Yes Ian, I know that problems with midi specs can arise.

In my case, my Technics KN7000 talks to my MS40 without problems - so does my Roland EM2000 - have controlled both the MS40 & the Technics with that. However, I don't ask the midi to do a lot - change voices for instance on the MS40 using the MS40's own panel.

But midi spec standards are now slipping badly. When you consider how long it is since midi was implemented, it shows that the manufacturers care little for the concerns of their loyal customers and nowadays do the bare minimum they can get away with.
The midi specs on my Tyros3 are a joke.
Tony

Rumor has it TCH & Yamaha are in negotiations .....more to come in future units...

As far as midi implications talking easily with other KB's......don't count on it it a manufacturers only defense. I could see in the very near future that styles and sounds will be tightly proprietary so that you cannot use styles that work properly between different manufacturers either.
And who can blame them?



[This message has been edited by Dnj (edited 11-01-2009).]

Oh yes they are...they bought the original PA without knowing there was an upgrade coming...that was just a nice perk, and a necessary one for Korg to supply, since Yamaha's SA and Mega technology was making the Korg sound rather plain and and dull.

Contrary to what you seem to believe, modules aren't that much less expensive to make than a full keyboard arranger...in fact, they charged quite a bit for the RA-series back in the day.

In my opinion, they were more trouble than they were worth, especially for someone on a busy gigging schedule, that was setting up and tearing down a lot.

Tone modules are much easier to integrate than arranger modules....if I was to add anything, it would just be a tone module, and trigger it from my arranger.

I'm already more than pleased with Yamaha's factory styles and their great 3rd party support.

The majority of RA modules I sold, back in the day, were to organists. Once demographics took care of them, the only customers left to punt them to were Yamaha digital piano owners. Yamaha eventually raised their game with the CVPs and saw that market off. Roland got out when there were no buyers left, simple as that.

I suspect the same explanation holds true for arrangers, sadly.

I really couldnt care if all arrangers go down the tubes.....I could just as easily as I do now record multitrack songs with a Motif, etc etc and play on top no big deal for me to make backing tracks. Yes I'd miss the realtime live play of styles but if needed theres always the alternative.

carry on

True...I used a Clavinova CLP-300 (chopped for portability) with an RA-50, then an RA-90, and the last one I used was an RA-800, I believe.

They were also quite popular with accordionists.

I remember trying to hook an RA-95 up to Electone HS-8 at the last minute, on a store demo...it wasn't pretty.

I have a guitarist/singer friend who gigs every day with a RA95 & sounds great......because he's the "REAL DEAL"
I used to gig with a Korg M1 &
RA90 w/super card...for the times it was the bees knees!!

What some people seem to forget is that a module created today should not and can not be the same type of module created yesterday.
Interactive keyboards, arrangers or what ever you want to call keyboards that make one person sound like a band are much different from 15 years ago.

OMB gigs are coming more the norm and economically may be a necessary thing for keyboardist. So why not now for an arranger manufacturer to create and market an arranger module? With a module, the manufacturer is not ask the consumer to do away with their favorite arranger, but they are saying add me to your rig.

Imagine some one with a G70 who may want the Korg sounds but not able to buy a TOTL Korg arranger.

If Korg had a module, they could add that to their rig and if they like, when Korg does make the next TOTL arranger it would be a top contender.

And the same would be true if someone has the Korg PA2x and Roland made a module.

Remember with an arranger module, the manufacturer would not be reinventing the Wheel. It would be the same cost as adding a low-end arranger.

If the big three don’t do it, may be Casio would think about getting in to the professional market by starting with an arranger module.

In Scandinavia arranger modules still are very popular, but mostly used midied to accordions.
If I'm not totally wrong, that's the main market where modules being sold, but I think it's
like the rest of the market these days, not any really big sales.
Also it looks like Ketron are the only brand left to choose.

GJ

GJ

Actually, Casio did make an arranger module back around 1989, called the CSM-1.

Primitive today, but pretty cool back in the 80's.

I had one here that came with an old electronic accordion I bought at an estate sale.

There are gaps beginning in the arranger market, left by Roland, for one, and rumor has it that Casio has plans for filling them.

Apparently it's an arranger that will sit between the MOTL and TOTL...

For example, Yamaha has the S910, and then there's a big price jump to the Tyros3.

Casio certainly has the clout to pull it off, if they want to...they made great pro synths (CZ-1) and samplers (FZ-1) some time ago.

I've heard, from a pretty reliable source, that they are working on something similar to Korg's DNC....and it's for a new arranger, and perhaps, a digital piano/arranger.

Time will tell.