summerinstereo

I stick to the same thing(s) and force myself to just release the song once the time is up. That's how I beat this, for the most part. For example - with VSTs etc, I'll decide to just use the same synth VST for the whole thing. Unless, I already have something specific in mind that I liked or picked up from somewhere else or prior experience - ie a nice bass patch that I'm happy to tweak and reuse from another synth or whatever. I'm a big fan of just narrowing down the toolset as much as possible. Kinda need to. All of my synthwave songs follow the above - one of them is just UJAM's USynths, one of them is all Cherry Audio's GX-80, another is almost all Fabfilter's One. For a short period, I was releasing a song a month, and I was learning how far in advance I need to release a song to be viable for playlist consideration etc with Spotify and all that. I've stopped for now, but I'll get back into it as soon as I've got the rest of this year fleshed out with gigs - it's just more important that I keep on top of finances and also get some extra cash together to pick up a Yamaha CK-88, and replace my car. I'll get back into music as soon as the gigs are more fleshed out later in the year though. Anyway, when I was releasing a song a month - I decided I like at least 2 weeks in advance, preferably a full month. Which means there are deadlines that I just have to submit the song by. This was a big way of getting me to actually release my music and not just hold onto it forever. I hate having too many options available. I just have to narrow things down drastically - I use the same plugins for compression, EQ, sidechaining etc.. I stick with what I know and like now. Of course getting to that point was a learning experience in itself. But now I know, and it helps. I haven't released a song using it, but I've actually set up a little template in my DAW for future songs, I've messed with it and it seems super cool - it's awesome just opening it up and boom, I've got my pad VSTs, bass VSTs, lead synth VSTs, drums etc already pre-loaded. I'm not forced into sticking with these sounds for the final product, but it's been super awesome for just opening the DAW and getting ideas down - completely removes the "what sound do I want" aspect, in a way, it's a little similar to picking up my acoustic guitar. The guitar is the guitar - unplugged, it's going to sound pretty much the same no matter what - outside of string changes and changing where I pick/strum but the instrument is the instrument. Same deal with a piano or keyboard etc. Narrowing things down is handy. If you haven't already, try the template idea. It's not a song-structure template, it just means putting your VSTs into tracks - even naming the tracks - and also putting your preferred FX etc onto the tracks, I've got a reverb bus, drum bus, vocal FX bus etc etc all set up and ready to go.

No no no, it needs to be exactly the same as the recording with precisely zero deviation. Even in songs where the organ is barely audible and/or not anything resembling the focus of the song. Nothing else will do.

I got a quote back on one of these from a friend with connections - the price was $100 less than the lowest price I can find online. Compared to other prices he's been able to get for other products, which were about 50% of RRP - that's more than I expected, still going to do it anyway because I can clearly see it's the right keyboard for me and my use cases. The price makes me think - are these expected to be top sellers?

I would do things almost the exact same way, except now that I'm like 20 years past when I started band things etc, there would be one big difference. I understand now, that my role is essentially that of a salesman. Say what you will, but really the musician is there to keep people spending money at the venue. That's the ultimate goal. With that in mind, I'd do the same thing with the same people, and put an emphasis on playing songs people know and love. This would have a drastic impact on how things went musically, for all of us. Not that we're old farts now by any means - early to mid 30s.. but, imagine having that knowledge deeply understood back then. Instead of playing the '00s emo punk-rock stuff we were doing, we could have added in songs people actually know and love - this results in repeat gigs, it wouldn't have taken long for us to be relatively omnipresent throughout the local scene. From there, you do originals. We all love playing live so the strict originals idea would never have been a thing - there's no market for it here - 4hr cover gigs are the standard. But going back 15-20 years, with that knowledge, would be a complete and utter gamechanger. At the time, it felt like it would be selling out to give the people what they want. What an immature perspective. I have a voice somewhat along the lines of the classic '80s vocalists and play a bunch of that stuff now and people love it. I also sound pretty similar to how I did back then, it would have led to a wildly different future.. just.. playing songs people know and love. It turns into gigs. Gigs turn into me maybe not needing to take every single shift I got called out for. That might result in the band remaining together, because we'd have been successful locally. It's hard to really get a grasp on how drastic this understanding of the role of a musician/entertainer would have changed things. So, I would absolutely start a band. The same band. No nostalgia for any "glory days" bs. I feel the above is just a fact, and it's a fact that would make me decide it's a great idea to do the band thing again, with them, but just.. understand our role and play songs people want. Now that I understand the above, I'm doing well enough musically, that it's my main source of income, pays the bills and supports the family - it's my career. I wish I understood this, on a deep level, at a much earlier stage. I had this mindset that people need to open their minds, check out new music, stop being so stuck in olden day stuff etc. I still think this. But simultaneously, I have developed an appreciation for the music these people love, and I see the beauty in playing it for them. It's not just that they're stuck in the past. It's that they love the songs. It makes them feel good. It helps them have a great night out after work. I find all of that beautifully human, and I'm eternally grateful that I perceive this, understand it, and can give them this and get paid enough to keep doing it. I only understood this on a surface level when I was younger. I most definitely was aware. It just wasn't a deep understanding, so I didn't see the beauty in it. At some point, I saw it on a deeper level and it completely changed my life. I wish I could see this, back then, I'd have jumped straight back into the same band and had a completely different last 15-20 years.

IMO, trust your gut. It's never wrong. Even if it's literally wrong and they magically make trillions of dollars and become uber famous, your gut won't mislead you in determining what's right for you. If it's not working, it's not working. You'll have more fun doing what you want to do, when you want to do it. My little story is, I've been in a few bands - one mostly originals etc, wound up with a member of that band leaving because I couldn't commit to rehearsing as often as they wanted to (had a job with odd shifts). No issues here, he made the right choice. He and another member of that band have been through a number of variations together, supporting others etc and now they're doing their own thing and getting some gigs which is great. After that, I went solo for a little while, then had a rockabilly/bluesy band that didn't last too long, then went solo again. This sentence was actually somehow spread over the course of a few years. I went for a long time without playing anything at all in there. Last year, I decided to go all in on music and had to have a think about who I am, musically, what I do, what I should be looking to do etc and decided I'm just not a team player. I need full control of any and all songs that are written. I want to be the only songwriter in any group I'm in, with zero input from others. I want to be the only vocalist and would prefer to harmonise with myself than have someone else sing on my songs. I want complete control over the covers songs I play in any act, with zero input from others. If I'm not being paid, this is. If I'm being paid, I am happy to support someone else. I am happy to just play some rhythm chords, throw up harmonies and play songs I would never choose to play. But I need to be paid for this. So, I just went all in on the solo thing. Got gigs, solo. Put out some solo acoustic originals. Put out some synthwave originals that were 100% done by me. I do have a collaboration with someone else, but he came to me about mixing up a song I already wrote, recorded, and released. Anyway, I write all this to say.. a look at who you are musically, what you want to do, and all of that, is something that should happen. If it's not working with these guys then it's not working. Maybe think about why that is. Is it them? Is it you? Is it just because there's no pay? Would you be happier doing what they want, if you were paid for it? Thinking about it all opens up some questions which could result in outcomes - maybe you can reach out and offer to continue playing for them, if you're paid. If you're not paid, then you just say "ok cool, good luck" and leave and do your own thing. There's so many paths you could take. I think it's important to have a sit down and a real think about what is basically the start of this chapter, so you've got a foundation to work from. For me, that resulted in me accepting that I'm simply not a team player. I want full control over everything, unless I'm being paid - in which case, it's a job, not a hobby or passion project and that shifts the way I perceive it. Could be similar for you. It might be that you decide you actually would be cool playing for no pay, with the right people. Maybe they aren't the right people. I personally would love to jam and play with the people I was in a band with originally, they're great people, we always have a killer time when we're together - there's a solid human and musical chemistry there that works. But they're doing their own thing and so am I. Just saying, I'd be down with playing with them and perhaps even *for* them, without pay. But other people, nah. It's all dependant on the people involved with that stuff, and your own financial situation - can you literally afford to spend time doing things that make no money? Everyone's in a different spot. Gotta put it all into context, maybe literally into writing, and go from there. Off-topic but I'm also an Aussie - where abouts are you from? It's true we're just not into blues. Maybe a song here or there. 4 hours of blues will result in never being asked back to the venue.

Thanks for the reasonable response. Dudes in blues bands might not be the target audience, without using it as a midi controller, maybe (haven't heard all the organ sounds, maybe it's perfectly fine). I think this could get real region specific real quick because around my area.. there's no such thing as a blues band. Blues isn't popular enough to be a viable genre for a band, if they want repeat gigs. When I'm thinking of the types of audiences, really I'm thinking of the venues and the clientele they tend to attract, and also the timeslots the entertainment plays at those venues and how it impacts the vibe of the music being played. For me, this means weekday dinnertime gigs - laid back, background music-ish until the last set when it may or may not get more upbeat/danceable and this is also solo acts only, no bands. It also means Fri/Sat night gigs at various establishments, some similar to the above, some more rowdy and pub-like, Aussie pub-rock is huge, '80s stuff is big, lately there's been a shift towards lots of '00s music.. the CK can cover all of this in a band, no problem. As a solo act, obviously it works for piano/vocal gigs but it's also great that you can run backing tracks through it and have that all self-contained. I won't ramble on about all of my use cases, but it appears to be great as a do-it-all keyboard that covers all the basics, trims the fat and basically allows the musician to get through any sort of gig without the need for extra gear or apps/VSTs/AUv3s. Might not be the perfect tool for every situation and niche but it should be able to get the job done in a pinch and sound great doing it. Completely agree with all of this.

I'd argue against this - what about people that need/want 88, weighted keys? Blows the MODX7+ idea away immediately. The MODX8+ is quite a bit more expensive, and has more features than some people need/want. I personally don't feel comfortable on anything that's not 88 weighted keys, and don't need any of the superfluous bloat that's prevalent throughout lots of instruments, the MODX+ included. This is aimed at gigging musicians that need something portable, great sounding, covers the basics and can be used without power - it's able to be powered by batteries for a reason. My 2c on it is that it hits a sweet "singer-songwriter" spot, but in a way that leaves the door open for being more versatile with your bread and butter sounds - still plenty to offer for people in bands etc. But nothing over the top or useless. I think its primary purpose is for use as a lightweight, pro-sounding and feeling "gigging" keyboard that covers the basics, and can be used as a great busking keyboard. Define a pro or semi-pro musician. I'm a "pro" musician, by my own (and typically accepted as the general) definition - someone that plays music for money. I make all of my money playing music, live. The YC61 is way too expensive. As a pro musician, I can't justify that cost. Most pro musicians aren't rolling in cash. The Mojo61 and CP88 are comically expensive. More viable for people that might have a dayjob, a little less viable for someone paying the bills as a "pro" musician. I don't even know what a "semi-pro" musician is. The CK isn't aimed at high school students - this is such an out of touch perspective, maybe high school students with rich parents, but be realistic. It's aimed at people that need a gig-worth, portable keyboard that covers all the basics without the bloat and can be used with or without a power source due to being able to be used with batteries. It also takes a mic in via 3/4" jack so it's a great option for buskers. It's a "do it all" keyboard, there will be a huge segment of people in the same spot I'm in - people playing music, for money, ie a "pro musician", that need something basic, easy to use, portable, able to be used in any location, and offers great bread and butter sounds with the flexibility to also work in bands or with other people. I don't get the difference between rehearsals and gigs here - I guess some people rehearse less than they play? I play 2-4x a week most weeks, and am not in a band so it's just me. If I was in a band.. it would be.. 2-4x gigs per week, and 1x rehearsal. The lightweight aspect is a big deal for people that are actively gigging. It's less of a deal for people that are mostly jamming at home and maybe gigging every here and there - but for people gigging often, ie, pro musicians, the CK - especially the 88 (imo) - is hitting exactly the right spot in the market. I'm the type of person that doesn't want bloat. I don't want/need 2 million voices and a billion accompaniment styles. I want basic, good, but basic. I also want portability as I gig so often. I would also like to be able to use the instrument in places without power, and run a mic through it as I'm primarily a vocalist (singer-songwriter type, much more focused on vocals than my guitar or keys work). Perhaps I'm just biased because uh, I'm me. But I don't see the CK as "niche" at all. I see them as super versatile, basically tailor-made for people like me (which is why I'm suggesting I might be biased) - it ticks all the boxes for me, including the price point.

The CK88 looks like an absolutely perfect fit for what I want to do. I'ma save up for one. See you guys with a NKD post hopefully within the next month, but maybe 3~. It's everything I want without any of the bs I don't want.

Only reason I don't dig 61 keys is because they're never semi-weighted or weighted. Not a fan of synth action. Semi-weighted 73 keys sounds great. But if there was a 61 key weighted or semi-weighted keyboard that sounded great, I'd consider that - octave shift it down so there's some low end and we're off to the races. I very rarely (never?) use the higher keys. The lower ones get used way more. Would consider the Yamaha EW-425 if the keys felt any good, but I tried the E473 and.. nah. Just, nah. Need weighted or semi-weighted. IDK if the 425 is different to the 473, I've been led to believe they're the exact same keybed - just.. more keys on the 425... felt bad to play. Not as bad as the Juno DS61 which is just ground control to major OOF.

I'm not a professional by any means, but I am a synthwave act - here's a link to my Spotify and Youtube channels.. I'm a small fry. I still might have some info to share that could help you out - though I'm not "EDM" or "Dark Wave" so keep that in mind - I do love a lot of that stuff though. With drum sequencing - if you listen to any modern acts doing this stuff (check out Gunship for a start).. you'll find the drums are super simple. They just keep the beat. Some songs it's literally just a kick and a snare and that's it. A lot of it doesn't even have hi-hats or toms. A lot does - just saying, super simple.. he's not EDM or Dark Wave but check out Timecop1983 for an idea of just how simple the drums can be, in an adjacent genre. It's absolutely possible to get out there with traditional leanings, and produce modern music - listen to the melodies of acts like I've listed, or Kavinsky or Perturbator - the melodies themselves are stupendously simple. My own melodies are crazy simple. These are hyper-simple genres. Coming from a traditional background, you'll have to strip back what you want to do, and then strip it back some more. And again and again, until your melodies are quite literally 2-3 note lines, and probably repeated over and over throughout the songs. Melody wise, these genres look at things from a more zoomed out level - the songs are basically made up in blocks, you'll have your instruments and melodies coming in and out, they'll all be ridiculously simple, and you're looking at it more as an overall start-to-finish vibe sorta thing rather than anything too specific and full of technique or intricacy. For programs, whatever you're comfortable with. There's people all around these scenes doing everything in all DAWs, nothing stands out as a hands-down favourite, although my understanding is FL Studio is great for it and so is Ableton. I've asked on Twitter what DAW people are using (though do remember I'm a synthwave act, and getting responses from mostly other synthwave acts) and it's a bit of everything, really. My preference is for Bitwig, but I'm exploring other options. You can definitely just click the notes in on PC in the piano roll, and perhaps you should - these genres feel super robotic for the most part, everything is to the grid and dead-on. My own stuff isn't, neither is a lot of other acts that would fall within these genres, but seriously *most* of it is bang on, grid-style stuff. A couple of things I've picked up - sidechaining the bass to the kick drum is crazy common, it's so common that when you're starting out (like I am! I'm only 3 songs deep!) that you might as well just always do it at first. Just to get into the swing of things. Typically, it's kick on 1 and 3, and snare on 2 and 4. The sidechained bass will sound like it's pulsing in-between kicks, either 8th notes or 16th notes. Probably a synth bass. You can do whatever you want with sculpting sounds, but lots of acts layer their kicks and snares and pads and everything, really, so many ultra-simple melodies get layered so even a single note can sound and even feel massive. Most of it doesn't have real instruments anywhere. Your friend being a bassist doesn't mean much - the basslines are usually synth-bass, clicked into a piano roll.. so not even played at all.. lol.. but he might have some ideas. Thing is those ideas are probably not relevant initially because it's pretty much all root notes. I can only speak personally from a synthwave perspective, I haven't made any heavier stuff yet - and I'm also an amateur, as well - the above is just my opinions and thoughts based on what I've been learning and picking up as I go.

I wouldn't even consider this, tbh - cocktail party with 50 people.. you're straight up going to have a hard time hearing yourself. Cocktail parties = alcohol. Those 50 people are going to sound like 200 people soon enough. I'd consider it for like.. a cafe that holds maybe.. 15-20 people. No alcohol, like half the people. Cocktail party for 50 people, nah. Outdoors - forget about it.

Okay awesome, thanks for this info. The CT-S500 and CT-S1000V seem cool - I didn't realise they were semi-weighted keyboards. I'll check out the CDP-S360BK. The expansions are okay - I don't think they have anything gamechanging, they offer "more of the same", if that makes sense. There isn't some amazing piano sound in there that blows away the presets it came with, the expansions sound fine, I just think they're not going to change anyone's mind on how good the product is. I spent some time with the Juno DS61 tonight, I felt like maybe it's the kind of thing that I would have to adapt to, rather than the other way around. There are an absolute barnload of good-great piano/keys sounds in here, I don't think any of them sound great as a straight up "piano" sound, but I found myself just getting lost in the sounds it does offer. Some of them seemed to dictate a different way of playing, and I really enjoyed just working with the sounds and changing how I'm playing songs, rather than feel disappointed with how it doesn't have a great standard piano sound. In doing the above, the crappy keybed felt like less of an issue as well - like I'm working with the instrument, as opposed to trying to make it fit what I want - approaching the songs from a different perspective made me more open to it not feeling like 88 weighted keys, if that makes sense. Really enjoyed playing it and might even consider taking it to my gig tomorrow, not to do anything with the iPad, and not to do anything with the pattern sequencer - which I haven't even started to learn.. but just to throw out some ambient, almost "singer-songwriter" songs. Sounds like a stupid descriptor but, for example, playing the Fairy Piano or Meditation Piano presets, slowing the songs down, just playing simple chords/inversions/triads (so, not playing the song "as it goes").. really sounded fantastic. This approach left so much room for my vocals too. There's a lot to love here, I think I'll get along with it just fine so long as I don't look at is as a piano and more as its own instrument. The 88 key version, I imagine, would be absolutely perfect for me. But I think perhaps one of the options you mentioned, or some other cheap 88 weighted keys option, alongside the DS61 would be fine as well. Not sure what I want to do with that side of things. Feeling a bit more positive about the Juno tonight though, simple fact is it's not an 88 weighted keys keyboard with a fantastic grand piano sound and that's okay.

That sounds like a cool idea - the Casio PX-5S however is like $1700aud and the idea of spending that in addition to what I've already spent is completely insane. I don't think I can get along with the keybed on the Juno DS, so I'm thinking I'll sell it and move on. It keybed makes me feel like I'm playing on a drug addicts teeth. The sounds from the Juno are excellent, but this keybed is just a no-deal. As a solo act, I don't want 2x keyboards in front of me so a dual setup is out of the question. I could sell the Juno DS and profit probably $200-300aud, looking at what others are selling the DS61 for. Similar situation with the iPad. I need to have a think about what to do, because there's a fair few options running through my head, and some of them might be a little extreme. Right now I'm thinking of flipping the Juno DS61 for a profit, and picking up either a decent 88 key weighted MIDI controller or a basic 88 weighted key digital piano that I can also use as a MIDI controller. I think the iPad idea is still good though. The DS61 doesn't have a place to put the iPad - which is also adding a little to my negative feelings on the Juno, because it adds extra BS on my end - I'll have to be reaching over the keyboard to mess with the iPad that's attached to a stand behind it or whatever.. nuisance. Would rather it be either on a music stand attached to the keyboard itself, or at least secured in some way to empty space on the keyboard but the DS61 doesn't have space for that. Other grievances I have with the Juno DS, are the expansion thing only allows 1 pack at a time - you can have them all on the USB though. But, it's annoying and a little time consuming to switch between them and I don't feel they add anything amazing or game-changing anyway.. there's nothing in the expansion packs that would sway someone from considering selling it, to keeping it, or whatever. Nothing major in the expansion packs. Also, dealing with the menu system is already annoying as heck - I'm just never going to want to mess with sound editing on this thing, I hate all the menu-diving and it's not a touch screen, it's annoying to use. Really feeling an 88 key MIDI controller or "stage keyboard" without the menu-diving BS would be a better idea. Not in a financial position to do that, without selling things, and even then I'd probably only reach a mid-tier one used. LOL. Which is fine. I don't need a high quality, world-tour ready, professional grade instrument. But I do need something easy and intuitive to use, and I do generally gig 2-4x a week so it's gotta be somewhat along those "professional" lines (sound-wise and durability-wise). Wish I didn't sell the Casio CDO-130. With the iPad, that would have been more than fine. All the complaints about the Juno DS61 would probably be things I'd happily gloss over, if the keybed didn't massively suck - at least now I know that I "need" 88 weighted keys (even though I seriously don't use them all, it's just a feel thing..).

It was the original Roland Fantom F76. I picked up the Juno DS. My thoughts on it are torn straight down the middle. The sounds of everything besides the straight up keys are phenomenal, I seriously love most of the sounds in this thing, and I understand it's got some room for flexibility as well. The grand piano sounds are terrible, unfortunately. Since it's the DS61, the keybed is a lightweight synth-action style that just feels bad to play for piano stuff. Jamming out on synth sounds is awesome. I negotiated a better deal on it, and it will suffice - I'll check out the expansions and see if there's a decent piano sound in there, but even if not, the piano sounds are definitely passable. I just think they're not as good as some VSTs I've got on the PC and I think the default Korg Module piano sound is better too, actually. The electric piano keys are great imo, I think they're about equal to Neo Soul Keys. The weight of the DS61 is great, so light and easy to carry around - but that keybed is a problem that will wind up having to be addressed, I'm really going to want an 88 weighted key keyboard.. maybe I can just get some super basic 88 key weighted keyboard, like the Casio I sold and call it a day. 61 keys feels restricting as well, it's annoying as heck on the low end - I notice it quite a bit already, I go to play octaves with the left hand and hit empty space haha. But whatever, I'll adjust. I'll give it some time. I can't see myself enjoying this keybed for straight up piano/keys gigs. The keybed feels like a toy. I think the mini keys on my Akai MPK Mini Play are actually better to play. lol. I'm sure the DS61 will grow on me though, it really is just the keybed that has me not completely in love with it off the bat. Already tested it with the iPad and it worked flawlessly, after being set up correctly. EDIT: Another issue is sometimes it doesn't register the note I played, I've messed with the velocity and tried each option out, but every now and then it just straight up doesn't register a note.

I didn't know this, thanks for sharing - so as long as the Fantom is X/G series or more recent, then it would be a step up. Hopefully, I can find out what model it is tomorrow and go from there. Had no idea there was an S series that would be a step down from the Juno.