unitjazz

I liked the old 8 bit Mirage ! I used to make loops of Bill Bruford songs (like the intro to Five G) and that would pretty much close the deal without too much effort. An old friend of mine, Dom, was a manager at Medley for many years. I believe Gerson’s son took over the business and things were not quite the same. I bought my first synth (Arp Axxe) from Gerson in ‘75, while his dad Harry was still running the place. Bought the Ensoniq MR-76 in ‘96 from Medley, and may have bought my used Vako Orchestron from Mediey. The Vako Orchestron was the keyboard equivalent to the Easy Bake Oven. 💡 Can’t tell you how many times I was in Cintioli’s, but Benny always told us to get the hell out since we didn’t have any money back then…and I didn’t have any interest in Cordovoxs. Although I did buy my Real Book from Benny in 1978…still got it ! Still use it ! And George’s Music had Ensoniq from the beginning, but at that time he only had two stores…the original one in Spring City and the one in North Wales. But we did very well with Ensoniq, as it was easily our biggest selling keyboard line…especially the ESQ-1, although I never cared for the Ensoniq digital piano. I was more partial to the Roland MKS-20 module back then, and recommended that over the SDP-1. And since we didn’t carry Yamaha, I had to work extra hard to prop up the ESQ-1 against the very popular DX-7 back then. I was so thankful when Roland introduced the D-50 ! And I wanted to ask…does anyone still have the plaque that Ensoniq gave you for attending Ensoniq school ? I lost mine quite a few years ago. Maybe they stopped that practice, but it was suitable for hanging in the keyboard department for giving you ‘ cred.

That name triggered a flood of memories. I walked into George’s Music in North Wales, Pa in 1984 to check out the new Ensoniq Mirage, and walked out with a job. Turns out the salesman I spoke with was the store manager and he was impressed with my knowledge of keyboards/MIDI, and offered me a job as their keyboard salesman. Much better than the painting contractor gig I was doing at the time. That was too much like work ! I only owned a Mirage (which I bought after getting my new job), and an MR-76, which I got in ‘96, but after that, Ensoniq certainly faded away with the sale to Creative Technology. The last new product Ensoniq introduced while I was still in MI sales was the EPS, which was interesting for it’s time. And I think that also had polyphonic after touch (circa 1988). I sold a lot of ESQ-1s back then and recall Doug Nestler. I got sent to “Ensoniq School” to learn about their products, but Ensoniq’s headquarters was only 30 minutes down the road in Malvern Pa, so the store owner didn’t have to pay for lodging and food for me to attend. This is the same man who gave us copies of Zig Ziglar”s “Secrets of Closing the Sale” books as Christmas bonuses…gee…thanks. Now I recall why I got out of music retail sales. Anyone other graduates of “Ensoniq School” here?

Since we are still paying tribute to Lyle Mays months after his passing (and we should continue to do so), I am thankful so many of the PMG performances were recorded and we can continue to enjoy these moments, years later. I suppose they knew this was a special moment in musical history that needed to be documented. Here is one such moment. Lyle"s solo, along with Paul Wertico"s accompaniment. I have no words to express how this makes me feel. [video:youtube]

I saw this thread this morning and listened to the demos. I purchased the package after listening to all the demos. Fantastic sound...even better playing experience. After more than 40 years of searching for a Rhodes experience that really connects with me, I think I have found it. The balance between the upper and lower registers is nearly perfect, allowing me to play aggressively without getting all muddied up in the mid/lower range. The sample layers are seamless to my ears (keep in mind I"ve only owned it for a few hours) and the dynamic range is really satisfying and responsive. Nuance and bark, all in the same sound. I can actually play a Rhodes in the way I play an acoustic piano. It responds very well to a wide range of dynamics, and subtly changes tone color while sounding natural. After installing it, I played for nearly two hours non-stop, and composed three new tunes during that time. That is the response I want from a piece of software...it inspires me to play and create, and feel connected to it. I am playing it from my RD-800, which is an action that works well for me, since I mostly just play acoustic and electric piano sounds (The Hammersmith has been my favorite piano app for the past few years) and had been using Scarbee Classic EP-88s, but that always left me a bit unfulfilled. Many of the Scarbee sounds were not to my liking, and I felt they often got muddy, had some weird overtones in places, and lacked a certain clarity that I was searching for in a virtual Rhodes. And I couldn"t quite connect with them when playing. The Famous E electric piano satisfied me from the first few notes, and a few thousand notes later, I was really stoked. I have a very specific taste in Rhodes sounds, and I connected with almost every preset in this package. And the samples also responded well to my pedaling from the Roland RPU-3 pedal, allowing me to control the sustain and resonances of the sound. I didn"t have to mess with the velocity curve, as it seemed very good in the default configuration for my keyboard and touch. I know I am not a well known contributor to the forum, and my opinion only really matters to me, but I am posting this because this piece of software may be a very important addition to my playing experience, based on my initial reaction and response to it. I wanted to share that with you all, as someone may be searching for the same experience. When I created an account to purchase it, I was able to take a survey related to the improvements of their products, and received some 'orange slices' which are discount points, and saved 17% off the listed $159 purchase price (comes to $131.97, so you don"t have to do the math in your head). Easily the best $130 bucks I have spent on a Rhodes sound. Thanks to Steve Nathan for bringing it to my attention.

There was a discussion a couple of months ago on the forum about Lyle Mays. At that time, I had offered my opinion on his enormous talent. Hearing of his passing is sad news indeed, but I find amazing comfort in the realization that his music will be with us forever, and I am blessed to have been able to listen to it, experience it for the past 4 decades, feel it move me, and appreciate what it has always been, which (in my opinion) is some of the most emotional and expressive music I have ever heard. Lyle Mays truly spoke through his music, and that music was able to convey a thought, a feeling, an emotion, more than most words could. When I listen to Lyle play, I hear the beauty of life, as life should be. Although Lyle spoke through his music, someone uploaded an audio recording of a master class Lyle did at UNT, and we get to hear some of his insights on music. [video:youtube]

I still own an original Numa organ. It has worked pretty well over the years, but there were some issues early on. The original Numa organ does have 3 different organ models to choose from, but you must connect it to a computer in order to change models ( I believe they were A-100, B-3 and either a C-3 or RT). Many users had issues with getting the computer connection to work. I was always able to get it to work, and settled on the A model sound as my personal preference. I dont know if the software to change this is still available on Studiologics website. The keybed was decent (actually like it better than my original Mojos action), and the build quality is pretty good. I think the original Numa organ looks nicer than the Numa 2, but that is also a personal preference. The funky Studiologic red buttons and other controls have held up. The only issue I had with it while gigging was a tendency to drop a half step in pitch !!! Seemed like this occurred in extremely humid conditions (did a lot of summer outdoor gigs with this organ). It happened only twice that I recall, and I was able to correct by using the transpose function, but it was odd. I did use a Ventilator with my Numa organ. I had made up a cable with an octal plug, so I could control the Vent with the speed controller on the organ. It was pretty satisfying. And yes, I agree that the Vent did change the tone of the organ, but it was a tone I liked, and the Vents simulation had greater warmth and width to my ears, although the Numas internal sim was certainly good. I have kept my Numa organ even though I dont use it much these days (not gigging like I used to), because it is a good 20 LBS clone.

I blame Yamaha for having one of the most confusing and diluted description schemes, regarding the actions they put in their instruments. Every one seems to have a different name or slight variation. Here is a listing of actions on some of the models being discussed here, right from Yamahas spec sheet of each model ... Montage 8 - Balanced Hammer Effect CP73 - Balanced Hammer Standard MODX 8 - Graded Hammer Standard MOFX 8 -Graded Hammer Standard (Initial Touch) As you can see, each one is listed differently in some way. As I follow this thread, I am getting confused by all the apples-to-oranges comparisons. Even Yamaha reps are clouding the waters, because it is not fair to refer to a Montage as a standard reference of an action, as there are two different keybeds on Montage models (Balanced Hammer Effect and FSX). Comparing the 88 note Montage BHE action to the 73 note CP73 may be fair, but the CP73 is not BHE, but rather BHS !!!??? (May feel the same, but lacks aftertouch ???). And dont even bring the CP88s NW-GH action into the discussion, because that can only be compared to the CP4s action, not the Montage 8s action. And if we start to get into a discussion of weight solely, that opens up another can of worms. The CP73 at 28 lbs wins, but the 38 lbs CP4 has better piano action, yet the CP88 at 41 lbs offers a (heavier) compromise between the CP73 and the CP4, but my 47 lbs. Roland RD-800 kicks all their butts as a stage piano...but has a bigger butt !!! Likewise with the MODX 8 versus the MOFX 8, since the older MOFX specifies Initial Touch and there is no such specification for the new MODX. Can we assume they feel the same, but may lack an additional feature ? At least the difference in weight between them is insignificant. This is an easy choice, as the MODX 8 is clearly an upgrade from the MOFX 8 (although for me, it is a non-starter, as I dislike the GHS action). Unfortunately for me, this has only confused me more. I want a less-than-30 lbs 73 note keyboard with the action of a CP-4 (or RD-800, like I own), but want the acoustic piano sound I get from my Soniccouture Hammersmith app, while having the Rhoads electric piano sounds from my Yamaha S90es, and I would prefer not to have toggle switches that stick up from the front panel that will likely be vulnerable to being snapped off in transport...and I would like it to be under $1500. Is that too much to ask ???

I bought a Compact 2 off Amazon about a month or so ago, hoping its 15 lbs would be a nice rehearsal keyboard option at times. I have had rehearsals in CC Philly where I have had to walk several blocks to get the the studio, and dropping the keyboard off prior to parking was not an option. The Compact 2s action does not work for me at all. It is too springy, and the short keys are weird. The black notes are really odd in how hard they are to trigger. Maybe I could adapt to one of these things, but this trifecta of quirks will have me sell this keyboard for less than half price. Its a shame, because the sounds are usable, and the feature set is actually quite nice for the price. I can plug my iPad into the USB port and get the app sounds to play through the internal speakers and/or the audio outputs. Pretty sweet! But for me, the action is unusable, so I will sell it for cheap. I should have tried the 30 lbs SL88 Studio, because I owned a Numa Stage piano some years ago, and it was passable with its action, which I think is the same as the SL88 Studio, but I was greedy, and thought a 15 lbs keyboard would actually work for me. Its not worth it though, I will just lug my heavy-@ss RD-800 and be happy when I play (and b!itch when I move it). Also, I own an original 20-something lbs Numa organ, and I would choose that over the Compact 2s action for playing organ all day. If you play in a rock band, and spend most of your time playing in the key of guitar, it might serve your needs well, so I am not condemning the Compact II, but just advising those like me who are tempted by its 15 lbs. If you need something close to a piano action (even a cruddy piano action), this is probably not for you.

I had noticed around the time Elvio got into it with DMI that the Numa organ (1) software/firmware files disappeared off of Studiologic's site. That had led me to speculate that something happened between Studiologic and Elvio, and when the Numa 2 was announced, I noticed it no longer had the "powered by KeyB" designation, so I believe (without any real facts at my disposal) that Studiologic is using a different sound engine in the Numa 2. Why else would my Numa 1 (S/N 12xxx, below the cut off number for updating) not be compatible with the Numa 2 files ? But then again, Studiologic did that when I had a Numa Piano, and the updated files for the Numa Stage were not compatible with my older Numa Piano, based on the S/N. Thanks to Studiologic for obsoleting my investment in their products. (The artist formerly known as NumaDude).