So I'm going to eat my words right here for all of you to see. From the Electro 6 vs. Electro 4 thread:
cphollis wrote:@rustymike, I know you're trying to stay at 30 lbs or less, but the NP5 checks all your boxes at the "cost" of being 34 lbs. You said you're 99% piano. That means I'm pretty sure you will like this board as I do!
Don't mean to derail this thread. I'll get back on the Electro in a minute.
I appreciate the advice Chuck, but it's a non-starter. Seriously breaks Rule #1
I carry my entire rig (keyboard, stand, speaker, bag-o-cables/pedals) in a single trip. Right now, it's at about 61 pounds total. The Piano 5 is 7lb. heavier that the Stage HP, which puts me close to a 70-pound load. I'm in good health, but I'm 62 and not getting younger. Adding something that heavy will require me to rethink the way I lug this stuff.
Big band is a different vibe from pop/rock setups. With the exception of the drummer, 16 people carry their stuff in one trip. The elapsed time between in-the-door and downbeat is no more than 15-20 minutes. Half that at the end of the night. Quite often I'm out the door before the trumpets.
I also agree that the HP action is sloppy and noisy, and I'm not sure I want to buy another product with it, despite being used to playing it, particularly in a live situation. I'm not sure it's any better or worse than the Balanced Hammer action on Yamaha's CP73, which I hope to try out to tomorrow afternoon.
Blah, blah, blah. I just ordered a Piano 5 and Nord wheeled carry bag today.
I did visit Sam Ash's flagship store in NYC last week and alas, no CP73 to be found. They did have a CP88 which I played and liked the sound of. However, my typical overthinking crowds my head with too many voices. Thought I'd share a few of them with you:
- The organs on the CP are terrible. There are two B3 samples in the "Sub" category and they are both thin and very bright. And the product is subject to Yamaha's whims about what new sounds should be added, or even if there is a new OS update ever again. Even though the Piano 5 doesn't have an organ section, I can just import organ samples for those rare moments I'll need them. Some fine samples have been contributed by the generous forum members here, making it easy to do. My Electro 6 is here to stack on top should an event require more significant organ playing.
- The CP's piano samples sounded nice through my headphones at the store (I brought my own), but all but one are Yamaha branded products. They tend to be brighter and slightly thinner compared to the Nord pianos, and I strongly prefer warmer darker tones. I will say that Nord's selection of upright pianos is vastly superior, and I use the Amber Upright at least half of the time.
- While the UI on the CP is relatively easy to navigate, some of Yamaha's cryptic odd bits have made their way into the OS. Not a steep learning curve per se, but it did bring up another point . . .
- It's not just about buying a different brand's product, but choosing to buy into the brand ecosystem. I've been cruising around Soundmondo and yamahasynth.com, which are both sponsored and actively run by Yamaha employees. It seems a lot of the content and successes are controlled by the Big Y and less so by the participants. Very different flavor than this community, which is 100% driven by our own passions. Granted, we would like to see Nord's presence here from time to time, but our independence is our strength.
- I can't find any discreet information that indicates the the key action on the CP73 is considered a significant upgrade to the TP100 in the HP Nords. I can't find one to play and I'm not interested in going through the trouble of buying and returning if the playing experience is not improved.
All that said, The Piano 5 does mostly check the necessary boxes. @cphollis I can hear you laughing!
I started playing gigs in 1978. My first gig piano was a 1976 Rhodes Stage I with questionable action. It took a lot of effort to play that thing - I developed a set of mighty forearms during my time with that piano. Played it until 1985, then onto a DX7, Ensoniq Piano (anyone remember those?) and Roland U-20 for piano duty until I stopped playing in 1992. I came back to music in 2009 and have played all Nords: Electro 3SW, Electro 3HP and Stage 2EX HP. I'm pointing this out to show that I've never used a high quality keyboard action for live work.
I think at 62 years old it's time to treat myself to a decent piano action for an instrument I play a few times a week, year over year.
I know I said the weight of the Piano 5 is an issue for me, but I've decided to just grow up. I'm certainly capable of carrying the stuff, was just trying to avoid it. So I ordered the wheeled carry bag to drag it along, and will just be careful when navigating stairs. Hopefully the better action will help calm down the bull in the china shop technique and help me add some finesse to my live playing.
Don't judge
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