Diki - it's never been that for me. Certainly we all have our preferences and we would like to have the best keyboard we can afford. When I joined the SZ a few years ago there definitely were members who had strong opinions about their and others' keyboards. That is not a reason for PETTY arguments and snide remarks.

Some members seem to come with an attitude or a chip on their shoulder. That doesn't make it fun for anyone. But the past year or two has seen an increase of 'touchy' members and posters.

I liked when we could make good, clean fun of each other and our keyboards, but now everyone has to be politically correct all the time. That's why I feel the SZ doesn't have good posts anymore - we're afraid to speak out.

But that's the whole point........ You are still only making comments about each other's keyboards, in fun or not.

There is SO much more to arranger usage than simply which one you use. But little of the rest gets discussed, and so many opportunities to learn and better oneself gets drowned out in the one-upmanship of ownership. Boring.........

I understand, but so many of these questions have been asked and answered before. My advice to new (and old) membersis: check the archives. Rephrase your questions so people will want to answer them. Ask something challenging. Show us what you know. As far as posting music, that's not my bag. I like conversation, whether it be technical or for fun. I agree that we've had too many "mine is the best" posts around here, but let's stop the whining too.

See, I just proved that a non-arranger post can generate some decent interest.

While we're waiting for a new arrranger or synth to come to market there's lots that we can do to keep the SZ up and interesting. Check out the 'health issue' post. That's a topic close to many of us here, and I'm only 56. The arranger forum is for PEOPLE who have a connection to arrangers. Some don't even own one, but they add to the forum with other expertise or information. I llove to read about gigs and interesting happenings. I don't have to know anything about or even like or hate your arranger. That's what I miss.

I have to be realistic about ALL digital keyboards. They are ALL inferior to the acoustic/analog keyboards that they emulate. This is simply a FACT not just an opinion. Emulation actually means NOT THE REAL THING. It's all about how great musicians can make keyboards ( no matter what brand ) sound musical and can convince the listener that they are listening to real instruments. Musicianship is key now and will always be. The choice of keyboard brand really doesn't matter at all. They all have their strengths and weaknesses. It is completely up to the musician to make the sounds work in a musical performance.

1 2 3 for Nigel, his point of view is so refreshing. Any keyboard will do – How good am I? Wow, that’s so real. We get better and the keyboard sounds better, sounds right.

Judging keyboards --- I have my Tyros 2 amount four months now, I am in a learning mode, the keyboard can do so much.

My question – How can anyone judge a keyboard without spending a lot of time with it? I would love to master all the top brand keyboards, there is so much offered by each one. Fun, fun enjoyment.

John C.

I find trying new keyboards a lot like tasting a new wine...... some of them come on strong the minute you pop them in your mouth, some of them develop more slowly, and require more time to be appreciated.

I've seen many posts about out of the box impressions, and then I've read several posts about arrangers that grew on the poster more slowly. To be honest, I tend to prefer the ones that take a bit more time to appreciate, rather than overwhelm on the first sip.

Sometimes, having a keyboard that demands a fair bit of setup time and adjustment helps you to learn and improve your programming skills more than those that pop right out of the box and you just sit there and play (nice though that is, it makes having an individual sound so much harder!) and never spend much time with the innards......

Every time I change keyboards, I'm looking for something that DOESN'T sound too much like the previous one, If I wanted to sound as good as my last one, I'd still be playing it! My pet peeve is that even the manufacturers have a blinkered idea of how to use an arranger..... they don't HAVE to be played in simple LH - chords, RH - melody mode, but often simple mistakes in button placement make two-handed control a lot harder.

Many members here bemoan how small the arranger market (and consequent development and innovation are, also), but the manufacturers themselves do a lot to deliberately hobble their performance by taking too narrow a view of their potential usage. The gap between workstation and arranger has never been so small, sonically, and Yamaha's T2 even has voices and technology above and beyond their top-of-the-line MotifES (as they should, given the price!), but control layout still makes them all difficult to do much with your right hand. Some of us use BOTH........!

If only we spent more time on this forum saying what we would like to see improved/changed/undone rather than constant self-congratulation, perhaps the manufacturers would spend more time and R&D budget on making them more useful and well rounded. Right now, they must think they are close to perfect, for all the innovation they fail to come up with each product cycle.

Only the soft-arrangers are showing any real changes in control flexibility and expanded feature sets, but unfortunately the hardware and sound development lags a bit. However, soon (I think within 2-3 years) this will change, and the big boys are going to have to play catchup, not something the market is kind to.....

Anyway, thanks for a post that considers more than just what arranger you own......

Diki -
You raise some good points. I would love to see and participate in discussions regarding arranger design, layout, features. Mostly I have felt that those items turn into a bitch session about what we have and don't like - which is what you complain about alot. If we could have an intelligent dialog on these issues and have a feeling we were being heard and listened to then I would encourage that discussion 100%

Good post!

How is this Diki..


I would like an Arranger Keyboard with features and quality of the following:

I want a 76 key arranger with the feel of a Roland "G".

I want the features of Ketron MidJay, MP3, wav,and sequencer capabilities at the same time with separate volume sliders.

I want the VK organ module from Roland.

I want the best of the Yamaha Tyros2 sounds

I want the Yamaha sounds playable.

I want the editing and sequencing power of Roland and Genesys[GEM}.

I want the Roland harmonizer.

I want the old features found on the Roland G1000.

I want the sound system of the Technics KN7000.

I want the weight of the Casio WK series.

I want the quality of Roland "G"s.

I want the SMF specs and results of Roland GS instruments.

I want Casio pricing.

I want AJ [Ketron] and Dave [GEM] support.

I want the performance[saving ] concept of Roland.

I want a real sampler , found on the Roland Fantom.

I want the Piano sounds from Roland RD 700sx.

I want the concept of Domenik's Media Station{VST}.

I want the separate outs from the "G".

I want the effects of Roland and Yamaha..

I want multiple mic input on board..like???.

I want a vast style library and EMC software built in..

That is enough for starters.

Sorry I couldn't think of any features from the Korg, other than an MP3 player, but that is covered by Ketron..

Oh Yeah...I want it now!!!!!

First, what is the occasion, and how is the clientele dressed ? ... I don't necessarily want to be wearing a tux at a pool party unless everyone else is 'black tie' ...
Generally its:
Weddings - rare nowadays except for cocktail hours/parties - tux
Formal Functions - tux
Country Clubs - depending on the event - tux or shirt and tie (tonight is a black suit, nice shirt and tie)
Piano Lounge - again, depending on venue & clientele - blazer, shirt, tie, or open shirt -
Outdoor - Dockers (should I get a sponsor fee for that?!? ) or Bermuda style shorts ... sport shirt
t.

Tony I think you are lost..Dress code is another post.