Hammond B3-X down to 64.99

[miden]

https://appsliced.co/app?n=hammond-b-3x&l=emailtop

 

I think I might buy this one now. Been using Galileo 2 up to now.

 

Or maybe not - correct conversion rates put this at $88 AUD, but Oz Appstore has it at $99

[Noah DC]

Man, the fluctuations in these app prices are tough for those of us obsessed with getting the best price. Just bought the Leslie only software for this same price a month ago... May have to grab this, too.

[ChazKeys]

It may never be this low again - last drop was back in June when it was £75 GBP. I missed that promotion so jumped when I saw this. It is far superior to Galileo 1 or 2. There is another thread here https://forums.musicplayer.com/ubbthreads.php/topics/3019812/hammond-b-3x-for-ipad#Post3019812

[konaboy]

the plugin version is at half price now too, $150 instead of $300, or whatever in your currency.

been playing the demo for a while and VB3, and must say I prefer the latter anyway, which is always $100.

[AWkeys]

Thanks for the heads up - D/Ling now!

[johnchop]

been playing the demo for a while and VB3, and must say I prefer the latter anyway

 

VB3, Blue3, and B3X as options... the times we live in.

 

B3X does love some CPU.

[miden]

Yeah, thanks Johnchop - Galileo is pretty light on when it comes to CPU, albeit it takes some tweaking to get it sounding ok....hahaha Just wished I'd asked for more iTunes vouchers for Chrissy

[Baldwin Funster]

I like vb3 alot. But the gain structure before the distortion is weird. So finding the right overdrive is very touchy and I I almost never get it right. I like everything else. If guido would fix this I might even go back from b3x. He never will because he wants to promote vb3ii or the mojo products. But b3x is better but I think vb3 fits in a dense mix better.

[Jim Alfredson]

B-3X is so good. Don't sleep on this deal.

[ElmerJFudd]

The AU/VST for Mac/PC is down to $149.99 as well.

[rogs]

You obviously need keyboards to play the B3x through...

 

For those on a really tight budget, it might be worth scouring Ebay for an old spinet console with MIDI ??

 

I route the 3 MIDI channel outputs from my old Yamaha HC2 console and use the YC61 organ sounds for upper manual (YC61 only has one MIDI channel input sadly ) - with the lower keyboard and pedal voices taken from my MOX6. Works pretty well.

 

For the B3x I would think it's simpler? ... 3 MIDI channels (1,2 and 3 ) out from the console, routed via an iRig MIDI 2 (or similar) to the iPad, to enable the B3x with 2 manuals and a single octave pedal board........

,

And with consoles like the Yamaha HC2 going for around $50 or less, an iRig MIDI 2 for around $75, and the B3x currently from around $65 you could get a really good sounding spinet organ for less than $200..

 

Nearest 'real' Hammond equivalent would probably be an M100 with a 122RV - or 251 - Leslie? (Unlike the L.100, the M.100 had a proper vibrato scanner and percussion preamp)

 

Just a thought...

[Threadslayer]

Does this require an iPad - as in not an iPhone? I can't find it on the App Store. I am assuming the answer is yes, and my iPad is ancient and does not support IOS 11. So, $64.99 + = not gonna happen

[ElmerJFudd]

Does this require an iPad - as in not an iPhone? I can't find it on the App Store. I am assuming the answer is yes, and my iPad is ancient and does not support IOS 11. So, $64.99 + = not gonna happen

 

Nope. They make the app for both iOS, Mac OS and Windows.

Pricing is different though.

[miden]

B-3X is so good. Don't sleep on this deal.

 

Nope I didn't I am finding it a lot "smoother" and a bit less rough around the edges than Galileo 2. It is certainly a LOT simpler to use and navigate! haha a tricky part of setup is that you need to manually set the presets in the bank before you can select them via MIDI. Not sure what the IK thinking was there??

 

Anyhoo, digging it so far and the $85 it ended up costing will be worth it I feel.

[Threadslayer]

OK. Thanks. Am I missing a secret handshake or something? When I go to the IK Multimedia website it is still priced at $149 USD.

Oh, I see. Only the iPad version is on sale.

[ElmerJFudd]

$149.99 is a good price for the desktop version. After the introductory pricing when they released it they set its price at $299.99. But, ya. $65 would be a can"t miss.

[jejefunkyman]

One feature that I find is missing compared to Galileo is a good preset management system. In Galileo, presets are clustered by banks, an you can create your own bank of user presets. I"ve seen in B-3X that there"s just a list of presets, classified by alphabetical order. Or did I miss something?

[AnotherScott]

I"ve seen in B-3X that there"s just a list of presets, classified by alphabetical order. Or did I miss something?

B3X is a bit of a jumble here. If you bring up the keys screen, and then hide the actual keys (by hitting the keys-screen button again), you will see the presets that correspond to the theoretical reverse color keys an octave below the low C. Just like the real thing, they are merely alternate drawbar settings for the currently active set of organ parameters. Then, in the pop-down menu from the top center, there are full system presets that include, not just drawbar settings, but all other parameters. Then, if you go back to the screen that shows the current octave's worth of presets, there is a button on the top roght that looks like a 3 item list with bullet points. That will bring up a screen where you can assign the whole-system presets to your desired Program Change number.

 

(Interestingly, on at least the YC61 and possibly some other boards, if you call up a Program Change and you have NOT assigned that Program Change to an internal preset, B3X will apparently use the drawbar settings from your board's preset... I guess this means the YC61 sends out the 9 drawbar value parameters with an organ program change, and B3X pays attention to it if it has no other preset to call upm but associating a B3X preset with that Program Change will override the incoming drawbar settings. At least that's the best I've been able to figure between my experience and reports in another thread here.)

 

Unfortunately, as far as I can see, there's no way to use Program Change to call up a simple drawbar adjustment preset, only full system presets... which wouldn't be an issue except changing drawbar registration presets is instantaneous, and loading new complete parameter sets takes some seconds. The solution might be to use some other MIDI app which would convert your desired Program Change to a "note" and then send that note to B3X.

 

Also, if you're playing from a board that has more than 61 keys and you do NOT want those bottom keys to change your sound, you'll need to do some zoning on your keyboard or MIDI filtering on the receiving side to make sure playing those notes does not get through to B3X.

 

BTW, do pay attention to the little "HAL 9000" icon at the top left of the keyboard screen... there are some very valuable adjustments there, like key click.

[jejefunkyman]

I was rather thinking of the possibility to create folders or banks within the top central dropdown menu where all the available presets (including vibrato, chorus, perc, effects, and so on) are listed. That would make the presets you create more easily accessible. Pretty much like what Galileo does. One workaround could be to name the presets like «  Santana Oye Como Va », « Santana Europa »... At list they would be together in the main list ð¤·ââï¸

[drawback]

I was rather thinking of the possibility to create folders or banks within the top central dropdown menu where all the available presets (including vibrato, chorus, perc, effects, and so on) are listed. That would make the presets you create more easily accessible. Pretty much like what Galileo does. One workaround could be to name the presets like «  Santana Oye Como Va », « Santana Europa »... At list they would be together in the main list ð¤·ââï¸

 

Computerese: If you want them in order, number them. 01 Oye Como, 02 Europa, 03 Whiter Shade, 04 Gimme Some etc.

[jejefunkyman]

Yes, what I thought as well ð Think it"s the best solution ð¤·ââï¸

[deetee]

Also, if you're playing from a board that has more than 61 keys and you do NOT want those bottom keys to change your sound, you'll need to do some zoning on your keyboard or MIDI filtering on the receiving side to make sure playing those notes does not get through to B3X.

 

A workaround that seems to work - go into advanced, split the keyboard upper/pedal at C1 then push all the pedal draw bars in

[Stokely]

Wow. I've been playing with this for a whole five minutes using the touchscreen and my phones and this sounds amazing.

 

I'll have to hook it up to the Modx and see about mapping controllers (and hopefully the attached sustain pedal to leslie). One thing I have not tried is doing splits on the Modx with ipad sounds on one split and internal sounds on the other--not a show-stopper if not possible, but really cool if it is. (without resorting to telling the ipad to only play on a certain range, that would be a last resort as I might use multiple ipad synths along with this organ for different songs.)

[AnotherScott]

One thing I have not tried is doing splits on the Modx with ipad sounds on one split and internal sounds on the other--not a show-stopper if not possible, but really cool if it is.

Yes, you can do that, with the Zone Master function of the MODX.

[Pianoman JC]

Just picked up the iOS version yesterday. This app is awesome and at $65.00 it's a no brainer. Might not see it at this price again.

 

 

 

 

 

JC

[drawback]

sadly I am sending mine back, so to speak....just applied for a refund. Sounds great but it's bluetooth implementation needs a lot of work. It did not recognise any controllers coming in over BT apart from keys IE no pedal controllers worked, and further it only allows ONE midi input. I tried the ANY setting and got nothing. Tried in AUM as well as standalone. Galileo, while not quite as accurate sounding, works flawlessly with anything I connect, so I think I might stick with that. Mind you not the first time I have had issues with IK gear and routing/control!

 

I had problems using Bluetooth as well, and I concluded it was just running resource-hungry B-3X and BT at the same time. Problems solved with a PlugKey, but I'd much rather be able to use BT. My 2018 iPad has the A10 chip which IIRC was to make it close/comparable to the previous generation iPad Pro. My other apps, ie Ravenscroft, NeoSoul Studio 2 have no issues with Bluetooth.

[AlexJer]

Hello Dear Experts! I was interested in the Hammond B-3X. I would like to use my existing Viscount BX20 MIDI organ (see photo) as a MIDI keyboard for the B-3X. Unfortunately, in these matters I am a complete amateur. Allow me to ask you questions.

 

I saw on YouTube how the musicians used the B-3X, using a touch screen monitor. Will such control of the B-3X be sufficient (if only presets are used)? My midi keyboard does not have any suitable volume control knobs, so I'm interested in the control option via the touch screen computer monitor...

[AnotherScott]

I saw on YouTube how the musicians used the B-3X, using a touch screen monitor. Will such control of the B-3X be sufficient (if only presets are used)? My midi keyboard does not have any suitable volume control knobs, so I'm interested in the control option via the touch screen computer monitor...

On the iPad version, as you would expect, everything can be operated by touch. I would expect the PC version to also be fully controllable from touchscreen if run on a Windows tablet. I'm guessing that the youtube video you saw was showing one of those two scenarios...?

[Baldwin Funster]

If you set things in between songs like volume, drawbar settings ect and dont plan to change things until the next song then yes you can do it all from the touchscreen. Except for swiping the leslie switch, the rest of the controls are kind of hit or miss if you are trying to grab a draw bar mid song. It's just not reliable enough. And I think there is a sound dropout when you change presets so no switching mid song there either.

[AnotherScott]

And I think there is a sound dropout when you change presets so no switching mid song there either.

Right... you can't change presets that contain the full set of sound parameters... but you can change drawbar presets (ones that change nothing but drawbar settings) without a sound dropout. They are assigned to the keys below the lowest C, but they can also be changed via the screen, or possibly via another MIDI device.