BEST ARRANGER MODULE?

Hi! I am doing a guitar oriented one man band thing with PK-5 pedals for chord/bass/style accompaniment. Been using a PSR-2000 for the accompaniment and like it pretty well though I don't have experience to compare it with anything else.
I would like the option to not carry the keyboard and bought a Roland RA-50 with the MSL-15 Super Card. Unfortunately, it didn't come with a manual so if anyone could e-mail or copy a manual I would be willing to pay. However, just noodling around on the RA-50 I am doubtful whether it has anything near the flexibility of the PSR 2000. Any thoughts on that? How about the higher RA-90,95,800? It's hard to find info on just what the capabilities/differences of the various models are.

Could anyone suggest other modules with equal or greater functionality as PSR2000 for my application?

I also have a Yamaha QY100 that is extremely portable and might be useable if it had some thing like the "one or two finger chord recognition" systems that I could utilize with my PK-5 pedals.

Is it possible for me to use just the chord recognition function on the RA-50 to trigger styles accompaniments on the QY-100?

Any answers are appreciated as is the wealth of knowledge provided in this and other like forums. I am an acoustic musician of many years. If not for yourselves and forums like this, I don't think I would have been able to overcome the frustration of making the transition into the world of digital/ electronic music.

Thanks,
Marcus

Marcus,
Perhaps you might consider the pc based arranger programs such as One Man Band or Band In A Box. You could carry a lap top and sound module instead of a keyboard around.
Terry

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jam on,
Terry http://imjazzed.homestead.com/Index.html

I have a ra-50 also with the style card. An older model but it still sounds ok if you mute the accompaniment and use the bass and drums. I do have a manual give me a few days and i will try to make a copy if you leave your email address.
MIke B

Ketron XD3 .

I thought that I had seen a Generalmusic WK4-8(i.e. same format/os without keys) arranger module a few years ago . Would there be any available at the distributor/wharehouse in Illinois or possibly at the factory in Italy? If so I would be interested in purchasing 1 or more.

Any info. would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

Marcus,

Check out the Ketron X4 or the XD-3.

I sell both the Generalmusic Wk2module and the Ketron XD3. They are both very good with the XD3 being the arranger with the better styles and sounds. However, the price for the WK2 is around $600.00 and the XD3 is about double this. The only Gem WK2arranger still around is the oriental version which includes middle eastern styles, sounds and quarter tone tuning possibilities. There are still international styles and all the sounds from the WK2 non oriental model and you can load up to 8 user styles from their large library of styles. The polyphony is 32, not 64 like the Ketron and there are 5 tracks per style, not 8 tracks like the XD3. However, single fingered chord recognition and 4 variations per style are on both. The size of the WK2 is much smaller than the XD3.
George Kaye
Kaye's Music Scene
Reseda, California
818-881-5566

Thanks all for your feedback and especially, Mike, for your offer on the manual. My e-mail address is res0314i@gte.net

Terry, I did look a OMB some time ago and as I understood it (not much)it didn't have enough flexibility on chord fingering to facilitate playing all of the chords I wanted with the PK-5. If it or Band In A Box does have that possibility, will it be just as responsive speed wise as a module?
I do have a laptop that has been very reliable, unlike my last one, so I guess I should investigate that option more.

By the way, I am using two PK-5s and juggling between the fingering formats on the PSR2000 to play what I need. That's the only way I've been able to manage getting my chord inversions with the right notes in the right octaves. On the PSR2000 there are 7 chord recognition modes. Of those I have been using "single fingered", "fingered on bass" "multi-fingered" and "A1". As I'm working out a song and come across a chord I can't get with one of the modes, I switch to another. So far I have been able to do ALMOST everything I need but have to play 3 and 4 keys sometimes with my feet to do it. As you can tell, I'm pretty much leaving the bass to the styles and usually cutting out every accomp. track except for pads,bass, and drums. I set the midi recognition channel so that the PK-5s don't actually play notes but just trigger the accomp. to the chord I'm pressing. This allows me a lot more lattitude for not having to be so precise with my feet. I don't have to be rhythmically exact and have time to "form" my feet to the chord.

George,one of the frustrating things is that the chord recognition options vary with different brands and it's hard to find specific descriptions to know which will be best for my situation. Maybe you could steer me to some info that will explain how the chord recognition functions work on the modules you mentioned. (GM Wk2 and Ketron XD3)

I have already spent far more than I intended on this project but it seems trial and error have been anavoidable. Now that i have a little familiarity with arranger systems, maybe I can get info that will allow me to know whether it will work for me and not have to sell and buy, sell and buy. It would be hard to sell the PSR2000 my wife plays it too but I suppose a module like the GM or Ketron with a controller keyboard could fulfill both of our needs. Am I on track here?

Knee deep,
Marcus

Marcus,

How do you play 3 or 4 keys with your feet?! I thought 2 would be the maximum. That's why I added the Major/Minor switch in OMB version 6 to make at least that chord types possible when playing single fingered chords on MIDI pedals. But if you can play more complex chords using 2 sets of MIDI pedals with the PSR2000 then I'm sure you can do that too with OMB.

There are 4 chord recognition modes in OMB: Full fingered, single finger, fingered on bass and full keyboard. In my view playing only major/minor chords would be sufficient if you have both hands available on the keyboard to make it sound like an expanded chord. Only diminished and augmented chords would raise a problem.

Jos

Hi! In answer to your question, Jos. I use the flat of my foot to press two or even three adjacent keys, either white, white or white black or white, black, white. I can play 3rds if one key is white and the other black by turning foot sideways. I play with both feet.

How did you put a minor switch in your system? I saw an old arranger system on E-bay that had 2 switches on each side of the volume pedal. Maj-min-aug-dim if I remember correctly. It was a large system that included keyboard and pedals. I can't remember the name but it was one of the major early synthesizer companies. Could have been Arp or Moog. Noone even bid on it.

Reflecting on the OMB situation, I remembered that I e-mailed the creator with my question. I forgot what the question was but remember that the OMB could do what I was wanting. Perhaps a newer version has or will have the features I need.

Marcus

Jos is the creator of OMB and I think he has put enough features in it that I might be comfortable enough to try using it in a live setup now, as a backup for my PA80.

AJ

Here is a complete description of the chord recognition in One Man Band:
http://www.1manband.nl/chords.htm

Jos