Glad to be part of this group,but got to learn to type on this cozy laptop,keep losing paragraphs by hitting the pad with my palm.I am a long time collector of boards from a homemade PAIA modular to a Minimoog(connected to the line in on the 7000).When I get some time,got to take grandson to the skate park,Iwill list all my gear.I am still reeling over the 7000 and how I got it.My wife of 42 years hid a check in a christmas sliegh deco on our first day of vacation in October and said this was christmas,birthday and aniversary gift. I was calling the dealer from the Jersey shore,fishin gear laying on the sand,with in 5 minutes and it was waiting for me when I got back home. Needless to say I've created a permanent vacation in my studio.Incidently the check was from my wifes severance check after a layoff frome her 20 plus year job. No moo money but we got a 7000 ALLRIGHT!!!!!!!! I'll be in touch Jaxsax

Welcome Jaxsax to the Technic's Forum. We are pleased to have you join us.
There are people here from all over the world with about every Technics keyboard, piano and organ ever built.
This is one big (mostly) happy family where everyone helps everyone else with their needs, a fair amount of social interaction, plus a great place for doing research with our built in search engine.
We will be looking forward to your sharing your interests, gear, and developement with your latest keyboards.
Best to you and yours and thanks for joining us here. You are welcome. Post away


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BEBOP
Moderator SynthZone TECHNICS FORUM
http://www.synthzone.com/cgi-bin/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&number=25
Bill Forrest in SAN JOSE, CALIF. USA
bforrest@ix.netcom.com ICQ # 562519
Homepage http://www.anycities.com/bebop/

Just picked up what appears to be a great aid in answering a lot of the sound and amplification questions this post has generated.It's called Live Sound Reinforcement by Scott Hunter Stark,purchased at B@N books $29.95.It covers all topics and contains the ever necessary eq spectrum list from 40hrtz to the top end and all types speaker placement and effects. As for me on the KC500 all knobs at 12 o'clock as a starting point and eq on rhe mixer side with alot of audiance feedback at the onset of the gig. I am thinking of adding 2 of the new Kc60s on the sub out side of the 7000. Tried 2 Fostex mini monitors with r1 and acc.on,results were astounding but needs some more power to keep up with the system wattage.The mini Moog on the line in sounds great too but I think it's overkill as the 7000 has more than enough tricks up it's sleeve to give that a run for the money.Well enough for a novice poster I have really gained a lot reading thru the posts an am very gratefull. Thanks Jaxsax

I just got back from church where I took my new 7000 for the first time.I always hook up to twin Peavey KB300 self powered speakers I have used for years. While the sound was great overall,I noticed that the Alto sax soloist for one did not sound as good as the KN7000 speakers. I used flat settings on the speakers. I know it could be eq or a hundred other factors,but, there is something to be said for the virtues of the kn7000 keyboard with out introducing other external factors as long as the venue you are playing in is not too large.

I think I just learned that bigger isn't always better eventhough I thought big speakers would give better "presence".

HI Bernie,
I use KB300's also and have for several years now. I like them a lot but find them a little basey (bassy) hmmmm, as in too much base but I can eq that out so not a real problem. I haven't noticed a problem with the sax.
biggest problem is tooooooooooo heavy and no wheels and only one handle.
Bebop

Hi Bebop
I,in all fairness,didn't have time to fiddle with the sound. I always keep my bass down too and put casters on. I just keep them at the church and get them or one when needed.I am going to try it both ways and report back.

Bernie

Bernie, Quote: “I think I just learned that bigger isn't always better even though I thought big speakers would give better "presence". Just bigger and better arm muscles, a backache, and a bigger and better hernia sooner. Of course that only holds true with short old guys like me. A completely different story when you got big tall muscular, well built guys like you all.

Good subject, very, very good subject! Thanks JM for starting this thread and thanks Walt for reinforcing the phenomena you were experiencing pertinent to the same sound variation in amplification and speakers. In fact thanks for all the input by all you guys. A real hard one to put your finger on. Illusive to say the least. Bigger speakers move more air thus can fill a greater space with sound. However bigger comes with other biggers hanging on. Bigger moving problems, bigger balance problems and bigger and bigger things of the nature we just discussed. Bernie, a lot of guys have thought like you, even me at one time. Bigger speakers, more presence. Our KN’s are getting more and more presence model by model. Each new offering brings new challenges. We now have a keyboard with the presence that others would die for. Clarity, true to life sounds, power, fantastic speakers, a great low end sound reinforcement, a no moving parts mass storage device with no price increase over the last model, that's amazing. When you couple that with the completely new design and styling of the board and then throw in a stand alone organ rhythm style section with the new rotor, tab, pipe and theater organ voice samples you got your hands full.

I have a few remarks about the word presence. I have for one just realized everybody can hear it, it effects their senses, stir their emotions but have a hard time explaining what they are experiencing. Can’t seem to find the right words to express what's happening. Thinking about that, presence is more of an audio type word. Musicians hear it and experience it but that is about as far as it goes. Live bands are the source, they have it, they make it and don’t even give it much thought. Us guys playing keyboards know we would like reality and have tried to do that with speaker systems, equalizer and mixer schemes and so forth.
Now we have a keyboard that comes pretty close to live. The result being some of us sit back and scratch our heads. What's going on? My amp. system is not doing what it did before. True! Now all we have to do is amplify what we got. No longer try to add what was lacking to begin with. No longer have to help out the source. I first realized this on my first job with my new KN. I got everything set up. I slid in a floppy that I had recorded using a variety of combinations I use through out the performance. This I call my test setup disk. I play it and walk throughout the room. Holly mackerel! Room? Somebody mess with my settings? What? Went back to the KN, checked the equalizer, flat, that’s OK. I swung the left speaker around. Two plus marks on the bass and three plus on treble. OK! The right speaker the same. OK! Let me recheck. Out I went. Same thing. Now what, I asked myself. I wonder, I just wonder. Went back to the board. Set both speakers flat, no boost. Sat down at the board. A little better but not like it used to be. Rats!! Now what? Well let’s see what the crowd will be stuck with so I went out and walked around. My frown slowly melted into a big grin. I’ll be! Ya! If they don’t like that they got two holes in their head other than their ears and their snorter. Even got another job that night, a condo complex dinner dance thing. At seventy six with a nice bunch of pure white wavy hair, a fairly sound mind, a body with a few parts missing inside and a pretty wife things are good. When the time comes I wonder how I will be able to handle all this with my walker. Don’t fret! I will try. Even if I have to boost up my presence with a little Johnny Walker! Thanks for letting me add one more experience to this subject.

Grandpa Doug

BEBOP, that seven wonders of the world story does not belong on private E-Mail. That story belongs right here on this forum for everybody to read. That kind of stuff is right up my alley. If more minds could asbsorb that kind of thinking what a change in attitudes would result. Even would give us a new depth to our playing and the way we do and aproach things. Great stuff!

Grandpa Doug

This is a very intersting discussion of what goes into making music that people will enjoy.

First of all there is a science to creating sounds - and the basic start is the room you are in. Dont use your home living room as a guide. That's almost useless.

You can assume that after making several generations of musical keyboards Technics kows something about what a musical keyboard should sound like. Al this stuff about testing your keyboard whatever it is in an A B Test against another manufacturers model is just silly - unless its done in the place where you actually perform.

Second - while built in speakers are fine - they are really only monitors designed to sound nice to the player and perhaps a small group in the immediate area - of a home - or a small resturant. It's not for a large theater type setting.

In the large venue - there is equipment specifically designed for keyboard reproduction, Peavey - Roland - and other companies make them.

The most rewarding sound I've ever produced has been from a small ( 60w) KB100 keyboard mono amplifier - speaker combination - sitting on a chair! Not even a second speaker! That was using a 10 year old Kn2000.

So for the best sound - dont just buy anything recommended by a salesman - listen to it in a large auditorium - with people in it - all speakers are not the same - all amplifiers are not the same - and the heart of producing quality is to start with basics - simple arrangements. - Keep it simple.

As arrangements get more complicated - thats where the problems start. I prefer the sounds of a clean trio any day to the sounds of a mushy 10 piece so called orchestra.

Jer