dbhoosier

Would love to know more about the light set up. What is the controller brand for you and the drummer? Look to up my band’s game but not have everything totally pre-programmed, as we jam some and can be pretty spontaneous as well.

Yeah, I pretty much have live sets defined for every song. Clearly there are a handful that I use regularly and I have dialed in the effects I prefer, etc. I use an iPad to midi control my live sets and any other settings for each song I play as well. I'd recommend organizing your live sets such that your "go to" voices are in the first group of 8 (like maybe CFX, Wurli, Rhodes, B3s, etc.).

Yep - that has been my experience as well. No need for changing the auto-lock setting - just don't forget to lock the iPad when you are done playing...

Got my K&M 14050 today - great thread - it's rock solid and perfect for me, it seems. With a 36" inseam, I have no issue with the minimum height and I finally seem to have the right seating height and back support! I was using a 24" high bench with a 1.5" wooden platform underneath to get my seat to at least 26". If I ever decide to start playing standing up (doubtful), the ability to raise it to 36" would be great as a stool to occasionally take the load off.

My Yamaha YC88. A few months ago I probably would have said my Nord Stage 3 Compact but I just seem to always prefer the sounds and experience of the YC now (I actively use both). My old Yamaha DSR-2000 was a lot of fun back in the day as well, though...

Anyone see a weight limit/capacity for the K&M 14050? That's been a problem for me in the past with those types of seats, but K&M makes pretty solid stuff. I'm not seeing anything on various websites.

To each his own. I play with a bass player and haven't needed the multi-out (nor used a Vent). I want each board to be a direct line to the mixer (versus a separate keyboard mixer) as I want both FOH control for each (I regularly play two boards simultaneously) and I record my live performances and want to be able to edit the track(s) for each board separately (versus a single feed of multiple keyboards) off the main mixer. Maybe there is some other solution for that with a separate mixer that I haven't figured out.

Just gave it an upvote and comment...

I would factor into the price comparison the YC's balanced XLR outs. It's roughly $200 for a stereo Radial DI box plus patch cables before you are apples to apples with the YC. Of course, the YC doesn't have the multi-outs, but I don't have an active need for that (particularly with the latest software update) whereas getting a DI box with a Nord is pretty much required.

I agree that the Yamaha EPs and EPs sound better than the Nords (my opinion solely), but I still think the Nord sounds are very good and far from crap (maybe your FOH person messed with the EQ on your Nord mixer channel(s) - I've had that happen before - they often like to pull down the lows and highs, which kills the AP and EP sounds). I do think the YC organ now is much improved but still different from the Nord. I find the YC organ to have a lot more crunch to it than the Nord. For a really "clean" B3, the Nord is still great; however, I tend to use crunchier organ sounds and would generally now give the nod to the YC. I love using aftertouch on my NS3C for controlling the rotor speed, which is a fantastic feature. And clearly the ability to use the full synth module, Nord Sound Library, and loading your own samples makes the NS3C worth keeping for me as well. You can always use the NS3C as a midi controller for the organ on the YC if desired. I still think the Nord Clav sounds are better than the YC. Regardless, I feel so blessed to have both of these boards to utilize compared to what I started out with in the early 90's!

Not sure if they are all the same between CP and YC, but the EPs in my YC are AWESOME. I think there are 5+ Rhodes and at least 3 Wurlis. Plus a couple Clavs and various FM pianos. I generally prefer all of these EPs except the Clav from my YC over the EPs in my Nord Stage 3. The Clav is still pretty similar and I still use it often on the YC, but I think I prefer the Clav options slightly better on the Nord (i.e., it's not a deal breaker, IMHO). While I love having both a YC88 and NS3, if I had to choose one, I'd go with the YC after the latest FW update.

Yep - YC88 on bottom with a NS3 Compact up top. LOVE IT. I think you’d be fine with the CP88 if you have an NS3C, but it’s not much more for the YC and I do occasionally use the super crunchy driven organ tones (the NS3 is my go to for organ otherwise). I love the YC88 and it’s acoustic and electronic piano sounds. The horn samples are really good too and other synth samples.

Well, I think I'm qualified to chime in here - I have a YC88 and recently sold my NE6D to upgrade it to a Nord Stage 3 Compact. Regarding the Leslie fast rotor speed, there is a setting in the menu that allows you to change the speed. Out of the box it was stupid fast and I hated it until I realized that you can totally adjust the speed. I slowed it down to match the fast rotor speed on my Electro6D and find it much better now. The YC also has pre-drive for organ, which the NE6D does not (although the Stage 3 does) - you can't get a super crunchy organ sound natively on the 6D (if that is important to you) while you can on the YC and the Stage 3. I actually prefer the acoustic and electric pianos on the YC over Nord. I LOVE the CFX piano, the U1 upright is great, the array of Rhodes are killer and the Wurlitzer samples are fantastic as well. I somewhat prefer the Clavinet samples on the Nord but they are pretty close, IMHO. The FM pianos on the YC are better as well, IMHO. Back to the organ, I would still prefer the NE6D organ over the YC organ, even after adjusting the rotor speed. I rarely need a super crunchy/distorted organ and I think the organ tones in general just sound better and more "real" on the Nord. However, I have not tried using an iPad for the Hammond app, which I hear is quite good, but that adds a lot to the cost if you don't already have an iPad. If organ is really important to you (it is to me), then I would go NE6D (although if you can somehow swing it, do what is suggested about and get the Stage 3 Compact). While I do like the YC acoustic and electric pianos better than the Nord, it's not that big of a difference whereas the organ engine is a much bigger difference between the two. I feel like I have the best of both worlds with the incredible hammer action of the YC88 plus the organ/synth/sample library of the Nord Stage 3 Compact.

FYI - I got that Zoom mixer last fall and had to return it. Had too many bugs. Had some mic channels drop out and needed to factory reset during practice. Then the monitor outs keep cutting out during the first and only gig I used it for and the iPad connectivity stopped working during the gig as well (with the Bluetooth adapter) - was problematic for our FOH sound person. Sweetwater honored the return and I got the Allen and Heath QU-16 instead. The Zoom is simple to use and I liked it but I couldn"t trust it after so many problems. The A&H is a lot more expensive but has similar features (and motorized sliders and many other pro features) and should be much more reliable. Time will tellâ¦. I hope you do not have the same issues or at least are aware of others that have had issues.

Check out the Yamaha CP88.

Nice - i will have to looking into those bumpers and see if those might be a worthwhile mod. Appreciate the feedback! Funny you noticed the pine board - another DIY hack. I am unusually tall and really need a 26' height gigging bench but the tallest I can really find is about 24.5'. So two 3/4' boards glued and screwed together gets me there. I have a K&M stand that raises my YC88 high enough that my knees fit under it and can operate the pedals. But it requires me to be sitting up high enough. The handle was a little touch my awesome GF recommended for carrying it to/from gigs.

I"ve been wanting a better solution for my various pedals and it seems like there isn"t anything off-the-shelf designed for keyboardists. I saw a few examples online and decided to build my own. I wanted it very thin such that the sustain pedals aren"t raised up uncomfortably. I made this over the weekend with minimal tools and easy-to-find materials. I"m happy to share more details of how I made it if anyone is interested. I"m hoping the board will do the following for me: - Keep pedals in the same position (at home or gig) and not shift forward - Clean up my mess of cables, power, and the DI boxes - Easily break down and set up for my gigs - Fit in a 61 key soft case for transport I have Velcro under the pedals, power strip, and DI boxes to keep in place and then I"m doing left and right groups of cable runs up my stand legs. I want to keep the cable runs velcroed together for breakdown/set up, so I used a label maker to make it clear which plug goes to which keyboard and which port. I"m tired of the cable mess and stress during set up at gigs regarding whether I plugged the right things into the right ports. I used non-slip rug mat stapled underneath to keep it from shifting on carpet or hardwood. All in all, the board is maybe 3/8' thick and still plenty sturdy for transport (1/4' plywood covered with thin automotive carpet). I'm sure I"ll tweak this more, so I consider it a work in progress, but I think it is far enough along at this point to share. Certainly this isn"t for everyone, but I thought folks with multi-keyboard and multi-pedal set ups might be interested. I"ve learned a ton from others on this forum so I thought this might be worth sharing here. Probably cost me less than $50 to build and maybe an hour of time (other than shopping around for the materials). Hopefully these pics attach OKâ¦.

I found an Apple support community post where they recommend turning on "Allow Access When Locked" for "USB Accessories" under Settings->Face ID & Passcode. It is set to off by default, so I switched it on yesterday PM and will report back here if that does the trick. As obxa noted above, maybe it has something to do with it going to sleep/locking. The MIDI control for program changes in OnSong is really fantastic, particularly when using multiple keyboards, so I want to find a solution if possible.

Everything above about the YC88 is accurate. I have one and love it, but I really only use it for piano and EPs (which are FANTASTIC). Absolutely love the piano sounds plus the variants of Rhodes, Wurlitzer, Clav, etc. For organ and synth, I use by Nord Stage 3 Compact, but I still use the YC organ on a few songs, as it has some really great crunchy drive on the organ engine that I haven't been able to replicate on the Nord (although the Stage has a love more drive/crunch that the Electro). There are some synth presets that are pretty fun and I enjoy using them, but they are just samples and you can't tweak ADR, etc. The USB and MIDI connectivity would work well for you (although I think we have separately discussed iPad MIDI connectivity...). I also really like the the YC88 has balanced stereo XLR line outs, so no need for DI boxes. IMHO, the main reason to get the YC88 is for the great action and piano/EP sounds and ideally leverage a second smaller/lighter board for organ/synth.

I did a quick search and couldn't find any posts about this topic easily, so starting a new thread. I have a new iPad Pro 11 that connects to my Yamaha YC88 and Nord Stage 3 via a USB C multiport adapter and the supplied USB cables for each keyboard. USB Audio on the Yamaha works flawlessly but I seem to periodically lose MIDI connections to both keyboards every few days and I have to reboot the iPad (and then it comes right back). I'm primarily using OnSong to change my programs on each board by song via MIDI, and I've tried closing and reopening OnSong but that doesn't seem to be the issue. I have also tried using the Apple brand USB-C connector (with HDMI) to a separate USB-C hub, as well as just connecting to individual keyboards (since the Apple connector just has one USB-A port) and still no dice. So I don't think it is the hub, the cables, nor the keyboards themselves. Curious if others have had issues keeping the MIDI connection with their iPads and if so, if they have found a solution. Thanks!

Love it - "reasonable people can disagree" - right on. I'd have to do a little digging, but some of spring '90 stuff comes to mind or the '89 Warlock shows. Built To Last solos, the Scarlet/Fire from 3/22/90 is really fun and has multiple tones, some of the Bird Songs from that run had nice use of MIDI voices (like 3/25/90). I feel like it added some nice color to the solos or jams versus just more distorted guitar. Guessing you are probably already familiar and just have a different take, which is cool. Cheers.

I'll disagree a bit with Morrissey in that I liked Jerry Garcia's use of MIDI with Rosebud, but the hassle and complexity to use it is an excellent example of why so many guitarist wouldn't bother. That being said, I would hope there would be easier ways today for guitar players that want to get into MIDI synth. This thread brings up some interesting points and perspectives, most of which I agree with. However, some of the most influential synth pioneers in the early 70's were guitar players - Pete Townsend with Who's Next, Gilmour/Waters with Dark Side of the Moon, etc. Problem was that only megastars could afford synthesizers back then (plus the other challenges noted - monophonic, etc.). Clearly synth had its day (and limitations) in the 80's and seemed to disappear somewhat with the emergence/popularity of both grunge (raw) and hip hop (more focus on sampling of others). This motivates me to do a bit more with pure synth and the infinite possibilities in my keyboard playing (versus using various acoustic and electric piano sounds, clav, and B-3 for the most part). I saw a video interview recently with Benmont Tench and he was asked why he didn't do much with synth, and he said he is a long way from fully exploring what a grand piano can do or the drawbars of a Hammond can do, which I can appreciate. Maybe that is how many guitar players feel today - there is so much to try to master. However, it also ends up sounding very much the same and the opportunity for differentiation and unique sonic experiences is lost (particular with just the insane technology capabilities available today versus what I could have only imagined 30+ years ago when I started playing with synths/keyboards). Love this forum.

It worked - thanks again, rogs, for the info!!!!

This is super helpful - thank you! You'd think that there would be some reference to this info on page 21 (under Foot Controller) but it only refers you to page 60. I never would have thought to look under "Midi Settings" for foot controller functions. I'll give it a try this evening!

Anyone that uses a volume control pedal for their Yamaha YC or CP (i have a YC88) - how do you have your configured? My Nord basically defaults to the volume in each preset voice based on where my control pedal sits at current, whereas it seems the volume for each live set with Yamaha is fixed regardless of the pedal setting. Thus, my live sets are all defaulted to full volume but then I have to tap and adjust the control pedal every time I change a live voice to bring it back down yet leave me room to kick it up for a solo or whatever. What works for you?