SumOne

Cheers all, I've been listening though the recommendations and added to my playlist for deeper digging. This has always been a favourite of mine: Underground Vegetables - Melting Pot

Any Funky Organ music/musicians/lessons/videos etc. you recommend? I'm talking Funky Hammond Organ type stuff rather than church pipe organ*. I find the Hammond an odd one as when done well (e.g. Funk, Reggae, Rock) it can sound great and very cool. But when done badly (e.g. Ballads, Christian rock, and Muzak type cheesy covers) it can sound quite nauseating and decidedly un-cool! I've started a playlist what I consider the cool stuff: *(but add any Julian Clary style 'Big Organ' double entendres if you really must!)

I recently got a new keyboard so have have been re-visiting some Piano and Organ House classics like these to try and play:

It seems things escalated quickly: In less than 3 weeks since I started this thread I sold my CK-61, MPC Key 37, Boss GX-10, two job lots of vinyl, and with the proceeds I've bought a ES-60 and as of today I own a Viscount Legend One 73. After a day of use I'm really impressed with it. It is excellent to play and almost every preset sounds more than just usable - they sound great. Editing is all relatively intuitive (haven't needed to open the manual, which is always a good sign). It feels like a solid premium bit of kit, (apart from the knobs all having a bit of sideways give - I assume that's intentional though), it feels like something that'll still be working and relevant in 20 years. Lots of connectivity (disappointingly no option of audio out via USB though - that would help future proof it a bit more as I expect most higher end keyboards will get it soon). Playing this vs other keyboards I've owned (MPC Keys, CK-61, P45, ES-60) is a bit like the difference between watching a film on a phone vs cinema: it is difficult to explain as you still basically get the same thing but it's an all together better experience. My main negative is: Spot the display.... it's tricky!. You know how just about every other stage keyboard has a decent sized screen and main controller in the middle?... Well, it turns out that's for good reason! A piddly little screen over to one side is difficult to see and doesn't show enough info (it needs to provide a lot on drawbar positions, 4x mixed sound levels, split zones, dual keyboards, fx types and levels etc. but only limited stuff can be shown without menu diving and what level of info is displayed is often difficult to read), and you need to use your right hand to make changes, whereas positioned in the middle would give option of whatever hand is free. Another small annoyance is constantly flashing lights for fx zones to tell you the fx is on if you're viewing the others zones e.g if you're in 'master fx' view then fx 1 & 2 buttons flash to tell you if those fx are on ...... I know I've set the fx1 to the 'sound 2 (synth)' to have EQ, I always want it on - I don't need a flashing light to constantly remind me it's on (even when the 'sound 2' section is turned off and I'm just using the Organ). It's like Homer Simpson's 'everything's okay alarm' . Anyway, other than those small gripes I do generally think it's great and am really pleased with the sounds and playability. Time will tell, but I think I'll keep it and be happy with it for many years. Now for the ever so slightly trickier part - getting good at playing it! Lessons booked from January.

Bas bought a pedal from me and all was good!

One of my favorite BMW tunes: And it is a great album.

I think for the Grades, there is a little bit of me that wants to show off 'I've got Grade 5 Piano'! Zero interest in putting it on my CV or getting UCAS points. About 99% because it will hopefully push me to knuckle down and become a better piano player, a deadline for a formal exam is quite a powerful motivator. I know it is a bit like getting Scout badges and I could also get better without formally being graded but I think it will work to motivate me. I'll look into the Trinity Grades, will discuss it when I meet the teacher.

@bass_dinger you've inspired me to do ABRSM grades....well, at least to have an introductory lesson with a local teacher that is in a great local Jazz/Funk band. I played a bit when I was young (Grade 1) and then have aimlessly played on and off as an adult and not improved much and have probably have picked up some bad habbits. I think some lessons and a formal structure and clear goals will hopefully help. My target is to pass Grade 1 within a few months (as it was so long ago I did it I think it'd be worth doing again) and Grade 2 by the end of 2026. That might be a bit ambitious but is hopefully about the right level of challenge to keep me on my toes and keep me motivated. In my mind right now the longer-term ambition is Grade 3 by end of 2027, Grade 4 by end of 2028, Grade 5 in 2029 (when I turn 50), that'd do me as far as formal learning is concerned - a good level to impressively play pub band type stuff, (I do already play keys in pub band stuff, but I'm just getting away with bashing simple ska/reggae offbeat chords in time, ideally I'd like to bust out the occasional fancy solo).

I'm not certain, but I think you'll be fine along with the Behringer interface as the ES-60 can send out audio (not via USB) to the Behringer and the YouTube audio can also go into the Behringer and get mixed and you listen to both from its output, and the ES-60 can send out midi via USB to the EMU. With a keyboard that has a inbuilt interface with USB audio in and out and USB midi you could potentially do that stuff without the Behringer.

Looking into it a bit more, it seems I was spoilt with the CK-61 as the USB to Host thing isn't even on some high-end keyboards. I don't think Nords do it. It also seems to be a half omission with the Viscount Legend One that has built in audio interface that can send midi out via USB and can receive audio in via USB but cannot send audio out via USB: "USB to host port for transmitting MIDI data to apps on a pc, tablet or phone, which ALSO transmits audio, BUT: it only transmits audio in ONE direction (INTO the keyboard). I have NEVER seen THIS before; any other keyboard that has an audio interface built into the USB port will send audio in BOTH directions. So what does this mean? It means you only get HALF the benefit of a built in audio interface; and that is if you are using the Legend One’s keybed to trigger sounds on a MIDI app on a device. The sounds generated by that app will come straight back into the Legend one (and out of the Legend One’s outputs) without any lag which is really cool. And, you can also use this connection to stream audio into the keyboard as an alternative to the 1/8″ analog in port. The feature you’re missing though, is the ability to send high quality audio FROM the Legend One TO a device to record audio in a DAW, or for making high quality piano videos by connecting the keyboard directly to your phone; to do those things, you WILL need to connect your L&R audio outputs to an external audio interface like a Focusrite Scarlett (which then converts that audio to digital audio to send to your device)" https://pianotone.ca/viscount-legend-one-review/ .....that seems odd and I think it has more potential uses than they mention, it'd be needed to solve the issue I've had using Simply Piano type apps via headphones, and I think it'd also be useful for using an iPad/Laptop to live process the actual sounds coming out of the Legend e.g. iPad to receive the Legend One sound via USB and process the audio to add an effect then send it back to the Legend One via USB to then go from the Legend One audio outputs. Also useful for unexpected recording parts direct to phone (e.g. during a rehearsal) that would only need the correct USB cables rather than also needing an external USB audio interface. It isn't a deal breaker for me as I have an external interface but it is strange that the Legend One has a USB audio interface built-in but doesn't have that USB audio out feature. It would be useful and like the reviewer says they've never seen anything do this half-thing, so fingers crossed a it isn't a hardware limitation or a deliberate choice and a software update might sort it. The keyboard was launched less than a year ago and has had some worthwhile software updates since then so I've written to Viscount to see if they will be doing another software update to solve this.

And perhaps a bit unfair of me to want that from a £300 keyboard as it seems only more expensive ones that have it (seems I took it for granted with the CK-61!). Still though, it would be useful with the way a lot of people learn nowadays and play along to apps. Or even to just have an 'aux in' or bluetooth in would allow playing with other music - not a big deal if playing out loud as can just put a speaker nearby playing backing stuff, but via headphones it is an issue (and that still wouldn't do the silent 'Simply Piano' type apps that require audio out/back and midi for silent practise). Personally, I see it a bit like getting a cheap car - it must have essentials to work as a car and a good cheap car will also be reliable and reasonably practicle, you don't expect to have heated seats as they are a luxury that would add unnecessary cost. But then there are things that are not essential for a car to work but are pretty much considered a 'must have' as they are useful and don't really add much cost, e.g. a heater. Sure, you can work around it and wear more clothes, and some people only live in hot places and will never need it, but it's the expectation now for even the cheapest cars to include. I'd say at a minimum, a Keyboard should have an aux in, and I'm not sure a USB to host should really be considered a luxury with modern needs/technology. The solution with the ES-60 I have for backing tracks through headphones is to add a USB interface (I have a Universal Audio Volt 2), send the audio from ES-60 to Volt via audio jacks, the Volt converts it digitally and sends it to the iPad or Laptop etc which can send it back to the Volt along with the backing track it's running and I can then plug headphones into the Volt and hear both. As the iPad only has a single USB slot I now also need a USB hub (I'll get the one you mentioned) to also send a cable of USB midi out from the ES-60 to the iPad - so it can recognise the notes being played silently (otherwise it usually works with the mic to detect what's being played loud). It's something to look out for for anyone wanting that functionality as they'll need to spend an extra £100 for an audio interface (and cables) and iPad USB hub...so perhaps stuff like a £525 Roland FP-30X which has USB audio and midi connectivity (and also includes Bluetooth) starts looking a bit more tempting vs the £300 Kawai ES-60 + £100 + faff. You mostly get what you pay for.

It's not a deal-breaker for me, I'll be keeping it - but that's partly as when I practise via headphones I don't mind just playing to sheet music and a metronome, and when the kids practise they play out loud and with the iPad audio turned up or can add a separate Bluetooth speaker playing backing tracks. If I can be bothered with the setup for headphone practise with backing tracks then I already have things like a USB interface and mixing desk if needed. I could see it being a deal breaker for other people though seeing as a key target audience is people practising at home - lots will want to use apps like Flowkey and Simply Piano and that would requires the audio to go both out and back in via USB to listen on the ES-60 which isn't possible without it having an interface, or many will just want to practice with headphones on and be able to play along to backing tracks via an aux in or bluetooth which isn't possible either. There are possible workarounds but they are a faff and costly for most of the target audience e.g. Connect an external audio interface, or a mixer, and could get an iPad hub which would hopefully allow midi to go in via USB for the apps to recognise playing and for the audio to also go in from the ES-60 and then back out along with iPad backing tracks to a USB audio interface with the headphones attached, quite a faff. On the CK-61 it was just a case of plug the USB into the iPad .

I've found that Compression is something that really needs to be tested with your playing style and other equipment as there are so many variables, and it doesn't communicate well with stuff like Youtube reviews as a big part is about how it feels. My recommendation would be to push the boat out and buy quite a lot of them second hand from here connect them all together and do direct testing one after the other (best to do this when playing with the band at gig volume if possible) their resale value should be pretty much what you bought them for so it shouldn't necessarily cost much in the long-run. But then again, I enjoy faffing about with pedals and perhaps it isn't everyone's cuppa (not least my bandmates!). Saying that though, my favorites have been: Cali 76 Bass Compact, Empress Bass Compressor, FEA Opti-FET. The SA Atlas I thought was good but let down by the hardware a bit for live gig adjustments, Markbass Compressore is good but I was put-off by the size and different power supply needed, I didn't get on witht he MXR M87 (felt it needed a HPF or clean blend), EarthQuaker 'The Warden' I felt overly compressed the initial note, and the Pigtronix Philosophers Tone just wasn't for me - very useful if you want to add sustain though. I've probably tried others but I guess they were more forgettable. I was to buy another compressor it'd probably be the Empress agian, but that's partly as I want to also use it for non-Bass stuff and nerd about with the side-chain insert.

I had a quick go on a Viscount Legend 88 key version and heard a friend gig with it. It looks great and sounds great, I think the modular aspect would be addicitve. ....but that geatness does come at a quite considerable £, and size/weight. It is a big beast, 133 x 47 x 14cm and weighs about 20kg, things that are definitely worth considering for something I'd often move about (e.g. it was a three person job to take the legs off - one each end to hold it up and one to unscrew them), no way I'd want to deal with that for a weekly rehearsal and it would dominate the average small pub size stage area I play on. Still, I guess it is a lot more transportable than an original 70s EP. That size/weight is similar enough to other 88 stage piano alternatives though: Roland Fantom 08: 139 x 35 x 14cm. 15 kg. Yamaha YC88: 130 × 36 × 14 cm, 18.6kg, so it confirmed to me that whatever stage piano I get I'll limit to 73 keys, that seems the best compromise for my use as 61 keys felt a bit too limited - especifally if using it as the only keyboard and doing split key stuff (61 would be fine as a second keyboard, but that's a level of stuff I'm not gonna even start considering!). Some of the main 73 stage piano contenders portability (L x D x H) : Nord Electro 6D 73: 106 x 30 x 10. 9.2 kg Studiologic Numa X: 105 x 31 x 12. 11.7 kg Viscount Legend One: 109 x 33 x 11. 11.5kg Roland VR-730: 121 x 37 x 12. 9.9kg. ......so the Nord wins on portability but there isn't a much in it between them (although that unnecessary extra length of the VR-730 would annoy me - so kind-of is a deal-breaker). I can live with the Legend One being very slightly bigger than the Nord (seeing as it gets a pitch bend), and a couple kg heavier seeing as it has a wood and metal chasis.