Thanks Don.......for making us all feel like the dummies we are .

chas

Ian, I am happy to oblige...

Doh...!

I should look more carefully at the dates...

So, you still have the K4 and use it regularly for gigs, then.

But I'm still curious... Which amps do you use the most?

Diki, with the band I use an all Yorkville set up..2 - nx520p's[550 watts each]..and a 700 watt Sub woofer..With a CFX12 Mackie mixer, and a peavey 12" monitor..Also on certain rooms I keep a Roland 100 for a back up monitor..

The E-60 is now the board I am using with the band..


For my solo gigs ..the past year have been the G70 and the Traynor K4...

In my Studio, I use a pair of Roland Keyboard cube 100's[the good old ones], and a Roland keyboard cube 60..

[This message has been edited by Fran Carango (edited 01-29-2008).]

You don't monitor through your near-fields when in the studio? Wow!

You wouldn't believe how good your G70 can sound through a really nice pair (I use Mackie HR824's). Compared to that, all keyboard combo amps are a POS, IMO...

The problem, as I see it, is that most combo amps are designed for onstage monitoring, where they are doing spot reinforcing for the ambient spill-back from the main PA. As such, they are rarely designed to be flat spectrally, but to emphasize the frequencies that need boosting for good clarity in a stage situation. This doesn't necessarily make them the best candidates for situations where they are your ONLY source of sound.

You CAN work around this (sort of), but I prefer to just use full range PA stuff (it doesn't have to be big, just FLAT) for gigs, and my near-fields in the studio. Once you let your ears readjust to the less 'hyped' frequency response, It's a lot easier to get a Part mix that translates well to different systems (just like mixing a CD - you wouldn't do THAT on a K4, would you?!).

Diki, I just like the way my Roland Keyboard 100's sound..Did you ever use one?
At 20 plus years..they are my favorites..some folks think they lack a little in the highs..with out EQ ing them...but to me they are perfect..

I use the Rolands for my enjoyment..they actually cut some of the brittleness that the G70 has on other speakers...besides what I hear in the studio is what I will hear when I use the Rolands on the gig..


For near field mixing..I have Dynaudio BM6A's..

For the real world ..it is the Roland's..

Are you using the Mackies?

I wanted something a little better..

Yes, I auditioned those before I got my Mackies (MkI, I think) but they cost nearly twice what my Mackies did (got a dealer special from a friend... sure nice when you can find them ) and the Mackies were 'good enough'.. more than good enough after my Event Bas20/20's!

At the main studio we've got B&W passives... they are quite nice too! But overall, I have virtually the same experience listening to HR824 mixes on the B&W's, so 'good enough' will have to do.

A friend of mine still has one of those Roland's. Sorry, but my opinion still stays the same..! A good unit for a stage monitor, but compared to the SRX's, just a bit hyped in the middle...

My system has been to set up the G70 using the HR824's, use a little EQ from the mastering tools to round it out, then as long as I have a flat(-ish!) PA, it's going to sound about the same. I've been doing quite a bit of reworking the styles and SMF using OS3's Part EQ, and I have found that if you roll a hair of high end off the drum Part, you can get more of that 'vintage' sound without losing the 'air' around other sounds, too.

I think that is why I don't like too much main EQ, when all I am going for half the time is a more 60's and 70's drum sound, but I still want the sparkle on the piano when I spank it!

Diki have you been EQing the Master effects on the G70?...When I use the K4 I found I like to use the pop EQ for dance tunes..

When I use the Yorkville's with the band , I turn off the master EQ..we use a sub woofer, and it is a bit much..

To be honest, nowadays I don't use the Mastering EQ at all (used to pre-OS3) but now all I tend to use is a custom Compressor preset based on the Low-Boost preset, but turned WAY down. Essentially, it doesn't change the EQ much at all, just evens out the low-end response (like a Finalizer) because I think the basses tend to vary quite a lot in the low end.

On the gig, I pretty much always have subs (either one Mackie 15" for small gigs, or two 18" passives for outdoors), so I'm always looking to even out the bass response.

But since OS3, pretty much all of this is better handled by the per-part EQ than global stuff. On your oldies stuff, try rolling that high end off the drums (not just the HH's and cymbals) and it all sounds a lot more authentic!

I know this is an old thread but I still really needed a new keyboard amp to replace the Wharfdale powered PA cabinet I have been using for many years. After much investigation the Traynor K4 seems to still be the best choice available. So I bit the bullet and ordered one. It arrived today and I just got home from using it with the live rock band I play with. Wow ... it is everything I had hoped it would be. It sounded great on stage with a live band and had plenty of power to spare. Sure it is heavy but really not much heavier than the powered PA cabinet I have been using. Plus having metal handles on both sides makes it easier to pick up and carry.

It has a great frequency response due to the speaker system with stereo mids and highs and the summed mono woofer. I can't say what it is like for using with an arranger keyboard because that really isn't what I needed it for. But it easily provided a full range sound with the live band I play with with plenty of power to spare. I'm really pleased I decided on this amp.

The funny thing is that when I was Googling reviews on the K4 this old thread was right up near the top of the Google results.



[This message has been edited by Nigel (edited 07-24-2010).]