An Experiment on the Korg Pa700

[NativeAngels]

I’ve been experimenting with some Eq settings on the Korg Pa700.

Here are two short clips which use exactly the same sounds but a before and after.

Do you hear a difference and does the after sound better.

Click the orange markers to play.

Before Eq:

https://soundcloud.com/nativeangels/before-wav?ref=clipboard&p=i&c=1



After Eq:

https://soundcloud.com/nativeangels/after-wav?ref=clipboard&p=i&c=1

[Hugh-AR]

Hi James,

No difference at all! And I have quite acute hearing. I think it may be a case of knowing what difference you are expecting to hear .. and then hearing it. I even clicked at random on one, played a few bars and then played the same few bars on the other. and sometimes played the 'after' before the 'before'. No difference at all.

I reckon that on my Tyros 4 the Eq. settings are for when you are using an amplifier and speakers. It makes no difference when I do a recording.

When I do a recording, what I do know is that if I use headphones (I usually have the amplifier OFF anyway so as not to disturb Bronwyn, who's in the next room with a sliding door between), whatever I hear in the headphones as I play is exactly how it comes out in the recording. So I get all my 'balances set up with headphones on and the recording comes out just as I want to hear it.

Anybody else who knows about all this care to comment?

Hugh

[NativeAngels]

To my ears the strings in the after recording stand out more than the before.

[dentyr]

The Equalizer is to balance and adjust the volumes of the individual "wave" sections. Have attached a PDF in respect to this. If you are not hearing the high frequency then you can adjust the upper frequencies to your audible level.

If the PDF file does not show, refresh the page.
Or click on the direct LINK below.

http://www.ar-group.org/Files/Equaliser%202.pdf



Regards, Den.

[Hugh-AR]

Hi James,

Still can't hear a difference, even though I now know what I am looking for. Sorry!

As I said, I do notice a difference (a HUGE difference!) when adjusting the EQ when using the amplifier and speakers. But not when I am recording. I'll try what Den has suggested and see what happens. But EQUALLY, I am happy with how the keyboard sounds as it is and don't want to upset the balance between sounds or I'll have to play my keyboard differently to get what I want to hear (in the headphones). I'll make a note of the the values I've got. The previous owner may very well have set some values up that are not the 'default' ones.

Hugh

[NativeAngels]

I forgot that soundcloud compressed the audio files so here are the raw files.

Before

before.wav

After

After.wav

See if you notice a difference now.

[Hugh-AR]

Hi James,

I have downloaded your two WAV files and listened to them both one after the other, front to back and back to front .. but still cannot hear any difference between your two recordings.

I know that you were probably using Pachelbel's Canon In D Major as an example for something to play, but what would make a difference to me as a listener is how the various instruments are 'balanced'. And then when the bass comes in, it's that that would knock my socks off! As Kevin Adams has done in this piece here. Forget the EQ!

Canon In D Major (Cover) - Yamaha PSR S970



Hugh

[dentyr]

Hello James. They sound the same to me. If you go to the EQ and put your high frequency sounds right up and your lows right down the strings will probably sound screechy. The Eq balances the frequencies to get an acceptable sound. Regards, Den.

[andyg]

They sound the same to me too.

EQ is something that can be effectively used, but is often abused!

If you need to use substantial amounts of EQ, there's often something amiss. EQ can compensate for poor acoustics in a room, or poor amp/speaker combinations. If the latter, the ultimate solution is to get some amps and speakers that do the job better (obviously not easy if the speakers are built in!) If the former, then I would advise leaving EQ flat in the keyboard and adjusting it on the amp/speakers if possible. Trial and error here and what you need to do in one venue may be very different to another. If you're at home, then you should be able to find settings that work. I borrowed an Audio Spectrum Analyser to 'test' my room. It sends white noise to your amp and picks up the sound from your speakers via mikes. The screen shows the frequency response of the room. I then used a 10-band graphic equaliser to bring that response to a flat line. You should, in theory, re-do this every time you move some furniture or get a new chair or whatever. In practice, it doesn't really need to be re-done. Also be aware of standing waves that can make bass frequencies boom. I have that issue with the bass woofer in the organ firing straight down the hall. I have a resonance at G and A. With a 400lb organ I can't move it, so my only real option is to add a door into the hall!

If recording direct to a computer (not miking the speakers!), always try to leave things flat and then adjust EQ in post-production - the options available in a DAW or audio app are probably more capable than those in many keyboards.

Of course, some people do use Part EQ to emphasise or de-emphasise the tone of individual voices. Sometime because the voice isn't that good and sometimes because they simply like the sound better that way.

Bottom line is to use it sensitively - just enough - and if you find that you're using it to mask the shortcomings of the instrument or amplification, then those are the issues to address.