[sdiy] Synth Keyboards and Number of Keys

[Edward King]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Dave Kendall" <davekendall at ntlworld.com>
To: "sdiy" <synth-diy at dropmix.xs4all.nl>
Sent: Thursday, March 01, 2007 11:57 PM
Subject: Re: [sdiy] Synth Keyboards and Number of Keys


> IMO,  plastic synth keyboards and weighted keyboards are different 
> animals - perhaps as different as a Nylon strung guitar and an electric.

Whether the keys are unweighted, semi-weighted, fully weighted, wood or 
plastic is - I think - a separate issue.
Ive played 76 note unweighted, semi-weighted and fully weighted, 88 key 
fully and semi-weighted and 88 key chinese rationalised, unweighted piano 
keyboards.
They all have their good - and bad - points.
But the number of keys they have directly affects how they're played. The 
idea of transpose buttons is okay in theory, but impractical in live 
situations IMO. Which leaves you rather gujiggered if you happen to run out 
of keys. But by the same token, you're even more gujiggered if you cant get 
your hefty 88 key monster to the gig in the first place!

Everyone has different needs, but I cant believe that no manufacturers 
havent had a go at building 88 note boards that split for transport / 
storage. I mean....I can disassemble my glider in 15 minutes and the wings 
on that thing can withstand 9g's...so how hard can it be to build a keyboard 
with two halves?!

>They have a completely different feel and do different jobs well. For 
>anyone with less than brilliant keyboard technique, the average plastic 
>keyboard can be re-triggered much faster than a weighted one, so it lends 
>itself well to lead synth solos and percussion stuff. I guess it depends on 
>your style, but 61 keys have never been a problem for solos for me.
> For anyone who loves using realtime pitchbend and mod wheel, the smaller 
> size of many synth keyboards means that those controllers are nearer to 
> grab, twiddle, and return to the keyboard again. Making a VL7 really sing, 
> requires the use of the pitch wheel on many notes, as well as the 
> essential breath controller. (One day I'll mod it with a sprung pitch 
> lever when I've finally finished everything else on the to-do list :- )
>
> That being said, a weighted action is much better for piano style work, 
> and anything more involved than pad sounds, and can help to even out 
> inconsistencies in playing technique. But maybe that's just me....
> My knackered old Fender Rhodes 73 really needs boxing gloves to play 
> properly , but aaah, The Sound ......... :-)
>
> For the ultimate giggable keyboard controller, I 'd go with Achim's idea 
> of a tiered machine, with a 76+ note  weighted keyboard on the bottom, and 
> 1 or 2 lighter and smaller ones above.
> Ideally they would all be quite close together, and the shorter 
> synth-style keyboards would be offset to the right, maybe with their pitch 
> wheels/roland style levers to the left, above the bottom of the lowest 
> keyboard manual. Patch select and other common controllers could also be 
> on the left, and any programming controls could be either at the top/back, 
> or even be on a separate controller connected via a plug in lead- like the 
> Roland JX, super jupiter and others.

My standard setup is similar, but with:
Korg SP500 stage piano on the bottom
76 key triton studio on top, offset by an octave to the right
Technics Pr903 piano on my left
Technics KN3000 (please dont laugh, I like it!) above the piano

This whole setup could be improved by adding a couple of 1,2 and 4 octave 
boards specially mapped for specific instruments.
Even with those however, I cant envisage ever doing without at least one 
full range board.

>
> I did lug around a 5 foot A-frame stand with a legless rhodes, a K2000, 
> and a VL7 to gigs for a while,  (+19" rack and amp), and was almost glad 
> when the band decided not to carry on...

Where was your road manager? :o)

>
> Anyway, anything's got to be nicer to play than the first synth I had - a 
> regular EDP wasp ...........
>
> just my 2pence....
>
>
> On 1 Mar 2007, at 19:31, Quixotic Nixotic wrote:
>> I have long wanted to make a curved keyboard - 360 degrees would be fun. 
>> Hang it off your shoulders and play all around yourself. Or perhaps a 
>> larger set that you can sit down inside and play on a swivel chair. Or a 
>> spiral, go around twice. Why not?
>
> Captain Nemo would almost definitely install one in the Nautilus.......
>
> cheers,
>
> Dave
> 


		
___________________________________________________________ 
Try the all-new Yahoo! Mail. "The New Version is radically easier to use" – The Wall Street Journal 
http://uk.docs.yahoo.com/nowyoucan.html