GC or Sam ash they just don't have high end arrangers.most of the sale persons (yes in KB dept)don't know/never heard/seen Ketron/solton or GEM (even Technics)KB's in their lives.

the only So Cal arranger shop that has most stuff would be George Kaye's.He has alot of mideast customers (who are mosly into highend arrangers only).

GC /and samash will carry 3k,tyros,some low end PSRs,exr(sam ash)and casio WK's ,etc generally.They don't sell(and are not well informed about) arrangers much.

Mike...I agree with your thaughts...Korg and ALL the Manufactures are VERY Business "Smart"....BUT AGAIN I think they need to be more HUMBLE and (Street Smart)...By This I mean, Example... spending time with Alot of These Pro Arranger users and even Non-Pro Users about what's needed for Improvements in their Instruments...Gee, Marketing to me is Finding what the Customer Needs...Provide it...and Improve it using the Customer base...It kind of boils down to "Customer Service"...not to be Harsh, But Sometimes Corporations act like Someone sucks their Brains out after reaching a certain level in Management!!!...Not nice to say I know, but it gets to the Point...Even the Big "M" will put Salt on the Fries to sell the 6 cent(cost)...99 cent Retail COKE!...It's called Marketing and Profit Returns...Have a Great Day!

After reading all the reviews for a new arranger (my X4 decided to stop playing for about 5 minutes on New Year's Eve), I finally settled on either the SD1 or the PA1XPRO. Being that there is a local dealer that sells both I figured the best thing was to do a side by side at the dealership. Due to the crowds at the store I used a pair of dealer supplied headphones to check out both systems. First, I auditioned the PA1XPRO for about 45 minutes (specifically since the navigation has changed considerably since the i3 (which I had been using to trigger the X4) I wanted to make sure that the test was completely impartial. Then onto the SD1. After hearing the two side by side attempting to use both similar systles and patches, I placed my deposit on the SD1, primarily based upon the ease of navigation and the more realistic sounds. My intent was to pick the keyboard up the next day. Do to the onset of what turned out to be a 48 hour bug of some sort, I was unable to pick up the keyboard as expected. Yesterday, I went back to the dealer to complete my transaction for the SD1 but something told me that, not only should I bring my singing partner (my wife) with me to evaluate the sounds, but also, I should try both systems again but this time though a speaker system rather than the earphones. Now, let it be known that I have not been a major fan of Ketron support, however, even with that in mind I had thought that, at least, the SD1 is a more mature keyboard than the PA1XPRO and based upon a variety of snythzone posts regarding the SD1, Ketron is working on improving their support. To make a very long story short, I am now the proud owner of a PA1XPRO based upon the sounds that I had, apparently, not been able to hear through the headphones (or maybe it was the oncoming cold). The sounds and styles are terrific the flexibility with the CD-R and MP3 options allow me to eliminate a variety of external gagetry. The good news is that the keyboard (50+ lbs) will remain, almost exclusively in the cafe (we used to move B3s and Leslies....not anymore) and just as the i3 was at the forfront of technology back in 1993, I believe that Korg support as well as seveal 3rd party vendors, this keyboard should be able to last for a good long time. One other thing for all of the keyboard players that join us at the cafe...this new 76 key keyboards has a real nice feel and should satisfy even the most discriminating player.

I was able to touch, feel, see and hear the PAX1-PRO at Dan0's Keyboard City today, and while the individual voices could all be rated good to excellent, I was not enamored with the drum kits, and the few styles I heard were a bit soft for my taste. Additionally, the weight of the board, touch screen and somewhat complex OS seemed to be drawbacks for anyone doing things on the fly. I sincerely believe Yamaha is on the right track with its OS, allow you to select from several areas on the fly while performing. Guess that's why I just bought another 3000. And, as most of you know I gotta' have backups.

Gary

Choosing the PSR3000 over the Korg Pa1x, I must ask why? I've noticed that there are not to many Korg owners, makes we wonder why since they seem to have great arrangers, they are always more expensive than the others. Could pricing be the reason?

korg PA 50,60(most sounds are identical to pa1x) is lower than 3k price wise.

resons other than price

less poly(62),same rom(32mb-triton board),(ofcourse you also have basic sampling but most arranger gigers don't use them or band/studio musicians prefer workstation sampler for better editing)
though PA is good for sound,some functions, korg hasn't improved it's OS.same old 1993's I3.same amount of erratic fills(fill1,2 now break button which does simple crash)(in yam fills are more realistic and have 4 per style),over orchestrated styles,more tango/ethnic than regular pop,rock,dance styles,in Korg some styles are good for certain songs only(where in yam they are more open and simpler)chord recognition(no rootless),arranger and seq/mid file playback doesnt work together(yam do that -while playing a mid file you can change a different drum style/beat from preset arranger styles(yes not only the kit),pads that does single sounds(new OS will correct that I heard)(in yam you can program loops like RPS in Roland),etc.

yes yam's hard ware look like a toy,keys are not as good,some sounds are not that great,seq is just a song recorder,no real sound editing,on board RAM mem is nothing compared to korg/roland..

but the bottom line yam made it right for an arranger(all in one package what most real arranger gigers need,functions,storage,third party support of styles-better than all others,weight,price,and also resale value-it's very quick to sell a 2k,2100,or 3k,tyros than g1000,VA or pa80 as you know)(like korg did with it's workstations)so it does sell.

read these (though most are for PA80,60/50 vs 3k),pa1x still have more or less same OS
and hard ware buttons.(except new mp3,CDR,HD,VH,more styles/sounds)arranger
functions are the same.
if korg improve the OS/fills and issues mentioned above it'll be the best seller.
http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/Forum37/HTML/009086.html
http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/Forum37/HTML/009293.html
http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/Forum37/HTML/009096.html




[This message has been edited by jamman (edited 01-12-2005).]

and this
http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/Forum37/HTML/009297.html