Vintage Vibe teasing "more affordable" model

[J.F.N.]

10 minutes ago, Doerfler said:

I believe so

Danny Federici (RIP) used an Acetone organ on some early E Street Band recordings. Bruce still has it in his studio

 

Danny, one of my heroes, together with Jon Lord, what an organ force they have up (or down) there.... 😊

[mcgoo]

14 hours ago, J.F.N. said:

 

That was Mr. Kakehashi pre Roland, the GT7 was later more well known as Hammond X5 (Produced by Ace Tone for Hammond).

 

Greatest "clone" back in the days, I had two...

 

I had an X2, the single manual version, for several years. Other than not having Chorus (it had vibrato only), it sounded wonderful thru a vent. 

[J.F.N.]

4 minutes ago, mcgoo said:

 

I had an X2, the single manual version, for several years. Other than not having Chorus (it had vibrato only), it sounded wonderful thru a vent. 

 

Yes, they don't have Chorus indeed, spring reverb though (X2 too?), and yes, sounded great through a Leslie, did a lot of different styles and recordings too with it.

[Morrissey]

https://www.vintagevibe.com/blogs/news/new-marquis-73

[mate stubb]

Models and Pricing-

Marquis 73 Passive-$6,750.00 (Bass Cut, Volume Control. No Active Electronics, No Power Needed)

Marquis Passive With Variable Voice Control $8349.00

Marquis 73 Active With Variable Voice Control - $8,649.00 (Active StereoVibe Preamp)

MIDI - +$1,850.00

[J.F.N.]

"More affordable", $6750, interesting choice of word.

[CrossRhodes]

*** I see some of you already posted the info. Wasn't seeing those posts for some reason so apologies for the duplicate info

Well here it is:

VV Marquis '73


I guess $6,750 is their idea of "more affordable”. Very disappointing considering how they hyped it. I'm sure it's a nice instrument but another offering that will be out of range for many musicians. 

 

Models and Pricing-

Marquis 73 Passive-$6,750.00
(Bass Cut, Volume Control. No Active Electronics, No Power Needed)

Marquis Passive With Variable Voice Control $8349.00

Marquis 73 Active With Variable Voice Control - $8,649.00
(Active StereoVibe Preamp)

MIDI - +$1,850.00

 

[nadroj]

Knew that would happen. I'd already assumed it out be out of sight, out of mind for me when I first saw this thread.

 

"Affordable" only to a certain class of people. Though tbh I'm not sure in this current economical climate that they could make ANY genuine electro-mechanical instrument "affordable".

[Aperkeys]

I think they built one hellova April Fool's joke with the "affordable" campaign... Although I must admit, it looks neat. 

[AmateurApprentice]

I think this is a good deal for some people. I’m in the US and I would love to get a Mark I Rhodes Stage and have it restored or purchase an already restored instrument. Judging by the prices on Chicago Electric Piano’s and Vintage Vibe’s websites, an already restored Rhodes would cost around $8,000 with brand new tolex and around $6,000 with original tolex and finish. If you buy an unrestored instrument, you’re probably going to spend $1,500 to $2,500 for the piano and $3,000 to $5,000 to have it restored. For around $7,000, you can get a new Marquis. I can see the value for some people, although for myself, I’d prefer the VV 64 Classic.

[CrossRhodes]

2 hours ago, nadroj said:

Knew that would happen. I'd already assumed it out be out of sight, out of mind for me when I first saw this thread.

 

"Affordable" only to a certain class of people. Though tbh I'm not sure in this current economical climate that they could make ANY genuine electro-mechanical instrument "affordable".

I fell for the hype unfortunately. The Classic 73 is $6950 so I guess being $200 cheaper really does make it “more affordable than ever” if $6850 was just out of reach for anyone. 🙃

[ProfD]

After that price reveal, it's at this point that a few poker players will throw their cards on the table, get up and cash out.🤣😎

[John Tweed]

The improved action looks pretty good though. I have too many bad memories of trying to make my Fender Rhodes 88 playable to get excited enough to buy one.

[J.F.N.]

3 hours ago, ProfD said:

After that price reveal, it's at this point that a few poker players will throw their cards on the table, get up and cash out.🤣😎

 

Considering the fact that you can get a good working old real Rhodes for $3500-$4000, which if you take good care of it is also a very good investment.

[ProfD]

34 minutes ago, J.F.N. said:

Considering the fact that you can get a good working old real Rhodes for $3500-$4000, which if you take good care of it is also a very good investment.

Yep. I paid less than that for my mint Mark II Stage Rhodes 88.

 

Of course, it helps that my brotha @Doerfler gave me the family & friends discount.😁😎

[D. Gauss]

Wow, i guess i should have held out for a higher price when I found a good shape 73 in a pawn shop (complete with legs and lid) for $75 bucks and, as i'm not a Rhodes guy, sold it for $1500.

[Jim Alfredson]

7 hours ago, J.F.N. said:

 

Considering the fact that you can get a good working old real Rhodes for $3500-$4000, which if you take good care of it is also a very good investment.

It won't play as good as the VV, I guarantee it. The improvements they made to the action are long overdue and fix the historically glaring problems with the original Rhodes action in a very smart and more importantly consistent and adjustable way.

Kudos to them. It looks amazing and I'm sure it sounds incredible.

[Outkaster]

On 3/20/2024 at 7:34 PM, J.F.N. said:

 

Danny, one of my heroes, together with Jon Lord, what an organ force they have up (or down) there.... 😊

 Me as well. Very underrated and a player that didn't make a lot of mistakes live. 

[zephonic]

If I could afford it, I would pay more for the VV over a classic Rhodes just to avoid the headache of owning a vintage instrument and all the maintenance and reliability issues that come with it.

 

But -$200 isn’t gonna make the difference for me, unfortunately.

 

[J.F.N.]

3 minutes ago, zephonic said:

If I could afford it, I would pay more for the VV over a classic Rhodes just to avoid the headache of owning a vintage instrument and all the maintenance and reliability issues that come with it.

 

But -$200 isn’t gonna make the difference for me, unfortunately.

 

 

$7k or $3.5k is a big difference in spending, sure, the VV probably has a nicer feel considered they've improved the mechanics etc. But, having played the real deal for almost a decade back in the 90's, I definitely believe a bunch of us will be more than happy with a decently maintained Rhodes, and those extra $$$ still in the bank. 

 

Maybe those of you making a good buck on your fingers will not see it from that perspective, and that's fully understandable indeed.

 

[1203]

Since people keep writing about the bad Rhodes action: It's not quite like that. The Rhodes actions have changed a lot over time. My Mk2 from 1980, for example, plays like butter, it has an excellent keybed in my opinion. I had a Vintage Vibe 64 for a while, and as great as I found and still find this instrument, I still like the action of my Rhodes Mk2 better. Vintage Vibe felt kind of „clonky“ in comparison. 🤷‍♂️

[HammondDave]

On 4/1/2024 at 8:43 AM, nadroj said:

Knew that would happen. I'd already assumed it out be out of sight, out of mind for me when I first saw this thread.

 

"Affordable" only to a certain class of people. Though tbh I'm not sure in this current economical climate that they could make ANY genuine electro-mechanical instrument "affordable".

plus $1850 for MIDI!  Really?  Someone is getting Schtooped in the bottom!

[ProfD]

Electric Piano is my primary instrumental voice. Still, there is no way that *I* would spend $8.6k on this one-trick pony.  Nowadays, we have several options to get the same flavor. 😎

[Jim Alfredson]

49 minutes ago, 1203 said:

Since people keep writing about the bad Rhodes action: It's not quite like that. The Rhodes actions have changed a lot over time. My Mk2 from 1980, for example, plays like butter, it has an excellent keybed in my opinion. I had a Vintage Vibe 64 for a while, and as great as I found and still find this instrument, I still like the action of my Rhodes Mk2 better. Vintage Vibe felt kind of „clonky“ in comparison. 🤷‍♂️

The quality control still wasn't up to par in the 80s, though. While the Mk2 models generally played better, they were not always set up for the correct escapement and strike line. I just finished a Mk2 Stage 73 and the strike line was WAY off in the bass end and the escapement was off by 1/16". I had to tap new holes in the metal end piece and add some shims. It plays fine as far as the action (though I did re-felt the balance and front rail bushings) but now it sounds like it should in the bass end. 

The earlier VV models were not quite there. Chick Corea told them as much when they sent one to him. The new models, with the action improvements, are more than 'there', they completely surpass the old ones.

[Adan]

Not for me to say whether anyone should shell out the money for a VV. I paid somewhere around $4500 for my 64 deluxe 5 years ago. Though I've only taken it on a handfull of gigs, I've played it a ton at home.  It still plays as well as it did new, without any maintenance. 

 

It's a fair question why anyone needs a real electro-mechanical instrument these days. I got the VV because at the time I didn't have space for a real piano, and I wanted a "real" keyboard in the house. It served that purpose nicely, at much less than the cost of a decent acoustic piano (new versus new). Now that I have a real acoustic I'm considering selling the VV. Tough decision, because I'm emotionally attached to it in a way I would never be attached to a digital keyboard. 

 

Before the VV, I had owned 5 or 6 different rhodes over the years. They were all different.  The VV is different, but not that much different than the various rhodes were from each other. I don't think it sounds better than a real rhodes, but it certainly has a more predictable and well-regulated action.

[CrossRhodes]

2 hours ago, J.F.N. said:

 

$7k or $3.5k is a big difference in spending, sure, the VV probably has a nicer feel considered they've improved the mechanics etc. But, having played the real deal for almost a decade back in the 90's, I definitely believe a bunch of us will be more than happy with a decently maintained Rhodes, and those extra $$$ still in the bank. 

 

Maybe those of you making a good buck on your fingers will not see it from that perspective, and that's fully understandable indeed.

 

 

 

They hyped this new model as “more affordable than ever” and “MORE TONE, LESS COIN!”. It’s $200 less than the Basic 73. Am I missing what the huge savings is? Are there specs about this one that offer even more value then the basic 73 making it a substantial increase in value? Genuinely asking as I’m just confused about why they hyped the more affordable pricing. Figuring either there are technical aspects I don’t understand or maybe $200 less is considered a big savings for people in a higher tax bracket than myself who were already going to drop $6950 for the basic 73. 🤷‍♂️

[Adan]

Would it really kill y'all to cut VV some slack on their marketing? They've made about 600 pianos over several years. That's some ridiculously small economies of scale. They're not getting rich, and they most assuredly don't have a marketing department or probably even a marketing consultant. You don't have to buy their product, but you also don't have to equate them with common everyday scammers.

 

If you think you're making the world a better place by buying the latest Roland workstation, then spend your money that way. I felt good about spending money for a hand-crafted product, because that's the kind of world I want to live in.  Of course, I've also got a bunch of digital crap, because that's the only way I can gig anymore . . .

[AmateurApprentice]

I posted yesterday (it wasn’t approved and didn’t show up until today), but I think the value is in comparing the price of the VV Marquis 73 with the price of a fully restored Mark 1. A brand new VV will be appealing and cheaper to people in that situation. 

[zeronyne]

I often ask myself these types of questions in two situations now that I'm older and in a comfortable state. And it's not just for electromechanical keyboards. Why would I buy a fiddly boutique tube amp and analog pedals, when, for my ears and purposes, modeling records better? And like everyone is saying, for a serviceable (at best) keyboardist, what would be the use case for a real Rhodes, a real B3, and an acoustic piano? I get sad seeing vibey instruments under a moving blanket in a live room in a big studio (not that I frequent them anymore), but they are not practical to take live for someone who gigs once every two years.

But just like an acoustic guitar, there is just something visceral about some wood, metal, plastic, and electricity put together to make sounds, not a simulation of that sound. And again, I love bleeding edge tech, but when you are jamming with live musicians, it does feel a bit different because the volume and tone can't quite be controlled as granularly as sample-plyabeck or modeling. I think that is what would push me to purchase a real Rhodes-shaped instrument. A real tone wheel organ is another can of worms, and I cannot fathom moving a piano...maybe when I move to the last house I will occupy, I'll get a nice baby grand.

[CrossRhodes]

1 hour ago, Adan said:

Would it really kill y'all to cut VV some slack on their marketing? They've made about 600 pianos over several years. That's some ridiculously small economies of scale. They're not getting rich, and they most assuredly don't have a marketing department or probably even a marketing consultant. You don't have to buy their product, but you also don't have to equate them with common everyday scammers.

 

If you think you're making the world a better place by buying the latest Roland workstation, then spend your money that way. I felt good about spending money for a hand-crafted product, because that's the kind of world I want to live in.  Of course, I've also got a bunch of digital crap, because that's the only way I can gig anymore . . .

 

Who are you directing this at exactly? If it's me, don't try and put words in my mouth that I never said or twist my comments to accuse me of disparaging VV by equating them with "common scammers". I never said any such thing and I don't see where anyone else did either.
 

I started this thread because I've long admired VV but their instruments are out of my reach price wise. I guess I was naive but I was really excited when they announced this new "more affordable" model thinking it might be closer within reach financially so excuse me if I'm a little bummed that they advertised it as such and then didn't deliver on that point. I will continue to admire them from afar and certainly wish them continued success. Just disappointed is all.