Members Dubhe Posted September 21, 2009 Members Share Posted September 21, 2009 Hi Harmony Central Community *My First Post here* I had a roland kc-550 that I blew out this week + I need a great amp for about a grand. I was looking at the Motion Sound KP-500SN, Traynor KR or Roland KC-880. I realize that these amps are fairly new and that may be why I cant find many reviews for them. Does anyone have any reccommendations on what to get? Or tell me some of the pros and cons with the amps I mentioned? I am looking for something to gig with and rehearse comfortably with a hard hitting drummer + bassist + guitarrist + vocalist. I do some psychadelic rock music along with electronic midi -- so I use some rotary organ.. some electronic bass sounds, strings, piano, leads, fx you name it... Thanks alot for your help -dub Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members evildragon Posted September 21, 2009 Members Share Posted September 21, 2009 You can't go wrong with Traynor or Motion Sound, they are highly recommended around here. With Roland... bleh. Don't do it again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members johnnydr Posted September 21, 2009 Members Share Posted September 21, 2009 Yup Traynor K4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GigMan Posted September 22, 2009 Members Share Posted September 22, 2009 I have had the Motion Sound KP-200S for some years now, love it - just wish it had a little more power... that new KP-500SN model should do the trick for just what you're looking for though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dubhe Posted September 22, 2009 Author Members Share Posted September 22, 2009 well the motion sound amp is a 500W vs the other two which are 300 + 330 . Does that mean I can expect better sound at higher volume with the motion sound? Almost ready to pull the trigger... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Tusks Posted September 22, 2009 Members Share Posted September 22, 2009 Barbettas are small, clean and loud. I love mine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Darkstorm Posted September 22, 2009 Members Share Posted September 22, 2009 JBL Eon 15" powered PA speaker. Pair if you need lots of air movement from not useing the house PA for main sound. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dave Bryce Posted September 22, 2009 Members Share Posted September 22, 2009 Another +1 for the Motion Sound. I have the KP200s, and it's fine for most venues. Bigger venues I either have the sound man bleed a touch of keys into my monitor (love the stereo DI's built into it!), or bring a sub. Usually the first option.... dB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GigMan Posted September 22, 2009 Members Share Posted September 22, 2009 Another +1 for the Motion Sound. I have the KP200s, and it's fine for most venues. Bigger venues I either have the sound man bleed a touch of keys into my monitor (love the stereo DI's built into it!), or bring a sub. Usually the first option.... dB Dave - when you talk about the "stereo DI's" on your KP200S, you mean the L/R XLR Outs on the back of it, right? They are handy - but who runs monitors in stereo... does your sound guy? If not - and the monitors are only in mono - coudn't you just run him your Left output? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DJKeys Posted September 23, 2009 Members Share Posted September 23, 2009 I play through a Tech 21 Power Engine 60. I was looking for a power amp for guitar as I use a POD Pro modeler, so I bought it for guitar, and the keys sound great through it as well. Excellent active tone controls and XLR out to the board. Plenty loud. 32 pounds. Had a Barbetta, SRM 450, and others. This is the best playback I have owned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dave Bryce Posted September 23, 2009 Members Share Posted September 23, 2009 Dave - when you talk about the "stereo DI's" on your KP200S, you mean the L/R XLR Outs on the back of it, right? They are handy - but who runs monitors in stereo No one I know... If not - and the monitors are only in mono - coudn't you just run him your Left output? The DI is for the mains, not just the monitors - I like to bleed a touch of keys into the main mix...keeps me from having to blast my amp so the audience can hear me - and two of my bands do run stereo to the mains if/when they can live, and always do at practice. More than not, I just tap one side or the other for sure though. dB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SpaceNorman Posted September 23, 2009 Members Share Posted September 23, 2009 How many tone generators in your rig? Personally, I'd look to a "personal PA" sort of setup. A Yamaha Stagepass setup fits your budget at MAP pricing. A small mixer and powered speakers or passive speakers / power amp setup would be killer too. I've played through a couple of the "stereo" amps and don't think they can really compare with my mixer and speaker setup. They're certainly less money and easier to haul - but when it comes to sound performance, I don't think they can hold a candle to "separates". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GigMan Posted September 23, 2009 Members Share Posted September 23, 2009 No one I know... The DI is for the mains, not just the monitors - I like to bleed a touch of keys into the main mix...keeps me from having to blast my amp so the audience can hear me - and two of my bands do run stereo to the mains if/when they can live, and always do at practice. More than not, I just tap one side or the other for sure though. dB Oh, yes - I see what you mean: run from the L/R XLR outputs to the house PA, which can feed it in stereo to the mains, mono to the monitor mix... yes, I do the same thing. Sounds great in stereo thru mains if the PA is being run in stereo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dubhe Posted September 23, 2009 Author Members Share Posted September 23, 2009 How many tone generators in your rig? Personally, I'd look to a "personal PA" sort of setup. A Yamaha Stagepass setup fits your budget at MAP pricing. A small mixer and powered speakers or passive speakers / power amp setup would be killer too. I've played through a couple of the "stereo" amps and don't think they can really compare with my mixer and speaker setup. They're certainly less money and easier to haul - but when it comes to sound performance, I don't think they can hold a candle to "separates". Yeah I hear what you are saying -- That would be my dream but I dont really have the knowhow to put it together the way I would want it not to mention I am limited on funds and time to make it 'work'. I have 2 keyboards that I play in conjunction pretty much all the time. I know I want something that can really go on the low and mids. I really thought my KC-550 sounded good but just didnt have the overall volume power + I found myself maxing it out too often -- Whatever I get it has to be something I can transport from rehersals to gigs hopefully in one solid piece considering I have two keyboards as well and not much setup cleanup time. I have the feeling that of the three I mentioned (Motion Sound KP-500SN, Traynor KR or Roland KC-880), I am really going to miss having a 15" speaker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GigMan Posted September 23, 2009 Members Share Posted September 23, 2009 Yeah I hear what you are saying -- That would be my dream but I dont really have the knowhow to put it together the way I would want it not to mention I am limited on funds and time to make it 'work'. I have 2 keyboards that I play in conjunction pretty much all the time. I know I want something that can really go on the low and mids. I really thought my KC-550 sounded good but just didnt have the overall volume power + I found myself maxing it out too often -- Whatever I get it has to be something I can transport from rehersals to gigs hopefully in one solid piece considering I have two keyboards as well and not much setup cleanup time. I have the feeling that of the three I mentioned (Motion Sound KP-500SN, Traynor KR or Roland KC-880), I am really going to miss having a 15" speaker The MS KP-500SN has two 12" woofers, which probably puts out more bass than just one 15" - if that's what you're looking for... BTW, Dubhe - SpaceNorman is right: a mixer w/spkrs. would kick w/a little more musical firepower but w/only 2 kybds. I think one of these one-piece stereo amps would be just fine for you need. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dubhe Posted September 23, 2009 Author Members Share Posted September 23, 2009 So no fans of the roland eh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members frogmonkey Posted September 24, 2009 Members Share Posted September 24, 2009 Some people around here will stand up for the Roland. Personally, I demoed one next to a JBL EON 15 G2 and it was no contest. The Eon was clearly superior. Better bass, more accurate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Keyrick Posted September 24, 2009 Members Share Posted September 24, 2009 So no fans of the roland eh? I have two KC-550's, and yes they get poo-pooed on this board. I run a PC3x and a VK-8 through them and usually use only one for a gig. That being said, I use it as a stage monitor, not as a backline. I run everything stereo (except the stage monitor) and run the stereo line out to the PA. I find that the stereo mixer in the 550 a nice feature. That is the main reason that I like it. I have a backline system as well which consists of a custom made cabinet with two JBL 2226 15" speakers and two MR 825 full range cabinets, powered by a Crown K1 amp and a Mackie 1202 mixer. This system sounds much better than the KC-550 pair, but it is just not worth the work to set it up for every gig. I think you will have a hard time finding a keyboard amp that is louder than a KC-550. Many of those mentioned above can sound better. I know that I have popped the HF driver on my KC twice trying to keep up with the rest of the loud band that I play in. So if you need a loud stereo backline, I would say that you are best served by going the mixer-powered speaker route, rather than a keyboard amp solution. Synth lows are the hardest to reproduce without distortion and you won't do it loud with any keyboard amp. If you have a decent PA, then you already have a good solution with your KC-550. Good luck. Rick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dubhe Posted September 26, 2009 Author Members Share Posted September 26, 2009 Well after mucho research it seems like the traynor k4 is the way to go! Looks pretty sweet honestly. Plus I should be able to fit it in my trunk which is always a plus + I see some sites that sell it for around 800 or so -- here are the specs of the 3 combo amps being considered... Roland:http://www.rolandus.com/products/productdetails.php?ProductId=990 Traynor:http://www.traynoramps.com/products.asp?type=1&cat=57&id=340 Motion Sound:http://www.motion-sound.com/product?name=kp-500sn Not considering any PA type systems really... if the prices were the same you guys would get the traynor? Power and sound quality are my main considerations The motion sound is 500W but split 250/250 down the middle... Thx for the replys its been a lot of help -- If you want to check out my bands musicwere at myspace.com/3000realmsband (my reccommendations are 3 for a dollar, black wine, can't smile, midnight rainbow + pull me through me). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GigMan Posted September 26, 2009 Members Share Posted September 26, 2009 Thx for the replys its been a lot of help -- If you want to check out my bands music were at myspace.com/3000realmsband (my reccommendations are 3 for a dollar, black wine, can't smile, midnight rainbow + pull me through me). Yes, the MS KP500SN is 250w on one channel to one 12" speaker & two 3.5" hornsand 250w on the other channel to the other 12" speaker & two 3.5" horns- that's a lot of stereo firepower, I'd think, esp. compared to the Traynor, which is a mono-summed amp & has just one 200w into one 12" woofer plus a pair of 50w amps to a pair of 4.5" midrange and 2.5 tweeters. I've had the MS KP200S for some years now - I think it sounds great but it is 200w split into the 2 channels, two 10" spkrs. (not 12")... this KP500SN sounds like a substantial upgrade in power/performance. And no, I don't work for Motion Sound... The Motion Sound amps are not cheap though, Sweetwater has them for: 1300 clams Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mate_stubb Posted September 26, 2009 Members Share Posted September 26, 2009 +1 on well designed powered speakers to reproduce clean flat uncolored full spectrum sound. The other way to go is with very carefully designed 3 way passive speakers from boutique bass cabinet companies like Accugroove or Acme. These are very close to flat out of the box, and the dedicated midrange speaker allows the woofer to be tuned for deep bass instead of upper bass. These speakers trade off efficiency for deep bass in a small volume, so you need a clean powerful power amp to make them sing. AND, the system ends up being expensive. I play in stereo, and use a pair of Accugroove Tri 112L speakers with 600W to each from a QSC power amp. The speakers are compact, lightweight, and sound fantastic at low or high volumes. But, I have a lot invested. If I was going the powered speaker route, I would investigate the new QSC K-10 or K-12s. Lots of pro keyboard players whose opinions I respect are raving about these. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mate_stubb Posted September 26, 2009 Members Share Posted September 26, 2009 BTW, if you are playing Rhodes or Clav all night, you may as well play thru a nice tube guitar amp, as you do not even need uncolored amplification. Acoustic piano sounds are absolutely the hardest to amplify live. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members whurly Posted September 28, 2009 Members Share Posted September 28, 2009 BTW, if you are playing Rhodes or Clav all night, you may as well play thru a nice tube guitar amp, as you do not even need uncolored amplification.Acoustic piano sounds are absolutely the hardest to amplify live. I use tube/valve amps almost exclusively, and only occasionally a JBL EON 15 G2 for piano sounds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members soundwave106 Posted September 28, 2009 Members Share Posted September 28, 2009 There are some advantages, spec wise, that I can see with a Traynor K4 vs. a active speaker: A) Most keyboard amps, including the Traynor, come with a mixer section. Active speakers typically do not. Therefore, without a keyboard amp, lugging around a small mixer may become necessary. (But lugging around a small mixer is helpful at gigs, anyways. The variety of configurations at bars is amazing -- some are DI box, some are straight into a mic channel, some are line level, etc. -- and a tiny Mackie is a good swiss-army solution to deal with this and other problems.) B) The Traynor and some other keyboard amps do allow for stereo. I am personally not fond of stereo at a show -- I don't feel its too useful. But I have wondered whether something like the Traynor's configuration would improve the *spread* of the sound -- the Mackie SRM 450 I currently use can be a little directional. C) The Traynor offers a tube channel. Might be good for warmth. (Might not be, either. ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dubhe Posted September 28, 2009 Author Members Share Posted September 28, 2009 - QSC K12 vs Traynor K4 - "to your neutral corners and come out swinging!" I can get both for the same price (750) Would it be correct to expect that the QSC K12 at 1000W to really have much, much more power than the Traynor 300W? (esp mid range and some lows) The Traynor seems attractive because of its Tube amp capability I will admit. But if they are both roughly the same price and being that the QSC is a high quality speaker with over three times the wattage, would I be crazy to take the Traynor over one QSC K12 coupled with a simple 4 channel mixing board? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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