Hey folks-
This is my first post here, and I should come right out and admit that I don't play keyboards at all- but I do play in a band that uses keys extensively. Our keyboard player is currently using a Moog Rogue, a Juno 106, & an EMU B-3 emulator (or a real B-3 when we aren't on the road). However, in the process of putting together our new record, we've ended up using a lot of string patches out of Reason, a fair amount of Wurlitzer/Rhodes sounds and some crazy sounds that we tweaked ourselves within Reason. The problem? How the hell are we going to pull off all of these different sounds live? If you could put together a system for live use, with 3 or four keyboards covering up to five distinct sounds within a single song, how would you go about it? Absolute recall is important here. I love vintage synths, but there simply isn't enough time between songs for our keyboard player to move sliders on so many synths at once. Any thoughts you have, whether in the soft synth realm, or dedicated pieces of hardware, would be much appreciated. Thanks,
Ryan

Many (most?)synth/controllers can send program change messages to all your remote sound sources. You need to dedicate a master unit that will send the proper commands to the respective modules, pc's, kbs.

A dedicated kb mixer seems a neccesity in this scenario as well. Do all the sub mixes at the kb location and send a mixed signal to the main PA.

I know that's noo too specific, but it's a starting block. See if that helps get you on your way !

Most of us have only got to arms and two hands.

So, ultimately, you're gonna need to have *something* playing some of your music in the background while your keyboard player restricts himself to playing no more than one part at any time.

Purists like Uncle Dave (for whom I have every respect) will probably insist on going down the MIDI route and having some kind of sequencer triggering all the other synths and keyboards. This certainly appears to be the "proper" thing to do.

However, in my opinion, those types of solutions are messy, inefficient, unreliable and outdated. Messy because you're gonna have a spaghetti junction of MIDI cables all over the place. Inefficient becuase it's gonna take you ages to set all of this stuff up. Unreliable because when you've got about 5 different synths and keyboards (most of them being old, vintage models) all talking to each other (along piles of MIDI cable), then there is always going to be a massive avenue for something in the chain to cause problems. And lastly, I think the approach is outdated because today's technology offers much more practical solutions.

For live gigs I would recommend a laptop and a simple midi control keyboard.

[This message has been edited by Equalizer (edited 01-10-2004).]

Hey Guys,
Thanks for the replys. I've sort of been thinking that the laptop route was the way to go. We'll leave the vintage synths at home for recording. Is a laptop going to be reliable enough for extensive (150 some odd shows/year) touring? What program would you recommend running? I think our keboard player can cover all of the parts (or at least enough for live purposes), we just have to be able to readily access a number of sounds in a simple manner. My ideal would be having a template for each song on the computer, so that his several controllers would be routed correctly to preset tones on the soft synth. The idea of having things essentially prerecorded has it's pluses, but I don't think we're ready to tie our drummer to a predetermined click- we're still a live band and I enjoy the shifting dynamics night to night. Also, what type of laptop/sound card would you recommend me looking into? Thanks for all of your help.
Ryan

EQ...
I tried using laptops for live performance, but after a few unexpected crashes I decided to go back to using hardware synths. It's just a nature of ANY computer to crash when you least expect it to . Laptop/Desktop is great for studio work, but by no means live performance. It WILL crash. Especially if you're going to be using soft synths.
I'm not talking about crashes that happen 'cause you didn't configure your system properly. I'm talking about "ERROR CODE BLA BLA BLA" crashes that have NO explanation.

I think something like a fully expanded MOTIF will do a better job. At least in respect to reliability.

-ED-

I think you're right.

The trouble with being me however, is that I could never afford to buy something like that so most of the time I have to resort to cheapskate solutions.

[This message has been edited by Equalizer (edited 01-12-2004).]

PS- You've just given me an idea for a new thread! I wonder how much money other members of the forum have paid for musical equipment. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

[This message has been edited by Equalizer (edited 01-12-2004).]

I agree with Ed. I tried the laptop and sound module approach live and was not pleased. in one song there was just a 1/2 second lag at one piont in the song, I think due to the laptop, and it threw us live players off, and we had to adjust when we realized what happened. I now prefer an onboard sequencer in the keyboard to trigger my sequences. Much cleaner.
I use an XP-80 and an S90. both with onboard sequencers. I am considering add a sound module again to help with polyphony, but would still use the onboard seqs and not a pc/laptop.

Peace
Bob
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PS. I do use a simple 8 channel mixer to blend my boards as well. Kept at arms distance.

[This message has been edited by RW (edited 01-23-2004).]

Purist? Me? NEVER !
I love toys and gadgets! I use every piece of technology I can to add to my sound and comfort. Whish brings me to the topic of laptops. Mine never crashes on the job. Never. Of course, I only have minimal stuff running. It's not a movie unit or a portable office/DVD player ... it's a sequencer and MP3 player. PERIOD.

All it runs are the 2 programs I need to make audio or midi music - Van Basco for midi and WinAmp for audio.

If you limit the tasks, you get great performance from the unit. Shut off EVERYTHING but Explorer and Sys*** (forgot the name) in msconfig - Run ONLY those 2 in th ebackground. Turn off ALL virus programs. As a matter of fact - DISABLE them. You never need 'em if you stay off line with them. Use a pc dedicated for the net and transfer files to the laptop for WORK.

Treat it like a specialty tool and you'll get great service from a laptop. I use one in every job .... almost. It plays midi files for me, audio MP3s on breaks and serves as a clock and stage light too !