The Piano Man

I have played both. Owned the D1 for about 6 months. Played the ES110 in my local music store for just about 20 minutes. Keybed - in my view, Korg wins this one. The D1"s RH3 is such a solid action. I really like it. Nice medium weighting to it. The Kawai was surprisingly nice for being so light but just didn"t quite feel as substantial. (You know the spec difference in weight, so not too surprising) Tone - I preferred the Kawai. Just had more depth of tone. When I had the D1, I midi"d it up to a sound module. The internal sounds are very basic sounding. Kawai just sounded more like a real piano. I ended up selling the D1. Haven"t bought a replacement yet but the Kawai ES110 is in the running. Another alternative is the Korg B2. It has improved piano sounds over the D1 but it has an inferior keyboard action. Your mileage may vary! I wonder if there are any online dealers that could send you both to try and then refund whatever one you don"t want. You would probably need to cover the cost of both initially, of course.

At least that Shawcross guy can play to a decent level. There is one stage piano reviewer who seems to appear an awful lot and he has such terrible technique, that I really struggle to watch those videos, so generally switch off. I find this Shawcross guy has at least been properly taught. And, as others have said, it is good that he at least makes his views known. The viewer can then do their own research and reach their own conclusions.

I quite like the clean approach of Nord, whereby each different model is given a different name; Stage Piano Electro Lead and each new model is just given the next number; Piano Piano 2 Piano 3 Piano 4 My only issue with this approach is that I, personally, do not like seeing the number on the back panel of the board. For example, I"d prefer if the next Piano model was called Piano 5, but just had this on the main panel in small writing. On the back panel, beside the connections, it could just say 'Nord Piano'. Anyway, just my rambling thoughts!

I own the following: - pair of QSC K10 - pair of EV ZXa1 - Roland KC150 I play grand piano sounds mostly. Sometimes add a little EP/organ etc. My favourite setup for pure sound quality would be a pair of EV ZXa1s. You cannot beat stereo for most piano samples, particularly on something like a Nord. However, I struggle with the Nord sound on anything other than headphones or very high end (hired) speaker systems. I find some older stage pianos more forgiving and sometimes use these in mono with something slightly brutal such as a Roland KC. It is certainly not a high end sound but it can work for certain gigging contexts and I do like the convenience of a keyboard amplifier in certain situations. For rehearsal, as you ask, I would go for the quick setup convenience of a keyboard amp. However, if I wanted to sound better than average for a particular rehearsal, I"d bring a pair of ZXa1"s and run in stereo. What keyboard(s) are you playing and what are your goals?

Thank you so much for taking the time to post this info. Will go and get Beatmaker 2. Kind regards all the way from Scotland. Cheers!

Any recommendations? I used to own a Roland FA08 which has simple sample pads where you can trigger recordings/ voice memos etc. and you could edit the start time and so on. Is there an app on iOS that performs a similar function?

Hell, I'd take it in purple. True! Anything but red

Looks pretty good, although I thought the old site was nice as well. Hoping for a 76 key TP8p version of the PC4 in the Artis 7 shell, but in black...

My memory of the PHA-4 standard was that it was a little sluggish. This memory is based on a very quick try of an FP30, so I could be wrong. Nonetheless, you could try adjusting the key touch settings. This can help to some degree, as will playing it in a bit.

Have you ever tried running a MIDI cable and playing the Nord pianos from the Kurz action? Hi Scott! I have indeed. It did sound very nice. And I did previously own a Nord Piano 2, with (albeit slightly different) TP40 Keyboard. But I still really like the triple strike. It just seems to work. For me, Nord pianos sound fantastic when other people are playing them. But when I play them myself, I am never entirely happy unless through headphones or seriously high end stereo speakers, which I do not own personally. I remember you were a big fan of the Artis 7, and changed the springs? How did you find the German Grand compared to the older triple strike pianos?

Hello all. Music is such a great comfort/focus at this time. Here in Scotland, we are used to things being so miserable outside that we opt to stay in, though usually it is to do with the weather. Anyway, with more time to appreciate the joy of playing music, what"s 'your' board? By this, I mean, what keyboard/instrument did you finally buy and be like 'Yes, this is the one'? Living in a flat, I do not have a real piano. I grew up playing a Yamaha U1. In the flat, I have had a range of things from Yamaha, Roland, Kawai, Korg until just last year, I bought a Kurzweil PC3x. I had been looking for the PC3a8 to get the better pianos but I got a great deal on the PC3x. I have to say, I absolutely love the old triple strike pianos. I know some people hate them. But, the programmers have done an amazing job and the editing options appear endless. I own a Nord Stage 2 ex hp76, but I have grown to love and prefer the Horowitz Grand on the Kurzweil. The TP40 action also helps, compared to the TP100 in that particular Nord. I have edited the release, reduced the reverb and I am delighted with the sound. I also love many of the acoustic samples. Cannot see me switching from Kurzweil now. What"s 'your' board?

Absolutely the right decision. Support him digitally, keep in touch. Sending love and strength to you.

Still use a Technics P30, circa 1999. Still the best looking stage piano in my opinion.

The Korg D1 has the RH3 action, as used in the Kronos. It is a quality keyboard action.

I managed to copy it over no problem. Great resource! I see a lot of Matsushita actions. I presume this must be all the Technics ones. Interesting to see Roland using these quite a bit.

Excellent. Thank you!

Hi Elmer, I"ve just remembered I have an old Roland EP7. I am thinking it might have the same action as the VR700. Any ideas? I think I once tried an XP80... similar action to the XP30 which I owned for a number of years. Nice keyboard actions but think I prefer the box shape keys on the VR/EP etc Thanks!

Thanks Mike! Will check out the old Alesis boards. I think they have the internal power supply as well if I remember rightly. I actually have an old Rhodes 760 that has a decent keyboard style action and internal power supply. It is basically a Roland U20 with 76 keys.

Hello folks, looking for a 76 key semi-weighted action, something like that found on Kurz PC3/SP76/Artis7 etc. I think it is the Fatar TP8piano, but I could be wrong! So basically, piano shaped keys, rather than keyboard style keys with a decent bit of resistance but not the full hammer action. Any ideas for something available in any lower cost boards, either older boards or controller keyboards? Ideally, I would like the board to have an internal power supply. Sounds do not matter as I have a Roland Integra. I suppose I could consider an 88 key board, such as Korg B2n. Sure, it doesn't have an internal power supply, but it looks decent and is not expensive. Has anyone played that board. I presume it has the same action as the Kronos LS. Any thoughts on how this action compares to the Fatar one? Any help gratefully received! Thanks

Thanks Dave!

Played another Pro 76 last night and came on here to see if anyone knew the keyboard action. Totally forgot I started this thread back in 2017 Is the Fatar TP8 available in any controllers? I have a Roland Integra so don"t need any internal sounds.

Any Roland Integra or XV5050 users care to suggest their favourite samples for cutting through? I own both (should probably sell the 5050) but find myself going back to an old Technics P30 piano for live playing. Any particular patches/tones you like for cutting through? I have memories of liking old RD600, RD150 and FP3/4 sounds. Any idea if these samples are on my modules and, if so, what they are called?

https://www.harmonycentral.com/forums/topic/169204-way-way-ot-p120dude/page/244/

I remember P120dUdE. Despite his initial dislike of the P250, I think he eventually bought a P250 and changed his name to ChrisM250. Other names I remember on Harmony Central were Yoozer and Kirumamoru (spelling?!) I don"t know if these guys still post these days. I am not all that frequent a poster myself.

Didn"t expect this old thread to get a bump but, as the OP, I can update by saying that I ended up buying A LOT of different things. Alesis QS6.2 - keyboard arrived faulty so was returned. Hammond SK1-73 - love it! Brilliant sounds for all types of organs. The pipe sounds are excellent. B3 is obviously brilliant. And the board looks beautiful. Technics P50 - actually has a nice selection of organ presets, albeit it is a hammer action board. MarcMoerd IOS app - pricey for an iOS app but the pipe organ sounds on here are absolutely brilliant. I"ve midi"d it to an old Korg X5. Kurzweil PC3x - bought one of these for the home, for pianos, orchestral and workstation features. However, I noticed that there are some very nice pipe organ setups. Probably the work of someone of the talent of Dave Weiser. Tempted by a Nord Electro 6d 61 but really need to sell before I buy again!!