Is it just me? I am continually tweaking e.q., effects, levels, changing mics, turning controls on software compressors, de-essers, gates, limiters, harmonizers, sounds like drum kits, etc.
And that is small time stuff compared to changing keyboards.
Most of the time I listen to my recordings and don't even remember what I was trying at the time.
Don't even get around me, it's probably contagious.
I have two more mics on the way. This will bring my arsenal to maybe 20. Most have only been used one or twice to try out. Anybody need a mic cheap? BTW Gary D. is an enabler!
It has been over an hour since my last tweak. But that's because I left all my stuff at the club.
I love my Korg. Why did I spend hours today listening to demos of BK9 and Midjay PRO? He--llll--pppp mm--eee!

Don
I feel exactly just like you.
As Andrea gave me an advice, I will have the opportunity to go and test the Korg Pa3x and Pa900 next week.
Why do I have to go listening to Korg when I am really satisfied with my tyros ?
Fact is I never get enough having new styles, sounds ... and it is not because I'm not satisfied with my keyboards actually.

Exactly when I bought the M-audio little keyboard and use A.I.R Ignite with my Tyros 5 to play melodies. Just for fun because I like it, so my friends keep asking me :why do you buy the top arranger from Yam and want to test other sounds ?
It is not because I don't like the sounds on the Tyros 5 but only because it is a little challenging for me to test and see , I'm too curious. And the results are great.

If you aren't tweaking your gear to get the most from it, you're doing yourself a disservice. I make it a point to learn the capabilities of all my gear so that using it is second nature. If a piece of gear isn't intuitive it can hinder my work flow so I avoid it unless there are no better options available.

So you've got 20 microphones? You must just be starting out. Lol. I couldn't even count the number of mics I've had in my arsenal. Thankfully with each one I've learned their strengths and weaknesses and rule out some altogether. Also, certain mics with specific preamps can sound phenomenal with one and horrible with another. Knowing what works best is only accomplished by real world use in the trenches. Many people presume if they own one great mic, say a U47 or C12, it can cover every base but that's simply not the case. Sometimes the best mic for the job is the one that doesn't cost a small fortune.

I like tweaking too...but it's mainly in styles...to me they are the "soul" of an arranger keyboard, and a big part of my overall sound. Also, I don't use them to color my songs; I create songs by using styles...they are a crucial part of what I do. I've never considered styles a crutch...they are part of the art.

I'm quite happy with my Tyros4's "natural" sounds like pianos, guitars, organs, strings, brass and other orchestral instruments. If there's any tweaking, it's usually just filter settings, or maybe changing an attack, release etc. The many on-board synth sounds are based on the Motif, so they work very well, and are occasionally tweaked in those same areas as the natural sounds. I had years of major tweaking with my old Roland Jupiter 8 and Yamaha DX-7 (both sold) and I may get back into again with a Casio PX-5S in the new year, but now I'm more into arranging and recording the tunes I never got around to doing whilst working.

Still have my favorite and only microphone...a very old (well over 30 yrs) but still in mint condition Electro-Voice RE-15. Works a treat for my vocal purposes (nice warm "vintage" sound), which also includes Vocoding. The RE-15 is also great for mic'ing instruments, like acoustic guitar. It's meant to be used on a stand, and shouldn't be employed as a "hand held" mic, as using this way tend to cover the comb-filter holes. This screws up the sound and the polar pattern.

With so much to do regarding style editing, practicing, playing, arranging, re-arranging, recording, the many jaunts to SZ and other forums throughout the day...well, let's just say the word "boredom" is not in my vocabulary.

Ian

Twisting knobs...

In my opinion every totl arranger should have 4 free assignable knobs.. Its currently the most forgotten feature in arrangers..... For real time controll purposes..

I was hoping the next generation Tyros and/or PSR-S-series would have similar controls to what is on one of Yamaha's more inexpensive arrangers, the PSR-E433. Only two knobs, but they are assignable to most used functions.

It's a very expressive little keyboard, considering the price....unfortunately, the style controls do not include On-Bass, or I would've picked one up just to play around with.

Ian

Go figure that neither Korg nor Yamaha realise how much some free assignable knobs can do for you... Espescially because the sliders are allready assigned to so many things.. And for a lot of things knobs just work better..

Maybe (but unlikely) they'll (Yamaha and Korg) come up with an I-Pad app that will allow some real time editing...touch screen knobs/sliders are better than no knobs/sliders.

My old Jupiter 8 was a piece of cake to use...everything had it's own slider or control knob...also very intuitive.

For me, the most intuitive synth I ever had was the Mini-Moog...my very old, but beautifully preserved, little Yamaha CS-01 mini analog mono synth is also pretty neat (even has a breath controller input), although it really could benefit from midi ports as the small keys can be limiting.

Ian

Don, you'll soon have 21 mics. I sent you the mic that you lent me. Thanks buddy!

I'm also a big tweaker with Styles & OTS's. Nothing wrong about that, it's all about getting the board to sound as you want it...Then again the following day I'll possibly tweak the same thing again as ears seem to change day to day.
It also helps to get to know the ins & outs of the keyboard OS.