First gig using JUST my Kronos 61 tonight

ccmacdon · Post by **ccmacdon** » Sat Apr 28, 2012 7:44 pm

I normally gig with a NORD C2 double manual organ along with a Roland Sonic Cell Synth module for all my non-organ sounds. I started using my Kronos instead of the Sonic Cell because the sounds and splits/layers were SO good and it was always my intention to have the KRONOS as a backup for my regular gig rig, but I have also wanted to use it exclusively for really small gigs (small $$ and small in size), when it doesn't make sense to drag multiple keyboards and modules, so I'm changing things up tonight!!

Tonight is the first night that I'm using the KRONOS exclusively! So, I'll be using the CX3 engine extensively, along with all the other voices, acoustic pianos, EP's etc, and I'll be seeing how it works and sounds in the context of my classic rock band performing live, in a small club.

Coincedentally, I'm also covering bass for the first set, using a combination of bass pedals AND my left hand, since our bass player can't make the first set.. SO the Kronos is really going to get a workout tonight!!!

The big challenge has been programming all the splits and layers, and figuring out how to access all the voices I need and where to put them on the keyboard, however I think I'm all set to go.. if anyone is interested let me know and I'll follow up tomorrow with a post on how the gig went.

Craig

DocBambs · Post by **DocBambs** » Sat Apr 28, 2012 7:51 pm

You sound very well prepared. I would like to hear hoe it has gone.

DB

runningman67 · Post by **runningman67** » Sat Apr 28, 2012 8:13 pm

DocBambs wrote:You sound very well prepared. I would like to hear hoe it has gone.

DB

Yes! Go for it and enjoy

andalve · Post by **andalve** » Sat Apr 28, 2012 8:43 pm

Keep us posted please, i am new here and waiting for my kronos to arrive, i will use it for gigs so i want to check how it goes! =) good luck and i hope you enjoy it!

michelkeijzers · Post by **michelkeijzers** » Sun Apr 29, 2012 12:33 am

Enjoy your gig!

I also made about 30 combis right now (about one or sometimes 2 or 3) for each song of our band, some of them being reused or quite basic (like piano on upper keyboard, organ lower keyboard etc).

keyplayer14 · Post by **keyplayer14** » Sun Apr 29, 2012 12:40 am

Hope it goes well and will be interested to hear how you got on. Depending on the gig I'm doing I usually have other gear in addition to the Kronos, but I've used it in it's own for several blues jobs - and it's sounded just great!

400nvd · Post by **400nvd** » Sun Apr 29, 2012 6:33 am

Wow, you dare! Hope it wet well.
I'm beginner level. Just started as a new member in a Spanish rock group. I used to play on an arranger and the Nord E3. Now i'm carrying the Kronos and the Nord with me to the group rehearsals. I find it not easy to make some appropriate combinations which i could put on a set list. When we discuss the arrangement in a song, it would be convenient to have a number of combi's available to try out.
So, i would be interested to see which combi's other band players are using.
Anyone want to share?

ScoobyDoo555 · Post by **ScoobyDoo555** » Sun Apr 29, 2012 8:32 am

I've stuck a few combis on - gig mine all the time. Very reliable (so far!)

ccmacdon · Post by **ccmacdon** » Sun Apr 29, 2012 1:50 pm

Well, where do I start... First, I had absolutely no problems last night.. the Kronos performed flawlessly..!!

I had spent about 2 full days creating a bunch of organ programs (clean B2, Vintage B3, Dirty B3, Jon Lord/Deep Purple), and building all the combinations I needed for the various tunes that we play in my classic rock cover band. It's not just the effort to create the combinations, but you have to think about how you want to play them and where it's best to place the various sounds and layers. Then of course it's organizing the combis into a set list with some cheat notes here and there (handy feature)..

So overall, it was a great night, and the KRONOS proved that it can do a good job of handling ALL of my requirements, including Hammond Organ emulation using the CX3 engine, however, the CX3 engine itself did come up a little short in the live performance and it's going to require a bit more tweaking on my part.

I should preface this by saying that I am and always have been primarily a Hammond B3 player.. so I am VERY fussy about Hammond sound.. Like the original digital CX3 sounds excellent in the low to mid octaves.. especially with chords or fifths... But when you play single notes, or when you're playing the top octave, the CX3 engine sounds shrill, thin, and brittle, it's missing the "body" and the "scream" that the real Hammond has in the top octaves.. while it's somewhat evident when playing the Kronos by itself, it's extremely evident in a live, loud, band context. What seems to cut through the mix is this bright/shrill sound minus the fullness and body that you get with a real Hammond..

So I'm obviously not done tweaking the CX3 engine yet, but one of the things I'm definately going to do is to start using my Ventilator as the leslie sim.. I think this will go a long way towards taking this bright/brittleness off the top end and the Ventilators Overdrive is better than the CX3 engines. I'm also going to continue to tweak the CX3 engine's EQ to see if I can further settle down this brightness and yet give the top octave more body.. I'm going to try tweaking the mids a bit, and hopefully I can give the high end more umph without ruining the sound of the lower octaves..

I've said this before in another post that the CX3 engine needs a keyboard "scaling" feature so that you can adjust/scale each tone across the keyboard.

So, all in all, a very successful evening.. I still have some work to do on my organ sounds, but I was very pleased at the how well the Kronos delivered everything I needed in one keyboard.. Splits and layers all worked flawlessly, I was able to balance between one sound and another (for example organ and acoustic piano) using my expression pedal, and in other cases I used a fader to introduce and control the level of strings using a fader (nice touch).. and I am sure that there are lot's of other tricks and techniques available for live performance mode that I haven't even begun to utilize yet..

So great evening.. and despite my comments about the CX3 engine, I'm loving the KRONOS.. and I'm sure I'll work out the issues!!

SanderXpander · Post by **SanderXpander** » Sun Apr 29, 2012 7:14 pm

I'm assuming you did try the different drawbars types? There's one specifically called "bright", if you used that...
Also, using the rotary sim as an insert effect seemed to affect the brightness some. There are a few types there that each have their own sound.
That said, I've been wondering if I should get a Ventilator... But it's just so much nicer to have it all in one machine. For the first time in years I've gone back to one board for at least half my gigs!

ccmacdon · Post by **ccmacdon** » Sun Apr 29, 2012 8:04 pm

SanderXpander wrote:I'm assuming you did try the different drawbars types? There's one specifically called "bright", if you used that...
Also, using the rotary sim as an insert effect seemed to affect the brightness some. There are a few types there that each have their own sound.
That said, I've been wondering if I should get a Ventilator... But it's just so much nicer to have it all in one machine. For the first time in years I've gone back to one board for at least half my gigs!

YES I'm pretty familiar with all the CX3 engine parameters (I owned a BX3 and used it extensively, through a real 147 leslie, and through amps/monitors both with and without a speakeasy vintage preamp)... I can tell you that the CX3 sounds awsome through a Ventilator.. but I wanted to try it with the internal sim first.. I could spend time trying to tweak the sim and the CX3 engine but I know that the Ventilator just works and sound great, without any tweaking.. So I think I going to use the Ventilator as the starting point for creating my Hammond sound, and tweak and adjust the CX3 engine accordingly.