iluvchiclets

Thank you so much for all the replies. So perhaps the Stage 2EX is close to fair price or maybe a bit high. I will keep these points in mind. Actually, I had a good play today on both the Electro 6D and the Stage 3 on my way home from work. I think I need one of those now. Man, those Mellotron and synth samples are just crazy fun! I added a little of the "Vibe" effect and some reverb...I might as well have been playing a synthesizer! Ugh, they're so nice! Regarding the price, I wish I could find a Stage 3 for $4000 CAD! ($3000 USD was mentioned above...) The CAD dollar is so weak, it's hard to imagine me paying $5500 for the Stage 3. It really is frustrating and infuriating. (Good thing this is only a hobby, I mean I don't really need any of this. But I sure do love it and the pleasure it brings me!)

Hi everyone, Hope it's not a silly question, but I thought I would pick the brains of the collective group. I'm looking to upgrade from my Stage "Classic", but I can't find many Stage 2's for sale near me... The one that is near to me (kijiji) the seller is asking $3600 CAD for a Stage 2EX. I can't help but feel this is too expensive, unless that's what they're selling for? Any thoughts? Buyer/seller stories? (Just to put it in perspective, the Nord Stage 3 Compact 76 sells for $4999 CAD)

This is very cool! I can't believe Brian isn't more well known. Each time I mention his name to musicians I meet, often they don't know him. I love to introduce his music to people...

Very cool! I had not yet played the B-5 softly but, now that I did, you can hear the initial different contact. For those who have played a real Hammond, you will know what it is!

I too struggled to find this fundamental Hammond setting, and was unable to find a sound example of it! I bought B-5 regardless. There is a lot of fun to be had with this simulation! I prefer a "brighter" sounding organ, and there are EQ tweaks avail in the speaker EQ section. I think the Chorus/Vibrato "3" played without Leslie is fantastic...there is virtually nothing that separates it the real Hammonds I have known. When played through the Leslie simulation, it sounds a bit different to me. I get the impression there is possibly some amplitude vibrato as opposed to only pitch vibrato? Also, on a couple of chords I have played, there is the impression there is trilling going on. That is to say, possibly one note is at a different point in the vibrato C/V circuit? Not sure if I am imagining it, and I have not exhausted all the different Rotary Cab simulations yet. There is a lot included! C/V is the most important part of the Hammond sound for me, so I have to admit I am hard to please and, perhaps, overly focused on this point. All in all, very pleased with the purchase, and even more so with the update. It addresses some very key points.

I'm trying the PSP B-Scanner Demo download (14 days trial). Everytime I click on one of the graphics/parameters to edit something, the image disappears and I can't edit anything. Some sort of glitch? (edit - I just tried using the 32-bit version, this time it was a bit more stable and I was able to adjust some parameters. Sounds very nice, but ultimately all I do is use it on C3! All that tweakability!?) LX88 brings up a very good point - I guess you'd need to run: 1) An organ Model, then 2) A scanner Vibrato Model, (with percussion after if possible?) 3) Then a Leslie Model, 4) then some reverb... ...whew!... (My main interest would be using and improving the C/V on Acoustic Samples B5, and Native Instruments Vintage Organs. I don't think VB3 needs any help in the C/V section.)

Thanks for the post, EscapeRocks. I have tried all the free Roland Cloud stuff a few times today, and I was prompted more than once to authorize. (I can't remember when exactly, but my feeling is that it might require you to log-in on different sessions perhaps?) Can I add something? My impressions today are that the whole affair sounds and feels kind of "blah" I feel like there is so many VSTs already that cover this kind of poly-synth stuff. I can't imagine how Roland is going to compete asking the price that they are... Although there was one VST that sounded interesting - the System 8. I want to explore that further. I already have Arturia's Jupiter, so I don't feel like I need any more. Will watch the thread to see other player's opinions.

I'm trying to figure out how this "cloud" works. Once I have downloaded the Jupiter 8 and System 8 VST, they are on my computer to use. What am I paying for at that point? Do they expire? Do they require me logging-in (or internet access) to use?

I see VST Buzz Deals has sent me an email this morning saying B5 Organ is 50% off for a limited time...

Very cool - I will give that a listen to. (I bet there's lots of reverberated Leslie recordings out there that I don't know. I'm probably going to be dragged over the coals now! :

I wonder if it's going to be a Leslie "tweak"? I don't have a big issue with the B5 Leslie sim, but I read a lot of people aren't thrilled with it.

I understand that...but who wants to do that? It sounds plain weird. I think I recall one record where jimmy McGriff (or someone else) was using a Leslie with reverb and it sounded horrible. With the leslie on fast, it sounded like he was underwater! I would be interested to hear if anyone else has used reverb before a Leslie in Hammond recordings. Ethel Grumblinski and the Burlington Mormon choir doesn't count. I'm sure there's some model Hammonds that have spring reverb, but only for using with on-board speakers. (Like L101, M3, A100, etc...) Anyone using an A100 will have the Leslie running without any reverb going into it. Please, give us spring reverb models when we want the Hammond without a rotating speaker, and a proper ambient hall/studio/plate after the Leslie when we want some space...

Thanks for your help I want to really give this B5 a good try to see if it's a fit for me. When I first got it, I thought, "Yeah baby!" Then an hour later, I was, "Hmmm...not sure..." I would love to find a virtual Hammond that does it all for "my ears". Everyone seems to have certain points they are particular about. The UVI player host has excellent effects you can add after the B5 VST...I have been using an EQ to make it sound less-muffled, as well as some post-reverb. (Why Hammond VSTs often use reverb before the Leslie always baffles me! NI's vintage Organs, VB3, and this B5...) The one thing that always stands out when using the B5 program is the Chorus/vibrato on C3. I use that C/V almost exclusively, but I feel like I am hearing some amplitude tremolo as well as the Chorus vibrato...does anyone else hear that? It sounds off to me.

Thank you for the tips, I kind of figured that would be how I would run B5 with another VST effect. But I can't see how UVI will run in a host? I use VSTHost, and I don't see any UVI .dll's that I can open in that host. Unless I am looking in the wrong place? (**Edit - arrrgh - never mind. I found the UVI .dll! Hidden in many layers of folders...program files/steinberg/vst plugins...)

A quick question - the B5 program by Acoustic Samples is called a "VSTi". Does that mean it is a VST? I have only been able to run it in the UVI Workstation player. But, if it was a VST, could I run it in a VST host? I would like to try different VST rotary simulations after B5, but I can't figure out how to. I am specifically trying to figure out how to use Melda's Vintage Rotary simulation with B5... Thanks for any advice you can offer.

As a note regarding Chorus Vibrato, if you download the EXP-02 Keys Collection from the Roland Axial site there are a few patches that feature Hammond organ with C/V. I found them to be a very useful addition to my FA06!

Not sure how it sounds with keyboards (perhaps someone will know?) but my favorite for guitar was the Line 6 Roto-Machine. ...I don't hear many people talk about that one, but it sounded just like Davey Johnstone or Joe Walsh when I plugged a guitar into it!

Well, the cost of the Roli Seaboard makes it prohibitive for me, so I doubt I will ever own one. As far as a playing experience, it's much like a nicely layed-out analog synthesizer. I have played both the larger and smaller version. Two hours could pass as you are taken in directions you never intended as you explore hidden musical gems! It's an incredibly searching and evolving experience simply because of the format. I love instruments that do that to me - take me where I've never been before. If I had a lot of disposable income, it would be a fun instrument to have. My brief experiences with it lead me to believe it would be less useful in a band context. (if that makes sense)

Does anyone know if there is a Canadian Distributor for the HX3? Or, have any Canucks bought one via mail order, and which route/supplier did they use?

Thanks tgeorges - will try some more experimenting...

This is a very interesting point - using the program level to change the distortion quality? To confirm, the way you lower the program level is by sliding the farthest right drawbar up (the dark red one) to, say, the number 5 or 6? I tried this, and it didn't do anything to the quality of the distortion...it still sounded the same to me. Please let me know if there is another way to adjust the program volume, or if I am doing something differently?

There are a lot of Hammond enthusiasts on this forum, so I hope I'm not wrong in my suggestions for this song. I would use the first two drawbars as you mentioned, but only have them partway out to a value of, say, 3. The reason for this is that Rod Argent used the percussion at such a high level that I think he had his drawbars pushed in. I would use: - percussion Volume "Normal", - Harmonic type set to "3rd", - and I think the decay is "Fast", but you can try both fast and slow and see what you think. The real trick to that song is to use very low-level drawbars so that the percussion stands out. I don't think he is using C/V either, so disable that.

Very cool, ToB3! I never thought of doing that non-rotating Leslie method as a cab/amp simulator. Look forward to trying that out. Nice thinking outside the box!

Very interesting brenner13 and Dr88 BoneS, I notice the initial time I want to switch leslie from slow to fast using the pitch bend, it doesn't work. I flick it again and it does!

I think the Clavinets are above-average on the VR09. There are three variants of basic Clavinet sound (Clav 1,2,and 3) as well as one that has the suffix "DB", which might refer to the pickup variation on the original? I always took these three (or 4?) variations to be the basic clav options. Additionally, there are more models with added wah, compression, and other effects. The VR models are very bright by nature, in my opinion, and I usually reduce the cutoff to suit my preference. They do have clavinet-release noise, so they sound correct and are very articulate. Overall I was very pleased with the Clav sounds. My personal fave Clavs I have heard so far are: #1) Hammond SK1, #2) Korg M3, M50, #3) Kontakt Scarbee Clavinet models, #4) Roland VR09, ...other models I am aware of feel or sound less accurate.