Mighty Motif Max

CDBaby did change their distribution model however - their old "Pro Publishing" package no longer exists, and they now have something called "CDB Boost" you can add on instead. It's more expensive now. One of the larger changes in that changeover is that they no longer register or collect performance royalties through ASCAP or BMI, etc. One of the big perks (IMO) in the past was that option, because it's not super straightforward working with the PRO's directly IMO. CDBaby apparently wanted to move more to an emphasis on the streaming royalty side. But until someone else does a one-time fee to keep music up forever, that's who I'm sticking with, despite the cost increases.

I bought this as well! Haven't used it in a recording yet, but at that price, I pretty much had to - it's peanuts lol. I have a number of piano VI's but haven't really found one that I love yet. They all have different aspects that I like or dislike, but none are what I would call a go-to piano. This one is no exception - the tone has a bit of tuning variation I feel like, but also I feel like every Yamaha C3 sample (including Yamaha's own in the YC/CP and Montage expansion set) are that way. I like that type of character for uprights, but not for grands. So far I still prefer the more recent Nord samples for pianos, even though they're not perfect. Part of it might be the interaction between velocity curves on my controllers/keyboards and the piano VI's.

Since you mentioned the converted ES preset voices, I'm suspecting you've already searched through the threads over at Motifator, but if not, this might be helpful. http://www.motifator.com/index.php/forum/viewthread/469833/

If I don’t have my SKpro on a gig for organ, I’ll use my Fantom 7. With some editing of the Leslie, it’s really quite good and puts my other gear to shame. Honestly, for a lot of band work, and even some exposed stuff, it’s surprisingly close to the SKpro through most PA’s. To hear it in a relatively exposed context (organ/guitar/drums trio with a vocalist), skip to about 4:10 in this video and listen to the song that starts then. That’s an edited Fantom VTW patch, with an electric bass layered in the last octave or two.

Hey, so one of the annoying things that happened when the Montage/MODX was released is that they don't support one of the older data compression formats that Yamaha used on some samples. This unfortunately includes the PowerGrand sample, which was the main piano in the Motif Classic. I have that loaded into my Motif XF8, but can't load it into my MODX. The other thing to know is that even when the preset names stayed consistent across generations, the actual samples used changed. So some of the string patches you may have liked from the Classic/ES may not be present in the XS/XF content which is included in the Montage.

If I did a gig where there was an advertiser agreement (like the TV network stuff mentioned earlier in this thread), I would be okay covering stuff. For my own gigs, the way I see it, I don't play garbage - so if it's good enough that I'll gig it, I'm not ashamed of that. To be honest, if I like it that much, I'm happy to promote it for other musicians who might like that feature set. And some companies I have had very positive experiences with (i.e. Yamaha), so I don't mind a bit of free promotion if it encourages them to keep making good gear.

95% of the time I gig my best gear, when it’s practical. For many years that meant my Motif XF8 plus one of several 61-key options up top as a controller. Then I went to college and no longer had a second person available for load-in at most gigs. That meant I needed to change how I did things, especially after I was diagnosed with a back disease that meant I need to be really mindful of how I work with weight, even though I’m young. These days I currently gig a MODX-7 and Hammond SKpro 73 as my main rig, and sometimes swap in my Fantom-7. I don’t currently gig an 88 for most gigs because I don’t have anything I enjoy playing piano on that’s also reasonable for weight (the PC4 is out because I don’t get along with the action or piano samples anymore). I would vastly prefer a 88 for most gigs, but finding a combination of features and weight with a good action has been a challenge. That will change when I am able to purchase a Nord Stage 4. In the meantime, I’ve worked a lot on being able to play piano well on a synth action. I see it this way - playing music for me has somewhat of a feedback loop. I can make a cheap keyboard sound good - but a nice instrument sounds better and responds better, which in turn feeds back into how I play and how I feel while I am playing as well. That only happens with nice gear. I also only buy equipment for one of two purposes - live gigs or studio/recording work. The studio gear tends to be more specialized or serves a specific purpose (for example, I use my JV-1000 for the vintage sound set and it’s not necessarily up for a lot of gigs). The 5% exception is for some gigs where I’m only really playing a few sounds and they’re more casual - that’s when I either use a house instrument or bring a single board.

I appreciate the synth usage. I don't really talk about his stuff much, but that's because I just don't click with his songwriting, and never really have (at least post-1D). It's not objectively bad or anything...it's just not what I enjoy. I will say there's some interesting, less conventional production work on his last few albums though. I feel like he definitely leans into the more experimental/creative side a bit when it comes to production, even if the instruments are a lot of synth and acoustic tracks. That aspect is cool. I find there are quite a number of artists where I don't really care for the genre or songwriting style, but can learn a lot from the production side. Styles of one of those artists.

The K&M 18950 with second tier, my regular gigging stand, is fully adjustable in height and angle (width depends on the stand itself). I've never had to worry about getting a keyboard low enough with that stand.

I think the true test would be to reverse the phase of one; in theory there should be no audible sound then. But I've only done that in DAW settings, so I'm not sure how that plays out when using audio routing with a hardware source as well.

So if I'm reading you correctly, are you, like many people, still under under the impression the ESP will only be equivalent as long as the hardware is connected? Your paramount equivalence is already a reality. The plugin IS a software Montage M, (allowing for them to "finish" it's editing functionality this year), you will be able to do anything with the plugin that you can do with the hardware, (sound wise). I already load my old MODX, and Montage 1 user backups, samples and all, into the ESP. When playing it on my laptop with any old hardware controller, I forget sometimes I'm not using my real Montage. I'm not sure how much more equivalent you can get👍 I think what Theo meant is how identical they actually sound. As in, if you reversed the phase of the E.S.P. software and routed the audio through the USB input (to use the same output converters in the Montage M), would the two cancel each other out perfectly when set to the same patch?

Frankly, with the exception of the merch, I'm not really a customer for any of the brands we have in the shop currently (at least not for any more items than I own from them currently). If I ever picked up an X-Gear or TONEX pedal, that would be about the only candidate. But that's not a priority for me right now either. Otherwise I'd be buying more stuff from y'all vs, say, Sweetwater.

I’ve done the OP’s type of gig for quite a few years. A stereo pair of 8” PA speakers will do great. Don’t worry about the power ratings for that type of gig. If it has a large power rating, you just don’t need to turn it up as much. I long used the Yamaha MSR100 model. Unfortunately that’s since been discontinued and the DXR series has increased in price a lot with inflation. The closest thing I can think of is the Yamaha DBR10. It’s a 10” speaker, but they sound great and weigh ~23 lbs apiece. A pair will run you about $800 plus tax, so just slightly over budget. https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/DBR10--yamaha-dbr10-700w-10-inch-powered-speaker Otherwise these JBL IRX108BT speakers look promising - I have had good experiences with JBL gear in general. Same pricing as the DBR10s above, and 17.4 lbs apiece. These are 8” boxes. https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/IRX108BT--jbl-irx-108bt-powered-8-inch-portable-speaker-with-bluetooth

I am a big fan of the Purgatory Creek 200A library…I use the PC4 and MODX hardware versions of it, even for recording, but I’d imagine the full software is even better.

Wait, did we already know this? I was under the impression it was the TP100!

90% chance this goes back to ye olde Behringer thread…FWIW I don’t see the point. I think retrokeys got it right with this post:

From their "About" page (emphasis mine):

"Immerse your hands in true analog warmth, inspired by our Zenology Sinensis"...or is it synthesis?

Okay, I'd say it's pretty far from a "rip-off" of any sort. It's more like "slightly inspired by". I mean, I hear it, but it's just sort of the "flavor" evoked by the first bar of Kiss on My List - that's about it. As The Real MC said up here ^^, this is definitely someone trying to start a fight where there isn't one to be had. Interestingly, I noted that the video that Far Out mag posted in the article itself is a live version that has the CP electric grand playing a couple of little "pecks" before the real tune begins, and that definitely sounds a touch closer to the Jump riff format. Probably a case of the magazine trying to find a clip to back up their point a little more. But good luck trying to base a lawsuit on a riff that sounds vaguely similar to a live version of a studio track that doesn't even have that part in it - usually (always, perhaps?) these lawsuits revolve around studio tracks. I mean, bands do all sorts of things live with little riff snippets and stuff. Check out that clip here - just the couple of opening notes.

Interesting development! Glad to see it. You mentioned no audio interface like the K2700 has. I do honestly think that not having some basic USB audio capability (stereo in/out is sufficient) is missing a target market of both studio folks/producers and live laptop or tablet rig users that would appreciate not having to bring a separate audio interface just for recording the keys output or bringing in MainStage patches, for example. Lots of boards do that now. I’m not talking about the fancy audio input stuff like having hiZ impedance and phantom power, like the K2700 has, but just a basic stereo mix in/out for recording your keys direct or bringing in a few patches from a VST rig. It’s one of the features that was surprisingly left out on the Nord Stage 4, but that I use all the time on my MODX. I struggle to want to purchase a keyboard for my gig centerpiece that doesn’t have that ability now - I will make an exception for the Nord but that’s because I’d almost always be pairing it with the MODX anyways. Korg has had USB audio for years with the Kronos, Yamaha has had it since 2016, etc. So it would be great to see some sort of basic interface like that included - no need to have the extras of the K2700, just the basics would be sufficient.

You have a nice budget there. Typically on the cheaper end I recommend JBL 305p MKII’s. I have zero experience with higher-end monitors. I will say that it’s important t factor in your room size and acoustic treatment, if any, too. Some rooms are just too small for a set of 8” monitors. You could also consider a 2.1 system with two monitors and a sub.

I would expect we're looking at one mic position, maybe 8 velocity layers maximum (probably more like 5), possible looping, and sample stretching on the smaller sizes (I'm only considering the XL version for specs here). Get rid of extra things like string resonance samples, damper noises, etc from the actual sample library and replace them with Nord's homebrew methods (I assume?), and you could get the size down quite a bit. I would love to know what the actual compression ratio is though. This is the actual White Grand MKII: https://www.sampletekk.com/grand-pianos&product_id=205

On the contrary, they are still actively doing both. The White Grand is a SampleTekk derivative. The Royal Grand 3D, however, has more of a mystery. Some of their older stuff like the Studio Grands are SampleTekk as well. Check out this thread at the Nord User Forum, in particular, the table partway down that is regularly updated: https://www.norduserforum.com/general-nord-forum-f29/models-of-piano-samples-t19136.html?sid=7db88db8e1c3f48fb85a02c9440e6299

Something I've never really understood is some of this forum's propensity for bashing on other musicians. Lachy Doley, Jordan Rudess, Neon Vines, etc. We're a pretty reasonable group otherwise, I feel like, but this gets old...and I'm not saying a particular video is good (I don't like this one), just observing that it seems like all it takes is one clip that someone doesn't like for a bunch of people who very likely have little of equal success/fame to pile onto other artists/musicians. Like I said, it gets old...

I saw this video a few months ago...I'm a big Jordan Rudess fan, just not much of a fan of this video. I think he was uncomfortable and way out of his normal genres. And maybe some people find that entertaining, but to me I almost felt bad for the guy. Again, big fan of his - this video just doesn't do justice to much of anything IMO.