You can get excellent Midi loops and sequences (Witness the Yamaha Mega voices) but if you compare them to an audio recording, even the best just don’t have that natural feel.
On the other hand, unless you are making direct comparisons, it’s debatable as to whether you can hear the difference. (Particularly in a mix)(Drums are the exception)
The SA voices are also an excellent way to get around the lack of processing power of Hardware based keyboards being able to change the sound of an instrument in real time. (You’ve got to take your hats off to Yamaha for that)
Technology however moves on, and sound modelling (Basic sound generation stored in samples and then manipulated in real time, just like the real instrument) is now starting to become a reality. (And will eventually make all the big sample sets and disc streaming an irrelevance)(Just look at the many VSTs that have been produced recently)
As far as I am aware, Wersi OAS 7 is the only Arranger/Organ system, that comes as standard with this technology, and while difficult to program at first, (A new way of developing sounds has to be learnt) once sound designers get into the swing of things then all the old technologies will pale. (The current sounds (The Sound Packs in particular) already leave most other keyboards behind, particularly when you compare them to Real Instruments and not just other keyboards)
Point to note: if you look at most (But not all) of the technological advances in music keyboards, they have mainly come from the smaller manufactures.
Whichever way it goes the future looks bright, but just remember, that top performers on keyboards (And that stand the test of time) got there by playing the instruments, not by allowing some sophisticated backing or feature to do the work for them.
Enjoy Life, Play a Wersi

Bill


[This message has been edited by abacus (edited 01-22-2008).]

Hi Dan01,
it took a while to get used to the navigation system, it is different,
but I don't quite agree that style editing is not lacking.

There is no way of event list editing a style track, which when it comes to converted styles is almost a neccesity.
EMC doesn't always get it right.
Can't understand why Ketron don't put out some sort of software editing package.

As for the Audya loops, is it some sort of a time slice function or something? Sounds fascinating either way.

I've never come across slicing function till I got my PA800. It slices drum loops & then I can use midi to alter the rhythm. To what extent naturally depends on the complexity of loop in the first place.


best wishes
Rikki
[QUOTE]Originally posted by DanO1:
[B]
That being said, I think many people have this impression that Ketron has poor navigation and editing is lacking .


With Audya, they are using midi as the map to change multiple audio loops in real time , which is not currently done on any arranger keyboard.

Midi is numbers vs. audio is realistic. Sampling a guy or girl playing guitar is better than using numbers to create that strum....It's getting the multiple samples at the same time, change in real time. That is the trick. Answer ? Use midi to manipulate audio. Hence, Audya !

Rikki wrote "There is no way of event list editing a style track, which when it comes to converted styles is almost a neccesity.
EMC doesn't always get it right.


If your judging Ketron's on board ability to slice parts or individual notation etc..than I can see Ketron's limitations.

I use a computer to communicate on the web.
I have never used a computer to record a sequence (hard disk recorder) or edit styles.


If I listen to a style on my SD1 and not happy with the way it sounds, all I do is change sounds/voices, volumne levels, effects & that's it and save it. What's nice with Ketron is that you don't need to save your style edits with registrations. Ketron products take a snap shot, so that the next time you boot up, you don't have to call up registrations, you just select the style.

I'm not sure what Audya does, but getting audio loops to change with chord progressions in real time is a challenge.

I think Ketron let the "cat out of the bag" a little early with introducing Audya last year.






[This message has been edited by DanO1 (edited 01-23-2008).]

Ya think??!!! LOL

Yeah, it's sure been a looooong hype about Audya already,
but finally it looks like they are making the webpage
ready for the "new baby"...... so who knows, maybe it
will be ready fior the public during this year? http://www.ketron.it/prodotti/index.asp?idTipo=2

Happy Playing
GJ

I wonder about the Audya, they are pushing it at the last two shows, but its still a prototype. I worry about them rushing it in to production then once its released it has many problems. The SD1 had so many bugs, then it was updates after updates. The xd9 & Sd5 also has bugs. I've owned all of the Ketrons starting w/MS50 and I just recently sold my SD5 for a yamaha s900. I would take a lot of convincing for me to go back to ketron. They have best sounds but fell behind on compared to yamaha tyros 2, korg PA800, etc.

"The SD1 had so many bugs, then it was updates after updates. The xd9 & Sd5 also has bugs"

The XD9 came out after the SD1. However,the XD9 had one feature that the SD1 didn't and that feature was the "remix" feature. The Remix feature allowed the drum tracks from a style to be used in real time vs. the drum track that came with a standard midi file.

So here is the XD9 with a feature that the flagship keyboard (SD1) did not have. They thought they needed to add "remix" to the SD1 and came out with OS 4.0 .

This move was the start of many problems for Ketron.Owners had problems changing to OS 4.0 and many customer service issue's arrived ! and they would call their store or say
" Help Help I just try to upgrade to 4.0 and it didn't work " . MAJOR HEADACHE ...

(almost)all arranger keyboards need some more stability once they are released. i think all of our arrangers has been updated to a newer OS version since the purchase time. that wouldn t be outrages.

but i think this would be the major issue... to make enough audio loops to cover everything that midi can trigger. it is titanic work to do. the result we can only hope will be great.

i think would have been enough if ketron, or anyone else, introduced audio loops in the styles, but only for drums/percution and maybe guitar. i feel that pretty much everything else (piano, strings, brass, etc) is ok as a midi triggered samples. but yes, for guitars - i'd like to have them more realistic sounding and playing. doesnt matter what technology they use...

anyway, good luck ketron! audya is a very challenging project and it's for everyones best to see it done and running!

[This message has been edited by adimatis (edited 01-23-2008).]

Audya demos are now up ... again these were taken LIVE at Winter NAMM 2008 via a video camera. The AUDYA used was a prototype .... just to give you a taste of what's to come.
Enjoy.
AJ

Where are the demos?