From den121961@yahoo.com Mon Nov 19 05:34:22 2012
Subject:Re: Installing H.O.A.X.-3 card into a WLM organ


Frederick, the thing that sold me to the Korg was not how it sounded, but how it felt, and the fact that stuff was where it was supposed to be for the most part. That was my first complaint when I tried the SK. Matt's creation had that familiar feel to it, I felt at home right away. My first doubt was the keys, they're not hammond type keys at all. It feels a little different for sure, but I could do all the rolls and things I'm used to just fine. The setup is a spinet, but Matt has it so the lower manual actually goes down instead of being kind of unusable like my m3. WOuld the extra 5 keys on the bottom be nice? Yea, but working with what he had, this is definitely workable, especially if you're used to a modified M or L100 type setting. The perc is to the left instead of the right, but after messing with it a bit and getting familiar that wasn't a problem either. THe switches are at a different place, but laid out the same as a B.
The portability is where this thing shines. Matt and I talked about the fact that sometimes at a festival or whatever you don't have a lot oftime to get up and running. This thing sets up real quick, and everything is there. No stand, no tons of things to plug in, just unfold it out of the road case and you're running.
The real test to me though is is it fun to play. Having been brought up in a strict junior high and high school band setting, then later working with some very experienced bands I learned how to rehearse, which means you noodle around at home, and when you get to practice it isn't time to try all your licks, so I'm pretty disciplined in that way. If I'm talking to someone I'm not going to provide background music for our conversation. But with Matt I found myself doing that, because it was just too much fun to play this thing. We had it running through the vent, and his leslie and both sounded great, although the room the leslie is in is real reflective so the leslie really swirled around nicely. I told Matt, my test for a clone is if I showed up to a multiband situation, and had my rig along, but there was something for organ already there, would I still use mine which I'm very familiar with, or would I usewhat's there? THis would definitely be a leave my rig in the car deal. SO far that's only happened twice, one was a porta B, and the other was when the same porta B was supposed to be there and was late, and I ended up using a computer controller setup (which was a nightmare!). I've turned down all kinds of other setups. With Matt's it would definitely stay in the car.
The first time I met Matt he was schlepping around a spinet, it might have been a porta B, with a leslie. So Matt is more a hammond purist than most. WHen the whole vent thing came up, I was very skeptical on the list, and Matt e-mailed me, and said I had to try it, and even let me borrow his for a month. Knowing Matt and what he was used to using, I took him up on it, because he knows what the real deal is. Yea, a 3000$ mojo is going to be closer sound wise. But this is a more than usable live rig he has. I was pretty convinced after sittiong at it a couple of hours he had a winner here. I think it'd be a good soplution to ressurect an old xb2 or something similar. Definite;ly worth checking out./ ANd no, Matt doesn't sell these!
Den