Why weighted keys?

Wout Blommers · Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 12:01 pm Post subject: Why weighted keys?

After reading Ricard Wanderlöf text about weighted keys,

elektro80 · Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 1:33 pm Post subject:

You are asking why weighted keys is seen as a good thing?

Wout Blommers · Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 2:08 pm Post subject:

seraph · Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 2:34 pm Post subject:

if the piano keyboard is part of your musical background weighted keys feel more natural, plus, it is less likely to accidentally depress unwanted keys.

elektro80 · Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 3:54 pm Post subject:

elektro80 · Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 3:55 pm Post subject:

Uncle Krunkus · Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 4:17 pm Post subject:

On a real piano, the keys have more weight, but they also have a heavier resistance to the initial depression. This is because of the leverage of the hammers. Some could say that translates to an added inertia, but I think that's misleading.
Simply adding weights to the keys will actually pre-stress the springs which resist the depression, and will make them feel a bit "trigger happy". Artificially weighted keys have stronger springs to counter this effect. Good ones also include a friction component at the rest position to simulate the locking effect of the hammer leverage.

Wout Blommers · Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 4:33 pm Post subject:

Tanks!

In a way it's all about the player's opinion in this matter.
This is the NordLead forum and the keys of that synth are sometimes described as being 'cheap' and 'toy-like'.
In some articles (also included in this forum) the writer claims adding some weights will do the job and indeed: the total weight of the synth is going up Smile

The keys, however, these become indeed 'trigger happy', so in fact one looses some control, unless the springs will be converted also.

On the Dutch Synth Forum two users wrote to consider that particular keyboard is part of the NordLead. Playing it with semi-weighted keyboard (special in the Rack-controller combination) will give a psychological friction with the sound of the NordLead: the musician will not be able to play it as on the original...

It's a nice theory Smile

Wout

elektro80 · Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 5:20 pm Post subject:

Uncle Krunkus · Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 7:40 pm Post subject:

Hey Stein, what's YMMV?

BTW My post wasn't meant to infer that I like weighted keys any better, just describing why they are hard to imitate. If you replaced all the keys on a Nord with momentary push buttons, you could still "play" it. Some people are a lot more concerned with the feel of the interface than others. That's fine, "whatever rings your bell(patch)" as they say. Very Happy

Wout Blommers · Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2009 10:43 pm Post subject:

elektro80 · Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2009 12:41 am Post subject:

YMMV= Your Mileage May Vary Laughing

Trivia:
I am at the airport outside Oslo now. I will probably not be 100% online all the time for the next 3-5 days or something.

elektro80 · Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2009 12:43 am Post subject:

seraph · Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2009 1:32 am Post subject:

Wout Blommers · Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2009 2:58 am Post subject:

Uncle Krunkus · Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2009 4:17 am Post subject:

Can I join the AAA?
Oh, sorry,.... I mean, can I join the anti abreviation associat/@% oh, shit!@
Can I join the AAA? Very Happy

Wout Blommers · Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2009 4:41 am Post subject:

Oli · Posted: Wed Sep 09, 2009 12:12 am Post subject:

I'm really not a fan of weighted keys for synths. Luckily, I have access to a rather nice piano, which has lovely strings and hammers. Piano action for anything else just feels strange to me.

I've been meaning to get a keyboard with note aftertouch/polypressure, and attack/release velocity, though the only two I have seen are weighted, and don't really suit me; the Kurzweil MIDIBoard, and Ensoniq SQ-80 (and perhaps other Ensoniqs). I think I will end up getting the SQ-80 and a Roland A50. From memory, I think the A50 lacks release velocity.

Those acronyms probably don't come so easily without an immersion in English idiom. A lot of those common phrases are inserted in very recognisable ways, so with familiarity, it's easy enough to guess the acronym.

When I did communications systems engineering, I had a whole dictionary of acronyms for the subject. The dictionary included several versions of the same letters, used to have different meanings. It becomes context sensitive guessing game. What fun.