Every time I thought I had those EQs just the way I wanted, they were not right when I got to the job. For the life of me, I was unable to figure out what was going wrong. Then I talked with Deane (Hammer) and DonM, both of which pretty much told me the same thing.

One of the great attributes with this keyboard is its onboard amp, which really sounds incredible. Problem is, the onboard amp was specifically designed for the keyboard. It has been finely tuned to perfection so when you're playing at home, in the office, or studio it sounds just fantastic from that onboard amp.

Problem is those sounds are not the same as the sounds coming from the output jacks. Deane told me that in order to get the keyboard ready for job he had to use the headphones in order to adjust the EQs and compression. Don said pretty much the same. Don also said, "just set the EQ's to flat and work from there. A little seems to go a long way with this keyboard." Don hit the nail on the head.

Today, I arrived at the job about 10 minutes earlier than usual, set up the gear, then fired up one of my regular songs "Bring Me Sunshine." I set the EQ to flat, recorded the song on the onboard MIDI recorder, hit the playback and walked out into the room. The sound was OK at best. Next, I upped the mid and high just a notch, or two, walked back out into the room and WOW! What a difference.

The next step was to try my vocals, which I obviously cannot walk away from the keyboard to test. Plus, you really cannot test your own vocals unless you record them first. Therefore, I had one of the activities ladies listen, a person whom I really trust when it comes to providing an honest assessment of what she hears. She's not at all bashful and believe me, she will tell you flat out if something sounds like crap. I performed California Blue while she walked around the room. She returned to me and said "It just needs something, but I'm not sure what." I did the same song again, only this time made some minor changes on the vocal processor's EQ and compression settings. When I hit the song's bridge she smiled and gave me a two-thumbs-up. It sounded better to me as well.

At the end of the job one of the residents came up to me and said "Gary, that's the best damned music I've heard in 20 years. When are you coming back - I want my daughter to hear this." Ironically, I knew this individual from nearly 40 years ago when I owned a fishing tackle and boat store in Forest Hill. He was a regular customer and I built him a custom-made fishing rod back then.

Unfortunately, he is in the early stages of Alzheimer's, and while he still has most of his memories, they will soon fade away. He's a super-nice person and I know his entire family as well. He remembered me, and said he used that fishing rod until a few years ago, then gave it to his grandson, who still uses it today.

Back to the S950. Some of the SA voice effects are triggered with the aid of a foot pedal, something I discovered by merely pressing the #7 (info) button on the voice page when the voice is highlighted. The information page also provides you with the playing technique required for that particular voice, plus by pressing the bottom of the #8 button you can listen to the demo of those techniques being used for that particular voice. Just another added bonus.

Another note of interest is that when the EQs are set just slightly above flat, those right hand voices that were overbearing with my previous settings are now very well balanced. Additionally, they don't sound as harsh. The voices are more realistic sounding, very full, yet quite robust.

Another couple weeks and the 3000s will probably go on the market.

Cheers,

Gary

I look forward to the day you can retire the 3000, but have to agree with you that it was the best that Yamaha had! I have the new Psr-710 and couldn't afford the 910, now I an too old to purchase another board! I only gig one time a month, and am 79! Good luck with the 950!

Keith,

I'm hoping I can continue performing for another 3 to 5 years, and I'll be 73 in October. There are some body parts that definitely do not function nearly as well as they did in the past. One day I'll probably run out of gas and have to retire to a life of sailing and playing for my own enjoyment here at home. The S950 will likely be the last arranger keyboard I'll purchase.

Cheers,

Gary

well, listing this post as "A-950" suggests that the eyes are going ....

Say what? C'mon Gary, if you've got the strength and energy to be manhandling a boat out in the choppy Atlantic, then twiddling your fingers on a keyboard a couple of times a week should be well within your capabilities.

Takes alot more energy to Sail then it does playing a keyboard I would say also....Gary think young baby! 70 is the new 50!

Dave, Carol told me the mind was the second thing to go - I forgot what the first thing was!

Sorry about the typo - It's still the S-950. The damned PC keys should be farther apart.

Donny, if 70 is today's 50, does this mean when I'm 90 I can still have the mind of an 18-year-old?

Now, if you guys ever decide to venture south of the Maxon/Dixon line again, the offer to go sailing still stands. In reality, I've got the boat rigged so it's actually pretty easy to sail, but there are times when hauling that 80-pound main sail up the mast can be a bit challenging. Other than that, the rest is pretty easy. Just set the sails in the right direction in relation to the wind, mix up a Green Coconut Margaretta, relax and take a quiet, leisurely sail down the Chesapeake. During mid week, I usually have the entire upper Chesapeake to myself. It's just me, the gentle breezes, balmy temperatures and enjoying the day watching the world go by. Most days I get to see a dozen or so American eagles swoop down on some unsuspecting fish that strayed too close to the surface - it's really neat to watch.

One of the other things I do while sailing is critique my performances. I take my video camera, or sometimes the Zoom H2 with me and playback some of the more recent jobs, then make mental notes of how to improve things. Like I said - I'm still learning, and watching or hearing yourself perform is a great way to determine what you do right, and of course, wrong.

Cheers,

Gary

I don't travel with drunken sailors!

Hey, I'm not driving to Philly to pick your ancient ass up - you're on your own to get here. And, the day you decide to come down to go sailing, I won't have anything on the boat stronger than bottled water. Now there's a real challenge for you!

I'm not gonna hold my breath on this one,

Gary

Gary Dave only likes to float on pretty colored TUBES....

post your own pictures!

That was last week at my sisters place on lake Keuka in the NY Finger Lakes - awesome.

Problem is at 90 we will probably have the mind of an 18 MONTH old ...



... and tethered at that ...

So THAT'S what you do with one! Or is that just early in the morning?

I don't what you do with drunken sailors, but I used to know what to do with an 18-year-old. Hey, hey, and up she rises!

Hey Gary, are you talking bald eagles here?

Joe

Yes, there are a lot of them up this way, and they pretty much fish between the north end of Pooles Island and up to Conowingo Dam. There were four of them circling over Fishing Battery Light on Sunday when Carol and I sailed back from a trip to the Bohemia River.

Gary