I had my check out list with me as I entered Sam Ash music store..

I wanted to check out the Yamaha NP80 piano....the EV powered 8" speaker...
the Korg SV1 stage piano...the QSC k series powered speakers..
and a few other things I am interested in...

Here are ..as Jerry Springer says "are my final thoughts"..(no ..I don't watch Springer,
but sometimes the Steve show that follows)..

Back to business...

The Yamaha np80..key feel ..slightly better than the np30 (maybe)..
Pianist will not like the keys..but are better than playing the PSR keys..
The sounds are like the last 5 years of PSR sounds...

Playability and getting around on a gig..forget it..a novelty keyboard at best..
No desire to touch it again,,,,

The speaker demos were interesting..because I have a lot of units to compare too...

The Ev powered 8"..not impressed (actually couldn't compete with the Podium 802's at a 5-1 price point..).

Okay , but not up to the hype..Like a lot of EV products..

QSC k series..They are loud..at least in burst...
I don't know if they would sustain high volume other then burst..

They were "harsh" sounding and I didn't like them at all..
the bottom frequencies didn't exist.. they are rated at 61Hz..
and the sales guy said that was a joke ..probably 100Hz..

You need a sub woofer or a 15" power speaker to use the K8's..

The K12's were about the same..( I am trying to figure what UD is thinking..
He must have gotten a good deal)..
Dave you don't want to A/B them with the Podium 1204ca's..
Difference in Bass and non harshness will make your jaw drop..

Now the Korg stage piano...finally ..something that was good..
I think the Korg is a better sounding stage piano than the Nord stuff and even the Roland 700GX
but not the new 700GXF (piano kit) model (class of it's own)..

Korg has a winner here...
I wish the case was designed with a "flat" top instead of the "bubble" top..

I got a chance to check out the Roland Lucina AX-09,,and I really liked it..

Good sounds including the "Scat" voice..and easy to get at controls..

A novelty keyboard ..if you want to go out front on tunes..
I want to explore the USB drive wave/Mp3 player..and see what limitations it has..

It only has a screen to show 3 digits..so song selection would need a numbered sheet for titles..
I will check it out farther and report back...It could be a good strap on to use with the band..


I would be interested in hearing other folks thoughts about this gear..

[This message has been edited by Fran Carango (edited 07-28-2010).]

Thanks Fran...good info....

------------------
Bill in Dayton

Fran didn't Dave just buy the QSC k series speakers and loves the sound? who's right?

My final thoughts were the same as many other reviewers..I just took a look on the net...
The Sam Ash guy did the play controls..he was reluctant to show me the bass or lack of bass..but I made him..

They are very loud, but typical D class sound...I thought the sound was not warm ..but harsh...Yorkville's they are not..

They are designed to use with their sub woofer...

I also read that there is a conflict with the K12's and the sub woofer ..overlapping bass frequency...I would think they have a roll off button..like Yorkville...but apparently not..

Dave is use to not hearing "real" bass...so maybe he feels it adequate...like his Bose..

I now am aware that the K series does have a filter for bass roll off...unfortunately it filters at 100Hz..Our Yorkvilles filter at 60 Hz..

I would normally think that clarity in the sub woofer range will be missed between 60-100Hz..
I also notice the sub woofer only goes down to 48Hz...Now I see why one reviewer says they aren't great for the dance floor..

If you want loud...the K series delivers...

I will have to get together with Dave...so he can show me ...why....he loves them..

wow that is a big difference

I also checked the Roland BA-330 today and was super impressed (of course I have one on the way, as the Bose is gone).

Great clarity, plenty of power, nice punchy bass, lots of inputs, fx, pole mount or floor tilt up - a real winner and I'm excited about running stereo again.

You forgot "STEREO"

Read my post again, you'll see 'stereo' in my description

I have the AX-09. The mp3 works well, but there's a significant amount of work to balance the instrument volume to the mp3/wave volume. All can be saved however on a stick.

The best way I found to implement it is to record my songs on the 800, save them as a song and play the right hand out front. That way, the AX can just dedicate itself to the sound volume.

It's a very nice sounding board, with nice organs, synths, pads and scat, as Fran mentioned, but the acoustic guitars and pianos are a bit thin (IMO). Not sure if I want to take time to develop it into my act, but know it would be special to move out into the crowd.