As I mentioned earlier in this thread, I use the Noel Program sets. He has many different tones/instruments for the bass section. Once you load a user program, the seven bass section switches are deactivated. However, there are many bass tones and orchestral sounds available in the 8X memory, so you really don't need the bass section switches with a user program.
On the right side of the 8X, there are 4 buttons for the left hand . The 4 buttons allow you to select 4 modes: Bass & Chrd, F Bass, Orch Chrd and Orch Bass.
The Bass & Chrd mode is where you assign the reeds you would like. The choices are 16’, 8’, 8-4’, 4’ and 2’. For each footage, there are many tone selections (Folk, Classic, Tradition, Cajun, Jazz, Alpine, etc.). For each reed, there is a volume selection from -100->+100.
The F Bass (free bass) mode sets up the left side of the 8X for 5 choices. I use “Fifth” (Quint) which allows for 3 octaves of bass notes.
The Orch Chrd mode allows for many sound choices such as: Piano, Guitar, Clarinet, Tuba, etc. There are settings for Volume (-40->+40), Lowest Note, Octave, Attack, Decay, Touch (Bellows Control), etc.
The Orch Bass tone choices are very similar to the Orch Chrd mode. Some choices are String Bass, Acoustic Bass, Jazz Bass, etc. The choices for Volume, Attack, Decay, etc. are also similar.
A nice feature is that the above modes can be layered such as Bass & Chrd, Orch Chrd, and Orch Bass can all sound simultaneously , with individual volume adjustment to get the sound you want.
On the right side of the 8X, there are 4 buttons for the right hand. The 4 buttons allow you to select 4 modes: Accordion, Organ, Orch2 and Orch1.
The Accordion mode is where you assign the reeds you would like. The choices are 16’, 8’, 8’-, 8’+, 4’, 5-1/3’, 2-2/3’. For each footage, there are many tone selections (Folk, Classic, Tradition, Cajun, Jazz, Alpine, etc.). For each reed, there is a volume selection from -40->+40 along with a few other selections.
The Organ mode is a virtual tonewheel organ, basically a Hammond B3. This is a favorite for me. The set up is exactly like a B3, 9 drawbars with settings from 0-8, Vibrato/Chorus (V1-V3 & C1-C3), Percussion with 2nd and 3rd harmonic, and fast/slow decay. I also have a Neo Microvent that is a fantastic Leslie 122 simulator to give that lush tremolo.
The Orch2 and Orch1 modes are identical with many orchestral choices depending on how your expansion slots are filled. My 8X has 305 selections. Some choices are: Piano, Vibraphone, Clarinet, Sax, Trumpet Flute, Guitar, Banjo, Mandolin, Violin, etc. There is adjustment control of Volume, Attack, Decay, etc. The tones are very realistic. These modes can be layered to sound simultaneously along with the Organ and Accordion modes.
For me, the PC editor (free download from Roland) is a must to access/modify the Noel Program sets. Not sure if it will work with the Evo. Without the editor, you can access all the functions, view the screen and use the accordion controls to make the changes, but it is very tedious. Richard Noel told me he designed all his Program Banks before the PC Editor came out. He must have an extreme amount of patience and determination to this extensive program development with such "primitive tools".
The internal speakers of the 8X seem weak to me. An external speaker really adds a lot to the quality of the 8X tone.
Hope this helps,
John M.
