I have sent an email to CMC but it was regarding a different matter. As far as sending an email to Ketron in Italy, can they speak English?? I also thought that the presence here of AJ and Ted or some other Ketron employee lurking on the Zone should be sufficient to get a response. AJ and Ted have seen my questions no doubt, but they refuse to respond. As I've said before, if indeed the Audya has USB 2.0 Ketron would be gushing all over letting everybody on Synth Zone or any other keyboard forum know of that fact. You know, like a proud papa spouting the good news of his new born son. Since there is no "proud papa" spilling the beans, (and by proud papa I mean Ketron) I am almost 100% convinced by Ketron's inaction to answer the question that the Audya won't have USB 2.0 but rather will have the antiquated and obsolete USB 1.1 interface.

Again, I'm not blaming AJ or Ted because they have to follow Ketron Italy's orders on what and what not to speak about or else they could face termination from their jobs. The sole culprit in all of this is Ketron Italy, who for whatever reason, are hiding this information from becoming public. And again, the only reason I can think of as to why they don't make it public is because the Audya will not have USB 2.0. Why else would they NOT answer that particular question when I have been asking it for about two solid years in a row now? AJ and Ted have answered tons of other questions but they remain silent on the question of USB 2.0.

As far as checking the Audya out once it arrives on U.S. soil, I don't see how I could try it out without having to drive 3,000 miles (6,000 round trip) to New York where CMC is located. Ketron doesn't even have a distributor on the West Coast.

I also checked the Audya Manual - Quick Start guide where the specifications ARE listed and there is NO MENTION of USB 2.0 in the specs. Now, if even the Specifications List doesn't mention the Audya as having USB 2.0, what else are we (the consumers) suppose to rely on to get the final YES or NO from? Ketron won't tell us, the Specifications in the Manual - Quick Start guide doesn't tell us; therefore, how are we going to find out? Will the full Manual specifications be different than the specifications in the Manual - Quick Start guide? I wouldn't think so. So we're basically back to square one on the USB question i.e. = don't know, and will never know unless Ketron relents and answers the question put before them. So the people who purchase an Audya may have a great sounding 76 key totl arranger on their hands, but some of its mode of operation will still remain a mystery to them. I, for one, don't want to be left in the dark about a certain aspect of a keyboard's fundamental mode of operation before I purchase a particular keyboard. And especially after forking over 6 Grand (w/tax) for an Audya.

All the best,
Mike