Today, I spent nearly 2 hours auditioning the PA800. i currently own a Tyros 2. Here are my observations.

I loved the sounds that I tried, particularly the pipe organs (I am a music director of our church), so this was a big plus. The piano had really good depth, strings were great, couldn't find a choir voice that I really liked as much as the Gothic Vox on the Tyros 2. I also missed the SA effects on the guitar that I love on the Tyros - especially for soft instrumentals during sacred times of the service.

The styles sounded great, although I wanted to rebalance the voices to bring the accompaniment through. I really liked the waltzes, a big plus for me since I find the Tyroo waltzes too boom-chick-chick, and also the unplugged styles.

I love the SongBook feature, being able to easily create a playlist of songs with all the settings already there is a wonderful feature for me. I cannot understand why Yamaha have not gone in this direction.

The weight was terrific, and I am really looking for something lighter and easier to set up than the PA system on small Nursing Home jobs. Having said that the speakers are not anything as clear as the Tyros speaker system, so I am left a little anxious about whether I am going to be happy longer term with the sound. If I still end up carrying the PA system I think I'll regret spending the extra money.

Still more research to do. Especially whether I can record and burn CDs as easily as I do today. This is really helpful to provide singers with the accompaniment track for home study.

Thoroughly enjoyed playing the board, and really loved it. My namesake's experience (in UK) will make me cautious and at least one more tryout will be required before I make a decision.

Graham

[This message has been edited by PraiseTheLord (edited 06-08-2007).]

Interesting Review Graham, thanks for your sharing...

Later this summer Korg will release the MP3 board together with OS 1.5. This will allow you to record and playback audio directly on the Pa800. OS 1.5 also gives us a lot of other great features for free. Read more here .

Kind regards,
Tommy



[This message has been edited by TommyF (edited 06-07-2007).]

Tommy, the write-up from Korg talks about an mp3 player. Where did you hear it would be a recorder too?

Graham. The MP3 option is installed with the next OS 1.05, but you have to purchase a MP3 board to install from Korg.

Also OS 1.05 will include a EQ ajustment for speakers & Line output

It has been discussed several times over at Korg Forums. Read the posts by Paolo Tramannoni in this thread . Paolo is an official from Korg Italy.

Kind regards,
Tommy

This is one more reason for Yammie aficionados to sit up and take notice of Korg products. Look at all the new functionality and features Korg is giving the Pa800 by way of OS update 1.5 and the MP3 board add-on! When was the last time the high and mighty Tyros2 was updated by Yammie..hmmm?? Or the original Tyros for that matter?? It's just one more reason for me to consider jumping ship and looking elsewhere for my keyboard needs. Korg is proving (by their actions) that their customers mean something to them beyond the dollar $$$ sign. Kudos to them for taking such a 'novel' approach.

Korg apparently realizes that product satisfaction goes a long way in not only helping the customers who own their products by way of supporting the products they make, but also with the hope of retaining those same customers and in adding additional new customers when those potential customers see Korg's enthusiastic approach to supporting its products by way of frequent and "substantial" OS updates and improvements.

I hope Yammie is reading this and they understand the consequences for their "lackadaisical" support of their products - in the guise of vast multitudes abandoning ship or steering clear of Yammie products altogether because other companies e.g. Korg, etc. offer the customer much more in the way of product support beyond the sale of the product itself while extending that support far beyond just the initial 'bug fixes' that Yamaha seems to relegate the support of its products to.

Bravo Korg!

Best,
Mike

Hi Mike.

I agree with you that Korg offer their customers far more updates than Yamaha do.

T2 owners can still use MP3 songs, but they need to be converted to WAV format for the hard drive to play them back so not all is lost

I wonder ..will Korg make any money on that MP3 board[option] to go along with the 1.5 OS?

Yes I agree that companies that allow update features via OS updates is a great thing for users...but don't confuse the idea, that they are not interested in $$$..

My final decision to buy the G70 was the updated Version3...Many great features are possible with software updates...

Keep an eye on the MediaStation...they have the concept of the future..and maybe this is the direction that Korg and Roland are heading to a certain degree..Although they will always be a hardware base marketing company[s]..

I've been a diehard Yamaha customer but as time passes and the competition allows updates via software I see myself in the future switching brands.