Archive of the former Yahoo!Groups mailing list: Yamaha CS80
Subject: Re: [yamahacs80] Re: Kurzweil MIDIboard: poly pressure vs. CS-80
From: marzzz@...
Date: 2004-10-01
In a message dated 10/1/04 8:17:00 AM, lord@... writes:
My understanding is that many manufacturers don't bother to implement poly aftertouch
because frankly MIDI doesn't have the bandwidth to support the amount of data that it
generates. The fact that all the aftertouch effects in the 80 are under voltage control is the
critical difference. Squeezing all that data into 1 midi cable makes the timing sloppy and
the aftertouch controllers less than smooth. Mostly you hear parameters jumping around,
rather than gliding around.
Actually, many manufacturers don't implement PolyAT because of: 1) the cost- you need separate sensors for each key; 2) Ensoniq (?) has a patent regarding PolyAT that they refuse to license; 3) back in the old days computers (and many synths) could not handle the glut of midi data.
Nowadays, processors can handle things with ease- MIDI is practically an afterthought with all the audio/softsynth data going thru computers these days. I have been using PolyAT keyboards for nearly two years (and the MIDIBoard for over a year) and I have NEVER had any problems with timing or jitter. The DSI PolyEvolver actually has an algorithm where it "smooths out" the PolyAT data (someone here who is an engineer may explain it better). Definitely don't hesitate to score a PolyAT controller- MidiBoard, GEM S2/S3, etc. I have never played a T8 but have heard it is NICE. The Ensoniq stuff needs to be taken on a board-by-board basis, some of them have PolyAT, others don't.
Respectfully submitted,
-Marshall