Who has the best Rhodes sound ?

peter m. mahr · Post by **peter m. mahr** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 10:50 pm

That's fine with me.

Peter

ozy · Post by **ozy** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 11:37 pm

jimknopf wrote:for my ears even in that case definitely better than the Kurz, once programmed well:
Just a single example (bad youtube sound quality again, but you will get the point) from another Steely Dan classic:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWDNW-gy ... 9&index=29

and here another a/b:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wkDjnSi ... re=related

thanks for the examples.

Unfortunately i can't decently listen to it now (I am traveling), I'll try in the next few days, no point seriously discussing something I hear through a laptop's monitor

(how the heck do people think they can mix music and computers BTW?!?)

Rocness · Post by **Rocness** » Wed Jan 19, 2011 4:37 pm

ozy wrote:
jimknopf wrote:for my ears even in that case definitely better than the Kurz, once programmed well:
Just a single example (bad youtube sound quality again, but you will get the point) from another Steely Dan classic:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWDNW-gy ... 9&index=29

and here another a/b:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wkDjnSi ... re=related

thanks for the examples.

Unfortunately i can't decently listen to it now (I am traveling), I'll try in the next few days, no point seriously discussing something I hear through a laptop's monitor

(how the heck do people think they can mix music and computers BTW?!?)

Yo Ozy check this out too because I think Cp1 is still considered top dog i could be wrong .
go to about 5:18 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulhgTY33Dxs .

Rocness · Post by **Rocness** » Wed Jan 19, 2011 4:52 pm

Sorry ,last video I posted was a piano (still very nice ).
Here"s the Rhodes on Cp1 , tell me what you think and thanks for all the post.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLtwOkdsP4c

Peter I already know you love the CP1 . I never really been a Nord fan but a lot of performers love them , maybe I have to check them out some more .

Ozy , like you I also love heavily processed Rhodes with phaser , wha-wha, chorus etc... I guess we'll have to wait to here Kronos EP-1

EXer · Post by **EXer** » Wed Jan 19, 2011 7:29 pm

To my opinion, the Yamaha EX5 has the best Rhodes sound, thanks to the EP Pickup algorithm of its FDSP synthesis.

The most interesting in FDSP is not the sound itself, but the way it responds to the way you play the keyboard; it really breathes life into a sample based voice(*), it's kind of 'organic'.

(*) 'program', in Korgish

jimknopf · Post by **jimknopf** » Thu Jan 20, 2011 2:02 am

@Rocness

Great video! I'm impressed - and a bit confused. The demos I had heard so far, plus a short test hearing in the store, are not in my memory as sounding so good.

There's still a tiny "polish" factor and some sligthly unreal attack sound in there, but this is really marginal, and these Rhodes patches should sound excellent even in band context!
BTW, even the Phaser in Zawinul's "Young and Fine" sounds quite close.

So after this video I would rate both the Clavias and the CP-1 Rhodes high, both with very valuable variations.

But my main concern is, that what I heard so far from the Kronos Rhodes sounds, seems not to be in the same league.

And I can't afford buying a Kronos AND a Nord stage, not even talking of a CP-1.

I know we will have to wait and see, but that's my impression at the moment.

Rocness · Post by **Rocness** » Thu Jan 20, 2011 2:25 am

jimknopf wrote:@Rocness

Great video! I'm impressed - and a bit confused. The demos I had heard so far, plus a short test hearing in the store, are not in my memory as sounding so good.

There's still a tiny "polish" factor and some sligthly unreal attack sound in there, but this is really marginal, and these Rhodes patches should sound excellent even in band context!
BTW, even the Phaser in Zawinul's "Young and Fine" sounds quite close.

So after this video I would rate both the Clavias and the CP-1 Rhodes high, both with very valuable variations.

But my main concern is, that what I heard so far from the Kronos Rhodes sounds, seems not to be in the same league. And I can't afford buying a Kronos AND a Nord stage, not even talking of a CP-1.

I know we will have to wait and see, but that's my impression at the moment.

Yea thanks for your thoughts

,I think the CP 5 has the same sound engine as CP 1 but for 5 grand the Cp 1 should be a clear winner but it's not because we still have to hear Kronos

. May-be Clavias are the way to go (bang for the buck). I find that people who love electric pianos are very picky when it comes to the Rhodes sound and i think that's very cool.

jimknopf · Post by **jimknopf** » Thu Jan 20, 2011 2:35 am

I just realised that these are not factory patches (unless they became part of the CP-5 after publishing that video). This may explain some of my confusion.

Did the author make them freely available as he said in the commentary?

Rocness · Post by **Rocness** » Thu Jan 20, 2011 2:53 am

jimknopf wrote:I just realised that these are not factory patches (unless they became part of the CP-5 after publishing that video). This may explain some of my confusion.

Did the author make them freely available as he said in the commentary?

Ooooo wow , you know what, I didn't even pick up on that thanks , now I'm a little confused. You mean he made those sounds using Cp1 sound shaping ? If
that's true it would seem Cp1 has very flexable shaping tools . I have to watch that video aging .

Charlie · Post by **Charlie** » Thu Jan 20, 2011 11:01 am

Rocness, very nice demo - thanks!

I played the CP1 only in a shop - but I remember it had both: an excellent sound + great keys (very good to play). And the lights on the backside are so COOL!

ozy · Post by **ozy** » Thu Jan 20, 2011 12:57 pm

Rocness wrote:Yo Ozy check this out too because I think Cp1 is still considered top dog i could be wrong .go to about 5:18 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulhgTY33Dxs .

Sweet indeed.

0:39 and 2:03 nail ChickC and JoeZ exactly on the head (there's a long sustained chord after 2:03 where the phaser goes really deep and spacious).

I wouldn't consider it because of: only 4 zones with limited master features, at 5 grands. Too heavy (in kg and in eur terms) to bring around that AND a master.

But boy, that sounds good.

peter m. mahr · Post by **peter m. mahr** » Thu Jan 20, 2011 1:16 pm

.. and it has one of the best keybeds.

jimknopf · Post by **jimknopf** » Thu Jan 20, 2011 1:44 pm

Even if the Rhodes sounds are fine both in the CP-1 and CP-5 (still 2200€ just for piano/epiano and limited functionality), and also in Clavias:

This won't help future Kronos users (unless they just buy all nice keyboards available), so back to the Kronos. Is the epiano extension competely identical to SV-1? Then we could just check SV-1 demos or check the SV-1 sounds in a store.

Or will Korg provide some more downloadable demo material concering this aspect of the Kronos anyway soon?

peter m. mahr · Post by **peter m. mahr** » Thu Jan 20, 2011 1:52 pm

I have collected some KRONOS related Q/A here: http://blog.petermmahr.com/2011/01/17/k ... ollection/

Check the EP1 (MDS technology part), which I find quite interesting. I am not sure about the SG1 but my guess is that it is not the same like in SG-1.

jimknopf · Post by **jimknopf** » Thu Jan 20, 2011 5:35 pm

Peter, thanks, for that helpful overview! The MDS-technology is a name for what all big three principally do (mixture of sampling and modelling, different names for similar approaches). The only getting far enough with it up to now seems to be Yamaha (see above).

I VERY MUCH hope that EP1 is better than SV1.

I just went back to the Korg SV1 demo page, and must say that for my ears the Rhodes demos from it sound definitely lame and totally unauthentic, not mut better than Roland's ARX-02. Any well done traditional sample set, even the standard 4-layer vintage Rhodes samples in my Roland Fantom G, sound better than that. The smooth dynamic response won't help if something sounds as artificial as that.

Could anyone from Korg clarify if EP1 is just another incarnation of SV1 or not?

And yes, I'm picky about Rhodes sounds (and EPiano sounds in general).

I use them a lot and know very well about the strength of the real deal, and anything really coming close, like the above Clavia and CP1/5 examples.