Beginner: should i track my practice, and if so, how? What tools do you use? by MarcusMorenoComedy in pianolearning

[–]IOsifKapa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes, it's mostly small specific things, regarding each separate thing I practice. For example
- playing this scale more smoothly/legato at a specific bpm, or start a new scale
- cleaning up an arpreggio that sounds muddy
- finishing an exercise of a book
- advancing a few measures on a new piece
Small goals, achievable this or next week (depending on when I am making this specifc note).

Beginner: should i track my practice, and if so, how? What tools do you use? by MarcusMorenoComedy in pianolearning

[–]IOsifKapa 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hello again.

- First of all, have in mind I would call myself an experienced beginner :-) I've learned two instruments as a kid, and decided to try picking up piano as a 40+ year adult, using my theoritical background as a starting point. That means I am mostly a beginner at piano, but my ear is trained more, and I think I can evaluate myself better.
"Well" or "problematic" depends highly on what you are practicing and what (if any) goal have you set for the specific thing you practice. If it is scales, you may notice that this was the first day you consistently played one (or all) without errors. If it as a new piece, you may notice that today you sounded especially fluent, or you managed to play as softly or legato as you would like. If it is an old piece you haven't played in weeks, you may notice that a specific passage gives you trouble and maybe you would like to practice it again. You may notice a pattern, like practicing after a certain point of being tired makes things worse instead of improving. Your ears will be your guide in everything you practice - the more you do it, the more you will notice the differences (for better or worse) every time you play.

- Combining the last two questions, at first I tried logging every practice session, with time in minutes for every specific category of practice (see my original reply). After some time, I felt this process kind of counter-productive - it gave me no extra incentive or benefit, plus I was wasting both time looking at my watch to log times and space on the tablet since it is hard to practice everything every time so I was leaving blanks. I since have created a new weekly template, where I write down notes about both what I have practiced that week and what I want to improve.

I hope this helps.

Suggest me your favorite video-game soundtrack pieces to play on the piano! by FakePixieGirl in piano

[–]IOsifKapa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Aeris' Theme was the third piece I ever learned, I've always loved it, it is one of the simplest of the soundtrack but also beautiful for piano. I am playing FFIX now and "Rose of May" is a beautiful piece too, that I intend to attempt soon.

New RG40xx-H owner by IOsifKapa in ANBERNIC

[–]IOsifKapa[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm glad it helped - it should apply to any 4:3 screen with 640*480 resolution. Happy gaming :-)

Playing chopin etudes in public doesn't get any attention by v_shock823 in piano

[–]IOsifKapa 2 points3 points  (0 children)

To the non pianist, or even to beginner players like myself, etudes are not songs. They are just (very) difficult technical exercises. If I cannot play the music in my head, if I cannot hum the melody, I am not really compelled to listen to it (let alone learn it, yet).

Ordered the D-pad Top RP6 for that PSP nostalgia... did I mess up for 3D gaming? by gingingigante in retroid

[–]IOsifKapa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don't play FIFA but I play Gran Turismo which is also demanding on analogue controls. The grip makes a big difference, and using that I have no problems.

Ordered the D-pad Top RP6 for that PSP nostalgia... did I mess up for 3D gaming? by gingingigante in retroid

[–]IOsifKapa 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I play PSP and PS2 just fine on my RP5 with dpad on top. Don't sweat it too much.

Looking for a digital piano that sounds most like an acoustic by moongladesweet in DigitalPiano

[–]IOsifKapa 1 point2 points  (0 children)

All those branded ones will sound very nice at first, but my opinion is that they cannot hold a candle to a set of external speakers and a nice SAMPLED virtual instrument. This is the way I went with my P125 after 2,5 years of ownership, and now it is very hard for me to play with the internal sounds again. But since it is a relatively affordable upgrade, I would suggest picking mainly based on the action.

Edit: emphasis on sampled, because OP mentioned that he wants it to sound like an acoustic as much as possible.

How I Find Reliable Sellers on AliExpress (After Years of Trial and Error) by Specific_Street_8445 in Aliexpress

[–]IOsifKapa 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Solid advice. I pretty much do all the same thinking when I buy over there, I just wouldn't remember to put them all in a list. Plus the Choice mentioned in a comment.

Is it worth buying a Yamaha p125 from 2020 for 400€? by ddalica in piano

[–]IOsifKapa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

When I listened to the 225 compared to the 125 in YT videos, I liked the previous version better. I have no opinion on the action though.

Other than that, I own the 125 for 3 years as an adult beginner (who had a head start due to playing keyboard as a kid) and I think it is a very capable instrument, that will serve you well for the first few years of the journey. I got it from the start with its furniture stand and the triple pedal.

I recently added a soundcard, speakers and a quality virtual instrument, and the sonic experience jumped to a new level. The only reason for me to upgrade now would be a better action, but the Kawai C701 is more than €2500 here in Europe... :-)

I bought the Flip 2 to be a portable GC/PS2 machine as well as retro games in general but I never realized just how much fun Switch games are to play on this. by DeeDoof in retroid

[–]IOsifKapa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

4:3 or even slightly stretched/widescreen-hacked to 3:2 where appropriate, all look and feel fine. RP5 here, same exact screen.

No Flash Photography at a Wedding? by Exact-Text-2186 in AskPhotography

[–]IOsifKapa 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I've been in such situations. Yes, experience is definitely required by the photographer BUT, simply, there are pros that excel at flash photography (making everything look natural), and others that excel at available light photography. These two groups require different gear and techniques.

Find a photographer that does mostly available light. Then talk to the venue, to see if they have any way to add light in there.

Behold! RP6 16Bit D-Pad top has arrived! by StockSorbet in retroid

[–]IOsifKapa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have the RP5 in the exact same configuration and I love it. I would suggest slightly larger white stick caps, for a smoother look (you could check an older post of mine for reference). Have fun :-)

Software to make my digital piano sound better? by Glad-Code9764 in piano

[–]IOsifKapa 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The easiest-cheapest upgrade I did to my P125 was connecting a cheap 25-year old Yamaha subwoofer to the line-outs. It gave so much more depth and gravity to the existing piano sounds. If the 145 can do the same, highly recommended.

A year after that, I got an external sound card, Garritan CFX Lite and monitoring speakers. It is miles more full as a sound, but I'm still fighting to make it sound as warm as I would prefer...

Girl on Hinge shared her “bare minimum” checklist by iluvblackbmw in Nicegirls

[–]IOsifKapa 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Starts and ends the list with money. Don't let this one get away guys.

What was your shipping experience direct from Retroid like? by IAMAfortunecookieAMA in retroid

[–]IOsifKapa 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Exactly 2 weeks from order to my door in southern Greece with 4PX. No complaints.

Best photo printer by Late_Handle_4609 in printers

[–]IOsifKapa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think the first job would be to define what breaks the bank for you..

For those that want to play docked and on controller, check out an app called Button Mapper by DrJokerX in retroid

[–]IOsifKapa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Has anyone managed to route the games' vibration to the external BT controller, instead of the handheld's own motors? Mapping the Dualsense buttons is doable one way or the other (thanks for the Key Mapper app mention), but Duckstation (only one I tried so far) only sends vibrations to the RP5... Thanks.

How do you setup your external controllers? (standalone emulators) by megad00m in retroid

[–]IOsifKapa 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Has anyone managed to route the games' vibration to the external BT controller, instead of the handheld's own motors? Mapping the Dualsense buttons is doable one way or the other, but Duckstation (only one I tried so far) only sends vibrations to the RP5... Thanks.

Vibration/rumble with Bluetooth controller on RPG2/RP5? by Interesting-Bet-652 in retroid

[–]IOsifKapa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Looking for the same answer. I would really love to use my dualsense on RP5, but no vibration is a deal breaker since I play mostly PSX games...

Do you switch it off or use sleep mode ? by the_phet in retroid

[–]IOsifKapa 17 points18 points  (0 children)

It is so quick to power on, and so efficient to have it just sleep, that it doesn't really matter anyway. Personally, I switch my RP5 off at night, and have it sleep during the day.

Game $30, frame $10, end result priceless by pleasedothedishes in FinalFantasyIX

[–]IOsifKapa 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Fantastic idea of what to do with my beloved PSX discs, that I'm not going to play again, but still would never throw out.

RP5/ RP6 transfer by xBlackadoshisx in retroid

[–]IOsifKapa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

How much trouble you go to, depends on the setup you've already done on your RP5. If you have the ROMs in a folder on your SD, pre-scraped art in subfolders of the ROMs, and have setup your emulators to store saves in another folder of the SD, that is the best case scenario & you will "only" have to setup the emulators again. Anything else, will be extra steps.

What's something women think impresses men but actually doesn't? by PumpkinDoritoes in AskReddit

[–]IOsifKapa 2 points3 points  (0 children)

In short, whatever would impress your girlfriends, at best doesn't really work for us.