I used to have the XP50, but some of the buttons on the front panel became loose and some of the keys had contact problems. I picked up the board used for $800 in June of '98.

I got frustrated and sold the board for $800 yesterday and was able to pick up a BRAND NEW XP60 for $850! Oh my gosh, although we have the same sound engine, the added extra features and larger screen are so much mor wrth it.

I feel like I'm using an entirely newer and better workstation. I have good ears and the grunge effect is hardly noticeable. This workstation is the best and I'm totally happy that I DID NOT get a Korg.

Comments? Please, share your thoughts!

The Infamous EPU.

Great find on the XP60 for $850! They usually sell for over $1000 used, though I've noticed prices on the 60 and 80 have been falling on eBay lately, perhaps because of the emergence of the Korg Triton and, now, the Roland XV line (though none are workstations). I sold an XP50 with a stand recently for $650, so you did very well with your XP50 as well!

I bought an XP50 as an inexpensive way to obtain the expansion boards it contained (to use in my XP80). I didn't notice anything poorly constructed on it or anything, though. I think it is a great synth for someone who cannot afford to get a higher priced workstation. I can say, though, that after you use the XP60/80 for detailed sequencing and sound programming, it is definitely difficult to scroll through all of those pages on the 2-line LCD and make all of those extra button pushes on the 50 (or 30), despite already being familiar with its "architecture".

As for the "grunge" phenomenon, I feel the same way as you.

Why are you "totally happy that you did not get a Korg"? Which Korg workstations did you consider?

Well I was going to go for a Korg Trinity as their prices are dropping. I've seen some go for as cheap as $1000.

The Korgs seem to be more oriented for "Pop" stuff. It's loaded with synth sounds, but the Roland sounds more natural. It has the bread and butter sounds and it also excels at the synth stuff too.

I was tempted to get the Korg because of the Touch Screen, but then I saw past it. 4 trk. Hard Disk? - Don't need it, I have a Roland VS840. SCSI, not really important. Adapters exist so us XP owners can use super floppy's and SCSI devices. Besides, the Trinity only has 32 note polyphony. Sure we have four tones per sound on the Roland, but some of those tones can be ex-ed out.

I'm very happy with my purchase of the XP60!

The Infamous EPU.

I feel "totally happy" that I decided to return the Korg Triton I had bought a few months ago. I was somewhat hesitant to return it, but I'm so much happier with the Nord Modular, Lexicon MPX-1, and Korg EX-8000 I bought with the money I was refunded for the Triton. I was just curious to see why you felt good about your decision...