The Piano Man

Thanks for these tips. On a side note, and I know that I and many others have made this point, I still tend to favour samples such as the Kurzweil Triple Strike over Nord etc. Unless the Nord is going through top notch in ears, Kurz Triple Strike (or other older samples from Roland etc) is the way to go in my view. I use EV ZXa1 which is great but not exactly RCF TT level. So, I sold my Nord. Wish there was a 10 or 12ish version of the ZXa1 actually. (Yam DXR10 probably a decent bet) Anyway, dragging my own topic off topic here, so will close by again thanking you all for these tips!

Wow, thanks Dave. Very kind of you to respond! What a service!! Certainly beyond the call of duty. Love hearing the stories behind some of the PC3 programs. I did also notice 6 Power Pop Grand - sounds like it would cut through just about anything. 163 Electric Grand Stack - this was giving me Elton John vibes as well. Of course, ultimately, it’s all about the player, sound designer, sound man, PA equipment etc etc. So, I know I personally will never sound anything like him but it’s nice to try! Thanks again Dave and all the great folks on this excellent forum.

Can any PC3 users help me? What program on the PC3 would be closest to the Elton John piano sound? I understand he layers the MKS20 (RD1000 sound) with a Yamaha Motif piano patch? If I was to create a similar layer/setup for the PC3, what would be the way to go? The NYC Grand program has a little of the similar tonality to the Yamaha Motif. What would be the PC3 program most like the MKS20/RD1000? I guess I am looking for a Digital Grand type patch. Any help much appreciated! Thanks all

Was hoping for new colour options at Namm. An all black SV2s and I would be making a purchase. Want the speaker version but dislike the cream colour. So, do I go with the all black SV2, the cream SV2s or wait some further for a new color option? I suppose I could get the all black SV2 and just get some top monitor speakers. However, I do like the vibration effect of the onboard speakers and the convenience. Any SV2 owners out there? Which of the four model options did you buy and for what reason?

Dear all, a little off topic for keyboard corner perhaps… (although I do put a RD88, Alesis QS6.1 and Korg X5d through my mixer…) Anyway, I have a Bose T8s. The channel mute only mutes the FOH sound. It doesn’t mute the aux send. I had the same issue on my Mackie 1202 vlz3. On my Allen and Heath Zed 14, everything is muted on that channel when you press the channel mute. This is what I want on all mixers. Any thoughts on this? Why must It be this way on some mixers?? I would have thought that the Bose, being digital, might have allowed this feature via a setting change. No such luck so far. For my live sound scenarios, if we wish to mute a channel, we want it muted at FOH and through the monitors. Therefore, it is irritating the way the T8s and 1202 are designed.

Is there such a thing as a keyboard stand with mounts/shelves for small monitor speakers? I have tried Thomann etc. but haven’t been able to find anything. I have X stands that can take mounts but I just cannot find any mounts/shelves that would take small monitor speakers (think Roth Audioblob or iLoud Micro Monitors etc) Thanks!

Does Dexibell offer any pro level boards (That is, internal power supply, assignable audio outs, solid construction etc.) or are they more like Casio level? Do any pros use Dexibell? Am I right in saying they are ex-Roland Europe guys? If so, that’s a very decent pedigree. I know some will challenge my own definition of “pro level” and, indeed a pro player can make almost anything sound good (plus I know some like the PX5s etc.) However, hopefully people get my query! No offence intended. Good to see different products out there. Would be great to give a Dexibell a try. Plain black colour scheme would’ve been good but I guess other companies have to find a way to carve their own identify in a world of popular “red” keyboards!

Korg Grandstage Korg SV2 Yamaha P515 Kurzweil are great at including this feature but, sadly, the mid range boards all have external power supply now and no assignable outs. Even the Casio PX360 can do four sounds simultaneously, albeit with a single split point. Korg SV2 should at least offer this level of functionality so you could have two sounds layered on both sides of a split point. “get the Nautilus” you may say, but that brings me back to a premium pricepoint with loads of other features I do not need. Ultimately, I do appreciate the different challenges as outlined by all of your responses. Thanks as always for the sharing of views and insight.

Internal power supply Minimum of 4 overlapping zones Assignable audio outs If you are looking for these three features on a board, it is so expensive! Options - Korg Nautilus - Yamaha Montage - Roland Fantom - Hammond SK Pro - Nord Stage 3 So, why are those three features so expensive?!

Perhaps this is not possible? The answer may be: buy a better board? Yamaha P121 perhaps?

I play Technics (P30 and P50) and they are still seen here in Scotland. Nords are definitely appearing more and more. I see people jumping on the red bandwagon, paying over the odds for a Nord and then hooking up their expensive red keyboard in mono to a Roland KC amp! After this, I generally see old gear such as Roland XP models, Kurzweil K models and some cheaper Yamahas (P35/45/115 etc)

Any recommendations of compact 61 key boards with internal power supply (C14 type)? Going to use as a midi controller. The only other thing I need is a midi out. Ideally black in colour. A lot of the Rolands (eg XP30) have the figure of 8 type socket. My thoughts so far: Korg X3 - but perhaps a touch too big Alesis QS6.2 - too silver! Any help greatly appreciated! Nick

Hello all, Is there any way to use the headphone out as a line out and retain the onboard speakers? I don’t see anything in the manual that could help. Any thoughts on a possible mod? I don’t mind losing the headphone Jack. That is, I don’t mind if the speakers are always on! That’s kind of what I want. Keen to hook up to a keyboard amp or powered speaker but also retain the vibration/monitoring effect of the onboard speakers. Thanks

Yamaha NP32 sounds a lot better than the Roland Go Keys (in my opinion). It has only a headphone output so not ideal. Alternatively, Roland has the VR730 and Juno DS line. Korg has the Krome. You could also connect to an IOS device to expand your piano sound options. Finally, you could get a portable battery solution and power up a keyboard of your choice.

Hello all, today I tried out a Kawai KDP90. Thought it was really nice actually. The sound, touch and speaker system was all very nice. Would there be a stage piano equivalent that would provide similar performance? Specifically, the volume level was great. Obviously, the worry is that a stage piano version would not have as good a speaker system. I used to own a Kawai ES6 which, I believe, has the same (or at least similar) keyboard action to the KDP90. However, I certainly preferred the KDP90. The ES6 seemed sluggish and underpowered in comparison. The KDP is a nice and quick keyboard action and the sound and touch feels nice, solid and precise with plenty volume. Any advice greatly appreciated! Does Kawai James post on here? He could be the key!

Am I right in saying that the model with speakers (SV2s) is not available in all black? I hope Korg add this option. The cream/white version is too bold for my liking. Genuinely considering getting the RD88 but will hold off until NAMM in case new colour options emerge for the SV2. The new Vox Continental looks great!

+1! Indeed! Lou said it better!

Can see this being a nice addition to future stage piano/keyboard models. A little clip out panel that can comfortably handle a range of tablets. Would be a nice feature.

A question for those in the know.. What is the zoning capability of the SV2? The manual seems to suggest max three sounds to the right of the split point and only one sound to the left? Is that right? It would appear it is more limited than I first thought. Kurzweil is always quite strong in this area. Even their lower cost boards usually offer at least 4 zones with complete flexibility in terms of key ranges etc.

Out of interest, what way has the Casio been lying when you have been storing it? I am wondering whether you might be able to avoid this issue in future. Of course, space constraints can dictate storage positioning, so I appreciate it may not be easy for you.

Thanks Scott, as always. Will check out the thread above. I suppose it may be the case that the intention, at the time, was to create a high end stage piano with the focus on the quality of the sound, action, cabinet and connections. I do feel that it should be priced quite a bit lower than the SV2 but, in the UK at least, the price is very much comparable,

How many zones does the Grandstage have for internal sounds? Can you have two sounds in the bottom half and two in the top half, for example? Can you go further and set custom key ranges? I have scanned the manual which seems to indicate you can only have a basic layer of two sounds or a simple split with one sound in the upper half of the split point and one sound in the lower. I see the price of the Grandstage and its name 'GrandSTAGE' and think: surely you can do more complex zoning of internal sounds than suggested in the manual. If not, I do not understand why anyone would buy this over an SV2, or Yamaha CP73 etc. Maybe I am missing a unique selling point of the Grandstage. Thanks all!

Thanks for this. I believe it is just the SRX02 and SRX11 that is available. These boards include programs such as Premier Grand, Dynamic Grand and Superb Grand. These are different from the pianos from the VE-RD expansion board for the A90 which is, essentially where piano sounds were chosen for RD600, RD100, RD150, FP3, FP5 etc etc.

To me, Roland - more than any other manufacturer - has a piano sound that has changed considerably. Whilst others have evolved their sound, Roland has changed the character of theirs considerably, in my opinion. When I listen to Roland models such as the RD600 and others of its time, it sounds so different to the present day RD2000 etc. I suppose the short answer is that the old 'JV/XV' sound was PCM whilst all the current stuff is 'Superbatural part modelled'. However, to me the character of the sound is so different. I, personally, like the older sound. It is precise, it cuts through the mix and it is very playable. The newer sound, whilst perhaps more 'realistic' to the listener, is not anywhere near as good to the player. The other thing about the older sound is that you can hook it up in mono to something faintly dreadful, such as a Roland KC, and it works okay for gigging purposes. In summary, I hope that Zen Core or something else will provide the option of loading these legacy sounds into the modern boards.

So not a serious board at all then. That"s a shame. I know, I almost wanted to return it when I saw that. But nothing else this light with speakers sounds this good through its speakers. So it depends on your use. As I was mentioning in the other thread abot ceremony/cocktail hour stuff, it's the best board I've found for that use. Realistically, in a single-board scenario, I doubt I'd ever connect it to anything (especially since, if I need it to have some other sound, I can load soundfonts into it), but if by some chance I did, it would probably be an iOS device, which would connect fine via USB. The lack of 5-pin MIDI connectors could come into play more in a 2-board scenario, where you could conceivably want your other board to ocassionally trigger a Dexibell sound or vice versa. I like having that kind of flexibility, even though, in practice, I hardly ever use it. For my particular use, in this case, as averse as I am to boards without 5-pin connectors, the other advantages of the board and the real-world ways I'd use it made its advantages more important than that irritating shortcoming. That"s a very fair point. Sounds like it will work well for you. I use a Roland EP760 for similar scenarios. Very dated and a semi weighted action only. Would have considered the P3 but I do need the midi out.