Yeah, the Funk Slap Bass sounded pretty good I have to admit. Like I said, I'm sure the Audya will sound better in person too, but the sounds in the demo still could have been produced better i.e. mic'd, recorded, and/or mixed down and mastered better before releasing the video to the public in my opinion. Or perhaps that is as good as it gets?? In which case the Audya probably wouldn't sound a "whole lot" (or any??) better in person after all. It's amazing how much an audio or video demo can reveal about the true nature of the beast in question, even if the demo is compressed and not the best of quality. I knew right away, for instance, that after hearing the Tyros3 online demos that the Drums on the T3 were going to be "business as usual" from Yamaha regarding the Tyros series keyboard i.e. the Drums would again be lacking on the T3, just as they were on the T2 and T1. And my ears confirmed my suspicions by the negative reports coming back from T3 owners about the T3 drum kits being lackluster. Pity too, because the Motif ES/XS workstation(s) have superb drum kits. But I digress... sorry. Anyway, I probably still won't be able to get a chance to play an Audya unless some miracle happens, like somebody ordering one from a Guitar Center in my area and then he or she decides to return it after his or her suspicions have likewise been confirmed also. Hey! Now that's an idea for you. I'll keep my eyes peeled and on the lookout for any wayward Ketron Audya that might just happen to show up at my local GC. And hopefully the suspicions flying around the internet will all have been groundless, unfounded and ultimately untrue. Wouldn't that be a kick in the pants! The person who returned it probably just decided he couldn't afford to keep it.

All the best,
Mike

PS: I would still have to come up with the $5,500.00 or so if I actually decided to buy it. Rather, more like.. ..

it was a "live " demonstration recorded probably by a cam corder . I think it was just a very quick snapshot of what was happening at musikmesse and i have certainly seen demo's by other manufacturers from korg and roland that were recorded in much the same way. I dont think the recording was meant to faithfully reproduce the sonic qualities of the keyboard. It was just to Capture the flavour of what was happening at the event. I suspect from the cheers of the audience that what they heard sounded a whole lot better than what we heard !!!

I think some of the styles demonstrated were a little cheesy but that goes for all arrangers. What attracted me was the liveness of the sound. That was truly awesome. But for me the Audya still hasnt got enough of the features that i need and for such an expensive keyboard its quite discouraging that it doesnt have a fully fledged sequencer, fully editable sound creation, style creation or true sampler onboard the instrument. You seem to be required to pay a quite high premium for the new technology but some might be prepared to pay for that for the sound. Its a hrad one to balance because where as the Audya has kick ass live drums and bass its other sounds whilst very good dont quite match up. The sax in the demonstration would have sounded good 4 years ago but since superarticulation , they sounded just ok. I guess i want yamaha super art voices, audya's drums and bass and Korgs features and flexibility all in one keyboard ! Oh well i am satisfied with what i have at the moment and i know i have not pushed its sonic capabilities whatsoever so i will sit and watch how the market developes.

Your points are well taken Spalding. I reckon if the crowds like the sounds of the Audya then I suppose that's a really good indicator of the Audya's true sonic quality and worth. Although the audience may have just been clapping and cheering for the "unusual" Duo playing performance of the two gentlemen, which was unique in itself. I would like to think they were also cheering for the sounds emanating from the Audya too. But we'll never know, unless somebody who was actually there pipes up on the SynthZone and let's us know the real skinny eh?

I have heard that Ketron is suppose to provide an OS update for the Audya that will enable "micro" editing of the sounds along with enhancements for the Sequencer. That would be fantastic if it's really true. AJ??

All the best,
Mike

The BIG "thorn" in all of this is the astronomical price tag attached to the Audya. In my opinion, more people would be willing to shell out that kind of money if indeed they really thought the Audya was "that much better" than the rest of the pack currently on the market e.g Korg Pa2XPRO, etc. From some of the responses from people who went to the Audya Jam's it sounds to me like a lot of people don't really think so. Although, others like DonM thought it was the bees knees and worth every penny apparently - best he's ever heard in an arranger in fact. To each his own I reckon. I'd have to play it in person before I could somehow be convinced for myself though. Unfortunately, Ketron's marketing and distribution of the Audya has been abysmal at best in my opinion. It's a rarer bird to find then the now 'extinct' Dodo Bird. In other words, you can't find it anywhere that I'm aware of without having to first drive, fly, or sail at least half way around the world or across a Continent or some other major land mass to do so. And I don't think I'd chance the drive to L.A. because if the traffic doesn't get you the smog will. Just kidding.. If George happened to get one in stock and on the shelf for demoing purposes then - maybe. I'd have to try to find a day when the wind was blowing directly East at about 30 knots though.

>> Any chance the Audya will make it down to God's Country AJ?? Somewhere within driving distance and without the Smog perchance??

All the best,
Mike

[This message has been edited by keybplayer (edited 04-04-2009).]

I think that a lot of the problem with the Audya's price comes from, although it has got some groundbreaking new technology in it, and ought to deserve it's premium price, it isn't ADDED to an already complete arranger... In other words, if you had something like a PA2X or T3, and then added the live loop features and interactive arranger stuff (which seem to be the innovative things on the Audya) you would have an arranger WORTH maybe $5k.

But sadly, to get the innovative stuff, you have to give up the full featured sampler, the full featured voice editors and style creation and editing packages, SA or DNC voice triggering, Guitar modes (that you can edit or create), etc., etc.. Which simply begs the question... when the innovative stuff comes at the price of regular functionality, why is the price so high? If it did all a Korg or T3 can do, and THEN add it's own stuff, sure, it might be worth $5k or so.

But until it does, it strikes me as worth no more than other TOTL arrangers.

My neighbor bought a new Chrysler. I sat in it tonight and commented on how the dashboard had so many lights on it I thought I was sitting in the space shuttle. Then I asked her where the cigarette lighter was so I could plug in my GPS to show her. She didn't know! She had the car 5 months already and didn't know.

My point being that the more bells & whistles we have on an item, it seems the less we want to take the time to explore it...too overwhelming.

Apply that to a keyboard. I'm not sure I would want a keyboard that gives me everything but a tuna salad sandwich! All I really want is good sound quality and some versatility with the dance styles. A basic meat and potatoes keyboard!

I'm of the opinion that talent will make up for lack of features, but an abundance of features will NOT make up for lack of talent!
And it's cheaper that way!

Lucky

i accept what you are saying lucky to a degree. There are i would suppose many that buy an instrument just because its the latest keyboard without looking at what features it has that are actually any improvement over the last instrument they had. For me i know the Audya is a backward step. I firmly believe that talent ist the overarching principle as far as making an instrument sound great is concerned. But i am from the old school and dont want to have to b tied to a computer to do any deep editing,sequencing etc when i get inspired at church, or a frinds house when out jamming. By the time i get home and connect my keyboard to the computer , i have forgotten what it was that inspired me in tyhe first place !!! thats why for me the Audya as nice as it sounds is a no go for me.