GEAR 2021: A new Hammond stage keyboard that features a comprehensive organ section isn’t that surprising - it’s the instrument that the company is famous for, after all - but the SK Pro is noteworthy for being the first portable Hammond to also feature (among many other things) a dedicated monosynth.
Powered by a physical modelling engine, this offers six different oscillator configurations, along with filter and amplitude controls. Hammond says that this provides players with the sounds and hands-on feel of a real analogue synth.
• NAMM 2021 is cancelled, but we'll be covering all the big January gear announcements right here on MusicRadar.
The organ, meanwhile, is powered by the Modeled Tone Wheel 1 (MTW1) engine from the Hammond XK-5 organ, and there’s a new digital Leslie speaker emulation. What’s more, the keyboard includes a Virtual Multi-Contact function that’s designed to give you the feel of a real Hammond.
Elsewhere, the Piano/Ensemble section features new sampled grand and electric piano sounds, and all sounds are fully editable.
Each section has both factory and user patches, and you can also create combinations that feature tones from any or all of the sections. These can be assigned to Favourites buttons for instant access. All sections have access to effects, too - overdrive and two types of DSP multi-effects.
The SK Pro will be available in 61- and 73-note versions, which will ship at the end of the first quarter of 2021. Prices are still to be confirmed, but you can find more information on the Hammond website.
