Summer NAMM 2000 Report
Part 3
Once again we dive into the sometimes noisy, sometimes chaotic, but always exciting heart of Summer NAMM 2000…
KORG: The mighty Triton synth was there in its new configuration, the Triton Rack ($2500). Just like the name says, it’s a rack version of Triton, with a whopping eight expansion slots! There was also a Triton ADAT interface ($200) specifically for the Triton Rack.
For those keyboardists who love the unique sound and feel of a Hammond organ, the CX3 Combo Organ ($2600) is for you. Thanks to some incredible modeling technology and a keyboard action and response that you’ve got to try to believe, the CX3 brings you the distinctive sound and feel of a real Hammond organ. The sound is big, full, majestic… well, what can we say. It sounds – and feels – like a Hammond!
The latest addition to Korg’s Toneworks line is a guitar pedal multi-effects unit called the AX100G ($250). It offers some great models on everything from acoustic to high-gain amplifiers, and features two drive channels so you can switch the same program between clean and drive channels. It also packs a tuner, a variety of drum patterns, and phrase sampler. There’s even something called “virtual feedback” meaning you can get feedback without having to crank up the amp. Yeah, we know. What’s the fun of that? But your neighbors/room mates/spouse will probably appreciate that feature.
Last up is the PA 80 Professional Arranger ($2500), a performance keyboard with two separate syncable sequencers for dance mixes, live medleys, and other stuff.
MARSHALL: A Marshall guitar and amp package. What took them so long? This one features 15-watt Marshall amp with a custom built guitar. The guitar boasts custom wound hot humbucking pickups in the lead position, plus two single coil in the middle and bridge positions. It comes with a strap, tuner, gig bag, set of strings, and Marshall picks, and retails for $429. And it looks cool, too!
ROLAND: There’s always a lot going on at the Roland booth, and this year was certainly no exception. One of the biggie new releases was the VGA-7 COSM guitar amplifier ($1695). It’s an impressive entry into the performance arena for Roland’s much admired COSM modeling technology. Guitarists have their pick of 20 distinct and authentic amp models, including vintage and modern tube amplifiers, solid state and acoustic instrument amps, and also excellent speaker cabinet simulations. Six of the amps included here have NEVER appeared in any previous Roland COSM models. Gain, volume, 3-band EQ and presence controls are customized for each amp model. Then there’s the ability to simulate 26 guitar types – all manner of electric, acoustic, hollow-body, and even synth guitars. There’s also a full-range speaker system (not just a midrange guitar speaker), a fantastic multi-effects system, loads of memory… But the feature that any performing guitarist can appreciate is how easy the VGA-7 is to operate. Most of the controls are analog style, easily accessible via knobs and buttons for quick, precise selection. We were fortunate enough to witness a demo of the VGA-7 and can testify as to its high ranking on the WOW! and GIMME! scales.
The latest entry into their V-Drum line was the Studio Set ($2595), intended as a kit for the budget conscious. Any of you who have ever heard any of Roland’s V-Drums in action know how great they can sound, and the Studio Set delivers in that respect. “Powered” by the TD-8 percussion sound module, the Studio Set gives drummers access to over 1200 high-quality drum, percussion and instrument sounds and 64 distinct drum kits. All the other features which have made the V-Drums so popular are also here, like V-Editing, positional sensing, and ambiance effects. The pads themselves are dual-trigger PD-9’s and PD-7’s.
And what about workstations? OF COURSE there were workstations! Two of them! We’ll tackle the V-890 first. The V-890 ($1995) is a completely self-contained 8-track digital studio workstation with full 24-bit sound. In many respects, it’s like the VS-880EX, with two stereo effects processors and dozens of effects algorithms like a Mastering Tool Kit and COSM speaker modeling. Best of all, you can create your own mastered CDs with Roland’s optional CD Recording System. A dedicated CD-RW Mastering button gives you instant access to the mastering menus, while a new CD Writing Mode feature provides fast CD burning and duplication. Their second offering in the workstation category was the VS-840GX ($1295). One of the coolest things about the VS-840GX is its versatility. It seems to cover all the bases – COSM speaker modeling, jam tracks, .WAV file conversion – at a great value. Essentially, the VS-840GX expands on the concept of Roland’s VS-840EX by offering twice the virtual tracks of the previous model (128 in all) and a 250MB Zip drive. The onboard effects include reverb, chorus, and delay, as well as COSM guitar and bass amp models and a bass simulator. It comes with an additional Zip disk with Jam tracks for honing your musical chops and songwriting.
Speaking of Roland’s VS workstations, Roland is also bringing out a rackmount CD burner ($795) specifically for the VS models. It fits in a single rack space and has an extra bay for “future enhancements.”
They were also showing off their new 24-bit digital reference monitor, the DS-50A. These were very compact nearfield monitors with built-in bi-amplifier design and flat frequency response. Another new monitor, the RSM-90, is a two-way passive monitor based on Roland’s acclaimed DS-90 design. Made for nearfield monitoring, home theaters, and multimedia presentations, the RSM-90’s can handle up to 270W of input power. The sound is stunning!
Yes, yes, y’all, and it don’t stop. Roland’s newest entry into the DJ market is the EF-303 Groove Effects ($595), a tabletop effects mixer for DJs, remix artists and musicians. As far as effects for DJs go, the EF-303 is sort of like Roland’s Greatest Hits. There are 16 of Roland’s best and most popular effects algorithms, everything from the essentials like reverb, flanger and delay, to cutting-edge filter, Isolator, Slicer, Voice Transformer and even a cool DSP monosynth. Like all the best DJ gear, the EF-303 is very “hands on”; 4 control knobs, 16 sliders and a grab switch. But for those dynamic effects changes that are too fast for the human hand – effects changes that DJs and dance floors love – there’s an excellent Step Modulator, letting you enter up to 16 steps per pattern, using the sliders to quickly set effects values or pitches for the DSP synth. Onboard MIDI start/stop controls and an Auto BPM counter make it easy to synchronize the EF-303 with vinyl, CDs, and other DJ gear.
Standing on what some might say was the opposite end of the spectrum from the DJ arsenal was an equally impressive (in its own right) digital piano for the home market. The MP-300 ($1795) features an 88-note hammer-action keyboard and 64-voice polyphony. Stereo-sampled sounds include piano, electric piano, harpsichord and strings. There are also built-in reverb and chorus effects, 3 pedals (damper, soft, sostenuto), 30W speaker system, and dual headphone inputs.
Finally, the first four titles from their VariPhrase Sound Library were getting a workout while we were there. These were created specifically for use with the VP-9000 VariPhrase Processor. All disks contain Solo-encoded samples, including both vocal and solo instruments. Titles are: Volume 1 – “Gospel”; Volume 2 – “World”; Volume 3 – “Pop & Rock”; and Volume 4 – “Jazz/R&B”. Trying to describe how amazing these disks sounded on the VP-9000 is… well, whoever first said “Writing about music is like dancing to architecture” probably wasn’t trying to describe the VariPhrase Sound Library, but they could have been.
BOSS: Two old faves were enjoying a triumphant return in the Boss booth in their new and improved versions. The AW-3 Dynamic Wah and PH-3 Phase Shifter ($179 each) expand on the originals (the AW-2 and PH-2), delivering the vintage effects that have made the pedals guitar staples, while at the same time adding some great new features. The AW-3 Dynamic Wah recreates all the classic “wah” effects, giving you a choice between fixed and auto wah settings. Or you can add an optional expression pedal for Pedal Wah effects. But the AW-3 also adds the new “Humanizer” mode. This effect lets you create some really cool human voice type sounds (it’s the first compact pedal to feature this kind of effect). There’s also a dedicated bass input. The PH-3 Phase Shifter features the classic up and down cycles, as well as new Rise and Fall effects – upward or downward moving sounds. There’s also phasers in 4 different stages (4, 8, 10, 12), plus a Step effect. You can sync the phasing effects by simply tapping the pedal to the tempo you want.
That’s all for now. To be continued tomorrow…