Thinking about a YC73 but have a keybed question

[AnotherScott]

Single-board solutions are always tricky if you have a wide range of needs. If that's the goal, one approach would be to focus first on action, which is the only thing you can't do anything about, and make sure it at least passes the acceptability threshold for all your uses. After that, focus on the control surface (sliders/drawbars, knobs, buttons etc.) which is something which can at least be somewhat supplemented with an external device if needed, though the ergonomic trade-off can be significant. After that, then, sound becomes the third factor to consider, since that at least can always be supplemented (e.g. with a tablet) and so is the most easily addressed after-the-fact. Though in that case, you'd also want to look at a board's MIDI functionality. But if you're totally averse to supplementing with external sounds so that the internal sounds become more of a priority, you may find yourself having to sacrifice more in one of the other areas.

[stoken6]

2 hours ago, AnotherScott said:

Single-board solutions are always tricky if you have a wide range of needs. If that's the goal, one approach would be to focus first on action, which is the only thing you can't do anything about, and make sure it at least passes the acceptability threshold for all your uses. After that, focus on the control surface (sliders/drawbars, knobs, buttons etc.) which is something which can at least be somewhat supplemented with an external device if needed, though the ergonomic trade-off can be significant. After that, then, sound becomes the third factor to consider, since that at least can always be supplemented (e.g. with a tablet) and so is the most easily addressed after-the-fact. Though in that case, you'd also want to look at a board's MIDI functionality. But if you're totally averse to supplementing with external sounds so that the internal sounds become more of a priority, you may find yourself having to sacrifice more in one of the other areas.

It's a tricky trade-off - often the reason to choose a single-board solution is that you don't want to (or don't have time to) setup up external sound sources or control surfaces. Balancing action, controllers and sounds is tricky. Which brings us, once again, to the Nord tax...

 

Cheers, Mike.

[JohnH]

On 12/14/2022 at 9:34 AM, Outkaster said:

YC is one of the best keyboards I have had in years. 

Some gigs I am carrying a guitar rig and pa and the yc61 is all I have. Even on that gig people are praising it. It really is great. The others too, people noticed how much of a difference it was compared to my Motif XF I was doing organ on. It cannot compete with the Motif on certain voices and layering capabilities, but the organ it is so much better.

[AnotherScott]

8 minutes ago, stoken6 said:

It's a tricky trade-off - often the reason to choose a single-board solution is that you don't want to (or don't have time to) setup up external sound sources or control surfaces. Balancing action, controllers and sounds is tricky. Which brings us, once again, to the Nord tax...

Right... and then, even the Nord Stage 3 has its shortfalls. Like single velocity non-piano samples, cumbersome patch selection compared to many other boards, inability to split/layer more than two non-piano non-organ sounds. Yamaha YC at least somewhat addresses the first two, though it has much more limited synth functionality.

[Paul Henry]

On 12/15/2022 at 9:48 AM, kenheeter said:

Syntaur has a spring kit available that is supposed to make the Compact 73 keybed a little lighter, the kit is Part #PC3KC key return spring kit, and it includes 76 springs.  I'm thinking about ordering one for mine but with the shipping costs and duty/taxes to get it here to Canada I'm holding off for now.  I would love to hear  how it works out if you get one, I'll likely order the kit sometime in the new year.  Cheers, Ken

I looked on the Syntaur site and it says that that kit (PC3KC) is for a Kurzweil PC3 or Artis 7. Do those boards have the same Fatar action as the Nord Stage3 compacts?

I also called Syntaur and they did not have a specific spring kit for the Nord. 

So does anyone know if these springs could fit the Nord, Ken where did you get that info and part number?

 

Thanks

Paul

[AnotherScott]

21 hours ago, Paul Henry said:

Kurzweil PC3 or Artis 7. Do those boards have the same Fatar action as the Nord Stage3 compacts?

No. The Kurzweils have a TP/9, the Nord semi-weighted Stage/Electro models have a TP/8O.

 

ETA: Nope! Corrected below.

[Paul Henry]

26 minutes ago, AnotherScott said:

No. The Kurzweils have a TP/9, the Nord semi-weighted Stage/Electro models have a TP/8O.

Just looked on Kurzweil site and the specs of both those boards said it uses TP8 action, which I believe has the "piano" lip

on the edge of the key but otherwise the same as the TP8O. Yes?

[AnotherScott]

16 minutes ago, Paul Henry said:

Just looked on Kurzweil site and the specs of both those boards said it uses TP8 action, which I believe has the "piano" lip

on the edge of the key but otherwise the same as the TP8O. Yes?

Whoops, I think that's the second time I've messed that up! Yes, TP8. The PC361/PC3A6/PC3K6 are the ones with the TP9. 

[Paul Henry]

30 minutes ago, AnotherScott said:

Whoops, I think that's the second time I've messed that up! Yes, TP8. The PC361/PC3A6/PC3K6 are the ones with the TP9. 

We all make mistakes     I did a little more digging on the Nord forums and found a thread that stated that he used part # KYSP27 springs from 

an M-Audio Keystation 61ES and he now loves the new lighter touch.

Still wondering if the PC3KC spring kit from Syntaur would make an appreciable difference in lightening up the keybed.

 

I suppose I could order both springs from Syntaur and see if I can establish a difference in spring rate before I try it in the Nord. 

They will allow returns.

[Paul Henry]

I asked Fatar about this directly and they said they are not allowed to tell me anything about their actions. So dead end there.

They said to ask Nord about it, so I emailed them. Hope I can get some solid answers to this question for every ones benefit.

 

If I didn't mention this before, I'll be keeping the Stage 3 so I do have a vested interest in finding the right springs to do the job.

 

Paul

[Paul Henry]

So I have a new little theory about Nord’s TP8O action.

According to the Nord webwsite they tweak the Fatar action to make it more playable.

My guess is that they either commission Fatar to use a stiffer spring than a normal

TP8 for their Stage 3C and Electro 6D models or they do it in house after receiving the keybeds from Fatar.

All in the name of better playable with AP and EP sounds without killing off the organ side?

The stock spring # KEYSPH that ships in an Electro 6D or Stage 3 Compact I believe is a bit stiffer

than the stock spring # PC3KC that would normally ship in the standard TP8 (say a PC3)

 Of course neither Nord or Fatar will divulge any of this info to me.

Bottom line is that I will order the PC3KC spring kit (PC3) from Syntaur and I hope

that my theory is correct and will lighten up the action on my Stage 3.

Paul

[octa]

Bet you've seen the nord forum threads about changing out springs: 

https://www.norduserforum.com/nord-electro-forum-f9/changing-return-spring-for-nord-electro-and-nsc-t20026.html

[Paul Henry]

2 hours ago, octa said:

Bet you've seen the nord forum threads about changing out springs: 

https://www.norduserforum.com/nord-electro-forum-f9/changing-return-spring-for-nord-electro-and-nsc-t20026.html

Yes sir I did read that post from the Nord forums, but the KYSP27 spring from the M-Audio is a slightly different style and twice the price at Syntaur.

So I will be going with the PC3KC springs from the stock TP8 Fatar action.

BTW Syntaur said they would take back the springs if they weren't correct.

If that goes down maybe I'll try the more expensive KYSP27 springs.

I ordered the PC3KC springs already so time will tell.

 

Cheers

Paul

[Paul Henry]

On 12/20/2022 at 11:42 AM, Paul Henry said:

Yes sir I did read that post from the Nord forums, but the KYSP27 spring from the M-Audio is a slightly different style and twice the price at Syntaur.

So I will be going with the PC3KC springs from the stock TP8 Fatar action.

BTW Syntaur said they would take back the springs if they weren't correct.

If that goes down maybe I'll try the more expensive KYSP27 springs.

I ordered the PC3KC springs already so time will tell.

 

Cheers

Paul

 

So I received the new spring set from Syntaur (PC3KC) today and installed them. Quite easy to do, less than an hour total, and I'm personally happy with the results.

Folks that don't use a second weighted action board may find it a bit too organ centric now with the new springs to enjoy a lot a AP and EP playing.

Frankly it's so easy to do and not that expensive. So if you are leaning towards this update, just try it, if you don't like the results then send the springs back.

 Just wanted to let you folks know what my findings were.

 

Cheers

Paul

[kenheeter]

Hi Paul, I've been away from my computer, sorry I didn't reply sooner.  You found the same info in the Nord forums that I did. I'm really interested to hear your impressions of playing piano on the Nord Stage 3 compact with the lighter springs. I will order a set in the new year for sure.

 

[Paul Henry]

3 hours ago, kenheeter said:

Hi Paul, I've been away from my computer, sorry I didn't reply sooner.  You found the same info in the Nord forums that I did. I'm really interested to hear your impressions of playing piano on the Nord Stage 3 compact with the lighter springs. I will order a set in the new year for sure.

 

I've been using synth action keyboards through the years to play ALL my sounds, so I got very used to that action.

Never had any boards with weighted keys. So I guess my only dislike with my Stage 3 73 was the push back of that action.

Truth be known, the only reason I even considered the YC73 was the fact that it had 73 keys. 

If you are like me with your tastes in keybeds then you may like the mod too, but if you are used to weighted then YMMV.

As I mentioned before it's an easy mod, and if you don't like it, swap out the new for the old and send them back. 

Happy Holidays

 

Paul

[kenheeter]

The YC73 seems to be working out really well as a single keyboard solution. I have a bunch of gigs coming up and that will tell the tale.  I like the action for piano playing and find it fine for organ too. We'll see.....

[Al Quinn]

I’ve been searching for a single keyboard solution for years. After a few failed attempts I found what I’ve been looking for with the YC73.
 

Of course the action is a compromise, but I think Yamaha made the right design trade offs for this hybrid action. I’m very comfortable playing piano on it and although there are a few organ techniques I can’t pull off, it’s good for most of what I want to play.
 

Here’s a video with some piano and organ from my first gig using it as a single keyboard.

 

 

[Dave Keys]

7 hours ago, kenheeter said:

The YC73 seems to be working out really well as a single keyboard solution. I have a bunch of gigs coming up and that will tell the tale.  I like the action for piano playing and find it fine for organ too. We'll see.....

Nice playing Ken! I made the switch from Nord Electro5 to Yamaha YC73 and I have no regrets. Superior action, physical drawbars, and the options for layering and splitting are so much more developed. Overall It feels great to play.

[AUSSIEKEYS]

6 hours ago, Al Quinn said:

 

 

 

 Love your work and the keyboard sounds great.

[kenheeter]

That's Al playing, not me. Great playing though!!

[Dave Keys]

Well, having the sung the praises of my YC73, I now find 3 months old it has a faulty encoder, so it needs to be sent back to Yamaha for repair/replace. Could've really done without this in peak wedding season. First time I've had a new board go faulty in over 30 years of gigging. Has anyone else had this issue, or any experience dealing with Yamaha in the UK or US? Don't know how long the board will be gone for. I do have a CP88 that I can use instead, but it won't be the same for the Organs, etc. 

[Dave Keys]

Anyone experienced a warranty return with Yamaha?

[JohnCorda]

On 6/10/2023 at 9:51 PM, Dave Keys said:

Anyone experienced a warranty return with Yamaha?

 

Dave, any luck with your fix/warranty?  I'm eyeing the YC73 but I've seen reports of other quality issues come up with the keybed after some years or even months.

[Dave Keys]

On 8/7/2023 at 3:23 AM, JohnCorda said:

 

Dave, any luck with your fix/warranty?  I'm eyeing the YC73 but I've seen reports of other quality issues come up with the keybed after some years or even months.

Hi John.

Yes, my board is now fixed and working great! I dropped it off for warranty repair on 16th July, hoping it would be fixed while I was on holiday. Sure enougn, it was ready waiting to be collected today so I went and got it. 
Im really fond of it as a board - it is a one board solution, and I love the action. There are just 2 things I would change;

1) add some better clav samples - which I think they may do. 

2) square off the underside of the board, as the rounded shape makes it a little tricky to grasp as you’re loading it in and out of the case. 
 

[JohnCorda]

Thanks for your reply and comments about your experience with it, I'm certainly considering getting one.

[Coker]

15 hours ago, Dave Keys said:

Hi John.

Yes, my board is now fixed and working great! I dropped it off for warranty repair on 16th July, hoping it would be fixed while I was on holiday. Sure enougn, it was ready waiting to be collected today so I went and got it. 
Im really fond of it as a board - it is a one board solution, and I love the action. There are just 2 things I would change;

1) add some better clav samples - which I think they may do. 

2) square off the underside of the board, as the rounded shape makes it a little tricky to grasp as you’re loading it in and out of the case. 
 

Dave, I solved your grasping problem by attaching two self-adhesive textured pads, each about 4x6 inches, to the YC where my hands go to carry it from the bag to the stand. One pad wraps around the bottom edge in the back at about two octaves above middle C, and the other wraps around the bottom edge in the front about two octaves below middle C. This has worked remarkably well. 

[PianoMan51]

This is what I put on my YC73…

[kenheeter]

Just ordered and received a roll of this tape. I installed the strips where you suggested and it's great - thanks for the tip!!

[Charles Hayden]

Hello, Just want to know does the YC73  ship with the studio leslie effect already installed?