04 Hammond SK Pro - Piano & Ensemble Section Deep Dive

[@jazzplayer59]

Jim you have a very natural and easy way of demonstrating the features and specs that are most meaningful to the keyboard player...kudos!

[@billjacobs5577]

Thank you for answering the question about monosynth vs polysynth. This approach makes good sense.

[@bennerdan]

You're an incredible teacher. Thanks for sharing.

[@trapeenot]

Any plans to demo the new SkxPRO?

[@bob-cv8ni]

Thanks Jim for all your help videos. I have a sk1 with your custom tone wheel set. It shuts down different times when playing. So I bought the Skpro. Everyone loves it. My question is. I have piano up playing. I added legato strings. The strings play along with piano. How do I set the strings to work with my Hammond exp50j pedal. I want to play piano and bring in the strings gradually in some parts of a song with the pedal. In other words control strings or any other voice with the expression pedal. Sorry for the long text.

[@brianellis5164]

Wow, the SK Pro sounds great and great playing as always! Big step up in sound quality since the Sk1. Unless you are already planning on it, could you please demo the pipe organ, theatre organ and other transistor organ sounds in a separate video? I've always dreamed of having a pipe organ to play, I think this is the closest I will come to having a pipe organ.

[@JimAlfredson]

That's a good idea for another video, though I am not a pipe organist in any sense! I'll do my best.

[@brianellis5164]

@@JimAlfredson Thanks, I'm sure anything you play will sound good!

[@johnpaulgard]

Great video Jim thannkuuu

[@seanobrien1690]

You explain everything so well, hoping you can do some more now Skxpro is out with a full tutorial of your own combi with splits and all the sounds on all banks and a one about the bundle would be helpful.

[@pawelsz95]

07:10 the notes from G5 above have no dampers. That should be the reason. Different sample set used or just different settings for receiving info from damper pedal.

[@farmcop1wwmaga372]

If possible, could you please demonstrate the Rhodes with phaser effect? Thank you

[@axelkaschner7340]

Thank you for this great overview! Just a question: I know about the function "Master Transpose", however, is it possible to store a combination with a transposition?

[@MrFuntastico]

Hi Jim! Thx - so far absolutely great! Could you please demo the brass-sektion sounds? Think of all the soul, Tower-of-Power, EW&Fire kinda stuff. Yamaha Stage Keyboards are famous for them. Could the new SK come close? Cheers from Germany!

[@christopherstanbury7615]

Second that. Would love to hear more extra tones. Also, drums and MIdI record / phrases?

[@leamonstubbs3949]

Please more features for musician / bedroom Studios .... And if you could show away that it can take on third party accessories and for guys like me that are already using existing VSTs , external modules and stuff like that.... I do have to say the sounds in this demo video are Rich ,.. but definitely not mouth watering that's until your ear gets used to the Timber and a new plugin bundle comes out on sale 😆

[@davespaulding6978]

I can't wait to get this new keyboard. I need a time machine so I can go back and not lug 7 keyboards to a gig. I know the keys are probably more hammond feel than piano but I hope I tracks well so it feels like "oh ya that is how hard I hit the note". which to me is more important than weighted. BTW THANKS FOR THIS FANTASTIC DEMO SERIES !!!

[@SLHkeyboards]

Nice demo of sounds not cutting off when you switch allocations, and you also mentioned they won't cut off when you switch patches (though you might hear an effects change). What about when you switch combinations? Can those also be switched without cutting off sounds (even if again you might hear an effects change)?

[@JimAlfredson]

Yes, but with another caveat: If you're playing organ and switch you will hear a pause IF the organ model in the patch in the new combination is different than the from the old. But this is similar to how all the Hammond Suzuki instruments worked as far as I know. Smooth switching between organ presets IF the organ model selected is the same. So for example, there are three basic Hammond models in the SK Pro; A100, B3, and C3. If you change from one patch to another and they both use the B3 model, it will be smooth. If one uses the B3 but the other uses the C3, there will be a short pause and a break in the sound.

[@unfinishedbusinessrockband]

@@JimAlfredson really liking the Pro as a potential 1 keyboard set up for smaller / tighter gigs from my old set up of RD2000 & SK2.Tried a Nord Stage3 but too much menu diving to access multiple voices simultaneously (tho 1 feature I liked in that was the option of gradual blending from 1 voice to another in a split so there wasnt the sudden drop off.) But the accessible Volume knobs & menu simplicity on the Pro are a big positive & of course your videos are outstanding !! Now trying to figure out how to access other synth patches from synth allocation button which only shows the mono voices

[@JimAlfredson]

@@unfinishedbusinessrockband the synth allocation is only for the monosynth. The poly synth voices are under the ensemble allocation but can also be accessed under the piano allocation as well.

[@captainjackkeys2975]

Hi Jim! Your series on the SK Pro has been amazing - if it really is at the price point I'm seeing it at, there's nothing that can beat it! I was wondering though, seeing as I can't find a tone list or user manual anywhere... Does the ensemble section have any Mellotron/Tape Sound emulations? Choirs, strings, flutes, or brass? If you (or anyone else who knows) happens to see this and let me know, I'd really appreciate it! Thanks!

[@j0rdan18]

Jim, these videos are awesome - thanks. I love that there's so much flexibility in this board. How easy would it be to access the filters to do polyphonic synth filter sweeps live?

[@JimAlfredson]

That's a good question. From what I can gather, the mod wheel isn't really that assignable. Maybe they can open that up in a future OS update. I'll ask them. As of right now probably the only way to do what you're talking about is to put a wah-wah effect on, turn off the resonance, and use the expression pedal to sweep it. But assigning the modwheel to filter would be much better. I'll ask Hammond about it.

[@organaut]

Excellent video. Do you know if the Sk pro can import library voices? On page 162 of the owners manual under the subject of mass USB storage there is a block diagram in which library files are listed as storable content, however other than this there is no mention of library voices anywhere in the owners or reference menu I can find. I was hoping that sometime there would be a clarinet, oboe and English horn to complete the wind ensemble section.. I admit there’s always going to be someone like me who wants something obscure we can’t always have. I imagine I could conjure up a clarinet sound by using the edit facilities to change the waveform of one of the included instruments if library voices aren’t possible.

[@JimAlfredson]

I am sure that like the original SK series, the SK Pro series can load new sounds but my understanding is that it isn't user programmable. In other words, those sounds would have to come from Hammond-Suzuki and not individuals or third parties. I lobbied hard for them to allow users to import their own samples but alas, they chose not to do that.

[@organaut]

@@JimAlfredson Thanks for your reply… yes third party sample import would have been great. I myself make my own samples. Thanks for lobbying them anyway. It was worth a try

[@JimAlfredson]

@@organaut Who knows, they might be able to add it to a future update? I'll keep bugging them. That's what I do! :)

[@steveraschella8233]

Lovin this board but haven’t heard the clavinet yet

[@tommymandel]

16:49 - 18:06 = Yeah! Have they stated whether the SK Pro will read old SK-1 sounds, or provide a Transfer utility? thanks.

[@JimAlfredson]

I highly doubt it considering the SKX, which is based on the same tech as the original SK series, is not compatible with older SK files. Since the SK Pro has a totally different engine, I'm guessing the same is true.

[@williamconstain4989]

Jim very good explanation. Got it.

[@curtgonion9483]

Good video but no way am I able to get my piano to sound like yours. Maybe you could share the parameters you're using. My organ sounds great but my acoustic piano is totally unusable. Help!

[@stanley5394]

Anyone… Is the Sk’s keybed a completely smooth waterfall-type, or is there a small but perceptible lip at the edge?

[@JimAlfredson]

No lip. Smooth waterfall.

[@stanley5394]

@@JimAlfredson Thought so. Many thanks. I admire your skill and enjoy your playing.

[@davinitron]

HI, Jim! Fantastic video set! really informative. If i'm in the ensemble section, can I use the filter controls in the monophonic synth section to change the sound in real time?

[@JimAlfredson]

The filter controls in the monophonic synth section only affect the monophonic synth, but yes they are always active.

[@unfinishedbusinessrockband]

Happy bird day Jim ! I've noticed a almost cheesy tremolo sustain sound on the Acoustic Pianos - specifically the Stwd & Ycf voices. I menued thru settings,, effects, etc & ran headphones & then thru powered speaker but still there. Almost seems to have lost some lower frequency depth or ??? Any ideas ? I was thinking of reinstalling software, but will need to visit saving settings or combos. Thanks & have a great safe holiday !!

[@JimAlfredson]

Are you sure the modulation wheel is all the way down?

[@unfinishedbusinessrockband]

@@JimAlfredson DUH...

[@mrdali67]

Question, in each part of the ensemble sound. say you have a strings / Piano layer, is it possible to switch the damper pedal off on eg the Strings part so you can use the damper primarily on the Piano and not have the strings keep sounding while doing sustained Piano notes ?

[@JimAlfredson]

Yes. Each Allocation can have its own settings for the expression pedal and sustain pedal, as well as transposing and some other things. Then you can save that as a Combination.

[@Brahmb]

Hi. Thanks for this tutorial. It will help in the long run. However, I’m having an issue with mine. Every piano voice has a tremolo that I can’t seem to eliminate. Do I need to go into these patch edits to do that with every voice, or is there a button I’m overlooking? Thanks. BTW I have an SKX Pro.

[@JimAlfredson]

Make sure the modulation wheel is all the way down.

[@steveraschella8233]

Tried one in a store last week and seemed to me the non organ voices need huge amounts of tweaking even though the store had it in mono

[@gregorymcelyea877]

Jim, can the physical knobs and faders from the monophonic synth section also “effect” the polyphonic synth sounds? Or, do they work only in conjunction with the monophonic sounds? I can imagine that being able to adjust cutoff and resonance, for example, in real time with physical knobs/faders would be very valuable when playing pads in a worship context.

[@JimAlfredson]

You're right, that would be great. But unfortunately the sliders only affect the monophonic synth.

[@emmanuelguillard]

Hi Jim, great video, I still have one question about polyphony with Piano/Ensemble voices : do components use one voice each, which would mean layered components in a patch would use as much voices as they are layered ?

[@JimAlfredson]

I believe that is correct. The PIANO / ENSEMBLE share 128 polyphony. So if you had four components in each, that would be 8 voices, which would cut the polyphony down to 16 notes.

[@emmanuelguillard]

@@JimAlfredson Thanks a lot ! Will you dive into external MIDI control capabilities ? Full manual (found on the Hammond website 2 days ago) talks about 3 external MIDI zones.

[@AdrianHeil]

Great stuff here Jim! Definitely addressed a few questions I had. The smooth patch transition is great as well as some of those poly sounds. One sound I use a lot when a horn section is unavailable is a realistic brass section patch. Do you know if there’s something like that included? The SK1 has one but it’s not very usable as a realistic horn sound.

[@JimAlfredson]

There are a lot of brass patches in there but I haven't really explored them. I will do so.

[@AdrianHeil]

Thanks! A nice full brass section for the intro to Sir Duke for example.

[@tanner6871]

@@JimAlfredson Yes -- that would be helpful. Also a quick run-through of basses (acoustic and electric) would be appreciated.

[@MrFuntastico]

@@JimAlfredson Super! Love to hear!

[@sapca69]

is it possible to save the transpose settings and store in your favorites ?

[@JimAlfredson]

Yes!

[@dvamateur]

This is a very nice keyboard. The only issue is the price... at $2,800 for the 73 key version, a second hand mint 76-key Yamaha Motif XF7 would be a big competition here. I like the Hammond SK Pro, though. Excellent sounds, nice menu system, great aesthetics overall. For an organist is much better than the Motif XF7, of course. But for me, the Motif XF7 would be hard thing to give up on...

[@B3-R]

Drums?

[@bob-cv8ni]

I love this sk pro an expensive pedal.

[@winratj8464]

wow its so great, now ill chose this than roland f

[@organeu]

I love HAMMOND since 1977 and I've 3 HAMMOND tone wheels organs and 2 LESLIE (760/147) but NEVER I will buy a HAMMOND made in china. They are not serious at Susuki.

[@bob-cv8ni]

Thanks Jim for all your help videos. I have a sk1 with your custom tone wheel set. It shuts down different times when playing. So I bought the Skpro. Everyone loves it. My question is. I have piano up playing. I added legato strings. The strings play along with piano. How do I set the strings to work with my Hammond exp50j pedal. I want to play piano and bring in the strings gradually in some parts of a song with the pedal. In other words control strings or any other voice with the expression pedal. Sorry for the long text.