My current live rig has shrunk! I have always prefered to playout using my smaller lighter synths.
I first played out with a JX-3p 25 years ago with a small band.
About 15 years ago as a solo artist, I used to play with 4 synths (all light cheaper synths D-5, XP-10, CS-2X and QS-6), a hardware sequencer (MMT-8) and a Boss recorder (BR-8) for some backing tracks and handling vocal effects.
5 years ago I played out with my Fantom-X6, Juno-Di, AX-Synth and a JP-8000.
A few weeks ago I took only two synths (Jupiter-50 and JP-8000) and it was good.
I will continue using two synths but I swapped out my JP-8000 with a JD-Xi. Now I only have one large case for the Jupiter and the smaller (lighter too) JD-Xi and it's carry bag.
Synthtron wrote:My current live rig has shrunk! I have always prefered to playout using my smaller lighter synths.
I first played out with a JX-3p 25 years ago with a small band.
About 15 years ago as a solo artist, I used to play with 4 synths (all light cheaper synths D-5, XP-10, CS-2X and QS-6), a hardware sequencer (MMT-8) and a Boss recorder (BR-8) for some backing tracks and handling vocal effects.
5 years ago I played out with my Fantom-X6, Juno-Di, AX-Synth and a JP-8000.
A few weeks ago I took only two synths (Jupiter-50 and JP-8000) and it was good.
I will continue using two synths but I swapped out my JP-8000 with a JD-Xi. Now I only have one large case for the Jupiter and the smaller (lighter too) JD-Xi and it's carry bag.
Anyone care to share what they are using live?
Looks like you are the only active poster at RC forums that's routinely performing. I believe LA Keys is a stage musician as well but haven't seen him here in a while. I started playing keyboards late in my days so I haven't done any gigs with a band although I have friends that do.
Glad you are traveling lighter as gear can get quite heavy the more you gig. When I was younger and going to high schoolI played some drums and we jammed out in the basement with friends.
I also get the feeling that most of us here perform solo in their studios.
Yeah, I was curious what others may be using live. I grew tired of lugging around all that stuff because In their protective cases gear can get pretty heavy and bulky quick.
Apologies for my absence of late (if anyone noticed :) ). The last few months have been a bit difficult due to redundancy and other things, and real life has taken over a bit. I'm back at work now, so we're building for the future again. In the long run it's all good. Here's a bit of a live rig history....
When I first started in bands (when I was young and pretty) I used to gig with a Juno-6 and a D-5 (everything is Roland unless specified).
When I came back to bands in about 2005 my live rig was the D-5 controlling an Alesis NanoPiano and a Juno-D controlling an SH-32. I didn't like the sounds that either of the D-5 or Juno-D made, so endless cables and a sub-mixer was a small price to pay.
In 2007 I upgraded to a Fantom X7, figuring it could do all and more than I had before, and the extra length of the X7 keyboard gave me more scope for layers and splits than the X6, with none of the back-breaking weight of the X8.
The X7 was my gig workhorse for the next 5 years. I *think* I went fairly deeply into RPS and layering/splitting (to the point where I more than once got accused of "just triggering samples", even though I only ever use the internal synth mainly due to the prohibitive file loading speed of the X).
The one thing the Fantom couldn't do for me was decent Hammond organs. Not ideal when you play mostly classic rock and Jon Lord/Deep Purple is your #1 hero. So, in 2009 she was joined by a Nord Stage EX. For about 2 years I did every gig with both. And together they are still a powerhouse. Each really excels where the other falters, so they complement each other really well.
Over time I joined a Rainbow tribute band (Rainbow Rising, now no more), and Firegarden had a line-up change that resulted in my using the Fantom/Nord Stage set up for the Rainbow gigs, and I slowly programmed (different) sound setups into the Nord, so now I use that almost exclusively for Firegarden gigs these days. Occasionally I'll add in a QSR for better strings/choirs than the Nord can offer.
My X7 got back out on the road and under the lights where she belongs late last year when I guested with a Guns n Roses tribute band for a couple of shows (I am probably the only musician in history who joined a GnR band explicitly to *get* some discipline).
Following the sad and untimely loss of our singer in March this year, The Blackmore Legacy (Rainbow/Purple tribute band) are tentatively considering a return to live work. The new Firegarden album is due for release on 17th October, and we're over halfway through writing the follow up. The album is all Nord Stage apart from one synth line in one track. Live, it's all been Nord Stage, but in the studio the dice fell in favour of the Fantom for that part.
I have to admit that very little of Roland's recent output has excited me. I spent an invigorating couple of hours with the Korg ARP Odyssey and MS20 mini lately, but they hail from the era that speaks to me, and were designed for live performance in a way that most modern keys don't seem to be, so no real surprise there.
Is any of this interesting? I hope so. If nothing else, Synthtron, you're not alone in "hitting the lights". I for one find it interesting how people's live rigs evolve over time as that is the moment where we take our music and make it public and 'real' beyond what the studio offers.
Where I am right now also impacts what I take out. In the past all of the performances I had done were one's where I was the only performer at the venue that evening.
Currently I have been working with another person to help cover vocals. We are just doing open mics at the moment. Playing open mic is very different than having an evening to yourself as an artist/performer. For open mic I needed to reduce what I take out because I have a limited time to set-up and tear down and now it is basically myself doing it with the aid of the singer. As long as we are playing these micro gigs I will go light. Also one thing is for sure over half of the crowd at bars could care less about the music or who's performing.
On rarer occasions, like perforing at a Christmas event a couple years ago, I had taken my Jupiter-80 out by itself. That thing in its case is heavy! K
I guess what I am saying in a nutshell is that the venue helps determine what I will bring out.
Quick question for all you giggers. I read (with some amusement) that the standard advice if you own a Kronos and want to play live with it you MUST, MUST, MUST use a UPS as it seems it will let you down; and with a 2 minute boot-up time... Seems ridiculous that such an expensive board requires additional equipment to make it reliable.
Does Roland gear absolutely need a UPS for live playing? I understand the insurance it provides - but have you ever needed it? Fair enough the Fantom takes a bit to boot up (not 2 minutes however) and the FA, Jupiter-80, JD-XA are up and running in seconds.
cello wrote:Quick question for all you giggers. I read (with some amusement) that the standard advice if you own a Kronos and want to play live with it you MUST, MUST, MUST use a UPS as it seems it will let you down; and with a 2 minute boot-up time... Seems ridiculous that such an expensive board requires additional equipment to make it reliable.
Does Roland gear absolutely need a UPS for live playing? I understand the insurance it provides - but have you ever needed it? Fair enough the Fantom takes a bit to boot up (not 2 minutes however) and the FA, Jupiter-80, JD-XA are up and running in seconds.
Just curious...
Hi Chello,
I'm not actively gigging but I do own the latest Kronos. Because the Kronos has a giant solid state hard drive it does require a lengthy boot up when you first power up the instrument. Therefore I believe what you read is accurate and one would need a continuous emergency power back up in case the electricity went out.
Interesting - I had an OASYS and it never needed a power contingency (it too had a long boot up time - just under 2mins even without the SSD) - that said I'm studio only so not an issue!
I use a power conditioner for all outside gigs or at places where I don't know the electrics. In most (*most*) indoor pubs and clubs in the UK the power is ok. The only time the Nord Stage has ever crashed on me was at a festival where the stage was powered from a generator and the current was very low.
Also, the Fantom X boots in a few seconds as long as you're not loading samples.
Synthtron, I agree that open mic is very different to a full gig. For any one-offs I do like that, I just take the Nord and a stand these days. Keep it simple and quick.
cello wrote:Quick question for all you giggers. I read (with some amusement) that the standard advice if you own a Kronos and want to play live with it you MUST, MUST, MUST use a UPS as it seems it will let you down; and with a 2 minute boot-up time... Seems ridiculous that such an expensive board requires additional equipment to make it reliable.
Does Roland gear absolutely need a UPS for live playing? I understand the insurance it provides - but have you ever needed it? Fair enough the Fantom takes a bit to boot up (not 2 minutes however) and the FA, Jupiter-80, JD-XA are up and running in seconds.
Just curious...
I use a Furman power strip for protection but no UPS. When I used my Fantom X6 it would take about 10 mi utes to load. Once it was switched on it stayed on for about two hours. Thankfully I never lost power but I had back-ups in case. Originally I had a recoder with backing tracks and then I used the USB storage on the Juno-Di to play backing tracks. Now I use the Jupiter-50 for backing tracks.
I have limited experience with Korg products. I have a microKorg amd had an MS-20 mini but got rid of it. I had tried an R-3 and an Micro-X a few years ago but they had defects right out of the box so I returned them and did not bother getting an exchange.
What is up with Korg using real small on some of their gear's displays which is not good for performing?
