From mlongo@highmarkdesign.com Wed Apr 09 10:01:19 2003
Subject:Re: gearing up to upgrade gear


Damon,

That's quite a challenge you've got going on. You're playing music
that requires lots of chops and frequent sound changes and keys are
pretty central in all the music you describe. I'm envious, sort of.
But maybe I'm just lazy now to be doing that sort of work!

Anyway, to the point. The Electro has excellent EPs and Clav, and
the organ is very good. Personally I prefer the CX-3 organ tone by a
whisker over the Electro, but the difference is small and the
Electro's great EP/clav sounds more than make up for it (not to
mention that the Electro is about half the weight!). I don't think
that heavy distortion is the srongest point on the Electro, but the
overdrive sound is quite servicable and it'll pretty much do what you
want, I think. The Electro output is a bit weak for some reason, and
so a preamp would help, though it isn't necessary. The Electro
Leslie simulation is as good as the best competition.

As to your specific needs, Damon, there is something else to
consider. Switching between organ and piano on the Electro is s-l-o-
w. I would estimnate it takes a full half second to switch between
the organ and the other sounds, maybe a little more. When I have
less than one beat to switch from clav to organ in an uptempo tune,
this is a problem. Add to that the small and not-so-visible preset
buttons and the Electro can be pretty awkward on quick patch changes
in/out of the organ. Changes between non-organ sounds or between
organ presets is instantaneous. I work around this problem, but it's
an annoyance. Anorther small annoyance, when you change programs
while holding a chord, the chord disappears from under you until you
restrike thye keyboard on the new sound(!). Given the stuff you play
quick changes are obviously a part of your needs, so you should
consider that. I'm not trying to disuade you from the Electro, I love
mine and think it's the most playable digital axe I've ever owned
(and I've owned a few), but these are things to consider.

Reading your interesting post, I think an improved MIDI setup might
ease your life on stage quite a bit. Since that's not really your
forte (pun intended), it would be worthwhile to hire some MIDI jock
from a music store for an afternoon to get your live setup more
comfortable. Set all your stuff up in the living room like on a gig,
have the manuals handy for all your gear, and show the guy the sound
changes you frequently make on a gig. Seems like a worthwhile
investment. He might be able to do a few quick programming
improvements over the factory sounds as well. A knowledgable tech
could also set up a sequencer (one of your synths must have a decent
sequencer) to setup all your gear at once for each sound set you use
with just a few button presses, but even that may be more than you're
comfortable with. Anyway, just a thought...

Mark Longo



--- In CloneWheel@yahoogroups.com, Damon Fibraio
wrote:
> Hmmmm. and to think this started out as a cx3 versus electro thing.
anyway,