From ccmacdon@rogers.com Wed Feb 13 05:43:27 2013
Subject:Re: Ventilator? Worth it? and my dissapointment with HS..mine too....

Ron,
 
Sorry to hear about your bad experience demoing an SK1...  definately not what you would expect from a salesman..  I have to say that in the retail music business, I have often encountered salesman who are more interested in showing off their chops or sharing their perspective on equipment than they are assisting you with your purchase. Also, as with any retail sales position, if they're in an incentive they tend to gravitate to whoever they think is most likely to buy, and often they misjudge who that is.
 
Honestly, I'm not sure you're really missing much with the SK1 (my perspective of course).. nothing is going to change my opinon that the Extra Voices are very medeocre (sounds like you figured that out for yourself), and the organ sounds great but when it's coupled with it's weak internal leslie (as it would be when you listened through headphones), it's unlikely that it would blow you away (as someone who knows Hammond organs).  The leslie is tweakable and there's a few folks that feel as if they have it really "dialed in".. which just makes me wonder... IF you can "dial in" the leslie sim and make it sound fantastic, why doesn't it come from the factory this way? So I'm a bit skeptical on this point.  Although I have heard two recent video clips that an SK1 sounds pretty good.. one is Jim Alfredsons recent recording, and also one of the recent videos posted on the "live from Darryl's house".. (although you have to assume that there are other
effects added during the final mix).
 
One thing I would suggest, in fairness to the SK1, is that playing the SK1 through headphones is going to highlight it's 3 weaknesses;   1. leslie sim 2. overdrive 3. extra voices.   I hate listening to clones through headphones (through headphones the leslie sims never sound "over there") also, overdrive through headphones is very different than through an amp at volume, and last but not least you're naturally going to scrutinize the Extra Voices moreso than when listening through headphones. There are lot's of folks who feel that the SK1 pianos and EP's sound fine in the mix.
 
That said, I think your assessment of the SK1 is a fair one.
 
Craig  


________________________________
From: Ron Gang
To: CloneWheel@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Tuesday, February 12, 2013 10:58:53 AM
Subject: [CWSG] Re: Ventilator? Worth it? and my dissapointment with HS..mine too....


 

Yesterday I finally had a chance to get my paws on an SK-1, as I got up to
Tel-Aviv to the main branch of Marom, that sells H-S. The staff person in
the keyboards room wouldn't give me the time of day, as he was too busy
showing off his amazing Middle-Eastern chops on a new Korg board with
quarter-tone scales. The SK-1 was kinda dusty, at the far end of the room
on a high second tier at neck level, which the guy refused to lower to
accommodate me. I pulled out my Bose noise-cancelling earphones that I
practice at home with and take with me when I'm evaluating other keyboards.
It took me a while to more or less figure out how to operate the thing, yet
I couldn't octave shift the left part of the board as I could the right, yet
with no help I have no idea if it would shift. The Leslie sim as it was
there was pretty shallow and disappointing, yet again I don't know if its
parameters were tweakable, or if there's a newer better OS. In my mind, the
built in sim in my Electro-2 is no worse, probably better than what I heard
yesterday. Strange, normally the sales people are most solicitive, wanting
to make a sale, but not this dude. The acoustic piano, as others have
reported wasn't anything to write home about - it was similar to those you
hear on the cheaper plastic keyboards. Since I guess the Vent has spoiled
me, as has my Roland RD-300NX for acoustic piano, and I came to the
conclusion that there was nothing to look for there. Too bad.

Cheers

Ron

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