A new way(settings)and feeling for me using the German Grand

guntun63 · Post by **guntun63** » Sat Apr 22, 2017 8:29 pm

I have struggled a lot to find a way to a singing classical/softjazz tone for the German Grand.
I was on my way to buy Ravenscroft 275. This is postponed because I found a solution to improve the sound.
This is much better than my previous attempts. And here is my first improvisation where I tested out the «new» sound.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B13tOz ... g0OTg/view

Ksynth · Post by **Ksynth** » Sat Apr 22, 2017 8:59 pm

Sounds like you cut high frequencies. Hard to tell what you have done. Any pointer details?

Pedja · Post by **Pedja** » Mon Apr 24, 2017 8:42 am

Improvisation is just a little word for this, this has exceptional degree (excuse me, but in first look, I didn't notice that this is your composition, this is great)! One of the best sound (maybe the best one, among acoustic pianos for Kronos, specially for classic music) of German Grand, I have ever heard. You are playing very sensitive, full of emotion and technically very, very good! I will be (I am sure a rest of members of forum too) very appreciate, if you will be so kind, to give us detail explanation, what you have done (with parameters), to make this sound. Or to share with us pcg file. Thanks for all, it's our pleasure. I wish you more and more playing (and sounds) like this.

robw70 · Post by **robw70** » Mon Apr 24, 2017 10:11 am

Very nice, very curious how you tweaked it

Liviou2004 · Post by **Liviou2004** » Mon Apr 24, 2017 11:23 am

Very nice sound indeed, and a very pleasant piece of music, we'd like it longer. Congratulations !

80salife · Post by **80salife** » Mon Apr 24, 2017 12:24 pm

I prefere the Berlin Grand... its more powerful and in a band it doesn't loose his quality ...

Pedja · Post by **Pedja** » Tue Apr 25, 2017 11:37 am

As long as I listening your improvisation guntun63, I am more and more impress with it! Affectedly, full of emotion, harmonically balanced, with melody which shut right to the soul, with culmination which explode me. All this, with perfectly tweak German Grand, specially in high registers. Such a soft, but in other way clear high tones, I didn't hear in any ac. pianos, made for Kronos (of course in segment of pianos which I heard). Bravo, bravo again! I hope, that we will have some comment from you. Best wishes.

jbjorge · Post by **jbjorge** » Tue Apr 25, 2017 4:07 pm

Sounds great. Hope you share what you did to make it sound so good! Thanks, Johnny B.

GregC · Post by **GregC** » Tue Apr 25, 2017 4:23 pm

I enjoyed the piano programming , performance and the chord/melody structure.

A superb job all around.

RichardE · Post by **RichardE** » Tue Apr 25, 2017 9:43 pm

It is wonderful.

I talked to him on the Kronos facebook users page.

He has used a combo with 8 or 9 velocity layers and tweaked each layer's EQ and velocity to get the tone he wanted for each.

He could not work out how to share 1 combo so just expained his approach.

I want this combo so much, no time to try and reproduce it.

burningbusch · Post by **burningbusch** » Wed Apr 26, 2017 2:10 am

Excellent

Busch.

burningbusch · Post by **burningbusch** » Wed Apr 26, 2017 2:13 am

RichardE wrote:It is wonderful.

I talked to him on the Kronos facebook users page.

He has used a combo with 8 or 9 velocity layers and tweaked each layer's EQ and velocity to get the tone he wanted for each.

He could not work out how to share 1 combo so just expained his approach.

I want this combo so much, no time to try and reproduce it.

Is this in a post on the Kronos Enthusiast Workshops on FB? If so, I didn't see anything. Very interested as well.

Busch.

aron · Post by **aron** » Wed Apr 26, 2017 3:13 am

Notice how all the "ringing" of the original German grand is gone. It's very dark and refined yet expressive. Hard to distinguish between his excellent playing and the sound.

Reminds me of when Sal Gallina did the demo of the WX7 - I couldn't whip out my cash fast enough. But when I played it, it sounded like..... not even close.

guntun63 · Post by **guntun63** » Wed Apr 26, 2017 7:21 am

Thank you very much to you Pedja and all of you for good words.
It's right that I tried to explain the settings on the Facebook group.
Therefore below follow a copy from that thread.
Comments to what Richard said is that I used 7 velocity layers, but some of them are quite similar so I think could manage less.
Equally important is that in Global Settings I use Velocity 3 WITH soft pedal !, that is important.
The disadvantage of this is that it can be difficult to get a combination with other sounds in a combi that needs a different velocity in GB. But I have initially been looking for a solo piano sound.
...
The most important thing is below, but I have attached images that in no way are important to copy to the smallest detail.

Here is the pictures :

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B13tO ... HBPQkVMYmM

(Stereo Limiter is only used to increase the volume)

And here from : Kronos Enthusiast Workshops

Since it's a little hard for me to figure out how to share a combi and since the settings on the piano anyway will be a matter of taste, I'll just go through my ideas.
I have missed a singing tone and having control in the touch of pp, moreover, ff have been to load and often to sudden. I have wanted control over ff as well
I got a hope when I heard that velocity 9 was default setting, but after trying a bit I didn`t liked it. It was not good enough for pp / p
1. In order to get the balance between pp and ff that I like, I got the idea to have several pianos in a combi where each piano takes care of each part of the velocity (0-127 splitted in 7 parts in my improvisation). It's like a very controlled limiter where I can easily adjust the balance between ppp to fff with the sliders.
For me the pianos with low velocity get increased in volume, the f-fff lowered.
In addition one can have separately settings of the EQ on each piano (each part of the velocity). I prefer more treble on
ppp to mf and less treble from mf - fff, but of course gradually
2. The Velocity I choose for the recording was 3 but with the soft pedal down !!
This gives the bell-like sound in pp/p that I like very much as you can hear on the recording.
I am using strings controlled with my left foot, therefore I make myself a global setting (and saved it, ONLY Global settings , I am always a bit afraid of overwriting PCGs) for soft pedal and where the foot switch is opposite in polarity so that it only needs a single press to be constantly ON.
I'm considering even using velocity 2 !!, but that needs much help from EQ otherwise it becomes very dark. (I am using the EQ in Set List for this)
Just ask if you have questions.
........
And if some of you can explain a good way to share a combi I will appreciate that.
Regards, Gunnar

Pedja · Post by **Pedja** » Wed Apr 26, 2017 9:24 am

Thank you,
For all your effort Gunnar. I am sure, that I can tell, in a name of all members of forum, which are interesting for this, that we all very appreciate for your share.
Best wishes.