Ya it’s a Chinese company and a new entrant into the wind synth market. I thought I’d done a video to intro the R1 to the western market. I think there is another windsynth user who has done a nice lengthy explainer video on the R1 too.
Guess you liked the kungfu swordfight scene! I use this for my R1 shopee.sg/Promotion-Foldable-Digital-Wind-Instrument-Stand-Adjustable-Metal-Aerophone-Holder-Musical-Instrument-Stand-i.261596770.19135174636?xptdk=2e5bc2a6-63ff-4aea-b24e-324573a9c978
Hello sir , your reviews are great and very informative, I have bought the R1 about a year back . Yesterday by mistake , I pressed the factory reset option . So it is showing everything in Chinese , since I am from India , I can only understand English . So it would be great if you could help me to ser the display into English . Also it would be very helpful if you could guide me in connecting R1 to Logic Pro daw through ble midi . Regards
If you accidentally pressed the reset button, then just power off and on again. It will take you straight to the language options. By default it will be in Chinese, but if you press either the + or - buttons on the right middle of the instrument, you will get English. Press the magic button twice and you should be back to English menu. To connect with any DAW via bluetooth, first turn on BLE midi on your R1. th-cam.com/video/1HetUsB5dug/w-d-xo.html After that, you need to search for "Audio Midi Setup" on you Mac and launch it. Once it is launched, go to the top right side and look for the bluetooth symbol and click on it. On the drop down menu, you should see ROBKOO R1-xxxx. Select it and you should be connected. Instead of tenor sax on your R1 menu, you will see 001 or some other number depending on if you press any of the buttons. You then launch Logic and use it with whatever sounds you have there. Native Logic sounds probably won't be the best ones to use for R1. You should consider getting SWAM instruments (which can be stand alone without Logic or you can load them as patches in Logic). Otherwise Bernie Kenerson's Instant EWI Pro for Logic Pro X might be an option. berniekenerson.com/instant-ewi Davidson Carpenter's plugins Eviner, or lyrihorn 1/2 are also great as is Respiro by Rudy Verpaele www.imoxplus.com/site/. You need to play it as a virtual instrument in Logic. My fav would be the SWAM instruments by Audiomodeling though. audiomodeling.com/ Hope that helps.
A wonderful introduction, Calvin! If you could address a number of features and issues in future issues, that would be wonderful (I am coming from a Native American flute background and have been *deep* into the Sylphyo for the last 18 months ... so these primarily relate to my Sylphyo experience): * Can the user define fingerings? (Not possible on the Sylphyo, but I have been able to work with Aodyo to add two sets of fingerings for Native American flutes to the firmware) * Tell us more about the motion sensors ... I use them extensively for effects (such as Growl on Saxes, which works perfectly with a VL70-m Turbo and all editable Kontakt instruments) * Can you do key bends? (i.e. portamento controlled by the % of the finger pad contacted by the finger). * The Sylphyo uses a radio link to their wireless receiver and it has incredibly low latency and a huge range (like a city block). They particularly avoided Bluetooth because of latency and interference issues ... What is the wireless setup for the R1? * How much control does the user have over the details of how MIDI is produced? I have found it critical to be able to control the frequency of CCs that report Breath Control, since some VSTs and some hardware units cannot keep up with 1000 CC's per second and have to be dialed back to 250 or 125 CCs per second. * Does the R1 respond to *incoming* MIDI commands - such as those that reconfigure it's settings. Settings on many MIDI controller can only be done manually, and that is a problem when a config change is needed during performance (like when switching between hardware units). Sorry for so many questions, but you have got me interested!!
Thanks Clint for your kind words. Thanks too for filling a critical piece of my knowledge gap in your reply to a query I posted in one of your videos! I'm afraid i don't know enough to answer too many of your questions. Maybe the folk from RobKoo or other KOCs can help with the answers? I can however answer your question about wireless connections. I am familiar with the Sylphyo wireless receiver so have appreciated the cable free use of the Sylphyo. The R1 has BLE midi. I was experimenting with the wireless pairings with Eviner/Respiro on my Mac and various apps on my iPad just yesterday. You know what - I think i'll do a video about the R1's BLE Midi feature next. It's too much of a key feature not to talk about! I'm tempted to get a CME widi master for my WX-5/VL-70 to use as a reference for comparison...
@@calvinchong8740 I think an R1-Wireless video would be great! Personally, I'm not sure I can deal with the added latency from a BLE interface (10-20ms, I have heard?). I stand on my head (not literally) to shave off a millisecond here and there. I'm using Direct Monitoring where I can on my audio interface to save a round-trip into the CPU. My rig not only supports my wind synth now, but also a keyboard player, and they hate latency even more than wind players! Keep up the great videos!!
@@ClintGoss the latency is really low. I’m thinking how to do the video 😅. I guess it’s for the midi community to judge how good BLE midi is. It’s an evolving development!
Calvin, I'm interested in the Robkoo R1, but I am wondering if you could recommend a bluetooth transmitter for the 1/4" jack. I'm concerned about the latency issue. Thanks.
Hmmmm. If you want to get the sound out of the 1/4" jack, you could use a 1/4in wireless transmitter like the ones we use to substitute 1/4 in guitar cables. One end to the R1 and the other end to the amplified or even your audio interface if you are recording on your computer. I'm curious why you would want to hv a 1/4in bluetooth connection? Blue tooth audio one form or another is very prone to latency!
@@calvinchong8740 Thanks Calvin. I'm aware of potential latency issues, but I watched another YT video in which a BT transmitter was being used on a Robkoo R1, and I wondered if it was indeed possible to have such a setup. Unfortunately, the video was in Vietnamese, so I couldn't understand what he was saying about the transmitter. Here is the link where he demonstrates the transmitter at about the 9:30 mark. Thanks again. Tim. th-cam.com/video/l0bsUuEz7y4/w-d-xo.html
@@TimothyJ.Shreenan Ah, thanks for that reference. I know Viet - we chat alot and I even did a Zoom session with him and his team. We somehow manage to communicate using Google translate or live translators! haha. What he demonstrates is what I was referring to earlier. It's NOT a bluetooth transmitter/receiver. It's a wireless transmitter/receiver that guitarists use a lot. I've seen a people use that in live concerts with confidence (well - just keep in range). The latency on that is not very noticeable. You could get the same effect with a 1/4" guitar cable but wireless is nice. The transmitter/receiver can be very inexpensive depending on what you get. If you do an Amazon search like I did, you will find many options. Perhaps search for reviews to find which one works for you. www.amazon.com/s?k=wireless+guitar+transmitter&crid=CQNZIZ792QCZ&sprefix=wireless+guitar+transmitt%2Caps%2C638&ref=nb_sb_noss_2. I personally own this. It works fine for me, but you do your own research and find something that fits you. www.amazon.com/LEKATO-Wireless-Transmitter-Receiver-Rechargeable/dp/B08MF7Q9RW/ref=sr_1_24?crid=CQNZIZ792QCZ&keywords=wireless+guitar+transmitter&qid=1689864069&sprefix=wireless+guitar+transmitt%2Caps%2C638&sr=8-24
@@calvinchong8740 Hi Calvin, I ordered the Robkoo R1 and the Swiff WS-50 transmitter. Can't wait to get started! Thanks for your help -- keep featuring the R1 in your videos, please!
@@TimothyJ.Shreenan Best wishes! I've been a little busy with work so haven't posted much but I play it daily. I mainly use it as a windcontroller with SWAM instruments from Audiomodeling. audiomodeling.com/ It's an extra expense but I get really lovely orchestral sounds which allow so much expression played through the R1 or any other windcontroller! I use other sounds too but the SWAM instruments are my daily go to!
No. In that sense, it is similar to the Aodyo Sylphyo. The mouthpiece is a piece of hard plastic. I think the motion control function shares some similarities with the Sylphyo too.
@@calvinchong8740 to go this far cloning the wx5 and to forget the reed sensor is like building a bionic woman and leaving off the......... eyelashes....
Yes, they have a campaign to launch the little Clarii Mini. I was just chatting with one of the guys from Robkoo about it. I'm planning to get one. It's a smaller version of the R1 and even though I haven't seen the specs, it looks similar with some firmware upgrades. They have upgraded the R1 firmware for the Chinese domestic market but haven't upgraded for the International market yet. I expect there will be a few new cool sounds and tilt and roll midi triggers in the upgrades. Check out the TH-cam link and the links in the description. Mind you - i wish they wouldn't do those shiny gold/silver trims - too much blink for musicians who want to focus on the music! th-cam.com/video/QqGfWqGmUsw/w-d-xo.html
@@calvinchong8740 I did hear back from RobKoo today. I am not sure why I was so weirded out with them asking for my credit card info this time. I think I fell for a couple of sales scams on Facebook so now I am questioning a little more these days. Since they now have a movable thumb hook I wonder if they will produce a new physical version of the R1. Thanks for checking. Kickstarter is schedule for launch in a few days so maybe more technical information will be available.
Yes - that's true. We both share a love for traditional ethnic flutes and come from that background. But the more I dabble with midi windcontrollers, the more I feel they can do so much more than our beloved traditional acoustic instruments. That's why authentic sounds matter to me too. Down the road, I'm planning to start playing songs with midi wind instruments paired with my favourite sound patches. Hope to learn more about the world of midi along the way and will try to do justice to the songs I play!
Once again a great idea that really fell short. No Reed like thr WX5 for articulation and vibrato is a deal breaker and they messed with the normal saxophone fingerings with side keys for sharps and flats? Really?
Does the R1 support internal MIDI over Bluetooth (BLE)? Is there an internal speaker? Did it come with a manual? If so did it seem pretty comprehensive and was there an English language version? Looking forward to your upcoming videos regarding the R1. Thanks.
There is BLE midi that you can turn on and off. No, there is no internal speakers - you need to use your headphones/amp or use bluetooth. They tell me they don't have an English language manual ready but they are working on it. I'm waiting for it too!
Hey thanks for asking the question. So I'm new to this and went to do more research about BLE midi. I did a cursory mention of BLE midi in the second video but didn't realise the significance of it. Just tested it with the Jamkoo and SWAM apps on the iPad. Now that's a key feature in the R1 that I missed! I've heard about the CME widi master etc but first time I've seen it in action! Wow!
this video is loads clearer than the webpage, it looks beautiful but a bit confusing.
Ya it’s a Chinese company and a new entrant into the wind synth market. I thought I’d done a video to intro the R1 to the western market. I think there is another windsynth user who has done a nice lengthy explainer video on the R1 too.
LOL!!! There are such things as vertical katana stands!!! I think I am going to get one for my R1. 😂
Guess you liked the kungfu swordfight scene! I use this for my R1 shopee.sg/Promotion-Foldable-Digital-Wind-Instrument-Stand-Adjustable-Metal-Aerophone-Holder-Musical-Instrument-Stand-i.261596770.19135174636?xptdk=2e5bc2a6-63ff-4aea-b24e-324573a9c978
Hello sir , your reviews are great and very informative, I have bought the R1 about a year back . Yesterday by mistake , I pressed the factory reset option . So it is showing everything in Chinese , since I am from India , I can only understand English . So it would be great if you could help me to ser the display into English . Also it would be very helpful if you could guide me in connecting R1 to Logic Pro daw through ble midi . Regards
If you accidentally pressed the reset button, then just power off and on again. It will take you straight to the language options. By default it will be in Chinese, but if you press either the + or - buttons on the right middle of the instrument, you will get English. Press the magic button twice and you should be back to English menu. To connect with any DAW via bluetooth, first turn on BLE midi on your R1. th-cam.com/video/1HetUsB5dug/w-d-xo.html After that, you need to search for "Audio Midi Setup" on you Mac and launch it. Once it is launched, go to the top right side and look for the bluetooth symbol and click on it. On the drop down menu, you should see ROBKOO R1-xxxx. Select it and you should be connected. Instead of tenor sax on your R1 menu, you will see 001 or some other number depending on if you press any of the buttons.
You then launch Logic and use it with whatever sounds you have there. Native Logic sounds probably won't be the best ones to use for R1. You should consider getting SWAM instruments (which can be stand alone without Logic or you can load them as patches in Logic).
Otherwise Bernie Kenerson's Instant EWI Pro for Logic Pro X might be an option. berniekenerson.com/instant-ewi
Davidson Carpenter's plugins Eviner, or lyrihorn 1/2 are also great as is Respiro by Rudy Verpaele www.imoxplus.com/site/. You need to play it as a virtual instrument in Logic.
My fav would be the SWAM instruments by Audiomodeling though. audiomodeling.com/
Hope that helps.
A wonderful introduction, Calvin! If you could address a number of features and issues in future issues, that would be wonderful (I am coming from a Native American flute background and have been *deep* into the Sylphyo for the last 18 months ... so these primarily relate to my Sylphyo experience):
* Can the user define fingerings? (Not possible on the Sylphyo, but I have been able to work with Aodyo to add two sets of fingerings for Native American flutes to the firmware)
* Tell us more about the motion sensors ... I use them extensively for effects (such as Growl on Saxes, which works perfectly with a VL70-m Turbo and all editable Kontakt instruments)
* Can you do key bends? (i.e. portamento controlled by the % of the finger pad contacted by the finger).
* The Sylphyo uses a radio link to their wireless receiver and it has incredibly low latency and a huge range (like a city block). They particularly avoided Bluetooth because of latency and interference issues ... What is the wireless setup for the R1?
* How much control does the user have over the details of how MIDI is produced? I have found it critical to be able to control the frequency of CCs that report Breath Control, since some VSTs and some hardware units cannot keep up with 1000 CC's per second and have to be dialed back to 250 or 125 CCs per second.
* Does the R1 respond to *incoming* MIDI commands - such as those that reconfigure it's settings. Settings on many MIDI controller can only be done manually, and that is a problem when a config change is needed during performance (like when switching between hardware units).
Sorry for so many questions, but you have got me interested!!
Thanks Clint for your kind words. Thanks too for filling a critical piece of my knowledge gap in your reply to a query I posted in one of your videos! I'm afraid i don't know enough to answer too many of your questions. Maybe the folk from RobKoo or other KOCs can help with the answers?
I can however answer your question about wireless connections. I am familiar with the Sylphyo wireless receiver so have appreciated the cable free use of the Sylphyo. The R1 has BLE midi. I was experimenting with the wireless pairings with Eviner/Respiro on my Mac and various apps on my iPad just yesterday. You know what - I think i'll do a video about the R1's BLE Midi feature next. It's too much of a key feature not to talk about! I'm tempted to get a CME widi master for my WX-5/VL-70 to use as a reference for comparison...
@@calvinchong8740 I think an R1-Wireless video would be great!
Personally, I'm not sure I can deal with the added latency from a BLE interface (10-20ms, I have heard?). I stand on my head (not literally) to shave off a millisecond here and there. I'm using Direct Monitoring where I can on my audio interface to save a round-trip into the CPU. My rig not only supports my wind synth now, but also a keyboard player, and they hate latency even more than wind players!
Keep up the great videos!!
@@ClintGoss the latency is really low. I’m thinking how to do the video 😅. I guess it’s for the midi community to judge how good BLE midi is. It’s an evolving development!
@@ClintGoss hello hello. I just posted the third video which is all about BLE midi! It was quite an effort but I needed to get it out of my system!
@@calvinchong8740 COOL! I'll check it out now ...
Calvin, I'm interested in the Robkoo R1, but I am wondering if you could recommend a bluetooth transmitter for the 1/4" jack. I'm concerned about the latency issue. Thanks.
Hmmmm. If you want to get the sound out of the 1/4" jack, you could use a 1/4in wireless transmitter like the ones we use to substitute 1/4 in guitar cables. One end to the R1 and the other end to the amplified or even your audio interface if you are recording on your computer.
I'm curious why you would want to hv a 1/4in bluetooth connection? Blue tooth audio one form or another is very prone to latency!
@@calvinchong8740 Thanks Calvin. I'm aware of potential latency issues, but I watched another YT video in which a BT transmitter was being used on a Robkoo R1, and I wondered if it was indeed possible to have such a setup. Unfortunately, the video was in Vietnamese, so I couldn't understand what he was saying about the transmitter. Here is the link where he demonstrates the transmitter at about the 9:30 mark. Thanks again. Tim.
th-cam.com/video/l0bsUuEz7y4/w-d-xo.html
@@TimothyJ.Shreenan Ah, thanks for that reference. I know Viet - we chat alot and I even did a Zoom session with him and his team. We somehow manage to communicate using Google translate or live translators! haha.
What he demonstrates is what I was referring to earlier. It's NOT a bluetooth transmitter/receiver. It's a wireless transmitter/receiver that guitarists use a lot. I've seen a people use that in live concerts with confidence (well - just keep in range). The latency on that is not very noticeable. You could get the same effect with a 1/4" guitar cable but wireless is nice.
The transmitter/receiver can be very inexpensive depending on what you get. If you do an Amazon search like I did, you will find many options. Perhaps search for reviews to find which one works for you. www.amazon.com/s?k=wireless+guitar+transmitter&crid=CQNZIZ792QCZ&sprefix=wireless+guitar+transmitt%2Caps%2C638&ref=nb_sb_noss_2. I personally own this. It works fine for me, but you do your own research and find something that fits you. www.amazon.com/LEKATO-Wireless-Transmitter-Receiver-Rechargeable/dp/B08MF7Q9RW/ref=sr_1_24?crid=CQNZIZ792QCZ&keywords=wireless+guitar+transmitter&qid=1689864069&sprefix=wireless+guitar+transmitt%2Caps%2C638&sr=8-24
@@calvinchong8740 Hi Calvin, I ordered the Robkoo R1 and the Swiff WS-50 transmitter. Can't wait to get started! Thanks for your help -- keep featuring the R1 in your videos, please!
@@TimothyJ.Shreenan Best wishes! I've been a little busy with work so haven't posted much but I play it daily. I mainly use it as a windcontroller with SWAM instruments from Audiomodeling. audiomodeling.com/ It's an extra expense but I get really lovely orchestral sounds which allow so much expression played through the R1 or any other windcontroller! I use other sounds too but the SWAM instruments are my daily go to!
I would say the R1 is more like the Yamaha Wind Jammr' EW-20.
Nice but no bite control for vibrato ?
No. In that sense, it is similar to the Aodyo Sylphyo. The mouthpiece is a piece of hard plastic. I think the motion control function shares some similarities with the Sylphyo too.
@@calvinchong8740 to go this far cloning the wx5 and to forget the reed sensor is like building a bionic woman and leaving off the......... eyelashes....
@@TonyOstinato haha.
Do you still have a contact with RobKoo? I am trying to get confirmation of a new instrument from them.
Yes, they have a campaign to launch the little Clarii Mini. I was just chatting with one of the guys from Robkoo about it. I'm planning to get one. It's a smaller version of the R1 and even though I haven't seen the specs, it looks similar with some firmware upgrades. They have upgraded the R1 firmware for the Chinese domestic market but haven't upgraded for the International market yet. I expect there will be a few new cool sounds and tilt and roll midi triggers in the upgrades. Check out the TH-cam link and the links in the description. Mind you - i wish they wouldn't do those shiny gold/silver trims - too much blink for musicians who want to focus on the music! th-cam.com/video/QqGfWqGmUsw/w-d-xo.html
@@calvinchong8740 I did hear back from RobKoo today. I am not sure why I was so weirded out with them asking for my credit card info this time. I think I fell for a couple of sales scams on Facebook so now I am questioning a little more these days. Since they now have a movable thumb hook I wonder if they will produce a new physical version of the R1. Thanks for checking. Kickstarter is schedule for launch in a few days so maybe more technical information will be available.
Modern tech is really amazing but require tech interfaces...versatile...
Yes - that's true. We both share a love for traditional ethnic flutes and come from that background. But the more I dabble with midi windcontrollers, the more I feel they can do so much more than our beloved traditional acoustic instruments. That's why authentic sounds matter to me too.
Down the road, I'm planning to start playing songs with midi wind instruments paired with my favourite sound patches. Hope to learn more about the world of midi along the way and will try to do justice to the songs I play!
Once again a great idea that really fell short. No Reed like thr WX5 for articulation and vibrato is a deal breaker and they messed with the normal saxophone fingerings with side keys for sharps and flats? Really?
Does the R1 support internal MIDI over Bluetooth (BLE)? Is there an internal speaker? Did it come with a manual? If so did it seem pretty comprehensive and was there an English language version? Looking forward to your upcoming videos regarding the R1. Thanks.
There is BLE midi that you can turn on and off. No, there is no internal speakers - you need to use your headphones/amp or use bluetooth. They tell me they don't have an English language manual ready but they are working on it. I'm waiting for it too!
Hey thanks for asking the question. So I'm new to this and went to do more research about BLE midi. I did a cursory mention of BLE midi in the second video but didn't realise the significance of it. Just tested it with the Jamkoo and SWAM apps on the iPad. Now that's a key feature in the R1 that I missed! I've heard about the CME widi master etc but first time I've seen it in action! Wow!
hello hello. I just posted the third video which is all about BLE midi! It was quite an effort but I needed to get it out of my system!