KraftGeek Music Stand

May 16, 2024 Richard Roberts

May 2024:
Initial impression is that this is an excellent design concept well executed with quality components and materials. If you are fed up with the traditional collapsible metal music stand then this is most certainly for you.
BEST IN SHOW @ NAMM 2024

July 2024:
I’ve now used this stand constantly in my studio and also at a few gigs for holding set lists.
My initial impressions have only been reinforced, this really is a very well engineered product. From holding wide weighty tomes such as the legendary Fiddler’s Fakebook to securing flimsy A4 sheets this stand does it all. The top bar has both vertical and angular adjustment to assist in supporting whatever sheet format is being used. If you use a phone or tablet the optional flexi-mount is equally well engineered and versatile, as is the Lumilight if you need illuminating.

Weighing in at just 1.2Kg , much of which is in the base for stability, and collapsing down to 440 x 65 x 50 it takes up little room. A sturdy padded zipped bag with separate compartments for the flexi-mount, Lumilight and carry strap measures 480 x 130 x 100 and is a worthwhile investment to keep the stand in top condition; the aesthetics are well worth protecting as the matt black finish is beautiful (Also available in white)

Once familiar it really does take seconds to unfold - at a leisurely pace 20 Seconds - then 10 seconds to fit the light and 15 second for the flexi-mount, so all in under a minute and most importantly there is no way to snag the arms or get mixed up if in a hurry. The height adjustment is sublime and requires just one hand, and the top of the stand can go from just 0.80m to 1.65m

Whilst above the average cost for music stands the KraftGeek is by no means the most expensive, yet it delivers way above any other product in terms of performance and versatility. Considering its designed in durability it will outlast many other stands, and that in itself bring superb value for money … probably the last stand you’ll ever need to buy. If you need a collapsible music stand this should be at the top of your list.

Well done to the team at KraftGeek for bringing this product to market - it really will enhance the lives of all those musicians who use it.

Use link below or code SONICVIOLINS at checkout for additional 15% discount:
https://kraftgeek.com/?ref=SONICVIOLINS

Violin impulse response and convolution review featuring ToneDexter

May 5, 2020 Richard Roberts

Introduction

An impulse response (IR) is a method for measuring the characteristic of a violin, or indeed any acoustic instrument, space or object that responds to sound.

Convolution is a process that calculates the difference between two responses.

IR Effect pedals take the input from your instrument and use a pre-determined convolution process to output a sound that represents the “target” instrument. They use different techniques to do this, but the intention is the same.

The marketing goal of using an IR pedal is to be able to play an amplified violin and for it to sound like a chosen acoustic violin. The dream would be to play a £100 plastic violin fitted with a pickup and for it to sound like a Stradivari.

Popular devices in 2020 include, but are not limited to:

Signal Wizard - V sound

Fishman - Aura

Audio Sprockets - Tonedexter

Mooer - Radar

Lodigy - EPSi

The ToneDexter

For this review I was loaned a Tonedexter from Audiosprockets UK. The Tonedexter measures the input from your violin pickup and a microphone at the same time to compute what Audiosprockets refer to as a “WaveMap”. When a suitable WaveMap is created it is saved within the device and operates in real time on your violin signal, which can also be blended in as required.

Test Violin and Microphones.

Unsurprisingly I used my own Sonic Heritage Violin and ran tests with many microphone set ups. As this is not a microphone review I settled on using the DPA 4999 as this is for good reason the most popular choice for live sound.

The Results

I created a WaveMap that sounded as close to the DPA as possible. I also set up an EQ on my direct signal from the Sonic Violin using the 5 band fully parametric EQ in the digital mixer and an EMT plate reverb for “space”, to get as close as possible to the DPA sound. I then recorded in the following order:

Sonic Violin direct output

DPA 4999

Sonic Violin + ToneDexter

Sonic Violin + EQ

Each set up was connected through the mixing desk to an RCF HD10 powered speaker to simulate a live setup and recorded using a stereo microphone array in a small treated room. The desk, RCFs, room and mics all effect the final sound, as does your own listening system, but all are constants so the relative sound comparison is accurate, whether you approve or not, ditto my playing.

Conclusions

Firstly I think the ToneDexter does a good job of achieving a convincing match to the microphone sound, and I’m sure that other systems may be similar. I loaded a 3Sigma (Italian violin 4c) IR into Max for Live as a comparison to the ToneDexter with similar results, recorded below as follows: ToneDexter then 3Sigma.

Convolution results however will largely be dependent on the quality of the sound sources used; the ISI twin pickup and matched pre amp in the Sonic Violin produces a detailed representation of the instruments full character, and the DPA microphone is also regarded as one of the best in the business; lesser equipment will inevitably result in a less satisfactory sound.

I would propose that the Sonic Violin with EQ also comes reasonably close to that of the DPA mic, albeit with a slightly fuller sound that the pickup provides. Bearing that in mind many would blend the pickup sound with the mic sound to provide this fuller sound that is often needed on stage.

Here are just those two recordings again DPA followed by Sonic Violin+EQ with the part split into three sections for easier comparison.

I ask whether IR effects are really necessary? The answer lies with your own individual set up, preferred sound, and on stage requirements. IR will not make your instrument sound like a Stradivari; and even if it could, is that indeed how you wish to sound? Yes IR will match more closely to the mic you chose to create the convolution, but again is that the sound you wish for, close miking a violin is in itself a significant compromise compared to the acoustic sound.

If you use a microphone on stage and have issues with feedback then IR may assist a solution, but of course you’d have to fit a pickup to your violin, which may well be unacceptable and the reason why you were using a mic in the first place. If you already use a pickup and are disappointed with the sound then IR will help you, but maybe no more than a comprehensive EQ system, and you’ll need a good microphone to set it up. There are many more considerations – not least of which is whether you manage your own sound or rely on event engineers.

PHOTO BELOW IS GENERIC FROM A&H WEBSITE - SETTINGS DO NOT RELATE TO THOSE USED IN TESTS

The Bare Naked Truth?

Because EQ is an essential prerequisite and integrated into all live sound, whether dealing with microphone or DI, it makes sense to fully understand and explore its potential. In many ways EQ is the most underrated tool available to all musicians, and when combined with reverb and delays can sculpt excellent results. When you heard that acoustic violin sound that you adored so much, be aware that you were also listening to the space in which it was being played. IR is now used extensively in Convolution Reverb systems for which it is a very appropriate tool, and therefor very capable of modelling that space in which you heard that violin. Reverb and delay are additive effects that provide depth and space, IR pedals do not add anything to a sound that may well be lacking in information to start with…

…you cannot expect the sound of a solid bodied electric violin to be transformed into the sound of a quality acoustic violin any more than you can expect a Ford transit to win an F1 race.

What is an Electric Violin?

June 15, 2018 Richard Roberts

Since I was little, even smaller than I am today, I have always wanted to play "Electric Violin".

Back in the day when I was starting out there were few "Electric Violins" commercially available, now they are everywhere...but they are not truely Electric, the vast majority are Electro - Acoustic.

Octave Violins and Octave Violas

April 3, 2017 Richard Roberts

What are they?
An Octave Violin is an instrument tuned one octave below a standard violin and is sometimes called a baritone violin.
An Octave Viola is tuned one octave below a standard viola, which is the same tuning as a Cello.

Violins For ART Angels Refugee Project in Lesbos

November 10, 2016 Richard Roberts

Adrian Dwyer - a good friend of mine and Jazz Bass Player - asked me to set up and repair his old violin in readiness to send to a project on the Greek Island of Lesvos (Lesbos) founded by Maria Francisca Rocca Arbelaez and her mother.

This inspiration project prompted me to approach one of my suppliers - The Sound Post Ltd in Wiltshire. I knew that a good number of new violins are returned because of damage or imperfections, and thought we could maximise the shipment with instruments that I could bring back to life with a few repairs and TLC.

Xvive Digital Wireless with active electric violin

September 13, 2016 Richard Roberts

This is a 24bit digital 2.4Ghz (ISM unlicensed) 4 channel system comprising physically identical 1/4" jack "Bugs" with fully articulated angled joints.

Do I need to use a Pre Amp with my violin pick-up?

September 3, 2016 Richard Roberts

Fishman Platinum Pro EQ

L R Baggs para acoustic DI

Radial Tonebone PZ Deluxe

“Pre Amps” are always being spoken about in connection with amplifying violins.
It is important to understand what function they perform as part of your system.

“Pre Amps” are mysterious, often miss-understood and therefore miss-used. The reason for the confusion is that the title “Pre Amp” is often generically used to describe a box of tricks that provides many functions, the pre amp being just one.