The National Department Of Amps That Sit In Mixes Well Doing...Things.

I have a nice-feeling Yamaha 88 key controller, it's very piano-like, so when I decided to get a new 61 key controller (nice to have one of each for the different types of keybeds) I figured I'd keep it, and add one of the N.I. S61 Mk3s.

I have to say, I love the S61 Mk3.

It's one of those 'they thought of a lot of really useful things' instruments. The modulation strip is in the right spot, the wheels and knobs feel professional, the screen is glass instead of plastic so you can actually clean it without fogging/scratching it, and the body is made of aluminum, which is both very lightweight and sturdy (it only looks like plastic because of the matte finish).

It's a quality piece of gear in every respect. The Fatar keybed is a little stiffer than the very light one I was used to, but as I use it, either my fingers have become happy with it, or it might be breaking in a little bit, because it feels natural now.

The polyphonic aftertouch is useful with both synths and the orchestral libraries, the display is large, and once I got used to using the Komplete Kontrol software, it's pretty nice, too. That took a minute, simply because the Mac OS had a bug causing incompatibility with the NI software, and Apple only fixed it a few weeks after I bought the keyboard. Now it runs very smoothly.

Logic runs MIDI 2.0, but as you mention, third party software plugins haven't caught up. I should probably find out whether Logic's own plugins run MIDI 2.0 - they might.

I've been futzing around with a new Mac Studio and working out some orchestral instrument recording plans, getting more equipment set up, and I just haven't had time.

Nonetheless, for me the move to the NI Mk3 keyboard was worth it, even without the MIDI 2 being useful just yet.

In hindsight, what I shoulda-woulda-coulda done was trade in or sell the Yamaha controller, get the S88 Mk3, and run the studio with that. Now the plan is to replace the Yamaha with the S88, but keep the S61 for a 'best of both worlds' rig, since it makes no sense to take a financial hit on the new S61. There's no rush until MIDI 2 is more widely implemented, but I kinda have GAS for getting everything the way I want it.

A recent hospital 'adventure' put my plans on hold a short while; I'll be back to normal in a couple of weeks, and get back to updating the studio to do more of what I want to do for my independent material, as opposed to mainly being set up for the ad stuff. I've reached that point in life.
I hope you are feeling better soon!

I think Logic Pro has MIDI 2,0 (I saw a box to check when I was in the settings yesterday) but I do not know how many of the Logic Instruments are compatible with it. I give Apple credit - they were also an early adopter of MPE in Logic when no one else had it.

I am sure I would love the S88 MK3 (I tried an S88 MK2 and it felt better than my Casio PX5s). I have an S49 MK2 and I use the transport keys all the time for Logic but have not fully embraced the mapping features because they require using Komplete Kontrol which is buggy for some reason. The MK3 does not require Komplete Kontrol for NI instruments (as I understand it) but would still need it for Arturia, Uhe and other plugins. Once MIDI 2.0 really takes off, switching is a no-brainer.

Giving up the Casio would mean giving up high resolution MIDI in Pianoteq and I am still clinging to the notion that I will feel the difference between high resolution MIDI and the good, old fashioned 128 levels of velocity sensitivity that Mozart used on his MIDI controllers.
 
I hope you are feeling better soon!
The past few days I've truly started feeling like myself again. It's a process!
Giving up the Casio would mean giving up high resolution MIDI in Pianoteq and I am still clinging to the notion that I will feel the difference between high resolution MIDI and the good, old fashioned 128 levels of velocity sensitivity that Mozart used on his MIDI controllers.
'Mozart'!! You just made my day!

😂
 
I think the “too many notes” scene in Amadeus would have worked **much better** if the King asked Mozart how many velocity layers his MIDI controller used . . .
 
This is my current studio layout. You’ve probably seen it in other posts, but I wanted to share if you haven’t.

It’s all one room, which actually works well. My previous studio had a recording booth. For obvious reasons, it's Studio Craptastic. ;)

Anyway I get to both controllers easily. The NI one is on the desk. As you can see, I’m mainly “in the box” now. Ten years ago I was mostly hardware with a 64 input analog console. I ran a 50' mic box and cable to my living room where there was a grand piano.

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This is the live end. The whole room is 33’ x 14’ and with the amp nook it widens to 17.5’ in the recording area

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The amp nook is set up for fast amp and cab changes with a KHE switcher that’s in the rack. It has soft touch electronic toggle switches, but also has MIDI. When I'm working (instead of decorating 🤣), I have mics set up in front of each amp.

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I'm gonna go back to the OP on this one...

I'll leave out the MT 15 and 100, we all know what those are for. The rest of my amps are, in one way or another, a vintage vibe. Plexi flavor (HXDA, HDRX, Smallbox), black panel (Sonzera, OG Super Reverb), and some wildcards that mix vintage things together (Sweet 16, Custom 50, DGT15).

My simpleton sound engineering/recording skills basically tell me that when a mix starts to become more dense, whether that means more instruments, a busier/louder drum kit, or more compressed/less dynamics from other instruments, I start to go away from the black panel sounds and look for something more surgical in the midrange and leaner in the lows. I also tend to like some accentuation of the 2-3K frequency, which can be more of a mic and speaker thing - I have to be careful with it, though, because it can be overdone. It helps cut through dense cymbals. I've gotten back into using the e906 recently, because it peaks slightly lower than a 57, closer to the range where I like to hear highs.

The nice thing about recording, or live play with a load box, with these small amps that PRS is making right now is that I don't have to worry at all about the physical volume of the amp, I really can pick the best one for the job regardless of how loud (or quiet) it is. For example, going back to playing some church sets soon, the DGT15 definitely the sound I want for that scenario. It combines some of the "plexi clean" tone that I gravitate to for a pedal platform, and also has some of the Vox chime and lean lows that have been popular in that style. Bonus, some great features for that application, too. I almost went with the HDRX 20, it was close. If it was a physical volume thing, the HDRX might be too loud, or in a different situation the DGT15 might be too quiet.

And, sometimes, the vibe of a song just calls for a certain amp. For example, the "Black and White" piece I did for my dad's Grand Teton photos, he wanted a Skynyrd-esque feel, so that was always going to be predominantly plexi sounds.

That said, sometimes the fun is just throwing something in to see what happens. Sometimes the amp can help define the vibe, rather than fit into it.
 
Everyone goes around and around on this, and I don't want to belabor it, because this thread isn't really intended to be about the controversy.

I'm in front of my monitors 24/7. I've sent out many pieces for other guitarists to play on, and they send me tracks for approval as files. I don't see the amps or modelers.

I can usually tell when they use a modeler like the Axe FX or Kemper. Often I ask them to re-record. That's a fact.

I just got a track in the other day, very obviously done with a modeler, that will have to be re-recorded. Even though the player put lots of effects on it, the thing just didn't sit in the mix, especially with his real (and very excellent) bass playing. He's in LA, I'm in Detroit. I didn't see what he used and he didn't tell me. There was certainly no eyeball bias involved.

People can, of course, use what pleases them in their work; it's important for folks to express their ideas the way they prefer. I use what pleases me in mine. If I hire someone to lay down a part, I want it to work in my context, however.

As mentioned in an earlier post, I find that real amps add more juice. I don't really care what some famous band did or didn't do; that's not relevant to my work.

You know, one thing is unmentioned in the various studies about violins, and amps, and you name it:

It's not just how things sound to a listener; it's how things feel to a player and contribute to the performance. If you can get more nuance out of an instrument - be it real or a model - that's a good thing. The hands-ear-brain feedback loop is important. We're constantly modulating what we hear and feel as we play.

At least, I am.

I tend to indulge in too much of what I like about things (disclaimer, I do not have an addiction/substance problem, don't worry). When it comes to modelers, I fear I would want so much of the characteristic of a certain tone, for example the bell like tone and big lows of a black panel amp, or the bold mids and bark of a plexi, that I would search out sounds that were a bastardized caricature of the real thing, and not even realize it. Using real amps keeps me grounded in reality. I might be foregoing the creativity of stepping into the possibilities of the digital world, where tube amps don't allow me to go, but at this time it doesn't bother me.

I've been fooled by modelers occasionally; more often than not I can tell. I suppose it depends on the modeler for me. My ear isn't as good as Les!

I say use the tool that works - for some people, convenience of not hauling an amp around and/or having to deal with the physical volume of it, or being able to recall presets instantly, or having a wide vocabulary of amps available on a budget, might all be reasons to go digital, and it's great that there's that option. For me, using real amps isn't a work flow or live-use issue (because of my hobbyist status, for one), so I use real amps. I'm gonna have my cake. Calories be damned.
 
I'm gonna have my cake. Calories be damned.

A lot of thoughts about what's really important in life go through your mind when you're on a gurney in the back of an ambulance...

"Good thing I took a shower and changed my underwear."

"They're making too big a deal over this."

"I've missed out on all those salami sandwiches for nothing."

"Maybe they're not making too big a deal over this."

"I wonder if I should have had more sex..."

"I am not going to switch from heavy tube amps to a modeler no matter what they tell me."
 
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