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#159237 - 04/25/06 06:20 AM
Re: Ketron SD5 Review
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Member
Registered: 12/03/99
Posts: 732
Loc: Phoenix, AZ USA
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Guys, no adding the sequencer would not add the weight. But it would make it harder for the customers to justify buying the SD1. The same can be said about the sampler, and probably about the 76 keys as well (the SD5 appears to be as long as the SD1).
If you remember AJ's posts before the release of SD5, it seemed like Ketron was intending to repackage their technologies (and make some improvements) and make a low-cost instrument. I think even the professional OMB entertainers would find having a playback-only sequencer a sufficient compromise.
My concern is that at $3000 MSRP (without a vocal processor), the SD5 is NOT a low-cost instrument by any means. I believe that the PSR3000 sets the price point for the "low-cost professional instrument", at about $1500 street. Korg PA50 and Roland are close to that - actually closer to PSR1500 (without vocal harmony).
As far as the new features go - having the 16 extra buttons is nice, but their placement, where they can only be accessed by the left hand, is questionable - they should be right in the middle. I guess the Riff functions are interesting, but they are relatively smal software enhancements, and if they are really that useful, I would guess that every SD1 owner should demand a software update, which will include them.
I am going to reserve my judgement as to whether the SD5 is worth its asking price until I get to see/hear/play it. However, at first glance this is not a low-cost offering that many manufacturers produce when repackaging their 4-year old technologies and producing a dumbed-down "middle of the line" instrument.
_________________________
Regards, Alex
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#159242 - 04/26/06 06:30 AM
Re: Ketron SD5 Review
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Member
Registered: 12/03/99
Posts: 732
Loc: Phoenix, AZ USA
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Spalding,
look for AJ's posts from about 8-12 months ago: he was actually asking members on this forum what would be a good compromise set of features for a lower-end arranger, and then he announced the SD5. Although it is mainly a repackaging of the selected SD1 technologies, it also has some new features and larger polyphony. Overall, I think this was a good attempt to produce a mid-level arranger (though my concern about price still stands).
Indeed, SD1 is a fairly old instrument (by today's standards), having been around for 4(?) years. However, Ketron has been pretty good issuing software updates which significantly improved the instrument over previous versions; they have even updated the sound set. Many times I have seen the manufacturers advertise instrument as being software upgradeable, but then these software upgrades are just bug fixes of the things that should have been working from the start. So in effect, this is just a way to turn the user into a beta-tester. While initial SD1 patches were all correcting bugs, some of which were fairly serious stability problems, the later software updates went beyond that. I wish Roland had done that with my G1000.
As far as completeness of the instrument goes - we all have different needs, and yours may well be different from mine. I need high polyphony and abhor heavy weight of the likes of latest Rolands and Korgs. Playing mostly live, I don't care about recording with the sequencer. Whenever I need to do a multi-track recording (which is very rarely), I am at home near a computer, where even a $60 PowerTracks provides loads more functionality than any built-in sequencer. I can see how someone else may want an all=in-one instrument, and don't care about the weight. This is why it is great that there is more than one model of an arranger on the market, and we have the freedom to choose, instead of being confined to a single one. Regards, Alex
_________________________
Regards, Alex
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