Heads-up: SpaceStation keyboard amp is apparently back

[mak1457]

I hadn't thought of that one.

[m-organ]

Just got my Spacestation about a week ago. I had been playing through a Lucas Nano 300, which is very nice, but I say this as the person sitting in the stereo sweet spot.

 

My Hammond Sk2 sounds absolutely awesome through the spacestation, as plenty of others have noted. AP sounds are tricky, but I have found I really like it once they are dialed in correctly. The Spacestation is extremely sensitive, the slightest change in stereo width dramatically changes the sound, and the higher quality the AP sample is the more sensitive it is. The Nano, on the other hand makes them all sound pretty good.

 

I have a Kawai VPC I use for piano, which has no internal sounds (controller only), So I have been playing with several virtual pianos. The Ivory add on to Korg module for iPad has some decent pianos, which sound really good through the Lucas Nano, but pretty bad through the Spacestation. I also use a Mac mini, and like the Ravenscroft piano the best. this one sounds really good through the Spacestation, but again, the stereo width has to be right.

 

I don't think this is a weakness of the Spacestation, I think it's actually a strength. The Nano is obviously doing "something" to the sounds, since they all sound pretty darn good (the ivory Korg module plugin really sounds close to the Ravenscroft when playing through the nano). I think the Spacestation is giving a more honest output.

 

As plenty of others have said, this amp takes a lot of getting used to. I've only had it a week, and I feel like my brain and ears are just starting to get used to what it is doing. It really is different.

[Bossbandbob]

I know the sub out on the SpaceStation is full range but does it send out a summed to mono signal or can it send out stereo via a TRS cable ?

[Raymb1]

The sub out is a full range R+L mono signal.

[Aspen]

Thanks for the great reply, Aspen!

 

That was exactly my impression of the SFX200KB. I was so excited when I saw it, as I've always run stereo and been on the lookout for a more convenient option than a stereo PA. After my local music store (remember those?) let me try it out I had to reluctantly admit it wouldn't cut it. Unlike others, I could never stand playing anything through a guitar amp, even a Fender Rhodes.

 

I got my SS3 Thursday from Sweetwater (it came with a cover- is that standard? If so, should be noted), and will use it on my gig tonight at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. This is billed as an "unplugged" show, Acoustic Guitar, Upright Bass, vocals (small PA), and me with my Kurz PC3k and the SS amp (acoustic piano sounds only allowed). Should be a good test, a big very live room- all concrete and glass.

 

Tomorrow night, a private event with a full dance band in a ballroom. I'll report back here next week.

 

Excited again.

 

Spence

 

Thanks for your support and welcome to the CPS Family Spence. You made some great observations here, words of wisdom...and quite intuitive for an early adopter (yes folks, the SS3 has yet to have it's first birthday...hard to believe!)

 

I'll be looking forward to a report after your polarized gigs this weekend...but it sounds like you'll be well prepared (after reading so many helpful hints on this "War and Peace" mega forum how could you NOT be forewarned!)

 

And also thanks for mentioning this about the "cover in the box" Spence. That's the way most new sales will be packaged from here on out.

 

You see, we had so many "after sale" orders for this $40 cover that it was disrupting my "keep it simple" business model. Nearly everyone ordered it afterwards. So I was having them made over here at Le Cover 30-50 at a time but it seems we were always out of stock and so folks were waiting a long time to get delivery. (maybe some of you experienced this inconvenience...?)

 

So I sourced an identical SS3 cover where we package our custom made USA Eminence speakers with the Eminence Chinese made electronics and cab. So now we pack a cover in every SS3 box at the factory, and have raised the MAP price from $749 to $769. So this is cheaper and less hassle for all.

 

For the moment, it is still possible to buy a SS3 w/o cover for $749, and a cover for $39, from our website or the Sweetwater site. But eventually we will phase those options out so just the $769 package will be available.

[Bossbandbob]

Thanks Ray,

My keyboard's mixer that I just bought has a R/L stereo out which will go to the SpaceStation. If I ever want to go Stereo rather than mono to FOH can the mixer's earphone jack be used for that using a TRS Y cable?

[Raymb1]

Thanks Ray,

My keyboard's mixer that I just bought has a R/L stereo out which will go to the SpaceStation. If I ever want to go Stereo rather than mono to FOH can the mixer's earphone jack be used for that using a TRS Y cable?

 

You can get a stereo feed from the .

[MathOfInsects]

^^^^

 

And if you do, send the Main L and R to the house, and use the CR L and R for your monitor. That way you can control your stage volume without changing the level you're sending to soundman/FOH.

[Doug Robinson]

So it's been a while since I posted, but some will remember that I was getting a terrible intermittent sound through my SS3 down here in central Mexico, probably linked to crappy power but we couldn't tell for certain and it never happened with my other amps.

 

Aspen and his tech amigo Duke spent considerable brain power trying to trouble shoot and sent me a replacement chassis that got hung up in customs. So...he sent me another one via UPS. This is really beyond a great customer service story--it's relationship building and I completely appreciate it.

 

I swapped chassis's and did two gigs, not a peep or a gremlin. Success, I think!

[Bossbandbob]

Thanks Ray,

My keyboard's mixer that I just bought has a R/L stereo out which will go to the SpaceStation. If I ever want to go Stereo rather than mono to FOH can the mixer's earphone jack be used for that using a TRS Y cable?

 

You can get a stereo feed from the .

 

This mixer does not have a 'Control out' It has R/L out to mains, an Earphone out, and an RCA R/L Aux out.

[rickp]

Thanks Ray,

My keyboard's mixer that I just bought has a R/L stereo out which will go to the SpaceStation. If I ever want to go Stereo rather than mono to FOH can the mixer's earphone jack be used for that using a TRS Y cable?

 

You can get a stereo feed from the .

 

This mixer does not have a 'Control out' It has R/L out to mains, an Earphone out, and an RCA R/L Aux out.

To answer your original question, yes, you can - using a Y adapter with a TRS male that splits to 2 TS female jacks. I've used that kind of Y adapter on a FOH mixer to send the same mix as the FOH mains to the SS3 for use as a single rear-firing monitor with good results. You could also use your RCA outs to feed the SS3 with either RCA to 1/4 TS cables or RCA/1/4 TS female adapter to allow use of standard 1/4 to 1/4 TS instrument cables.

 

The mixer's main R/L outs would then go to FOH (and if the main outs support TRS, you could use 1/4 TRS to XLR adapter plugs to run balanced XLR cables to the FOH mixer).

 

With your mixer as described, an advantage for you using the headphone jack to feed the SS3 would be having local volume control of the SS3 independent of the FOH send, similar to what MathOfInsects suggested for Control Room Outs found on some mixers.

[Bossbandbob]

Thanks Rick,

That's what I thought.

[ibis]

Newbie here, hi all!

I play in a bar band and am think of buying a SS v.3 for keys monitoring.

I'm intrigued to know if it can PA the whole band (Rock covers guitar, vox, bass, keys and unmic'd drums) in a small bar? I've read most of this thread but I haven't found a definite answer to this question. Maybe I missed it?

How have guitar players (playing through cabinet simulation out of multi FX) into the SS v.3 mix found the experience? Does the guitar feel less responsive, compared to how it feels with a stage amplifier or even a standard FRFR monitor (if DI'd to desk)? Do harmonics still pop? Controlled feedback?

Also, how does the vocal mics fare with unwanted feedback?

 

Lots of questions. Sorry!

I have a vision of a very easy load in and breakdown if all we need is a Spacestation and sub! Is it a mirage or a reality?

Thanks in advance.

 

Ian

 

 

[Raymb1]

http://www.centerpointstereo.com/videos.php

Check out the videos at the CPS site. One of the vids has keys, 2 guitars, bass and vocals running through the SS.

[ibis]

Yes I saw the Large Wide band playing Breathe but I still haven't seen any videos of a whole band with drums. That's my main question.

 

[MathOfInsects]

I have run a guitar player through mine a couple of times. In some ways, the small front speaker makes for a better guitar amp than a keyboard amp, with its focused mids.

 

When I have run keys, guitar, and vocals through it, with bass playing his own amp and drums doing their thing, it has felt underpowered. Organ distorted and headroom was squashed all around, though my tiny mixer was almost certainly part of the problem.

 

Guitar plays in mono, singer sings in mono, so even with a little reverb on everyone at the mixer stage, you're relying on that 8' front speaker to run a band through, competing against both bar noise and the idiot drummer. IMO, that's asking too much from the box--and missing out on its most salient feature. As a satellite to a main PA speaker, however, it could be very effective (so long as you're engaging the side-throw speaker with a stereo signal of some kind).

[Bill Spencer]

OK, report from the trenches.

 

First gig, at the aquarium. "Unplugged"- well, guitarist/leader used two different acoustic/electrics, through his entire pedalboard, upright bass, drums, singers through full PA- I was told "ONLY USE ACOUTIC PIANO SOUNDS- WE'RE UNPLUGGED"... ha ha.

 

SS sounded great- put it against the back wall. I had tried it out a bit at the studio, and agreed with others that we don't want to fire the sideways speaker directly at someone, so I had difficulty finding a great way to orient it, as we had audience on 3 sides. Not 100% sold on the tone, compared to my usual 2xQSC K8s.

 

Next gig- wedding in a college cafeteria. Very live room, very tight stage. This is the band where I have been trying to not use any onstage amplification due to leader volume control issues, and since I started doing that, monitoring through open backed headphones, other band members have been complaining they can't hear enough of me (each has a mic-stand mounted powered monitor with a single (5"?) speaker). I want to start using the SS at low volume to get a stereo stage fill. I put it right behind me, angled into the concrete rear wall, but, again, one side of the bottom speaker pointing audienceward. Not a great test, as the room was just horrible, but promising, they said they liked being able to hear me.

 

Last night, outdoor big band ("40's revue") gig with a leader that likes it loud. I had a nice corner right behind me (again, as usual, very tight setup), so I put the ss right in the corner. First, tilted up toward me, but the leader kept asking me to turn up and it was starting to hurt so I put it flat- firing out below me. WOW. the 3D effect really works this way. The gig required AP only, but during rehearsal/sound check, I tried big stereo patches - Rhodes w/ st. vib, B3, lush pads, etc. Sounds really nice and somehow evens out the tone, which can seem a little boxy without the proper "fill" from the bottom (side-firing) speaker.

 

https://video.xx.fbcdn.net/hvideo-xpf1/v/t42.1790-2/11954905_10206968028773205_910189982_n.mp4?efg=eyJybHIiOjY5OCwicmxhIjo3Mjl9&rl=698&vabr=388&oh=327255a7aac9d6048ea3e76f325f9335&oe=55F30CBE

 

One thing I noticed, and maybe it's coincidental, is that I'm getting more recognition from the audience for solos, etc.- I'm thinking my dispersion is much improved over the K8s, which I must note, sound more HiFi and wider stereo, at least for me.

 

I think I'll make some sort of reflector panels, as that so much improved the stereo effect, at least for me, as I realize there wil be few situations where I can be any distance from the SS.

 

Thanks, Aspen, for this great compact stereo audio transmission device.

 

I have a couple of piano/vocal duo gigs next week, will try the SS as mini PA and report back.

[Raymb1]

Using this amp stand solved all those problems for me. The floor becomes a reflecting surface for the side speaker. The only thing I have to be careful of now is the stage volume

 

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Gator/Combo-Amp-Stand.gc

[hardware]

Dispersion is the key to the SSv3.

 

I had QSC-K12s and Sona 32s from Barbetta, all great cabinets but having my guitarist hear me over an SVT and a powerful earthquake hitting drummer makes the SSv3 the perfect stage monitor.

Plus I had to cranks the K12's and aim them at my head to hear the sweetspot, and they were always tearing my face off even from 10 feet away.

 

SSv3 just does it all and does it right no matter how it's angled.

Just 2 Miners Wedges underneath and she's good to go.

Best Amp I ever had except for the Moog Lab Series and 147 back in the days of "who can be as loud as Blue Cheer."

[Jazzmammal]

One thing I noticed, and maybe it's coincidental, is that I'm getting more recognition from the audience for solos, etc.- I'm thinking my dispersion is much improved over the K8s, which I must note, sound more HiFi and wider stereo, at least for me.

 

This is exactly it Bill. Aspen talks about this in every one of his marketing videos. When you use two separate powered speakers for stereo, if the stage is large enough you can get enveloped in a very nice full stereo soundfield. But, 10 or more feet off the stage that effect is lost, the audience is not in that sweet spot.

 

I'll still say the best sound I ever had was at a large dance party with a 6 piece at a big clubhouse in a pretty big housing development. About 300 people and the stage was at least 60-70 feet wide. I had two EV SXa 100's spread out a good 25 feet apart and 10 feet behind me. My PC3 sounded glorious, just stunning and no the SS by itself cannot duplicate that to the player but how often do most of us get to do gigs on a stage like that? I know for a fact that the enveloping stereo field was lost to the audience and I think the SS would have projected that out into the crowd even if the sound quality might not be as sweet as my EV's. Still, I think the SS is pretty good though. To me it's a slight difference, not huge.

 

I posted here about a 40's big band gig I did about two months ago. Same thought you just posted. Everybody could really hear me including the bone's on the far side of the stage from me. And several people in the audience who've heard the band before said the same thing. They heard the piano very well. One thing is I always use a stereo piano patch, it makes a huge difference.

 

Just to add on a bit, in the last 10 days I've done 4 gigs with 3 different bands who had not heard me with the SS before. The reaction was pure amazement and I'm not embellishing one bit. I used my SK1 and they all said man, what a sound I've never heard a keyboard sound like that, etc, etc. I always say it's not just the Hammond it's the combination with the SS. I would not be surprised if I just sold another 2 or 3 of them because a couple of guys also do single and duo's with vocals in lounges and I explained how the SS is perfect for those gigs too. Aspen has a bunch of vids showing the SS as a PA.

 

Bob

[Bill Spencer]

Using this amp stand solved all those problems for me. The floor becomes a reflecting surface for the side speaker. The only thing I have to be careful of now is the stage volume

 

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Gator/Combo-Amp-Stand.gc

 

I'm REALLY trying not to have to bring another stand (in addition to keyboard stand, mic stand, throne base and music stand), so I'm envisioning some panels that are basically the size of the SS that will maybe velcro on the amp for extra protection for transport. I'll store the cables in the bottom cavity where there is a speaker grille. (left side, IIRC).

 

If and when I get around to this, I'll post pics.

 

Next project is a stereo DI with a separate volume controlled send so I can have a convenient way to control the SS vol without changing the level to FOH.

[Raymb1]

Anything to keep the side speaker from blaring at whoever is on the left of the SS. The sound of the side speaker, by itself, is kind of harsh.

[TimA]

It's interesting after sounding so harsh, when the side speaker blends with the front speaker the result is so pleasant.....

[Doug Robinson]

So ia had a trifold buit originaly. Decided I didn't like bringing it and stopped.

 

Then I used a guitar stand the wrong way and really liked it till last night, when I found my old guitar amp stand and used it instead. That is the way to go for me! Big room, maybe 90 people, no monitors, and everyone could hear me onstage and in the audience (I have some smart friends/fans who know that I'm always interested in relative levels so they give me feedback all the time).

 

We were LOUD last night too.

[junkcar]

Has anyone used this Ultimate amp stand for the SS? It folds up real small.

 

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/AMP150?adpos=1o2&creative=55281441601&device=c&matchtype=&network=g&gclid=CMvTmKPb8scCFYKPHwodpXMLbw

 

I have an Ultimate keyboard stand that has seen hard usage for about 15 years and is still doing well.

[Dglavko]

I have that one - nice and light and good angle but... Not too sturdy/balanced so I wouldn't recommend it for this amp as the amp is too deep - I think the stand was designed for fenders etc

[junkcar]

Thanks!

[Bill Spencer]

It's interesting after sounding so harsh, when the side speaker blends with the front speaker the result is so pleasant.....

 

It might be nice if the width control allowed you to use both speakers for a mono input.

[RandyFF]

I just received my ssv.3!

 

To set it up I placed it about 10 feet away from me. in a living room that's approximately 15 by 20 with nine foot high ceilings. the space is fairly reverberant.

 

I recorded short clips first of organ, using aftertouch to speed up and slow down the rotor, and then I recorded piano with a noticeable delay and some reverb on it.

 

I used the recording to be able to set the width on the speaker, and to be able to move around the room and into the next space through a doorway. After that I simply played the organ and piano just to hear what it sounded like.

 

For contrast I setup my Mackie FreePlay to have a point of comparison and switch back and forth between these two speakers. the Mackie is a boom box style speaker with two tweeters so technically it's stereo but the image isn't very wide.

 

When playing from my recorder to the CPS I used an eighth inch plug adapter feeding into a 9-foot quarter inch hosa cable. When playing from my keyboard, I used a 13 foot hosa cable.

 

For reflective surfaces, I put several large boxes to the side of the side speaker and one behind the speaker.

 

I'm not sure what I was supposed to be hearing exactly, I thought with the exaggerated effects that would help me hear and tune up the system. when I played the recording I moved into the next room through an open door to hear if I could hear the effect

 

Other than the space station being a better sounding speaker than the Mackie, and it getting much louder, I didn't hear the magical 3d effect per se. at various points I turned up the width control and adjusted the volume accordingly going from 12 o'clock to full on. While that produced a stronger sense of the effects, I still didn't get the 3d space that follows you from room to room necessarily

 

I feel like I don't know how to listen to this system at least in this room and know what I'm hearing and how to adjust the sound.

 

I took several pics on my phone but don't know how to embed them, I'm writing this from my phone.

 

Input appreciated!

 

[Raymb1]

Try with the width control off. Then turn it up. The first time my wife heard it she thought it sounded like a real piano was in the room. Make sure your patches are stereo.