Moog Music Forum

Hi all - I've just finished recording a funk album with my band Resolution 88 - we recorded live as a quintet, just like Herbie did with Headhunters. I used all vintage keyboards including a suitcase Rhodes mk1 88, Hohner Clavinet D6, Solina String Ensemble, Moog Source, Moog Voyager, Moog Little Phatty Stage 2...

The album is mixed and ready to be mastered and you can hear some teaser clips here:
https://soundcloud.com/resolution88/res ... bum-teaser

If you like what you hear, please follow us at:
http://www.facebook.com/Resolution88
for news on the album release and gigs...
Thanks,
Tom

Really nice stuff. Welcome aboard.

Damn! Excellent work.

Wow! Great stuff Tom and band!

Thanks to you all for taking the time to check the clips out! I'm hoping the sound of the album will convince more people of the value of recording with dedicated, analogue synths like Moogs. I use all sorts of other modern keyboards in my everyday work and they're great, but there really is nothing like the real thing.
Please head over to http://www.facebook.com/Resolution88 and like our page to stay informed of when the album is going to be released.
Thanks,
Tom

Hey Tom, welcome

I've had this page opened for some days now, as a reminder to go listen to your music.
Nothing to add here: great, great stuff. Playing is flawless, groove is powerful, production is clean. Bravo

Talking about genuine instruments, have you recorded with the Nord or the real stuffs (Rhodes and Clavinet I'm thinking...) ?...

Hi Stiiiiiive,
Thanks for the reply - I'm really glad you like the clips - I can't wait for the whole album to be released!
As for Nord vs the real thing, this is a list of what I used on the album (that you heard in the clips):

Rhodes Suitcase mk1 88 1975/76 (absolutely mint condition, beautifully voiced and set up - the best Rhodes I've ever played or owned).
Solina String Ensemble
Moog Source
Nord Stage 2 (used for some synth sounds, all Mellotron samples *and* clavinet in preference to my mint condition D6 - I A/B'd the sound and actually the Stage 2 Clavinet often sounds as good as the real thing because the expression pedal I use allows a much more aggressive wah, than the Fender Fuzz Wah or Crybaby I own).
Moog Little Phatty
Moog Voyager
Alesis Andromeda A6

So - what you heard is one of the nicest Rhodes that exists (just no comparison with any imitation / emulation like the Nord Stage 2) but I actually used my Nord Stage 2 clavinet in preference to the real thing. I own a D6 and it's in flawless condition - I've got the plexiglass music stand, the little toolkit, the leg bag, the price tag, the Hohner cardboard box it came in from the factory... The Nord clavinet sound is great though, and the pick up settings are very very close to the original instrument!
So there we go!
Thanks,
Tom

Thanks for the details, Tom.

I play an Electro 3 and have always wondered how it *really* compares to a real Clavinet. I guess the sound is half of the impression, the keyboard action being the other one, right? Is the Nord Stage 2 (which action by the way...?) close enough for you?

Hi there - well I have a Stage 2, 88 key fully weighted model. Obviously that's a very different feel from the Clavinet action wise but I'm happy playing clavinet lines on either - you can still play ghost notes easy enough. So your Electro 3 should be even closer in terms of action to the real thing, and I think the sound is great. Certainly not a deal-breaking difference like it is with the Nord vs suitcase Rhodes...

stiiiiiiive wrote:Thanks for the details, Tom.

I play an Electro 3 and have always wondered how it *really* compares to a real Clavinet. I guess the sound is half of the impression, the keyboard action being the other one, right? Is the Nord Stage 2 (which action by the way...?) close enough for you?

While the nords and any digital version of clavinets can sound cool, they are a far cry from the real thing. Not just the action, but each individual key has a certain sound to it that creates complex inflections when interacting with other, as well the single coil pickups sound. Add to that the subtle noise and passive tone filters, as well as the change in sound from the position of keyboard itself in relation to the amp, the condition of the strings, and the variable sustain and decay that can't be modeled. The digital versions all sound very similar, while each individual clav has it's own sound, especially with the different models.

Examples of clav that sound very different from any digital version:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Wwk-EbxK88

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DdPEU7VL5s&t=1m35s

Thanks for the extracts. This is the usual answer though, no offense
I've never played an actual one but tend to consider a Clavinet is just like a guitar in that respect it can be played through different amps, with differents stompboxes, with very different feels…

The thing is people who have tried the real instrument often state the Nord have nothing in common with the real deal soundwise and action wise. While people who haven't tried the real instrument often state the Nord keyboards capture the quintescence of the Clavinet.

So for once that I meet somebody who plays an actual Clavinet but uses the Nord and finds it faithful/acceptable, I could not miss the opportunity to ask

Absolutely - I've got my Clavinet sat here and my Nord Stage 2 - I appreciate what was said earlier on about various Clavinet sounds not being attainable on the Nord Stage and how individual they are, but I find the Nord clavinet acceptable as a musical instrument that sits in a mix or live as a very good representation of the real thing. In other words,

During the recording you've heard clips of, we were playing live as a quintet; you're hearing live, one-piece takes (albeit with some keyboard overdubs). That meant that the Nord was a sensible choice for Clavinet because I'd already programmed a sound with the pick-up settings I wanted and I knew it would sit in the mix as well as a real one. I had to have the Nord on top of my suitcase Rhodes in order to cover all the synth and Clavinet patterns during live takes - having a Clavinet on top of there would have meant running the other keyboards around my sides (I already had a Moog on one side) and we were squeezed into a fairly small dry room!

So there's my justification - I won't compromise with a Rhodes but with the Clavinet, I'm happy to use the Nord because of the way it sounds in comparison to my (completely stock and mint) D6 and its role within my compositions (i.e. Herbie-style rhythmic motifs that can be achieved using a keyboard split so I can have other synths available to me live at the same time).

Thanks for explaining Tom

Hi all - I thought I'd bump this because I've now made a video to introduce the album and our band, 'Resolution 88'. There are Moogs all over this album - Moog Source, Moog Voyager and Moog Little Phatty Stage 2.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gm_jLvTwR_U

Thanks,
Tom