BadDog1123

Another vote for Cantabile. I used Gig Performer previously, but Cantabile is much more powerful, flexible and stable in my opinion. I've been gigging with it for the past couple years with no issues. Brad is super-responsive and the community is just outstanding.

It looks like Antares Harmony Engine is the most promising. I think I can send midi of my live keyboard to Harmony Engine for it to select the correct vocal harmony based on the chord I am playing, which is my goal. They have a 14 day trial so I can determine if it meets my needs and make sure it isn't too resource intensive for live performance.

Thank you, johnchop! Just confirming that both Ovox and Quadravox can accept and analyze keyboard audio to generate vocal harmonies? I want to use this for a solo act with vst keyboard accompaniment.

I am looking for a software (VST) harmonizer plugin for live performance that can analyze in real-time an input keyboard audio signal and generate the appropriate vocal harmonies using a microphone audio input. My keyboards are all virtual VSTs running in Cantabile and the mic input is through my Steinberg UR22C audio interface, so also available as an input in Cantabile. What are the recommendations?

Orange Tree Samples is holding their annual Summer Group Buy sale. There are currently over 1,000 participants signed up with one week to go. OTS has the The Famous E Electric Piano (which has been discussed extensively in this forum) plus really great sampled basses, acoustic and electric guitars, a Yamaha C7 grand piano (Evolution Rosewood Grand), and several other miscellaneous instruments (spinet harpsichord, banjo, chimes, harp, marimba, vibes, etc.). The current group buy discount is 50%, but could go as high as 60% if they get another 450 participants by July 5th. If you have any of Orange Slice discount points accumulated, you can apply them on top of the group buy discount. This is a really great opportunity to grab some awesome Kontakt sample libraries for a fraction of their retail value. Here is a link to the Summer Group Buy event: https://www.orangetreesamples.com/group-buy Note that I am in no way affiliated with Orange Tree Samples. I am buying products as part of the group buy sale and just hoping more people sign up so we all get the maximum 60% discount.

I have the same K&M keyboard stand. How did you adapt it to add the boom adapter? DIY or purchased?

Update... So I bravely opened my KX88 and adjusted the VR1 and VR2 values to eke out a bit more pressure responsiveness. You can access both trimpots without removing the mainboard by using a small jeweler's (straight) screwdriver. The best setting for me was with both VR1 and VR2 clockwise all the way. I still have to apply more pressure than with my Studiologic SL88, but it's better than it was and I can now generate channel pressure all the way up to a value of 127 which I could not previously.

I have it, and it does sound great. Very customizable with a ton of options. It is quite resource-intensive on the Windows platform, using lots of CPU. This is a known issue with IKM plugins.

I ended up creating my own reverse piano samples using Modartt's Pianoteq Steinway B. Here is how I did it without a DAW (because I don't own one...). I used Gig Performer, a VST host that runs on both Windows and Mac platforms (https://gigperformer.com/). 1. Record Pianoteq Steinway B samples at octave intervals using MeldaProduction's MRecorder plugin (https://www.meldaproduction.com/MRecorder), which creates 24-bit WAV files. 2. Trim and reverse the WAV files using Audacity (https://www.audacityteam.org/download/windows/). 3. Create a new empty instrument in Kontakt (paid version) and load the WAV files using the Mapping Editor. This process worked beautifully and gave me pristine, customized reverse acoustic piano samples.

Kontakt, TAL-Sampler (and I'm sure other VST samplers) have a "reverse" button that allows backwards playback of samples.

Read post 4 above. I do not use or own a DAW.

I found the Reverse option in Kontakt, under the Source section to the right of the Tune knob. I have to play around with which groups are selected to get the desired effect, but it looks like that will work. Thanks everyone for your feedback!

I don't use a DAW. I run Gig Performer as a VST host for Kontakt and other plugin instruments for live performance. Is there a way to unload and reload the samples without a DAW?

I am trying to recreate the "reverse piano" sound used in "Another One Bites The Dust" by Queen. I have the following VST samplers: Kontakt (paid), SampleTank, Structure, TAL-Sampler, and Arturia CMI V. Can anyone point me to a source for reverse acoustic piano samples (not loops) that are playable on a MIDI keyboard?

Thank you, sir!! You have been supremely helpful, courteous and responsive. I will review the KX88 service manual and contact Yamaha support if necessary.

Markyboard's suggestion did the trick! I am now sending channel pressure messages to my host. So my only other question is, can the pressure sensitivity be adjusted on the KX88? I've read (and now experienced first-hand) just how hard you have to press to increase the channel pressure value, or to register any channel pressure at all really. Is there some adjustment to make the KX88 respond to aftertouch without pressing down so hard?

Thank you, Markyboard!! It doesn't seem logical that one would need to assign aftertouch to aftertouch, but that it would just work that way out-of-the-box. I will indeed try your suggestion and report back for the benefit of other KX88 owners that may have struggled with the same issue.

Thanks, timwat. I found this FAQ previously when I Googled "KX88 aftertouch MIDI", but after reading the article it is still unclear to me how I configure the KX88 aftertouch control to send key or channel pressure messages, which do not appear to have a traditional MIDI CC value associated.

I have a vintage Yamaha KX88 controller that is not sending "channel pressure" messages over MIDI. The KX88 supports both polyphonic key and channel pressure aftertouch. I have two other modern Studiologic MIDI controllers that also support aftertouch and do send channel pressure messages as I press harder on the keys. Does anyone know how to program the KX88 to send the equivalent of channel pressure with aftertouch?

Regarding gear failure, I've had it happen too many times so I carry a spare for every essential box, cable, pedal and and gizmo. I run a fairly complex keyboard rig for live performance, with two MIDI controllers driving all virtual instruments on a Windows laptop. I carry a spare laptop (mirror of my main laptop), spare audio interface, DI box, in-ear monitor system, pedals, MIDI, audio and power cables, MIDI boxes, USB hub, power strip, ... you name it. On some gigs I even bring along a spare MIDI controller (or two). Most of the spare "accessory" items don't take up much space in my gear trunk, so it's a small price for buying some extra peace of mind.

+1 for the Studiologic Numa Compact 2X. For $700 US you can't beat it. Great Fatar semi-weighted action and some really decent built-in sounds, all in a 13 pound package. If you don't mind the extra 15/12 keys, it's a winner. I use mine as a controller only.

I've been using Studiologic controllers with V Collection 7 and Gig Performer. They work great and you can't beat the price/performance. Fatar keybeds, velocity and pressure sensitivity (aftertouch), with plenty of MIDI and footpedal options. The only downside is that they do not have an abundance of knobs and switches to map to V Collection instrument controls. I use the SL-73, SL-88 and Numa Compact 2X controllers, all under $700 apiece.

Piano V2 and B-3 V2 are weak compared to the competition IMO. Stage-73 V is decent, but I can never get enough volume out the the instruments. The virtual synths are pretty darn good, but the presets are weak so it requires some serious tweaking and in some cases from-scratch programming to get authentic, usable sounds. Still a bargain for $199. I paid full price 6 months ago.

The thread you referenced is specific to the iPad version. My comments were related to the Windows/Mac version (specifically my experience with Windows).

I haven't seen much difference since upgrading to 1.20. On a Windows PC it is still a pig (but sounds GREAT!). I believe the main addition in 1.20 is the ability to use a split for lower and upper manuals, which I could do through my VST host anyway.