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Okay, so I finally stopped talking about it and actually bought a VAX77


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Just placed an order for this:

Vax77-Foldable-76-Key-Keyboard.jpg

 

One can choose from red or black (chose black) and standard or heavy weight (chose heavy, because it's still lightning fast).

 

The website says it'll take 12 days to make, and ship shortly thereafter. More pics to come...

 

Oh, and because I don't want to start a second thread, Massive Attack was AMAZING last night. Can't believe it took this long to see them. :love:

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300px-Vax780_small.jpeg

 

Lol! That's what I thought too from reading the title.

 

...I should have known better as Infinite Response was right next to us for the last two NAMMs. :lol:

 

BTW AW - let me know how you like it in practice. For me their "heavy" action was still far too light.

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For me their "heavy" action was still far too light.

Yeah, it's certainly not a true piano-type action, but it appeared to offer the closest blend of usable piano performing and fast synth runs/drum programming.

 

Actually, every digital piano I've played sucks for fast synth runs/drum programming, and every unweighted synth sucks for piano. The VAX77 seems to get you 70% of the way to perfect for both

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Not to sound dumb but what is it? Never heard of it.

 

It needs some knobs. Who builds a controller these days without knobs? Looks like the sliders on the screen would be to small for any real-time manipulation.

 

They keybed sounds great but still why miss some important features like knobs? And it just seems kinda amateurish looking.

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Not to sound dumb but what is it? Never heard of it.


It needs some knobs. Who builds a controller these days without knobs? Looks like the sliders on the screen would be to small for any real-time manipulation.


They keybed sounds great but still why miss some important features like knobs? And it just seems kinda amateurish looking.

 

Well, it does offer Polyphonic Aftertouch! :thu:

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Well, it does offer Polyphonic Aftertouch!

No disrespect to the keybed that's for sure, but no knobs and a rediculous price tag to boot.

 

For the price I'd expect a large good ribbon controller, a good 12 knobs or so with nord light rings, sysex support(multi-byte even), some velocity sensitive pads, a nice xox set of pads, wooden waterfall keys, motorized faders, and a touch screen that didn't look like it was done by a twelve year old with a crayon. A popcorn maker on the back might help it sell as well.

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Might have something to do with the fold-flat design and trying to bring it to market

 

I'm very interested in one of these as well ... Need knobs ... ??? Put another controller on top ...

 

How much are these going for ... ???

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No disrespect to the keybed that's for sure, but no knobs and a rediculous price tag to boot.

The trick is that people will never agree on what makes a good knobby controller. Even if Infinite Response included a ton of controllers, a bunch of people would find fault in which controllers they included

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If I had the money, I'd get one in a heartbeat. Poly AT is huge, for one; you cannot know pad heaven without it. Plus it's light and compact. I would have to try the keyboard to see if I could adapt to it. I've adapted to the MIDIBOARD keyboard (which is not graded and is really just long wooden sticks whacking the sensors) and prefer it to my upright's.

 

The lack of knobs wouldn't bother me at all.

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I really wish they had reduced the cost by not making it fold up. Between the delicate machine precision required to manufacture it to fold out into a seamless keyboard, and the more expensive material the case needs to be made from to support that, this probably represents a good chunk of the production cost.

 

I'd be interested if they made a non-foldable version at a notably lower cost. They should be able to do that if they jettison the fold up feature, and switch to a light but durable plastic casing.

 

I agree that knobs and sliders aren't important. There are now many options available for adding those, via a box that sits right atop your keyboard. You can choose drum pads, sliders, ribbons, push buttons (both toggle, and switches), etc. I don't want the keyboard manufacturer to choose those for me, because it's never exactly what I want. I want to add that stuff myself. All I want in a keyboard controller is an action I really like, with aftertouch (channel pressure, anyway), and some pedal inputs. It's nice to have pitch and mod wheels, because those have to be located very, very close to the edge of the keyboard. But all the other stuff can be located upon a separate unit sitting atop the keyboard.

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I've been screaming forever that no one's made a professional-level controller

I completely agree, same with the construction of most synths but that price tag is way over what it should be at. A really really good controller should be at about $1k. If it's made of metal and wood then maybe $1.5k. That thing costs more than the majority of good synths that are out there which is rediculous.

 

But I do agree with your gripe, I've yet to find a good controller but I wouldn't pay $3k for what is basically poly after touch and not much else.

 

The folding thing is goofy. Just get a van instead, if your a musician your supposed to have a van.

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Is it small enough to fit in an overhead compartment in a soft case ... ???

 

I believe that was the original concept. That they achieved it and boast real key board players will leave the rest of their luggage and pet hamster in the freezing cold hold.

 

You may want to visit their site to confirm my memory is correct :lol:

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Thanks ... but I'm in no danger of buying one of these pups anytime soon ... Way too rich for my needs at the moment ...

 

But one of those and an Open Labs D-Beat would be an amazing combo for a serious air-travelling musician who doesn't want to check gear ...

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I completely agree, same with the construction of most synths but that price tag is way over what it should be at. A really really good controller should be at about $1k. If it's made of metal and wood then maybe $1.5k. That thing costs more than the majority of good synths that are out there which is rediculous.

Here's a list of features that may better explain why it's so much $$$.

 

But the big thing is that they're an American company, the thing's not mass-produced in huge quantities in a Chinese factory, and they had to redesign the entire keybed last year (back when it was $2500, the action was far inferior, and there were a bunch of colors and key weights). It's all supply and demand.

But I do agree with your gripe, I've yet to find a good controller but I wouldn't pay $3k for what is basically poly after touch and not much else.

Actually, I'll be most likely turning off poly AT most, if not all of the time. I'm in it for the build quality, action, portability, playlist functionality, and other goodies mentioned in the link above.

The folding thing is goofy. Just get a van instead, if your a musician your supposed to have a van.

Not in Los "Parking from Hell" Angeles. I'm hoping to snag a tiny A3 tdi later this year, and the VAX77 would easily fit in the trunk with a small keyboard amp and laptop rig. Then three of our Mensa-member supermodel/masseuse/gourmet chef groupies can ride with me.

 

A $3000 professional-level keyboard controller certainly isn't for everyone, but Infinite Response saw a market, and I got sick of waiting for Roland to revisit their A-series (no, the Cakewalk-branded price point things don't count).

 

It'll have to do until this guy's released. :D

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Comparing the Kurzweil MIDIboard, which cost $2500 in 1985, the VAX77 lacks 11 keys, 2 sliders, and 4 push buttons. I think pedal inputs are roughly equivalent. I prefer the MIDIboard's two wheels over the VAX's pitch wheel and mod slider. Still, I think $3k is reasonable for a well made master keyboard with PAT.

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Comparing the Kurzweil MIDIboard, which cost $2500 in 1985, the VAX77 lacks 11 keys, 2 sliders, and 4 push buttons...

 

 

And weighs less than half as much, is less than half the length folded, and has modern connections (MIDI/USB vs MIDI/cassette) built-in. $2500 in today's dollars would be a bit over $5k.

 

I love my MIDIBOARD but, if I had the bucks for one of these, it would stay at home while the VAX travelled.

 

BTW, it seems that the colour touchscreen can mimic sliders... ?

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