Keyboard recommendation?

[KeithB]

I'm considering picking up a keyboard that has a good Hammond sound, but that can also do piano and good synthesizer. I've read the recommendations from this thread dated about a year ago:

http://www.organforum.com/forums/sho...gan-clone-2017

I don't need something new, so what I look at does not have to be a current model. I've researched the Roland VR-09 and VR760 (and discontinued VR-700), also did some research on Korg CX-3, but does that have any sounds other than organ? Local music shop carries Yamaha, and they have an MX61 on display. Less expensive than a Roland, but looks like everything is pretty much preset on there. What else should I be considering? What would you all recommend?

[radagast]

Depending on what your needs are, you might try The Dexibell J7. Their piano sounds are blowing people away. They also have a portable classical organ that sounds amazing. At NAMM tomorrow they are showing a new keyboard, the S9, with 88 keys with all their pianos, and a set of motorized drawbars with Hammond and classical organ sounds.

http://www.dexibell.com

This YouTube video is long but it's worth watching to the end.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?t=1283s&v=KYsccgUEP2M

Here's a review of the piano by Keyboard magazine. I would like to emphasize two paragraphs:


"Overall, the T2L made the difference between what we’ve come to expect in 2017 as a “high quality piano emulation” and something so startlingly present that, in a blindfold test, you could be forgiven for thinking you were actually in front of the real wooden/mechanical deal. There were times, particularly with the Classic Grand and subtle use of T2L, when the Vivo S7 sustained the illusion of a real piano in my ears and brain longer than any other digital piano I’ve yet tried."

"Once I adjusted my technique (and the Keyboard Touch parameter), I was able to get a level of delicate expression out of the Classic Grand that I haven’t been able to get out of my best high-end sampled and modeled virtual pianos—and I own quite a few of them. In my personal collection, I can say with confidence that it is matched only by the Steinway in my music room."


https://www.keyboardmag.com/gear/rev...-digital-piano

As you'll see from reading the review, Dexibell is made up of former Roland Italy employees. Roland made a mistake by closing it down. Good for the rest of us, though.

[radagast]

Hammond is showing a new instrument at NAMM tomorrow, the SKX.

[hamoperater45]

Nord electro series seem to cover Hammond sounds well along with piano ,and everything else .

[OneWatt]

I'm considering picking up a keyboard that has a good Hammond sound, but that can also do piano and good synthesizer. I've read the recommendations from this thread dated about a year ago:

http://www.organforum.com/forums/sho...gan-clone-2017

I don't need something new, so what I look at does not have to be a current model. I've researched the Roland VR-09 and VR760 (and discontinued VR-700), also did some research on Korg CX-3, but does that have any sounds other than organ? Local music shop carries Yamaha, and they have an MX61 on display. Less expensive than a Roland, but looks like everything is pretty much preset on there. What else should I be considering? What would you all recommend?

A (used) Kawai MP7, especially now that their slightly updated MP7SE has been released, might be a great fit for what you describe at an attractive price point. The MP7 (NOT MP11) has a superb clonewheel sound and the control over variables you typically care about are excellent.

FWIW, I've owned an MP7 in the past and was highly impressed with the Hammond sounds (for comparison, I have an XK3c rig). The MP7 also has outstanding acoustic piano, EPs, and a decent range of basic synth sounds, along with a range of other orchestral, strings, etc.

Happy hunting - OneWatt

[KeithB]

Thanks for the recommendations. Some impressive keyboards there, with impressive prices included! I don't think I need a unit with two keyboards. I do have a Casio CT640 that I can use as a MIDI keyboard with whatever unit I might buy.

Not really wanting to spend more than $1,000 if I can help it. I would not be buying this for gigging or performance, just for my own enjoyment at home, and to expand beyond my Hammond M3.

[radagast]

Thanks for the recommendations. Some impressive keyboards there, with impressive prices included! I don't think I need a unit with two keyboards. I do have a Casio CT640 that I can use as a MIDI keyboard with whatever unit I might buy.

Not really wanting to spend more than $1,000 if I can help it. I would not be buying this for gigging or performance, just for my own enjoyment at home, and to expand beyond my Hammond M3.

At the NAMM show, a new instrument was shown. It's the Numa Compact 2X. It is an 88 note instrument with 3 sound engines, including a tone wheel organ sound with drawbars. I'm kind of annoyed about this because I bought the Compact 2 a few months ago. It was new then and all of a sudden they've updated it with some amazing features. There are plenty of YouTube videos about the Compact 2 that you can hear the piano sounds especially from Piano Man Chuck. The drawbar organ section comes from the Numa Organ 2 which sounds great, since that's what you said you were mainly interested in. Now for the amazing news: the Numa Compact 2X is 15 lbs and costs $699.00.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCKD70R6jxI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KB7aFtufZbs

[KeithB]

At the NAMM show, a new instrument was shown. It's the Numa Compact 2X. It is an 88 note instrument with 3 sound engines, including a tone wheel organ sound with drawbars. I'm kind of annoyed about this because I bought the Compact 2 a few months ago. It was new then and all of a sudden they've updated it with some amazing features. There are plenty of YouTube videos about the Compact 2 that you can hear the piano sounds especially from Piano Man Chuck. The drawbar organ section comes from the Numa Organ 2 which sounds great, since that's what you said you were mainly interested in. Now for the amazing news: the Numa Compact 2X is 15 lbs and costs $699.00.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCKD70R6jxI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KB7aFtufZbs

Wow, that does look interesting, especially at that price. Local music store has a Numa Compact 2 on display, but I ruled that out because there was no organ. Does the 2x have a Leslie simulator? I'm not seeing it at first glance.

[radagast]

Wow, that does look interesting, especially at that price. Local music store has a Numa Compact 2 on display, but I ruled that out because there was no organ. Does the 2x have a Leslie simulator? I'm not seeing it at first glance.

I have a Compact 2. If you look at the buttons for selecting sounds, one of them is organ. Most of the organ sounds are Hammond samples with various drawbar settings. Some have Hammond vibrato on them. Yes it does have a Leslie sim. Are you sure you saw a Compact 2 or the previous model?

[KeithB]

I have a Compact 2. If you look at the buttons for selecting sounds, one of them is organ. Most of the organ sounds are Hammond samples with various drawbar settings. Some have Hammond vibrato on them. Yes it does have a Leslie sim. Are you sure you saw a Compact 2 or the previous model?

It was a compact 2.

I'll look into the Compact 2X more to figure out the features.

[snacks]

How well do you need it to do any of those three? I use a Nord for organ sounds. The acoustic pianos on it are pretty shoddy, and the Hammond action makes them very difficult to play. I got to play a buddy's weighted Nord with the exact same piano samples, and felt a very noticeable difference. The Hammond action means that if you bump a note, even slightly, it will sound. The weighted keys are much more forgiving and play like you'd expect a piano to. As for the synths, I haven't really played Nord's synth models that much. I gig with a Moog Sub 37 for my synth needs. I'm looking at my options for a polyphonic synthesizer - I may learn to program some of my older ones that I picked up very cheap, like the Roland D-50, or just get a new one, like a Dave Smith Prophet. I often think analog/digital technology is very close these days, but a lot of digital synths sound cheesy to me. Do you want a programmable synthesizer, or is a bank of samples enough for what you need?

- - - Updated - - -

Nord electro series seem to cover Hammond sounds well along with piano ,and everything else .

I gotta say I disagree with you there - the synth sounds are just samples, and the electro does not have a pitch bend or mod wheel, which are what make synthesizer playing so expressive.

[KeithB]

Thanks for the clarifying question. First just want to be clear that I'm just playing at home for enjoyment. No gigging or other "outside" playing, so my needs/wants are just personal. I took piano lessons several times from High School, college and later. We had an old upright piano at home that I practiced on, then I had keyboards/synthesizers in college (late 80s). I remember having some kind of Roland, then an Ensoniq (which was cool because it played actual sampled sounds and had a floppy drive so that you could load samples in!), then a keyboard with a sequencer, but I can't remember the brand of that one.

Jump ahead, and we have a Roland HP-337 digital piano that I bought new in 2002. I don't really play it much, mostly my daughter uses it for her piano practice/lessons. Last year I picked up a Hammond M3 organ. It brought me back to playing on those old synthesizers, but of course it is much better and a fuller experience than those. I recently picked up a Casio CT-640 at a thrift store. With 61 keys, it's wider than any synthesizer I ever had and wider than the Hammond. However, it quickly got me thinking that I'd like to have piano, Hammond organ, and synthesizer on one unit, that way I could mix and match as desired.

I appreciate all the suggestions and will check out the Numa compact 2x further. I've been mainly focusing on the Roland VR series (09, 09B, 700, 730, or 760), since a number of reviews rate them highly for Hammond/Leslie sound, but also having good piano and classic synthesizer sounds. The local music store carries Yamaha and Numa, so I was also looking at the Yamaha CX-61, but don't know much about it.

Don't know if that answers your question, but that's where I'm at.

Thanks again!

[snacks]

I've always thought Yamaha keyboards had the weakest Hammond emulation. I guess they have some sliders as drawbars, but a few years back the one I messed with had no scanner vibrato and a weak Leslie effect controlled by the mod wheel. My advice is to avoid...

[andyg]

Yamaha have never really produced a Hammond clone. I'm sure they could if they wanted to! Though it's not what Keith is after, their higher end arranger keyboards like Tyros and Genos do offer a very reasonable set of organs, like Hammond, Wersi and Lowrey, complete with drawbars, tabs, electronic tremolo and 'leslie' as appropriate. So the sound palette is there if they ever decide to use it.

[KeithB]

OK, good to know about Yamaha. I have not tried the one on display in the store, just saw it there and noted the model to do some research on it.

I did pick up a usb/MIDI connector to use with my Casio (thanks for the recommendation of the Roland Um one, Andy) and have been playing around with the keyboard sounds on Garage Band. I am feeling more and more that some kind of combo keyboard would be the way to go for me.