Can you give us an English translation of what's new in the Midjay PLUS?

Thanks,
Glenn

Glenn.

I'm working on the English Brochure and manual (from which the other manuals will be derived from ... just as that of the Midijay).

AJ

looks like not a lot different apart from an 80gig HD, i think the midjay already had the 64mb wavetable...its prob similar to the upgrade from the sd1 to the sd1+...the pdf isn't very big

[From the Ketron.it website]:

The Midjay Plus is the new version of the Midjay, with a wavetable of 64 MB (double compared with the standard version), a greater variety of new sounds (including a stereo grand piano), drum sets and grooves. Thanks to the new sonic generation, the Midjay Plus can reproduce with greater balance and fidelity both styles and midifiles and offers new possibilities in the voice section as well.

The arranger section is totally new and includes 140 new styles derived from the Ketron SD5/SD3; this means that the Midjay Plus can offer the best unplugged, pop, swing, folk, latin and ballroom styles.

Improved is also the DJ Loop section, with new ambience sounds, especially in the chill out, lounge and dance sections.

The Midjay Plus comes with an 80 Gb hard disk, where is possibile to store a huge quantity of files, in Wav, MP3 and Midi formats.

The new display, with a 320x240 resolution, ensures a better navigation among the directories, while a new contrast control enables the user to adapt the display to the most disparate working situations. For those who want a wider visualization, the Midjay Plus can be connected to an external VGA monitor.

The new operative system (an improvement of the former version 4.0) reduces considerably the booting time and offers a complete support for both Windows Vista and Mac OS X.

The Midjay Plus should be available for sale within 5 weeks.

yep, as i said, not much...nothing really groundbreaking there, the text is very similar to the text in the addendum that comes with the SD1+...

Well...
- a ROM that is DOUBLE in size (which
means either more sounds or better old sounds), - the new styles from the SD5/SD3 (which are the best Ketron ever made, even if you don't care for the riff feature, that the Midjay plus now has),
- more DJ Loops,
- a 80 Gb hard disk...

I wouldn't call that "not much"...

i didnt read anywhere about it having the riff feature??? also still no USB, polyphony is still the same,hardware navigation is still awkward and incomplete, (btw imo the styles on the sd5 apart from a couple of new ones are essentially the same as the current sd1+, check out the demos on the website, they sound very very simliar)......a bit more storage, slightly better graphics resolution and even double the wavetable size does not a spectacular addition make...i repeat not a lot different and just an attempt to clear more units...as was the case with the upgrade from the SD to the SD1+....stick a fork in me, i'm done!!!
cheers

[This message has been edited by miden (edited 10-06-2007).]

Dennis,
I realize your frustration with Ketron products, but facts are facts:

- the Midjay HAS a USB connection and it works really fast (I am talking of the OLD Midjay here...) and this makes all the more puzzling the fact the the SD5 (that came later) lacks one.
- the riff feature is mentioned specifically on the ketron website
- the SD5 has an entire section of new styles, compared with the SD1 (they are called unplugged and benefit of new guitar and bass sounds, more or less like the Tyros 2 does)
- an 80 Gb hard disk (vs 30 Gb in the old Midjay) to me is not "a bit more storage space": it's almost triple the quantity

I don't think that Ketron is simply trying to "clear more units"; to me the Midjay plus means that they have -hopefully- solved the problems of the old Midjay and is also an answer to the main complaints of the end users.
True, the navigation and the user interface are always the same, but this is true of all the Ketron products, so if you don't like them, there is nothing you can do about it.
Once again, I understand that you are having an issue with the SD1 (you didn't like it since the beginning, if I remember well), but -as I said- facts are facts.

hi dreamer,
yes you are right the ketron op systems and midi implementation are very frustrating for me, (much more used to roland/korg) and because i am in australia i cannot sell it as there is no market, if i were in the US or in europe i would have sold it by now and moved on to either a g70 or a pa1x...my bad about the data on the midjay, i had forgotten about the usb, and i dont remember seeing any specifically named unplugged styles demoed on the website. the ones i downloaded to listen to sounded verysimilar to ones already the sd1+...but i believe you when you say there are several new unplugged ones on the sd5, i just haven't heard them (i think???)
thanks for the correction, it HAS been a frustrating time for sure!!!
cheers
denis

Hey Dreamer!
So...the "new" Midjay is better then the old one?I just sold my SD1+EXP to buy a Midjay,due to extra weight.What about the vocalizer on-board..is it present?And how much ..do you have a clue?
Check this out...with SD1 http://home.no.net/viocaia/ketron.htm

Hi Viocaia,
I think that the Midjay plus is a substantial improvement compared with the old Midjay; I too am planning to upgrade as soon as it hits the market. My opinion is that, until the Audya comes out, the Midjay plus is the best unit Ketron has to offer.
Speaking of the harmonizer, the Midjay has a mic input with gain, volume and tone control but, according to Ketron, it can be used just for talking. Ketron has, however, a three voices vocalizer, that comes as an optional. My opinion is that, if the harmonizer is really important to you, you check elsewhere (the Roland G-70 and the Korg PA-2-X pro have excellent harmonizers).

I've been going back and forth over purchasing the SD1+ or the SD5, but am undecided because of the differences in keyboard length. I also play piano, and I'm thinking if the piano patch is realistic, then I would need the full keyboard. But, I'm also thinking of portability for the small jobs I do during the week.

I've toyed with the idea of a MIDjay and controller keyboard so I can buy what feels good under my fingers.

My question: So far I'm confused about the following:

How would I do "fills?" Would I have to keep going back to the module to tap the button?

Also, what features would I be using regularly that I'd have to work from the module?

Any clear disadvantages with using this type of a setup for a working "one-man-band?" You really don't know what's missing until you buy and start using it! And often you can't return a keyboard unless you bring it back within 5 seconds of purchasing it!

If you set the Midjay very close to the keyboard it's like working with any other arranger keyboard and so far no a-k offers the versatility of the Midjay (i.e. playing styles, MP3s, Wav, midifiles and DJ Loops).
The Korg PA-2Xpro comes close and has also an excellent harmonizer, but at what price?