Patches and discussion for Ensoniq VFX family

--- In Ensoniq-VFX-SD@yahoogroups.com, "psionic11" <psionic11@...> wrote:
>
> I tried Koto Dreams this morning.  The upper right of the keyboard, when I press down harder (and I mean 'harder'), there is indeed a pitch bend up of the main reed sound.  But there is less of this on the left side of the keyboard.  I have to really push down hard.  The whole keybed moves, creaks.  Needless to say, it's not a very inspiring way to play.  
> 
> One of the main reasons I got this keyboard was for the polypressure.  I'm thinking again that one of the previous owners took the synth apart.  

When my VFX arrived, only a couple of months ago, the keyboard had some of the same symptoms. I gave the whole unit a thorough check over and clean inside and out. The keybed is secured by 10 large screws in the base - the second and third rows up from the bottom. Make sure that these are all pretty secure; they weren't fully tight on mine, and it definitely stabilised the keyboard when I fixed that.

> Let me ask you guys this, for comparison.  Does your VFX-SD's keyboard respond sensitively and deftly to your playing?  Or is it more like a clackity-clack feel?  I realize that my Fusion 6HD's keybed is semi-weighted, and from a decade later, and therefore smoother and more transparent to music-making, but how do you personally feel about the response and intuitiveness of your VFX non-weighted keybed?  Maybe I just got a bad deal off E-bay...  Should I look for a replacement VFX?  Thanks.
>

Well, another thing I noticed by looking at the MIDI data it produced: For the first 10-15 minutes after power-up, the aftertouch response was decidedly unreliable. After 'warming up' it was fine. This is normally a symptom of some component(s) running slightly out of tolerance, but after a bit of cleaning of the keybed internals and a couple of months of use, it's up and running pretty much immediately.

FWIW, the VFX keys are (very slightly) semi-weighted, and I find the action very good (though I don't play 'proper' piano keyboards that much these days!) One great thing about the aftertouch: Due to the way the keyboard scanning is done, it's a smooth extension of the normal travel, ie. no odd 'sensor' feel when I hit the aftertouch that I've found in many other boards. It does take a bit more force than others, but when tightened up it stands up to it fine!

So... Make sure the keybed screws are tight, give it a short warm-up period, and set the softest 'touch' setting (1) under the Master menu if you haven't already: I use TOUCH='MED-1'.

Hope this helps.
Matt