Different forms of instant gratification...it just drives home the point that they are for different kinds of users.

I demo workstations and use them a lot in the studio, but they are different beasts than the arrangers, and consequently, require different masters.

Again, there are exceptions...I am one of them, as I use both, depending on my musical needs at the the time.

Ian

Is there an arranger made by another company, roughly in the same price range as the S900, and with as many features, that has the quality you want, Squeak?

Ian

Nope.., but I still ain't payin that price for a plastic home keyboard S-900 sounds great.. Love the SA voices.., not too fond of the drum kits.., but acceptable. Love the orchestral voices.., good styles, blah blah blah.., but it ain't built like a $1,700 keyboard. Sorry Ian.., I just dont' see how Yamaha can charge that price and build it that way. I'm not saying it'll fall apart in my hands.., but it's not built well enough for my tastes.

Not too fond of the key action, but it's passable. Still.., a little under 2 grand for a plastic home keyboard.., nope ain't buyin it. I still say if Roland can feature pack the Juno-G as they have and build that pupply with solid button contacts and give it a metal panel for less than a grand.., well Yamaha can up their build quality too.

Ian I've had a Juno G and S-900 side by side. The G may have plastic end caps, but the overal feel to the buttons is better IMO.., and the panel is at least metal. Not even comparing sounds either. Just overall build quality.

[This message has been edited by squeak_D (edited 05-15-2009).]

Bill I understand your position & thank you for your thoughts on this topic.Home players are making themselves happy playing music......& that is priceless. We have short times on the earth, how we choose to take life's journey is up to each of us & we all do it different. I'll bet you can still make great music on anyone of those arrangers you have in your home due to your talent not the unit itself. You cannot change the way the market conducts business & to make a profit to exist is a fact of life although we might not like it as in depreciation....a car for example being one of the worst investments ever & a cancerous cash cow at best. Technology is in its infancy for sure now....imagine whats in the horizon in the years to come .....in a few short years what we have now will surly be atiquiquated..........money, money, money, rules the world but dont let it rule yoruself.

Good luck my friend.

Squeak......
plastics will be the norm very soon on most keyboards & so many other products....new lightweight compound materials are being produced that are stronger and more durable then metal every day. And I'm glad for sure......

Donny YOU the consumer have more power than you think. You want prices to drop.., then don't buy the next upgrade. All the makers bank on you UPGRADING your entire keyboard. You can drive the cost down FORCE their hand.., just by NOT buying their next biggest and greatest thing.

The keyboard makers always remind me of that movie ANT'S. At some point all those little ants realized they outnumbered those grasshoppers like 200 to 1. When they realized it the tables turned. It's like the keyboard makers are grasshoppers who are smaller in numbers.., and the consumers are the wee little ants in this. The consumer can drive cost down. Give into their greed.. and they'll just get more greedy.

I don't see the makers switching over to plastic bodies on the high end models anytime soon Donny. Sorry.., but I can't see this happening (at least not for a long while).

I can't wait to see any of the top three release a TOTL workstation made from plastic and see how consumers take that. Plastic seems to more acceptable in the arranger market for people who want feather light keyboards. Weight isn't as much an issue with workstation owners as you hear it brought up so much more in the arranger community.

People here bitched about the weight of a G-70 but as Diki and Fran can tell you that weight is for a reason... Clearly better quality DOES translate into increased weight. You want a featherweight then hey.., enjoy the plastic.., but there's a huge number of us who have no problem with a few pounds if it means it's built better.

[This message has been edited by squeak_D (edited 05-15-2009).]

I thought the Korg PA-800 was plastic, and I know the Tyros3 is plastic, and yet they seem to hold up remarkably well.

So, an S900 is going to do the same.

I doubt very much if metal will continue.

Plastic composites, and even carbon fiber, are slowly taking their place and giving strength and lightness...and they are much more renewable and environmentally friendly

Buying a G-70 for portability is like downloading porn to savor the cinematography.

Common misconception...size and weight equal quality and performance. Don't be fooled.

Ian

If the last six months has taught us ANYTHING at all, it is that 'they' haven't got a CLUE what 'they' are doing

They are going for fast profits at any cost whatsoever

Squeak, you and Diki go after the grasshoppers...you guys could use the big old G70 as a battering ram.

Meanwhile, us other ants will go on with the business of making both music and money.

Ian