From bruce@ashbysolutions.com Sun May 27 09:43:28 2007
Subject:Don't blame your tools

Hi All.

Yesterday, two other list members, Joe Kasper and Dave Osoff, and I got together at my place to compare clones. Joe has an XK-3; Dave has an Electro 61; I have a BX-3. This wasn't a "Great Clone Shootout," per se; our goal was to help Dave decide to keep his Electro, or switch to an XK-1. (The XK-3 is a little different than an XK-1, but close enough to make a first-pass decision.)

We played a bunch of different drawbar settings and distortion levels, but we made no attempt at a double-blind test, as in the f1996 shootout. We used my LowBoy From Hell_ custom Leslie, which uses a Speakeasy Preamp and a MOSFET power amp, with high-power speakers. All three clones were put through my Mackie mixer, and the levels were normalized --

Clone --> CFX-12 --> Speakeasy Pre --> TC Elect Compressor --> Hafler P3000 --> Leslie

Guess what? UNDER THIS LIMITED TESTING SCENARIO, the Korg came out on top! Not in every category, but overall it sounded "the best."

Now, before anyone accuses me of starting a flame war, I fully acknowledge that a) I've had my BX-3 and Leslie for 3+ years, and have spent a bit of time listening and tweaking it, while the other guys had a couple of hours, tops; and b) we left the Leslie EQ and volume settings as-is, which might have been an unfair advantage to the BX-3. (In one of the participants words, I might have "the best set-up BX-3 in the world.")

Technically, I don't *care* who "won." Given enough tweaking time, we might have been able to bring the others up to the same level; maybe one of them might have even clearly edged out my Korg. I'm not claiming victory -- just pointing that new gear isn't the only answer. "Don't blame the tools." I hear a lot of Korg-bashing from time to time, and it's always bothered me, but I've held my tongue. The fact that the "obviously inferior" Korg clone can hold its own against the "superior" Electro and XK-3, and even win a few categories, surprised me. I have no budget for a new clone, and actually expected to finish the day with significant gear envy. Instead, I walked away happy with what I have.

Something to think about the next time you're thinking of pulling out you wallet ...

Regards,

-BW
--
Bruce Wahler
Online Music Sales
AshbySolutions.com_ http://music.ashbysolutions.com
978.386.7389 voice/fax
bruce@ashbysolutions.com

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