Actually, the Ketron cannot substitute kicks and snares etc, or change electrics to acoustic basses or guitars. That’s the nature of audio loops.

You get more realism if the loop is PERFECT for what you need, but it comes at the cost of being unchangeable (and quite honestly, pretty easy to pick out if used in a different style) and you still have the issue of only having a few correctly voiced chord types.

If you are the type that never touches the stock ROM styles, and don’t play enough songs that style repetition becomes apparent, loop arrangers are great. But if you like to fiddle a little with your sound, if you want to use a style twice or more, but want it to sound different for each song, loops quickly become tiring, imho…

Personally, I want to see comparison videos demonstrating what each arranger does that the others CAN’T do! I’d like to see Korg’s running two styles simultaneously. I’d like to hear Yamaha demos that use the Ensemble revoicing to get correct horn voicing. I’d like to hear clip launching on Ketron’s. I’d like to see videos showing which arranger can edit a rock style into an acoustic style the easiest.

It’s this kind of stuff that still juices me about arrangers, not seeing how close someone can get a bunch of different arrangers to sound playing a hokey old tune…. Progress is being able to do something NEW, not the same tired old stuff. Compare THAT! 🎹😎

Leigh Wilbraham uploaded an engaging 52 min demo of the Ketron EVM Event Module in a Box used in conjunction with a Genos2.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jvnrd4JAW_w


Leigh had high praises for the Live Drums and Real Chords in the Ketron EVM Styles. They certainly sound more authentic as if played by real studio musicians.

Leigh demonstrated how to marry the styles of the Ketron EVM with the wonderful voices on the Genos2 thus achieving the best of both worlds.

It was intriguing to see that not only are there four variations A, B, C and D to each style but there is also a separate VARIATION button that effectively doubles the number of Style Variations from 4 to 8.

Perhaps AJ can fill us in on this feature.

Leigh obtained this module as a loaner from Adam Whittle at Scan Audio. He enthusiastically recommended all Genos2 users to get this add on module to access the better quality styles.


https://www.ajamsonic.com/product/ketron-evm-module?id=374


This video may be the most convincing ad for the Ketron EVM arranger module.

So the answer to being unhappy with your $5000 arranger is to add a $2600 module (or its $3500 big brother)?

Man, people got to learn… if you’re unhappy with any modern TOTL arranger, the solution isn’t to get another one. The solution is to work on YOU. Work on your playing. Work on your mastery of your arranger’s features (bet you’re not using 10% of them). Work on learning new tunes.

Bottom line, if you can’t make a $5000 arranger sound AMAZING, adding a $2500 module isn’t going to help anyone but the music store… 😂💵💸💸💸

Leigh Wilbraham posted an update to his review of the Ketron EVM module.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_v-UH4DFSM


He found a way to globally change the EQ.
In the previous video he was complaining having to set the EQ manually for each style.

The solution was to press the EDIT button and turn on GLOBAL.
This way one could select their favorite Drum EQ setting say BRIGHT1 and the saved changes becomes global to all styles.

Leigh is absolutely blown away with the quality of the Disco and Pop Styles. He says this tiny 10 inch x 8 inch x 2 inch box is a major threat to other manufacturers.

Thomann has this for $2,444.


https://www.thomannmusic.com/ketron_evm_event_modul.htm


Any person how owns a WERSI or a BOHM organ can immediately benefit from having instant access to these vastly improved styles.

Leigh feels the Ketron EVM would be the ideal companion box for a Genos2 or Pa5x owner.
He likes it so much, he decided to buy one.

He had one enhancement request to improve the ergonomics. He wants Ketron to design a small panel that can be placed on the keyboard that will feature these Style Control buttons:

Intro/Ending 1
Intro/Ending 2
Intro/Ending 3
To End
A
B
C
D
Variation
Fill
Break
Tempo +
Tempo –
Hold
Pause
Start


I wonder if a Nektar Pacer MIDI Foot Controller can be interfaced to the Ketron EVM module to trigger all the Style Controls with your feet. Perhaps AJ can elaborate on this.

Of course, one can always buy the Ketron EventX Arranger Module that comes with all the physical button, but at a much higher price of $3,444.


https://www.thomannmusic.com/ketron_eventx.htm

Hi Diki,

I share your sentiment.

The skill of the player is 90% of the equation. No amount of fancy hardware can make a beginner sound like a pro. It would be an exercise in futility to put a beginner in control of a Korg Pa5x, Genos2 and Event EVM stack and expect them to impress an audience.

Martin Harris would sound more impressive playing on a single Tyros2. He is the designer. He knows his product inside out. He would achieve results that would knock the socks off his audience.

There is no substitute for taking the arduous path of mastering your keyboard chops spanning decades of musical training. This takes time, patience and perseverance. This is not for the fainthearted. Newbies watch these professional musicians demo all the new gizmos and are instantly led to believe they could sound like them only if they had that newest gear in their arsenal.

Yes, this strategy does drive up the sales.

However, I will make an exception for the Ketron EVM Module. I think Ketron engineers have managed to design a product with the quality of styles and features that would benefit keyboard players who do not already have a top of the line arranger.

A person who is a dedicated piano player and owns the Kawai MP11SE would be thrilled to have access to all the arranger functions for $2,444. It would be just an iPad sitting on the keyboard that would present the entire user interface. This is an ideal solution.

This is far cheaper than adding the Yamaha Genos2 mounted on the upper tier.

Consider an alternate scenario. Imagine someone purchasing the Korg KRONOS 3 for $3,000. Arguably, this would be the most advanced workstation when released in May. It would come with the best collection of sounds from its 9 sound engines, plus it would have KARMA. I would be buying one. All it lacks are the arranger functions.

This is where the Ketron EVM module comes in. Adding this module for $2,444 would make the Korg KRONOS 3 complete. This combination would still be cheaper than buying the Genos2.

I feel Ketron has hit the right balance between price, form factor and functionality. This is a unique product that will appeal to keyboard and synth players. It is the bridge to the world of Arrangers.

I agree that Live Styles presents its limitations as you pointed out.

This is the reason why Leigh was using only simple chords C, F, G7 in his demos.
I am not sure how well the Live Styles will translate when playing complex chords. That would necessitate an enormously large collection of audio recordings.

These limitations can be addressed in time. I applaud Ketron for taking the initiative to bring these Arranger Modules to the market. You do not get such an option with Korg or Yamaha.

Sure, add a module to a workstation, you got a potent piece of gear. But adding the arranger module to another arranger doesn’t really make sense. And quite honestly, a FAR cheaper arranger module (like a BK7m) would be equally useful to add to a Kronos2 or Montage, etc. without any of that audio loop issues.

Although Ketron’s OS allows a huge range of chord types to have individual loops, it’s horribly expensive to record and edit them all and it takes up a massive amount of memory (I don’t know the load time for custom resources though) and really it’s only mostly a few jazz styles that have any chord choices beyond those simple maj/min/7th choices. And adding to a Ketron style would be impossible, you'd have to match your own guitar loops to the factory loops, match playing, guitar type and amplifier type, effects etc.. Impossible.

I would pair a BK7m with a WS in preference to a Ketron. It’s pretty easy to direct certain style tracks to play external gear, so the arranger engine could easily drive the WS’s best sounds and drumkits, plus run in sync with the WS)s own arpeggiators and audio grooves. And it can be found for under $1000 (usually very lightly used! 😂).

I think the decision for a pianist with a high end digital piano would be how well the chord recognition works with conventional pianistic playing, and again, afaik no one else has expanded past the archaic ‘three notes gets you a new chord’ to Roland’s ‘plus five notes before a new chord with sustain down’ that revolutionizes being able to get good chord recognition without crippling normal piano playing. So again, I’d probably pick the BK7m module, it has awesome jazz and standard styles that often sound close to audio, with none of the chord type drawbacks.

Or possibly just get the FP-E50 and live with the slightly inferior piano for the sake of arranger integration (although the E50’s arranger section is very stripped back and you can’t add legacy styles).

Modules are cool, but best added to non arranger keyboards. And seldom offer the ease of use that a dedicated arranger offers. For someone not happy with a Genos2 and not an expert pro-level player with a high technical skill level, I’d recommend giving them a miss!