jerrydf

OK, that's an iRig keys i/o 49 registered. Now for some s/w.

I got the keyboard from Music Matter, Preston, UK, with a very good one-day delivery.

Thanks ms - that's bad news.

So I've located a UK dealer using the map on the IK website  (so I assume they're authorized).  How does it work then? If I order and receive the keyboard, how does the system recognise the purchase so I can qualify for the software?

Thanks also Simon - Yes I saw Thomann,  I didn't know they'e billing, etc. So on the Thomann site, what you see is what you get/pay for?  I may go or them, but are they "authorized" to qualify for the group-buy?

The popup on IK (I had to re-sign in on another browser without the cookies so I could read it) - it basically says that VAT is charged at standard rate up goods value limit of £135.  Beyond that - anything goes, apparently.

Thanks

Jerry

Hi all, especially fellow Brits in the wonderful "sunlit uplands of Brexit" (or so we're led to believe).

I'm considering the I/O keys at 299EU, and I have a question about purchasing physical gear from IK in the UK: 

What is the situation with purchasing physical gear from IK? Where do the goods come from? Has anyone in the UK done this and if so are there import duties or other nasty unseen tariffs which may arise? I know IK has a message which states that standard VAT is charged for goods value up to £135.

Jerry

This is getting an awfully crowded market! I was about to chance the Taylor Davis.  Now this ... on top of the ten or so other violins and fiddles I have.

I must admit, with Indiginus' past record, it will be an excellent instrument. I have a few of their instruments and as we all know, they're top of the pile stuff.

12 hours ago, jackson white said:

@jerrydf Thank you for posting the tracks. The Gypsy Violin sounds like something I could actually use.  

Is it the East West "QL" Gypsy, with own sample player and articulations? 

Yes. Gypsy Quantum Leap on the EW Play platform.  The library includes quite a few instruments with a number of accordions,  percussion,  etc. The violin is the best of the instruments there.  It's quite a throaty thick sound, not really a fast folky fiddle,  but good at what it does.  However I think the Joshua Bell is way ahead of Gypsy in terms of tone and usability.  Bolder would be my other choice.

It depends on the sound you want.  Some styles and articulations are difficult/impossible.  I don't use a keyboard for playing, I write straight into the PRV and hand-write the control lanes. I've played in bands with fiddlers, so I know fairly much what to go for.  I'm trying to learn fiddle (for 10 years or so!) and I know what manoeuvres are possible when you go from one string to the next, or for double-stopping, etc. The same goes for all instruments - know what a player can do with them.  I don't play drums, but I have a set of drumsticks here to try out what is possible in terms of getting around the kit, not having a three-handed drummer, etc.

Here's Embertone's Friedlander (plus Addictive Drums, Sonokinetic Accordian and me on guitars and bass, in Cubase) - Ruby Lake Two Step

Another Friedlander - Some Other Stomp

This has East West's Gypsy Violin (plus Kontakt library Uilleann Pipes) - For All The World

Jerry

Fretman - I still haven't explored all the articulations and possibilities - there's an awful lot here!  At lower velocities you can get a real scratchy soundwhich may be close to what you want. There's no doubt that this is a huge professional instrument. Even then, I think there may be occasions where Bolder (and maybe Red Room) fit better with various requirements, but Joshua Bell really has a great range of possibilities, including different violin tomes.  You can certainly get an excellent fiddle here, nt just the classical violin.  I'm still trying to get around all the keyswitches, etc.  Personally (and I use violins exclusively as fiddles for folk/country/celtic/cajun, etc) I'm really pleased with the J Bell .

I don't want to get saddled with another library I'll never use

There's a quick and easy video on registering their software. Here it is:

20 hours ago, abacab said:

Speaking of "hired guns", the "Wrecking Crew" is an awesome documentary film about the session musicians (unsung heroes) famed for having played on numerous hit recordings throughout the 1960s and early 1970s.

That's a great documentary.  Hal Blaine, of course,  was their drummer,  and kingpin of the group.  But there was also Earl Palmer who was equally proficient.

For the Wrecking Crew film,  Tommy Tedesco has some great stories! And Carole Kaye is still a top bass player.

6 hours ago, fret_man said:

And now I just found Infinity Samples has a folk violin. It didn't sound very real in the Celtic demo but the acoustic jam sounded pretty good. But it's only $43 and I worry a little I'd get what I pay for.

Yes,  I have that one,  but I don't think I've ever used it.  It's ok, and as you say,  you get what you pay for.  With Bolder and Friedlander I've never felt the need to invest any time in it.  However I'm finding the Joshua Bell is really excellent, especially at $99 for the Essential version.  It's between that and Bolder.  When I first got Bolder I had a problem with it and Dennis really worked well to resolve it.  Top developer! 

After all that I've just taken the plunge with Embertone's Joshua Bell Essential.  It has a fantastic tone which can easily support the folk/world requirements. The Essential version seems sufficient for most of what I need, although I've only just acquired it and I'm still low down the learing curve (but it seems quite usable). There is an upgrade path to the full version if required.

Thanks Dave, nice comparison. He probably didn't have the best demo for each. You can't transfer a set of midi notes from one vst to another; you have to hand craft them to play to their respective strengths.  His first tune with the RR Bluegrass was way too choppy and ideally would have had slurs on some notes to remove some of the repetative hard edges. I'm loking at the Taylor Davis at the moment., I'd come across this before, but forgot about it for a while.

jdf

44 minutes ago, jackson white said:

sounds like it's been hanging on a barn wall for most of the week and only gets pulled down for a trip across the bayou for some Friday night hoedown.

Yes, that's the deal! I think, certainly as far as violins and fiddles are represented in virtual instruments, violins are smooth, sweet and full ranged, whereas fiddles are that bit rougher. As I mentioned, I often use either Embertone's Friedlander or EW Diamond Violin as a fiddle, but I tend to notch up a band around 1.5kHz to give it that impure tone! I'll proably add a bit of compression and even distortion (Ashley MacIsaac style). However, you're also correct in that it is the way the instrument is played,  often with some more overstated attack on a fiddle. 

I'm amassing quite an armoury of violins and fiddles now in my repertoire of Celtic/folky fiddles. Looks like I'll succumb to the SWAM out of pure curiosity before too long. Maybe tomorrow *...

Jerry

* Maybe Tomorrow - flip side to the Everly Brothers Wake Up Little Suzie.

Dave - that's a nice demo of SWAM, but I don't hear much detail of the violin.  I had a look at SWAM and it looks interesting from the point of view of playability,  variations,  etc. It seems there's a selection of violin bodies.  Would you say there are fiddles in SWAM suitable for folk (Bluegrass,  Celtic,  etc)? 

My go-to fiddles are -

- Bolder folk fiddle. Nice and controllable.  Great developer

- Red Room Traveller series.  They have the Bluegrass,  Celtic and Gypsy fiddles. Nice tones,  you'll need the celtic, I assume.  Control of these fiddles is an acquired taste.

- Embertone Friedlander - not really a folky fiddle, but quite controllable,  especially with sordinol, and you can modify for the required folky tone with the bow position relative to the bridge.

Like you,  I don't play them on keyboards, I draw in on the piano roll view (actually on Cubase). For learning curves, none of them are bad,  but Red Room Travellers may need a little more patience for the articulations. 

I recently got the Westwood Viola Untamed which is a gem.  I imagine their violin is also excellent.

On top of all this I'm actually taking the plunge to learning to play the fiddle, but that's going to take some time!

Jerry

Great video, Reid. I love those eastern instruments like the koto and the yangqin. I've had a long interest in music around the world, both folk/custom based and modern derivations, including stuff from my own doorstep - traditional Celtic and English folk which I play in our ceilidh band. Here in the UK one of the greatest proponents of all sorts of world music is broadcaster Andy Kershaw. He had regular shows on BBC radio for a number of years (he was also a war reporter in his part time!) until he fell foul of the BBC (partly his own fault regarding a personal matter).  Anyway, he's back with his own podcast - https://andykershaw.co.uk/category/podcast/ complete with playlists. He actually extends beyond the purist "world music" label, and includes whatever he likes. Andy has a no-nonsnse attitude - listen to the music, no jingles or over-chatting. Do give him a listen.

Anyway it inspired me to acquire a few world music kontakt libraries. I often find these a little limiting in thier depth, so I tend to end up buying specific instruments like Boulder's Dahn Tran, etc. 

Personal plea: Does anyone know of a real Cajun accordian vsti? Not any old accordian - the honking bellowing Marc Savoy type of box. It's a beautiful sound.

jdf

1 hour ago, marled said:

Or maybe "Quasi MODO":

More Cowbells

What do you think of it so far, Nigel?

Yes, I've had some fun over the years building distortion and fuzz units, as well as tremolos, compressors, amps, etc. 

I was just looking at the Supa Fuzz.  The authentic version uses the old germanium Mullard OC75s (and no feedback diodes) - I haven't seen those for a few decades (although I may actually have some in one of my old stock boxes somewhere).  So I checked around and you can get some on ebay for £10 or 10Eur. I did see one advert trying to sell them for 240Eur or so.  So - you can try for original authentic OC75s, or I suppose there's perfectly servicable equivalents these days. 

Good luck.  Let us know if you take the hardware route, and how it goes.

There's a mini-series of three videos on YouTube with Justin Hayward where he talks about his amps, his guitar(s) and his guitar rack.

I knew he mainly played the 355, and there's also videos of the band playing Ride My See Saw where he plays the Telecaster.  There's nice little stories on here about those guitars. For the amps, his on-stage set-up seems rather complex, with a stereo Fender/Mesa Boogie set-up plus a Marshall for sustain. So good luck rigging that up in Amplitube or TH-U or whatever.  Unfortunately he doesn't really discuss the actual settings here, but this is a start.

It's a long time since I saw them at Leicester De Montfort Hall, just afer Question of Balance came out!

jdf

Ah, Alan B'stard.  Where is he now we need more honesty and integrity in Parliament?

On 6/2/2021 at 8:33 PM, jmasno5 said:

JDF, Thank you.  Yes, along time ago when I first started using a Sonar and in order to learn how to use it I recorded a Mike Nesmith tune "You Told Me."  I would like to do "You May Just Be The One" too someday

Yes, that's a good sound, almost Byrds-y (thinking of the McGuinn chimes in "Feel a Whole Lot Better").

Nice work.

Great three tracks.  Real punchy production, nice work.  Do you do any Nesmith stuff?

jdf

Hah hah - Great sound - voice - guitar breaks.  Really gritty and punchy. Great work.

jdf