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My mistake - I spose with the Camera conversion kit thingy its just another midi module. I thought he meant that you could get it to play in a zone by routing it through the audio inputs which would be some kind of witchcraft
James Can you check something out and report back your findings?
In the piano sec. there are four "New Age Pianos" Nos. 1 2 and 3...they are the usual spacey acoustic with some pad madness going on (WTF?)...so far so mundane,but No. 4 (either four of three) is an EP sounding a bit like a Pianet with no New Ageyness going on at all.
Programed a bit and with some Trem and a bit of Soft Phaser (Dont forget to mess with the resonance param.)and Im George Duke backing Flora Purim!
So whats the deal? Is it an AP sounding like an EP or a sampled EP? It has no fall-back noise no pedal noise and other params like the AP's but it dose have SYMPATHETIC RESONANCE!!!
You could edit one more time , it's "sympathetic resonance" ...;)
(Next time I'm sure you will correct me , I'm french ,I often make english mistakes ...)
Fantom X8 , Motif es6 , CME UF80 v2 , Kawai MP7
Ivory II american D ,Vi labs Ravenscroft 275, KAWAI Ex pro Acoustisamples ,Alicia Keys ,Imperfect samples (Fazioli, Steinway Concert Grand), Addictive keys...
In the piano sec. there are four "New Age Pianos" Nos. 1 2 and 3...they are the usual spacey acoustic with some pad madness going on (WTF?)...so far so mundane,but No. 4 (either four of three) is an EP sounding a bit like a Pianet with no New Ageyness going on at all.
Programed a bit and with some Trem and a bit of Soft Phaser (Dont forget to mess with the resonance param.)and Im George Duke backing Flora Purim!
Interesting find! I just gave that sound a quick try...you're right, it's not so 'new age-y' as the others, but there is still a breathy/pan-pipey character, especially towards the lower octaves. I expect it could be tweaked with the sound edit parameters to get a more aggressive character (I personally like this sound), although it seems that you're already happy with your own George Duke edits.
You mean the sound on the first number? Sounds like a piano but a bit honkytonk or is it the Nord /yammy CP? or do my laptop speakers need up-grading? Loved the trombone number.Cissy Strut too.
Polyester turtle-necks look obligatory - or is that your usual office wear? Your front man is even wearing polyester pants! Good grief!
So whats the deal? Is it an AP sounding like an EP or a sampled EP? It has no fall-back noise no pedal noise and other params like the AP's but it dose have SYMPATHETIC RESONANCE!!! [/quote]
Confused MP7 owners want to know - so could we have an authoritative opinion.
It the only "New Age" sound that will live henceforth in my keyoard.I dont think it was in the MP6 so maybe the programers were having a bit of a laugh.
And there's me thinking you hang out with the sound guys down at the nightclub.
BTW One of my customers recently (and coincedentaly in the last week)let slip that he has a piano type thing (Pianet)in his garage that once belonged to his dad and asked if I would be interested.I feigned slight interest and left it at that. They sell for not much (Like £200 to £300)so Im not sure I need another project to sit on. Will go and look anyway as he lives nearby. You ever played one?
And there's me thinking you hang out with the sound guys down at the nightclub.
The other chaps in the band work for Yamaha.
Originally Posted by puff
BTW One of my customers recently (and coincedentaly in the last week)let slip that he has a piano type thing (Pianet)in his garage that once belonged to his dad and asked if I would be interested.I feigned slight interest and left it at that. They sell for not much (Like £200 to £300)so Im not sure I need another project to sit on. Will go and look anyway as he lives nearby.
Oooh, nice! I believe they can be difficult to maintain, but if it's in reasonably good condition it might be worth taking a punt on.
Originally Posted by puff
You ever played one?
No, unfortunately not. But I fell in love with that sticky, crunchy sound after hearing Joe Sample playing an aggressively voiced/mic'd Pianet on the Jazz Crusaders 'Live at the Lighthouse '69' album.
Dear Friends, I am new to this forum (please excuse my awkwardness), but not new to Kawai pianos. I have a Kawai R1 acoustic grand piano, one of the finest pianos I've ever played. I also used to have the original Kawai MP9000. I now have a Kawai MP9500 and MP5. I am looking to replace the MP9500 with the new MP11 or MP7, but I have one important question I need to get clear about first:
Both the MP5 and MP9500 use the "zones" layout, which allows me to layer acoustic piano sounds. Generally, I find digital pianos, no matter how good, to be a bit "thin" -- lacking something of the fullness and richness of tone of an acoustic grand. I have found I can overcome a good bit of this limitation by layering acoustic piano sounds. For example, on my MP9500 I like to layer the Concert Grand sound (75%) with the Mellow Grand sound (25%). The result is far superior to any sound I can get with any single acoustic piano sound. The downside is the very limited polyphony of the MP9500 is further reduced.
One (of many) advantages of the MP7 or MP11 is the greatly enhanced polyphony. HOWEVER, I have heard that on the MP11 you CANNOT layer acoustic piano sounds! -- that you can only layer sounds from different "sections" -- thus you can layer an acoustic piano sound with an electric piano sound, but not two acoustic piano sounds. Is this true? It would make it impossible for me to create the full, rich, customized piano sounds that I like to make by layering. I hope that what I have heard about this is WRONG! It would seem to be a very unfortunate and puzzling limitation!
By contrast, the MP7 still used the older "zones" layout, which I very much prefer (maybe I'm just used to it). So, can you layer two (or more, up to four) acoustic piano sounds on the MP7, even if you cannot on the MP11?
This is a very big question for me. I am a long-time acoustic pianist and would prefer the MP11 because of the grand piano action. However, if you can't layer acoustic piano sounds on it, that would GREATLY reduce the value of the instrument for me. Maybe I would like the MP7, if it does not have this limitation. But what I think I would really like is the action of the MP11 with the rest of the MP7!
I very much appreciate any clarification on this issue. Thank you.
Our resident expert KawaiJames should be able to address the 'zones' vs. 'sections' issue with authority.
Just want to note that it is remarkable that you were able to layer 2 piano sounds from the same source without any phasing or other issues. 256 polyphony may allow for the layering of 4 piano sounds, each one tweaked individually for optimum performance in each part of the ADSR envelope
I am 'doremi' because I play scales My teacher is 'domisol' because he plays chords
Thanks for the note. I look forward to hearing from KawaiJames. I do lots of layering with synths too, and have only rarely encountered phasing or other problems. Mostly I find it to be a great technique for creating great sounds with maximum control. I'm not sure if I would go to the trouble of a 4-layer piano, but it might be an interesting experiment.
Because of the low polyphony issue on my MP9500, I also make a layered piano using the Concert Grand sound on the MP9500 layered with the sampled piano sound in my Korg M3 workstation synthesizer. It works amazingly well! The Concert Grand in the MP 9500 is very clear and focused, but rather thin and a little cold (hard to describe a timbre in words!). The M3 piano is warm, full, but lacks focus and clarity. So the two complement each other quite nicely. The combination makes quite a nice piano sound -- better than I've heard on most digital pianos. And no phasing or tuning issues!
I've read a lot of the posts on this forum -- especially about the Kawai digital pianos. I'm wondering how much the MP7 and MP11 sounds differ from what I have on my MP9500 and MP5? Though the MP5 is a couple generations newer, I actually find that the Concert Grand sound on it sounds more "digital" and artificial than the older MP9500, which I find to have a more natural sound. This makes me a little wary of assuming that newer is necessarily better.
Another oddity is that the key dip is deeper on my MP9500 than on my Kawai acoustic grand. I am hoping that the new Grand Feel action on the MP11 is more like my acoustic. The action on the Kawai R1 is simply the finest action I've ever experienced on any piano and I've played a lot of very expensive acoustic pianos. The tone is also fantastic -- it's a dream piano. But for various reasons I'm not able to play it as much as I might like, and the digital has become a very important instrument for me.
Regarding the MP11's sections functionality, you are correct - I'm afraid it is not possible to layer two acoustic pianos together.
The MP11's piano sounds are technically far superior to any of those in the MP9500 or MP5, with a wide variety of adjustment parameters. You may therefore find that it is not necessary to layer two piano sound together in order to achieve the desired tonal character.
Regarding the 'Grand Feel' action's key-dip, I'm afraid I do not have any information about this specification, or how it may compare to the action of your R-1. However, the key pivot length of the 'Grand Feel' action is equivalent to that of an acoustic grand, so should feel similar to your R-1.
Hi James, Thank you very much for your prompt response. I too would think that I probably wouldn't feel the need to layer sounds on the MP11. Even so, I'm still interested -- is this possible on the MP7? There are some very desirable things about the MP7 and this layering ability (of two acoustic piano sounds) would be an interesting option if it's available.
I play a lot in just intonation, and therefore the tuning ability of the MP series has been very important to me. (Actually, it's there because of me! I campaigned hard with Kawai personnel, in many conversations, when I had my MP9000 -- asking them to implement user scale tuning in an OS update. They didn't do that, but did respond to my pestering by implementing this feature in the MP9500, and all the MP models since then.) I have recently read your post that the new OS adds 88 key tuning, which is great. But it's not described very well, and I'm not sure about the details of the implementation. Could you give some more information? What is the tuning range of each key? Is the 88-key tuning interactive (additive?) with the user scale tunings? Is it interactive with stretch tuning, or does it replace the included stretch tuning options? I know you can only store two different user tunings on the MP7 or MP11. How many different 88 key tunings can be stored? (It's quite a chore to create an 88 key tuning. The more that can be stored, the better!) I'm interested in any details about this that you can provide, no matter how obscure it might seem. I actually use this capability!
Thank you very much for your kind attention to these questions. Savante
Hi James, Thank you very much for your prompt response. I too would think that I probably wouldn't feel the need to layer sounds on the MP11. Even so, I'm still interested -- is this possible on the MP7? There are some very desirable things about the MP7 and this layering ability (of two acoustic piano sounds) would be an interesting option if it's available.
I play a lot in just intonation, and therefore the tuning ability of the MP series has been very important to me. (Actually, it's there because of me! I campaigned hard with Kawai personnel, in many conversations, when I had my MP9000 -- asking them to implement user scale tuning in an OS update. They didn't do that, but did respond to my pestering by implementing this feature in the MP9500, and all the MP models since then.) I have recently read your post that the new OS adds 88 key tuning, which is great. But it's not described very well, and I'm not sure about the details of the implementation. Could you give some more information? What is the tuning range of each key? Is the 88-key tuning interactive (additive?) with the user scale tunings? Is it interactive with stretch tuning, or does it replace the included stretch tuning options? I know you can only store two different user tunings on the MP7 or MP11. How many different 88 key tunings can be stored? (It's quite a chore to create an 88 key tuning. The more that can be stored, the better!) I'm interested in any details about this that you can provide, no matter how obscure it might seem. I actually use this capability!
Thank you very much for your kind attention to these questions. Savante
Sorry to dive in here (well, not that sorry or I wouldn`t have) but . . .
I goes into the supermarket to get some coffee. And I`m faced with hundreds of brands. And options within brands. Not only am I unable to sample each option effectively (life`s too short) but those I have disappointed me. So I buy the very cheapest at 50p a packet (Sainsbury`s) and find it`s far better than expected which is why it flies off the shelves. So I don`t have to look any more. I spend my time not searching out coffee. Or bread. Or red wine. Or beer. Or DPs. . . . .
And me and `er do the weekly shop in record time.
well, maybe it`s fun trying out Digitals (shrug) now that I`ve all this time on my hands. . . but 88 key tuning? That`d be fun on somebody else`s piano . . !
James said; "But I fell in love with that sticky, crunchy sound after hearing Joe Sample playing an aggressively voiced/mic'd Pianet on the Jazz Crusaders 'Live at the Lighthouse '69' album".
Dosn't sound like his most inspired solo.Not as good as his playing on "Scratch"(?).I used to love "Those Southern Nights" the sort of album that gives "smooth jazz" a good name.
I wonder how much $ Casio payed him to endorse their PX line? It was a bit of a coup for them.
As far as I'm concerned, there is no need to layer the Concert Grand sound on the MP11 with another piano sound. Not to say you can't tweak things to your liking with voicing and brightness and EQ, but the sound itself has enough dimension/depth/clarity that I don't find I need to layer with another piano. Here's a recording I made using the Concert Grand on the MP11: https://app.box.com/s/4bphqub8a8xa9qqauc5j
I have installed the new update for the MP11 but haven't played with the individual note tunings capability.
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