Seite 1 von 1

Virtual multi-contact keyboard

Verfasst: 15. Apr 2016, 07:57
von RamonCliment
Hi all !
Now we hear the 'new' sentence again : 'multi-contact keyboard' specially on the new XK-5 Hammond-Suzuki Keyboard and other kinds of discussion about playing original vintage keybs...
Would like to know if someone can hear the difference by sound compared to the B3 or another vintage Hammond for this feature or is only the playing feeling by the organist itself.
The last ist my personal opinion as I doesn't play so slow or legato that can hear a difference by playing a vintage multi-contact like my T-200 or playing a 'normal' keyboard like my XK-3 with the HX3 engine.

Any thoughs much appreciate !

Best regards,
Ramon.

Re: Virtual multi-contact keyboard

Verfasst: 15. Apr 2016, 12:32
von happyfreddy
First thing to know about virtuell key contacts to simulate the 9 key contacts of old Tonewheel Hammonds is :

We had this in the first HOAX 2 in the year 2011 !!

So it´s never a new feature as Hammond proclaimed it on Frankfurt Music Fair 2016 ...........

This was demonstrated at Tastenfestival Herdecke 2011
( As I know there exsists a video of this demonstration , hoping Carsten will post it here next days )

So far known at time the new HAmmond XK 5 uses so called triple rubber key contacts
To realize the 9 contacts with only 3 rubbercontacts each contact must drive 3 virtuell contacts.
There is no way to do it one contact after another or in a certain following series.
In a real Hammond You realize that the following of closed key contacts is never the same from key to key and it changes a little when Hammond organ gets older.
The pushdown distance of these "triple rubber contacts" is only 2 mm.
If there really is a possibility to realize on virtuell key after another or in certain following the software must contain a " time routine "
to realize this. My question then is about any latency .
As told in a video of "gearslutz" the XK 5 sends for each key a OWN MIDI BYTE !! For what ????
By the way : 9 key contacts and two keyboards = 18 MIDI CHANNELS !!! plus 8 contacts in pedal = 26 MIDI Channels
As I know we only have 16 MIDI CHANNELS ........

back to triple rubbercontacts vs one rubbercontact........
The often used FATAR keyboard with dynamic rubbercontacts has the same "contact way down" of only 2 mm distance to close all contacts.
So there is no feeling in playing with only one contact closed.
Opposite to playing at real Hammonds You play same way with pushed down keys even when only hit a key little.

The feature to hear one contact closed after another only can be demonstrated in slow matter.
It has nothing to do with active playing a organ.
So in my opinion no need of multi contact keyboard . Dynamic YES ( for piano etc ) but no more.

Btw : the Hammond B 3000 only had ONE key contact : I don´t remember this orgen was a failed development ....

Re: Virtual multi-contact keyboard

Verfasst: 15. Apr 2016, 16:21
von RamonCliment
Hi again !

Happyfreddy wrote :
The feature to hear one contact closed after another only can be demonstrated in slow matter.
It has nothing to do with active playing a organ.
So in my opinion no need of multi contact keyboard .


So I think as well and therefor my main question about.
Thanks for your feedback,
Ramon.

Re: Virtual multi-contact keyboard

Verfasst: 13. Mai 2021, 09:07
von Christian
I just stumbled across this video from May 2011. It demonstrates how HX3 (then called HOAX) works with a multi-contact keyboard (from 0:18). That was real nine contacts under each key like the real thing:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11Si_dzCuQs

Making such a keyboard is very expensive, and in fact you don't need to make this effort. HX3.5 today works with nine (in H100 mode even twelve) virtual contacts. They close one after another with uneven spacing, varying randomly, partly modulated by velocity if available, bouncing like real contact springs. In normal play, the keyclick that results is exactly the one you want.