I have been following the various threads about tyros 4 and audya 5. I have watched plenty of youtube videos on both keyboards.....I even tried a tyros 4.
Unfortunately, there are no audya 5 keyboards to try in maryland that are within a reasonable distance to travel.
Being able to try one would be very helpful in my decision making process---washington music center *used to carry* ketron products, but they had some sort of falling out?
so maybe some of you who know a thing or two about these keyboards could answer a few questions for me?
with regards to Ketron:
1)is the audya 4 basically an audya 5 without the keys?----would that hook up to a technics kn5000?
2) does the audya 4 have the same technical problems that seem to plague the audya 5?
3) is there a difference (besides # of keys and joystick controller) between audya 5 and 76 key version?
4) does the audya have an arpegiator?

with regard to tryos 4
1) does that keyboard have an arpegiator?
2) is the user manual fairly easy to understand?
3) any technical problems with tyros 4?

thanks!!

Hi,
you may want to check out the capabilities of the KN5000 as a controller keyboard thoroughly, before you consider buying a module. I sold my kn5000 approx 12 years ago, too long ago for me to remember the midi functions. There is an actual Technics forum on Synthzone. Maybe someone there could help as far as the Technics goes.

Sorry, can't help as far as Audya or Yamaha goes, I'm a Korg owner.
[quote=philip2000]
1)is the audya 4 basically an audya 5 without the keys?----would that hook up to a technics kn5000?

Add the Korg Pa3x to your list you will be pleasantly surprised.

John C.

Hi,
Regarding your question regarding the Tyros4

1. It does not have an arpeggiator

2. Not really,pretty difficult to follow.Pretty much the same as all other brands.

3. There seem to be an issue with the Audio Recorder,but doesn't seem to apply to all Tyros4s

IE.When recording the disk drive will stop operating and a disk full warning is displayed.
Which in most cases have not been cured by the fitting of a new disk.

The initial saving and memory issues have been address by an OS update.It now seems most issues reported turn out to be user operational Errors.

I certainly would not part with mine and have no issue since the update.Hope this will help.

Gilbert.

I had a Kn5000 and have a KN7000 now. I would not recommend for master controller of Audya4.

If anything, Audya4 has had more problems( at least before the updates) than the Audya5 and 76. I also have an Audya76 with no problems whatsoever.

The Audya5 has 61 keys and the Audya76 has 76, not sure about the controller difference.

In my opinion, the Audya76 is the best sounding keyboard in terms of live sound. Of coarse, this is subjective.

I have had Yamaha's (not Tyros), and they are excellent boards with all the styles you could want, and very dependable as a whole.

The Audya is a work in progress from a small company. The reason I chose Audya is the sound and features, but gambled on not getting a flawed board.

For me, the Yamaha is good but the overall sound is too vanilla but some of the solo instruments are great.

Bernie

Either keyboard will probably serve your needs, and in reality, the learning curve is quite steep. No owners manual that I've come across in the past two decades has been comprehensive, and none were well written. Fortunately, there are user forums where knowledgeable individuals are usually more than willing to help you solve many of the complexities.

For the most part, I lean toward Yamaha for several reasons. First and foremost Yamaha seems to have much better factory and technical support than any of the other leading manufacturers. There are factory authorized service centers worldwide that usually provide excellent support for their products. Naturally, there are exceptions to this, but generally speaking, Yamaha seems to be at the top of this list.

As for the sounds, this, of course, is subjective. Some like the polished sounds Yamaha provides, while others prefer a rougher sound claiming it closely resembles a live band. Of course, everyone that sees you playing knows it's not a live band creating the music. I, personally, love both Yamaha's styles and individual voices.

Much of the sound quality produced by any keyboard will depend heavily upon the PA system you select. Another key factor will be the tuning of the keyboard's global EQ system.

The ball is now in your court,

Gary

thank you for your advice on this.
I did try the korg pa3x and felt the yamaha was better sounding on the backgrounds (korg sounded kind of "thin"---but that could also be due the fact no one knew how to operate that keyboard.
tyros accompanyments sounded very good and was fairly intuitive. What I didn't like about the tyros was the number of layers you had to dig through to get to certain functions (and again, no one really knew how to use it)
It was hard enough to find a place that actually stocked the tyros 4 on the floor to try....it is damn near impossible to find an audya to try in real life.
With regards to the audya I have a few more concerns
1) is it hard to see the screen since it doesn't tilt?
2) has the latest operating system pretty much solved all the problems with the audya(I'd probably be going for the 61 key model)
3)does it sound as good "out of the box" as it does on youtube (abaco62...aka jack canon...makes it sound like a LIVE orchestra)
3)

Hi Philip,
quite often the case. Salespeople who don't know how to operate them.
When I went to buy my Korg PA3X, they had a single speaker attached which looked more like a guitar amp. The keyboard is STEREO for goodness sake.
Except for the fact that I already owned a Korg PA800 and knew how good Korgs are, I would have just walked out. Instead I just spent 5 minutes as I already knew most of it's functions, told them to pack it up, took it home & haven't regretted it for a minute.

Do yourself a favour , download the manuals, (there's 2, one for the normal operation, one for the style editor & sampling/sound editing. It's the closest thing out there to a workstation as well as being an arranger.

http://www.korgpa.com/en/products/arrangers/pa3x/pa3x-informations.html


You'll have an even bigger headache maybe? having to decide between 3. haahaa

Whatever you decide, don't rush it, it's a big investment.

[quote=philip2000]thank you for your advice on this.
I did try the korg pa3x and felt the yamaha was better sounding on the backgrounds (korg sounded kind of "thin"---but that could also be due the fact no one knew how to operate that keyboard.

The Audya screen is easy to see. It is tilted, maybe 30 degrees between the slanted top and further tilted display. The thing is that it is designed with many intuitive buttons instead of screen layers. I set up favorites under a button and they are right there.

I know that the last two OS upgrades (4.2a and 4.2b solved most problems I am aware of. I don't hear the ranting I did on the forums. Like I said, I never had any known problems at all. It seems like Audya4 had more.

As far as sound out of the box is conscerned, Youtube is compressed and does not come up to the live sound actually delivered. OTOH who knows what EQ and style modifications were made to the clips you listened to plus the artistry of the performer.

All I can say is when I opened my Audy76 and started playing, I was thrilled at the sound.

One other personal note is that I have played 61 note arrangers since about 1984 but when jumped up to 76 with my G70 Roland, I would never go back, and I am not a piano player.

Bernie

Well said, and I agree wholeheartedly with your above statements.

I also love the Yamaha sounds and styles...definitely smooth and nicely detailed.

Support is awesome, especially in regards to styles and sounds, both third party and factory versions.

The Audya, according to some owners I have spoken with personally, sounds excellent, with some very good styles, but sadly lacks both factory and third party support and hasn't had a good track record for reliability according to these users. One just has to read the Ketron forums to get an idea of it's how it's doing.

Also, although I have been a piano player most of my life, I am totally happy, and well served, by the beautifully made and very responsive 61-note FSX keyboard on the Tyros4 when using the instrument as it is designed to be used...as an arranger.

Ian

Why not PA3X on the list? I think its better then any of them.

Ketron:
1. Yes it is, as for the Technics MIDI Routing i dont know nothing.
2. I dont think the Audya 5 has any problems left, at least major.
3. The difference is that the Audya 5 was rebuilt and redesigned
from scratch in an SD5 body i think, it was more stable then the 76
and at some point at the begining they even had slightly different ROM.
4. No, Audya has no Arpegiator.

Lots of info on Korg PA3X here:

http://www.korgforums.com/forum/phpBB2/index.php

Ian

Did anyone ever confirm the styles we heard on the latest demo were actually part of the factory styles or were they extra add-ons for a price?
Deane

Part of the keyboard factory styles

Hi Rikki.....I went to the above link and listened to the "sounds." I was very UN-impressed with the violin, strings, musette accordion, and trombone. They sounded flat...limp......empty. You DID say it depends on what you're listening through. Does it sound better "live?"

Also, when I listened to the PA2X I thought the styles were good but too "busy." They sound great the first time around, but soon get tiring to hear (because they're so "busy). In an arranger KB, you tend to have to play around the styles somewhat. I'm afraid I'd (and the audience)soon tire of each styles complexity.

What do YOU think?

I've ruled out the Tyros. The other member's description of it as being too "vanilla" was the perfect description.

Hi Mark,
sorry, I wasn't pointing out the demo's, I was pointing out the manuals.
I'm not a big fan of their demo's. Sound is subjective, you'd really need to listen to it live.
The PA3X does sound better than my PA800 when played thru same speaker system & playinging identical style. Styles better balanced or something.
With some of my old PA800 styles, if they were too busy, I'd mute a track , or the odd one( some were up to 16 bars long) I'd shorten the variation to 4 bars ( simply done.)
Bear in mind, I enjoy editing styles etc for me it's the onboard functions & what I can do, as much as anything.

I'm not a performer. You really need to play one to see if the styles would suit the music you play. If I can't find an onboard style that suits, I either edit or convert one.

For me the PA3X, has everything I could want. It now has 4 variations instead 2, which makes the fills smoother. It has a great Pad system. It's got a sampler. Works well as a keyboard controller. I can set it up to suit me etc etc.

Our needs are probably quite different, for me it's just the perfect keyboard. haahaa. I've had nearly all the major brands over many years, Technics, Roland ,Yamaha, Ketron & Korg.

Here’s how I see it. The Tyros 4 is like the responsible girl (or boy) friend that you could take home to meet your parents. She has her act together and you know your mom will approve. She is very pretty but not really sexy. The Ketron Audya,on the other hand is like the girl with the “reputation”. Maybe your mom has heard about her. You know the type: very sexy, she turns heads wherever she goes. People talk about her. She does things her way and doesn’t give a damn what people say about her. You know she’s a “bad” girl but there’s something so alluring about her.
So do you want the sensible girlfriend with her act together or a girlfriend with a bit of an edge to her?

Like the song says, I like em a little on the trashy side.

Yeah, yeah, trashy.
John C.

PS, Most of the time something that is so correct (CD style)
does become boring. Most of the new acustic instruments that are now being made have improved in many areas but they have lost the heart, the warmth.

John C.

When you're my age you just want a girlfriend with big hooters--now if I could only remember WHY?

Cheers,

Gary

When you put it that way.....I would have to pass on the Tyros4

I'll have the former, please...from what we've been hearing about the latter, you can expect some unpleasant surprises that even penicillin won't cure.


Or, you could forgo excitement altogether, and get something really dull and boring like a G-70...

Ian

As long as the bad girl doesn't get pregnant because she lied about her birth control----lol
Acutally, the main thing holding me back (aside from not having one to try) is that support seems weak (I had emailed some pre-buyer questions and never received a response), and there are a number of users that seem to have problems that aren't getting resolved.

I actually did look at the manual of the pa3x when I was at the store---I know my take on it is totally subjective, but I took the korg out of the running because it did sound kind of flat to me. (it seemed to be hooked up correctly
tyros 4 is good, but doesn't quite have the WOW factor that audya does. vanilla = bland? I guess a lot of it sounds kind of "canned"
some of their sounds do kind of POP but it isn't across the board(pun intended

aside from the audya 61 keys and controller joystick (vs wheels), there is no other difference between 61 key and larger board?)

thank you all for taking the time to answer this neophyte's questions! I was a first time poster and all of you have been very helpful and kind

I've said this many times. My experience with the Audya has been a horror story:

Audya 4
* Received with Side Panels loose and broken
* Controls are so compacted on the portable unit, you can easily hit the wrong buttons when selecting various live settings.
* The manual is horrible; I couldn't even figure out how to trigger the damn thing with a controller

Audya 5
* Constant Screen Flicker
* Right side audio output of unit kept cutting in and out requiring a power reset
* Kept getting Exception 1 errors when boot up
* Audio Looping of Drums had discernible gaps
* Non-Existent support from Ketron
* Was not impressed with the acoustic sounds
* Many Styles were lacking (Big Band for example).
* Manual sucks.

Now I know some of those issues above have been fixed, but it has taken over a year for some owners to get this fixed. Release of new styles and sounds has taken over a year. I'm not even comparing the Audya to any other keyboard, just evaluating it from it's own point of view. I felt this board is just TOO risky to be considered for live gigging. It's just not reliable.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_A9WWhgrkc

I don't know if there is the capability of embedding vide on on this site (HTML not enabled)
but this guy (abaco62 tag on youtube) makes the audya REALLY sing.
he says he does tweak some things and there are still some problems with the board..
the biggest concern for me at this point is what I hear/read (and experienced to some degree) about lousy support ...and the previous poster's experience (this sounds like a recurring theme...not just one person complaining about ketron quality)