I found this review on Sweetwater.com:

OVER THE TOP!!
by Ron Austin from Mastic Beach,NY, June 2007
Music Background: Pro Musician, Sound Engineer

Being a PA80 user I just had to get this one. I find the USB interfaces really easy to use and the song play mode just like a juke box. The only problem I've found is that alot of the styles are way over the top (too much) and unusable for doing popular songs, past and present. The voices are fantastic!
=============================
So what's the deal with PA800 styles? Some say they're usable and others unusable to match songs. I'd like to know about the factory styles (OOTB) so not those tweaked by users.

Taike

its the kind of posting that really puzzles me. If the styles are too busy , then simply drop out some of the instruments. Its really that simple. Everyone has their own taste when it comes to styles but really it could not be easier to make some adjustments to your specific tastes.The same goes for any of the most basic arrangers to the most sophisticated.

The Pa800 styles are way above the rest...listen close.
with a few tweaks & edits here & there they are so useful in so many ways.
To busy is a personal thing.....with an arranger KB you can make the styles as Busy or simple as you want, or use converted ones or make your own to suit your needs a process very few do.....or just play LH bass and piano if you want simple...who the heck listens to these so called claims? I surly dont.

Hi:

My comment is with all the respect is in regards to the review from that Pro-musician at Sweetwater.
A Pro keyboardist does NOT mean that is an Arranger PRO Keyboardist, when a Band keyboardist "try" to be an arranger player, DISASTER....simply, they have NO idea what the arranger's concept is (OMB).

I have seen it for many years at the Stores where I used to work, and at the NAMM shows, Guess why the Manufacturer's have their staff on Arrangers keyboard specialist, and for separate their Workstations specialist on the same brand??.

I have "tested" the workstation specialist of all brands when they came to the stores over the years, and honestly can tell you that 99.99 % are CLUELESS in regards to the arrangers. Many of them, made calls right there to the "office" to find answers....This guys really know their worstations (Motiffs, Fantoms, Tritons, M's, etc) and most can play VERY well, know a lot of "tricks", but it does not mean that know arrangers.

In a nutshell, like I said, with all the respect to that reviewer for Sweetwater, I do not think he is not qualify to say how "busy" or lack are the styles on ANY arranger. He may be able to judge how are the sounds, DSPs, and some other small issues.
They say the exception confirm the rule, in MY own opinion, George Kaye is one of the persons that know most Arrangers, even I know he does not play per say....but he can make you a Demo, and knows what are the features in most arrangers regarding what brand or model.

I have spend years getting to know the arrangers, and with an organist background, actually helped me, I used to program registrations then styles on the Yamaha Electones, Technics, the Susuki Hammonds, Wersi's and even the Lowreys....

Is important to say that the opinion of how orchestrated is a style either heavy or to simple is Conceptual and also depends on the NEEDS of the arranger player.

I have been performing almost 40 years in Mexico in most mayor Hotels in Acapulco, Ixtapa, Cancun, La Paz, then in the Chicago area for many years.

I perform in the Phoenix and suburban area, I use the Tyros2, Korg PA800, and at home as backup I also have the PSRS900 and next week I will have the Ketron SD5 (it will keep company to the Midjay, SD2 etc.) before I play out with it.

Peace and keep playing !

Hi Taike,
if a style is too busy, I mute a part or 2.
Plus you can change the feel of a style by using one of the guitar or piano pads to replace the guitar or piano track in a style.

It may also depend on the type of songs the guy plays, though I find it difficult to beleive that with the 100's of onboard styles, something shouldn't suit.

If totally stuck & can't find a style to suit, there is always the option of converting, BIAB conversion, midi to style, replacing one or 2 of the style parts or for someone way more talented than me, recording from scratch.

best wishes
Rikki

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Taike:
[B]

Give the guy a break, here... He DID point out that he previously had a PA80, so this is NOT an arranger newbie coming over from the workstation Dark Side!

Complexity of styles is a very different issue for different players. Some rely on the arranger for complex parts and play the simplest of melodies (or nothing at all) with their RHs. Some play far more complex comping with both L and RHs, and sing a lot less. Some use LH bass and comp and solo with the RH, and so on and so forth.

So it's easy to see that the COMPLEXITY of the styles (not the number of the ARR parts, but their 'busyness') can give differing opinions, based on how you play. If a part is too busy to work with what you are doing, it isn't necessarily solved by just turning it off... You might still WANT a guitar part, for instance, but playing a simpler, less obtrusive line.

This is where the overall style 'philosophy' between different manufacturers becomes apparent. Some (IMO, Roland, for instance) provide less frenetic parts, that can be played with without swamping you, others often make you make the choice between either a part that is so busy you don't have much room for what YOU want to play, or no part at all.

Me, I'm in favor of the former, but I can see how other approaches favor other types of players...

Now, THAT would be a good idea for a new arranger 'feature'.... 'linked' styles, almost the same, but just with more or less busy parts within them. Rather than turn the brass off completely, just switch to the 'simple' version of the style, where they keep playing, but less 'franticly' (you know what I mean!!)

What do you think?

Hi Diki,
that's why I luv having the pads on the korg.

If a style part is too complex , I can mute the guitar or piano part ( or both) , and audition a "simpler" guitar or piano pad, and if I find one that works, I can either replace the style part with the pad, ( pad to style function, therefore creating a new variation) or simply keep the style part muted & use the pad function instead.

best wishes
Rikki
[QUOTE]Originally posted by Diki:
[B]

So it's easy to see that the COMPLEXITY of the styles (not the number of the ARR parts, but their 'busyness') can give differing opinions, based on how you play. If a part is too busy to work with what you are doing, it isn't necessarily solved by just turning it off... You might still WANT a guitar part, for instance, but playing a simpler, less obtrusive line.

Well...
I remember that my old Roland G800 had the option to mute some of the percussive instruments ( I seem to remember that there were three buttons to mute different classes of drums, like bass-drum and snare, cymbals, latin percussions...); this would solve the problem of "busy" drum tracks, but when it comes to other instruments things are more complicated.
For example, I find that the Tyros 2 has styles a bit too busy and sometimes even obtrusive; it's like Yamaha programmers were willing to show off what the Mega-Voices could do, but the result is that in many cases I have to lower the volume of a track or two or mute them at all, because they clash with what I am doing with my left hand. Sometimes just choosing a different instrument solves the problem, maybe because it's only a matter of frequencies, so -for example- if I replace an acoustic guitar with a jazz guitar the new instruments takes up a different place in the frequency spectrum and the problem is solved.
Luckyly, as Rikki wrote, the Tyros 2 has multipads as well, and with lots of options to choose, and this sometimes offers a solution to the problem, because I think that as of today asking the manufacturers to program multiple patterns of the same instrument for each variation would be a bit too much, and would no doubt add to the final cost of the instrument.

By the way, speaking of multipads, can anyone comment on the quality of the PA-800 multipads compared with Yamaha?

Andrea most Yamaha multi pads are useless & much too repetitive IMO.....except for very few.....compared to the KORG PA800 pads its night and day...there are so many very useful ones that quite frankly you can use and combine with styles to actually make a pseudo style & do a whole song with just them alone they are that good...

The PA Series are completely flexible and programmable so whether the parts are too busy is very easily fixed to your likeing. For example if the drum pattern is too busy or the guitar you dont just have the option to mute or lower the volume,you can delete that track and copy another more suitable guitar/drum track from another style into the previous style. You can delete individual drum sounds and programme your own over the existing drum pattern so your modified pattern now plays within the original style.

These instruments are awesome and most of us dont even scrape the surface.