iPad (about an axis perpendicular to its screen) is a simple friction mechanism, with no ability to tighten/loosen - but it's cheap and it works.
Cheers, Mike.
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2 hours ago, niacin said:
having done a lot of Postmodern Jukebox style gigs over the past few years I'd have played this as a New Orleans rumba, a quick run through it tells me it would work a treat.
Yup - sometimes the PMJ approach strikes gold, particularly when you take a risk. I loved their take on Seven Nation Army, for example.
Cheers, Mike.
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43 minutes ago, AnotherScott said:
Personally, my ideal "top board" would be a 69-key E-to-C. That's the smallest possible board that has the high C I want for organ, the low E I want for left hand bass, and as a bonus, encompasses the full A-to-C range of a Wurli and the full F-to-F range of a clav. So if you want more than 61 keys, 69 gives you the greatest benefit relative to the smallest amount of expansion.
I'm finding low E to be insufficient for some of my uses - I use low D and low C quite often (low Bb for Thunder Road only!). I'd like a C-E 77-key or C-G 80-key.
You might say "you're most of the way to an 88", but 88s are tricky to fit in European midsize/compact cars, but a 76 is fine. So I suspect my options would be OK.
Cheers, Mike.
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1 hour ago, Reezekeys said:
And here's one of my USB HD enclosures with an A-to-A cable. I suspect the A at the drive end is there only because a B jack wouldn't fit. Seems like USB "standards" are frequently ignored!
I'll see your HD enclosure with a non-standards-compliant A-A cable, and raise you my A->2xA Y cable, designed to supply the enclosure with power from 2x USB A sockets!
Cheers, Mike.
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1 hour ago, GotKeys said:14 hours ago, Reezekeys said:
I've never seen a B-to-B cable (I know they exist - just searched & found them, but they are quite uncommon).
The reason why they are quite uncommon is because USB is a master-slave bus, meaning that one device (for example, a computer) is the master, while the controller/printer/hard drive/etc. is the slave. USB-A is generally what is used by the master device, and B (and it's many smaller derivatives) by the slave device, so as not to cause confusion among end users.
If the answer is a B-B cable, you're probably asking the wrong question... I took a quick look and found this product which states "does not comply with the USB standard".
Cheers, Mike.
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5 hours ago, octa said:
Maybe Nord will release a Stage 3 ex or 4 HA 73 (with drawbars and usb audio)
A 73HA stage would be cool. IMO Stage 3EX won't have USB audio, normally the EX is only a memory bump (and iirc the 2->2EX transition replaced the 76HA with a HP action, which is a shame). It would be a nice feature on a hypothetical Stage 4.
Cheers, Mike.
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4 hours ago, Tom Williams said:
that's one of the reasons I'm a Kurzweil fanboy
Yup. Kurzweil do a lot of things right when it comes to MIDI control.
4 hours ago, AnotherScott said:I'd still give Nord the nod for [...] ease of synth sound editing,
This. I'm doing a lot more sound editing than I thought I would on my Nord. From the scare stories I've heard, Kurzweil programming is orders of magnitude harder.
Cheers, Mike.
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1 hour ago, AnotherScott said:
Hammond SK Pro
Of course - I knew I'd forgotten something. The Hammond can do the Nord's trick, at the expense of its acoustic piano patches.
I don't think Vox Konti can play one sound from its keybed simultaneously with another sound via MIDI.
Cheers, Mike.
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So it turned out the solution to my problem is - another K&M 240/5:
I'm just using the clamp - so the hex bar is supported by two clamps. One prevents up/down movement, one prevents forward/back and they both restrict left-right, as well as rotation around any axis. Rock solid.
Cheers, Mike.
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OT but: is it typical to chart All Blues in 6/8? I always thought it was a jazz waltz, meaning swung quavers/eighths.
Looking at charts online I see examples of both 6/8 and 3/4.
Cheers, Mike.
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Here's a story: a friend of mine is learning keys, and wants to cover AP/EP, Organ and (analogue-style) synth - what do I recommend:
Q: do you want to play piano and organ at the same time? (Yes)
Q: piano and synth at the same time?
Q: organ and synth? (yes).
My response is that you probably need two boards for that, and more than two boards is inconvenient. But both boards need to pull (at least) double duty - if you have a dedicated (say) synth board, then the other has to be able to combine piano and organ. Not impossible, but rarer. (Plus to have piano/organ played from different keybeds, you need a synth board that can easily MIDI local off).
This is the speciality of the Nord Stage - add a controller of your choice and you can easily do this, because it's a triple-duty board: piano, organ, synth.Of course it's not unique:
- Roland VR has comparable capabilities on a smaller scale
- Yamaha YC gives you an FM synth, not VA
- Kurzweil gives you a workstation take on the same problem
So I want to recommend to my friend to get a Nord Stage Classic. Yes they're expensive (even secondhand), but they do the job of two boards, which adds to the "benefit" side of the cost/benefit analysis.
Apologies for the rambling nature of this post, I have been struggling to put together a coherent post on this subject for a few days, and just basically gave up and wrote whatever came out of my brain...
Cheers, Mike.
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I use 5-pin DIN MINI for...everything.
It's peer-to-peer, and doesn't require a host, unlike USB. I notice the OP has three hosts (PC, ipad, Zynthian) so lots of opportunities for USB MIDI there.
An increasing number of standalone hardware boards include USB host capability, but none of the boards I own can do that.
Cheers, Mike.
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20 hours ago, piano39 said:
Sorry to say, that I also was disappointed in this cover. I have tried to cover this song as a solo piano piece, but couldn't come up with anything satisfying.
On 9/16/2022 at 8:39 PM, Mighty Motif Max said:You'll find a lot of videos on YouTube and such of all manner of songs being adapted to different instruments than were originally used in the album etc.
Yeah, I found this piano cover about as forgettable as I find most Youtube covers of 80s stadium rock sung by a waiflike girl singing softly while a guitar strums basic open chords.
Cheers Mike.
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11 hours ago, MathOfInsects said:
for extra kicks you could always play this gig on one of those big yoga core-balls.
"And that's an example how to exploit the fact that the group of symmetries of the 3-sphere is SO(3). Next week, geometry on the projective plane"
Cheers, Mike.
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16 hours ago, Jim Alfredson said:
All I had in my monitor was GUITARS louder than the voice of god, no organ, no keys, no vocals... and by the time you start that first song it's too late to do anything. I tried to get the monitor guy's attention three times to turn down the guitars and it never changed. So I just cranked the Leslie, played piano by feel (and what little I could hear from the mains), sang via hearing myself due to ear plugs, and did the show. What else can you do? You just have to trust that it sounds good out front.
I've done many festivals this summer. Last night was probably the cherry on the cake: I was with a 12-piece "soul revue-type" horn band, closing the show. The sound guy brings... a 12-channel desk.
- Two saxes share a mic on a kick-drum stand
- Trumpet and trombone share a mic
- One singer doesn't get a mic stand
- I didn't get a mic at all.
"Ain't no facepalm big enough..."
15 hours ago, nadroj said:The festivals where the monitor tech is at the side of the stage are the best. Last festival we did the monitor guy was right next to where my keys were so I was able to just shout directly across.
This is my memory of probably my favo(u)rite gig ever: a "festival in Knebworth" (yes, 100% truthful, and 100% not Knebworth Festival). Parking for bands behind the stage, easy load-in. Get on stage perhaps 10 minutes before downbeat - one of the sound crew comes up and says "Keyboards - are you mono or stereo"? (I'm mono)
"Great - set yourself up and let me know when you're ready for a line check" (I set up, wave and play)
"That's all working - I'll be just there off the stage, so just tell me if you need anything in your monitors".
Very professional crew, made the whole gig relaxed and a pleasure.
EDIT: I have once again OT-ed a thread, apologies.
Cheers, Mike.
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19 minutes ago, Adan said:
The idea behind a 401(k) is pretty simple: if you pay the taxes now, you'll pay a higher percentage because your income is higher. If you pay taxes when retired, you'll pay fewer taxes on the same money because you'll be in a lower tax bracket.
It's exactly how pensions are taxed in the UK 👍
Cheers, Mike.
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31 minutes ago, Adan said:
Viewed by itself, I think you're in the right. But Burlington is a small community. One should always think about how one event plays into the next and beyond.
Reputational risk is a valid concern. On the flipside, the OP's reputation may be equally/more damaged by having a poor gig caused by not knowing the material/cues etc.
Cheers, Mike.
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What's your stand? Does it have independent height adjustment for L and R?
Cheers, Mike.
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Correct me if I've got it wrong, but "401k" is code for "you invest without paying tax, but you pay the tax when you draw down the investment", is that it?
I've got no idea on 403b.
Cheers, Mike.
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If you had confirmation of "one hour duration, music of your choice, arrive x minutes before downbeat" then you are categorically not the asshole.
This is the kind of nightmare situation that makes me always ask, for any gig:
- Address, arrival time, parking?
- What songs/pieces, in what keys?
- Dress code?
- What does the gig pay?
Cheers, Mike.
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10 hours ago, obxa said:
Practically speaking unless I was doing a "Yacht rock" or Jazz Fusion gig, I'd spend the money on a Nord before I bought one of those admittedly delicious Vintage Vibe EPs.
If I wanted the look and overall "aura" of a Rhodes/VV without the shlep, I'd go straight to Korg SV2.
Cheers, Mike.
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10 hours ago, HammondDave said:
I have always had mixed feelings about Nords.
Your post reads like you have remarkably unmixed feelings about Nords😁
Cheers, Mike.
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8 hours ago, bill5 said:
So wasted on the Rolling Stones
7 hours ago, Al Coda said:like Darryl Jones ...
Provided both are bringing their A game to the Stones gigs, and not phoning it in, I'm cool with that. (And btw I'm sure these two consummate professionals would not do anything but their best).
Cheers, Mike.
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OT: Anyone know of a small footpedal that will Tx Sysex?
in The Keyboard Corner
Posted
Looking at Morningstar's website, it looks like the smaller MC3 could also do the job. Although it lacks a MIDI IN - I don't know if the MC6 can merge its pedal-triggered-sysex with incoming MIDI, nor if that's a requirement of the OP (if the board is being triggered from MIDI elsewhere as well as sysex from the pedal).
Cheers, Mike.