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NAMM (Part 1)

Article from One Two Testing, August 1985

Shredder goes to New Orleans for hot news from America's major instrument show... scoop


"Thank you for flying USA Air to New Orleans. Remember, the safest part of your journey is now over... be careful on them roads." Bearing in mind Americans and planes over the last couple of months I wondered... However, we were here to be hijacked by technology, not terrorists.

It was time for NAMM, America's major instrument fair, split between two convention halls in the muggy armpit of the Mississippi. Gear there was a plenty from many lands, of which we shall now reveal (with a part two next month).

But a warning. All prices quoted are in dollars-only a rough guide to the ball park price in England. Don't do the conversion and expect them to match precisely. Now read on...

GUITAR SYNTHS



Yes, they're back. Three major developments here, two from American companies, the third breaking Roland's contemplative silence on the subject since the GR700.

The-simplest and most successful sounding is the IVL Technologies Pitchrider 7000, a pitch-to-MIDI converter that uses a hex (six output) pickup mounted close to the bridge without any need for holes. No cause for taking an ⅛th in bit to your favourite guitar. Sound obviously depends on what you connect it to. The IVL booth opted for a Yamaha TX7 and used it well — did you know you can play the entire Star Trek theme tune on six strings?

A smart and experienced demonstrator can cover a lot, especially when the worth of a guitar synth depends on the speed and clarity of its triggering. Still, in a five minute demo, IVL's strummer covered all the fretboard with fast mono and polyphonic stuff and I didn't hear one glitch.

The Octave Plateau purpose-built guitar did jump occasionally during a demo that rarely strayed from the same four frets, and it behaved less impressively running a massive Oberheim Matrix 12 than the Pitchrider on a TX. The 7000 can follow string bends and assign each string to a different MIDI channel. USA list, $995.

The Octave Plateau is a much stranger breed, though again is MIDI based to run a separate synth. No pitch-to-MIDI conversion here, it's closer to the Synthaxe idea of a microprocessor which "scans the frets and strings for activity". It's a purpose built and frankly lumpen instrument, trading the advantage of an onboard alphanumeric pad and display to change programs, for an ungainly wooden body.

Unlike the Synthaxe it is also a normal scale guitar with a single pickup hidden beneath the surface. Two touch plates either side of the strings let you introduce modulation effects. It will detect string bends (there are sensors at the nut) and the strings can be strummed or activated just by pressing them against the frets. No price, but unlikely to be cheap.

When Roland first attempted a bass version of their guitar synth - for the new G77 is just that — they hit one snag. Pitch-to-MIDI conversion involves determining the frequency by listening to the string for a split second-ideally one cycle, two to be sure. It's this wait for a complete cycle that can introduce a delay, and the lower the note, the longer the cycle and the greater the delay.

Their solution has been to produce a separate microprocessor for each string (the 707 has one for all six). This way the machine already knows what approximate area the frequency will be in and can come to a decision faster. A safe bet that the next six string guitar synth will follow the same route. USA price for the G77 is $3200.

The G77 controller is an even longer version of the silver, over-armed 707 and connects to a 64 memory floor unit bearing the guts of a JX8P. Incidentally the Roland demo was brilliant and the bass sounded strong both synthed and natural. The American salesmen were less impressive.

"And in this floor unit is a JX8P synth."
"How many notes does it play?"
"Four, of course, there are only four strings on a bass."
"Then it's half a JX8P."
"No sir, it's a JX8P."
"How many notes does a JX8P synth play?"
"Eight."
"Then it's half a JX8P." "No sir..."

And so on. Forget the salesmen and listen to the bass whose brain appeared to work at a much faster rate.

THE SAMPLERS AND THE SAMPLED



The earth still blazes wherever the Ensoniq Mirage lands (now with it's own Apple based sound analysis software) but otherwise, apart from rumours of Sequential tackling sampling, there were no fresh combatants entering the field.

Opinion may be swinging away from the Emulator II towards the Kurzweil as the most realistic self-contained keyboard sampler. But it's a fickle audience that can change its mind at every demo. The Kurzweil now comes in a module — no keyboard — and a piano weighted MIDI-ed keyboard controller — no module. The keyboard is impact sensitive which measures the force with which the key lands (closer to a real piano action) rather than the speed at which it is depressed (common velocity sensitivity).

360 Systems MIDI Bass sample box


The first device you saw as you crossed the Namm portal was the 360 Systems MIDI bass — four multi sampled bass synth/guitar sounds ready to be played back monophonically by sequencer or keyboard. It can fix its own keyboard split points and note priority, is touch sensitive and would be brilliant for $300 but is perhaps over specialised at $499. Sound chips can be swapped.

KEYBOARDS



Some got bigger, some got smaller. Korg enlarged upon the digital/analogue hybrid of the DW6000 via the new DW8000 — 64 memories, 16 digital waveforms and eight note polyphony, plus — aha! — touch sensitivity, a notable omission on the 6000.

Waveform panel for the Korg DW8000


It was very fashionable at NAMM to include some form of digital delay onboard your synth. A few people cheat slightly by retriggering the notes. Korg are one of those who go serious with a programmable DDL capable of echo, flanging, chorus, etc.

The extra waveforms fill in between the 6000's shapes, offering extra shades to the sounds rather than startling innovations. Neat package. Similar cosmetics. All buttons.

The mighty — and I use the word advisedly — Oberheim Matrix 12 has been slimmed to the Matrix 6, a six voice velocity-sensitive synth. At under $2000 it's unlikely to keep all the 12's facilities but it does retain the Matrix Modulation system which can use — ready? — keyboard velocity, release velocity, after touch, three levers, two pedals, three envelope generators, two ramp generators, tracking generator, portamento generator, vibrato and keyboard gate to control — pause again — frequency, pulse width, waveshape of both DCOs, oscillator mix, frequency, resonance, most sections of the three envelope generators, frequency and output level of the two LEDs, portamento rate, FM amplitude, linear VCA, exponential VCA, and the colour of the front panel which goes from red to blue the harder you press. I lie, but it's not a bad idea. Lots of split facilities, but easier to grasp than the Matrix 12 and still bears the Oberheim sound.

The Kubicki Factor Bass


BASSES



Secret telepathic powers have enabled bass makers to agree on shaving all headstocks down to the same width as the neck. Very popular that, at the moment.

Two outstanding stars, apart from the several excellent American custom made instruments rarely seen here, Tobias being a fine example.

1) The Kubicki Factor bass. Brilliant, imaginative piece of design which blends function with style. It solves the dead spot problems for which players are increasingly turning to graphite, but retains the warmth and response of a wooden neck.

The neck is of 1/16th in strips of rock maple that has been peeled from the tree, then glued together — and this raises the natural resonance of the neck above that of the strings (see separate BMF ESP story). A patented flip up clasp on the E string can drop it to a low D (the extended headstock has two extra frets). Passive and active eq on an economy of controls and the option of high or low impedance outputs.

An 80:1 ratio fine tune tailpiece finishes off the unusual but cool style. Watch for it.

Aria has also been dabbling with necks, making them wider and fitting six strings for the Andy West model (a low B and a high C), on a 34 in scale. The neck is one of Moduluses graphite jobs, clamped with a graphite nut so the roller trem (yes there's one of them too), won't unsettle the strings. Andy West, who was demonstrating, opted for a wide neck so you can still get your fingers in and snap the strings.

Think of all those extra octave riffs.

Ibanez call a halt at five strings for their Roadstar series II, Yamaha too on the BB5000, both offering additional lowness — seems to be the trend. Another notable Yamaha four string is the trim, elongated, futuristic BX-1 (not unlike the Roland bass synth controller, as happens). They seem very proud of their 8-pole piece humbuckers.

DRUMS



America is much wackier with its drum technology than England. Take the Rims kit which uses Remo's pretensioned heads and places them in small semi-circular grips no more than an inch deep. The tension of the grip and the positioning of the four cushions against the Remos recreate the resonance of a shell — so the story goes. Connoisseurs may argue, but there is a remarkable extra depth, bottom end and richness from the Remos when attached. A whole kit packs in to something half the size of a bass drum case.

Rims by PureCussion did away with the shells. Shark do away with the bass drum altogether. Reasoning that on electronic kits, only a tiny part of the bass pad is ever hit, they incorporated the trigger in the pedal itself. The footplate with a roller beneath it, pressed down on a cam shunting it against a transducer built into the front of the pedal. Out comes the trigger signal which leads direct to the sound generator. Ideal for double bass drum set ups where there's little room for the second pad.

Also from Remo themselves, gold and chromed heads, snap off lugs for quick changing of skins, and a new kit with claw hooks on the lugs that let you work your own tunings on the firm's pretuned heads.

DRUM MACHINES AND SEQUENCERS



If you're lucky you may one day see Groovy Bob Connelly, Linn National Sales Manager and international thrill seeker demonstrate the Linn 9000. I did, and it was seriously beautiful, you crazy nuts. But as you already know about the 9000 and the Emulator SP-12 (page 89), let's press on.

Yamaha's RX21 digital drum machine.


The Yamaha RX21 partners the DX21 synth... digital drum samples, real or step time programming, 44 pre-set patterns, 56 programmable ones, four songs (512 part max), programmable accents and MIDI. The drums are three toms, snare, open/closed hi-hat, bass, cymbal and claps. Fits snugly on top of the TX7 and QX7 units. And cheap.

Many are the boasts about expandability and future developments. Big wet kiss to Oberheim for actually doing it. They've produced an add-on unit to their established DX machine, rather than stumping up with a brand new box. The Stretch supplies four more sounds and makes available updated features such as variable clock, auto start and non-stop mode changes.

A few other American budget drum synths around, but unadventurous compared to Britain's home grown gear (yeah!)

New Orleans also drowned in sequencing software, but to be honest, a lot of it was unadventurous compared to Bri... (see paragraph above).

Korg's SQD-1 MIDI recorder.

Korg offered one of the few, new, free standing sequencers, the SQD-1 MIDI recorder (with own micro disc drive, no less). The two track, record/bounce method of building sequences and the ability to run 16 separate MIDI tracks are strongly suggestive of Yamaha's QX7, however, the 15,000 internal note memory and the 30,000 notes per diskette total are far greater.

SLIGHTLY WEIRD THINGS



For a start the TXP17 which replaces the keyboard of most small Casios with two typewriter keyboards strapped down to the chassis so you can play accordion style. Yours for $729. Aren't Casios about £50?

Remember the Lyricon wind synth? Cutec do. They have a three octave, clarinet-fingering wind controller for MIDI synths responding to breath pressure. $2195.

A brand new pink, Paisley Fender Tele and then, already on the racks of a certain Japanese competitor — a brand new pink Paisley Te... sorry, can't say it.

Roadworks' 'Footloose' remote effects pedals. A floor unit switches effects when instructed by a four button pad, Velcro-ed to a clear triangular holder that slips over the shaft of any convenient control on your guitar.

Aluminium-coned loudspeakers from Hartke via Guild. According to the brief they transmit sound three times faster than paper cones, are stiff so add less colouration, are impervious to atmospheric conditions (paper can absorb moisture which alters its response), have an extended range and help power handling by acting as their own heatsink. According to the ears they sound outstandingly clean and clear, and could be heard crisply, from a long way off.

MIDI



You will be glad/horrified/intrigued/drunk to know keyboard manufacturers are expecting a cheap sampling onslaught. Discussions took place at NAMM on protocol for bulk transfer of sampling data via MIDI. Full marks for forethought, but it seems that existing rival systems may be so fundamentally different as to preclude extensive bit swapping. Future samplers from the major Japanese manufacturers may be closer in spirit, however.

AMPS



Peavey's Programmax 10

Sometimes it seems that the Peavey factory covers four states, such is the mass of gear its R&D department pumps out. Little chance of covering all of it, but this year I liked the Programmax 10 with 10 memories for setting up the 3-band eq and Saturation circuits, all MIDI compatible. Just over 200W of poke through a pair of 12 in Scorpions and could be between £800/900. Several chorus amps include a full stereo combo with two amp-sections each driving its own 12 in Scorpion to preserve the true effect. A full range PA cab, the 302DHT, carrying two 15s, two 10s, high frequency and super high frequency units and a passive four-way crossover (linking neatly with Peaveys bi- and tri-amping philosophy). And two combos for the electronic drummer.

Trace-Elliot are another company to consider the electronic percussionist's lot and the enormous demands his gear makes. The wide frequency range requires a broad speaker system, hence the 18 in, 10 in and tweeter configurations, and the snap of the sounds calls for very high peaks of 'short term power', and for that they've gone for MOSFET output devices, very large transformers and 'computer grade capacitors'. Based on experience with their bass amps (One Two, July issue) they've developed the System 400 (200W plus 200W stereo head and two 1018 cabs) and the System 800 (400W plus 400W stereo head) which can be used to bi-amp into a 1024 mid/high unit and a 2x18 in bin. Expensive, undoubtedly, but it may very well be the first time you've ever heard your electronic kit properly, as nature (Simmons) intended. Next month, guitars, recording and software.


Series - "NAMM"

Read the next part in this series:

NAMM (Part 2)
(12T Sep 85)


All parts in this series:

Part 1 (Viewing) | Part 2



Previous Article in this issue

Fair Games

Next article in this issue

Boss DSD-2


Publisher: One Two Testing - IPC Magazines Ltd, Northern & Shell Ltd.

The current copyright owner/s of this content may differ from the originally published copyright notice.
More details on copyright ownership...

 

One Two Testing - Aug 1985

Donated by: Colin Potter

Series:

NAMM

Part 1 (Viewing) | Part 2


Show Report

Previous article in this issue:

> Fair Games

Next article in this issue:

> Boss DSD-2


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