Reading Technics Player's report I just rememberd that I have several Memory cards, and that some of them were for the first technics PR Piano that came out. the Card was $170.00 USD, 16k memory and held 20 songs. I also have them for the KN800 Keyboard.
I also have 5 for Korg M3R and another for the Peavey Keyboard, a 32 k cache card. They were all in the near 200.00 price range. Is this then a matter of history repeats. These cards were in lieu of a Technics hard drive option, free standing that cost about $1200.00 USD back then. I am sure many of you will remember.
BEBOP

Bill, that's the kind of stuff that made me refuse to buy the KN6000. I needed a hard drive and I just couldn't put up with the lack of support by Technics and the absurd cost of that form of mass memory. But, I think this is a different kind of thing. Although I would have prefered compact flash modules, SD memory modules are used in several products and could well become a new standard. That makes the modules much cheaper. But, if Technics puts the memory device in some sort of unique container that forces us to buy an expensive unique module again, I'll have to go elsewhere. I really don't think they will.

Bob,

I'm pretty confident that the KN7000 will use a standardized SD card slot, cuz afterall, the SD (secure digital) card itself was patented by Matsushita (parent company of Panasonic/Technics) so I'd think they would be happy enough knowing we'd be purchasing their memory cards. Perhaps Alec might have more information on this to substantiate.

Keeping my fingers crossed. - Scott

it is a standard SD card which at the moment is available up to 512 MB I believe. It is the size of a postage stamp and bears no resemblance whatever either physically or in technology to the stuff bebop remembers.

We have 4 standards now, Compact flash, which I would have preferred.

Smart media which is physically too fragile for my tastes (it breaks in your pocket).

Memory stick, which Sony introduced because they always have to have something better, and more expensive!

And SD which Panasonic introduced because Sony had their own system, and Panasonic must always have something different from Sony.

I suppose it should have been obvious that they would use the parent company format. The upside is that prices are falling all the time, and SD is used on many other consumer gadgets like cameras, camcorders etc. So I doubt if they are going to get more expensive, they should get cheaper if historical experience is anything to go by.

Memory Sticks sounds promising. Thanks for your further explaination. I was confusing these with the memory cards I mentioned earlier, that incidently often get a dead battery and then you loose your memory in them.
I did buy another dram strip the other day for this computer that was 128mg and it was only 25.00 USD.
I do recall that the flash ram as I have in the sampler is really expensive and probably why they won't use that. I think that is the best IMHO
Thanks again Alec for your excellent in depth reports. I can see you have put a lot of your time, money and effort into all this information. I am sure as I read and recognize your factual reporting that you must have an engineering discipline. I hope that one day we will be reading your BIO in the Technics Forum Newsletter. I appreciate your efforts and I am sure everyone else does too whether or not they are going to buy the new keyboard.
Bebop

I may have been misunderstood by saying 'better' for Sony Memory stick. It was meant with irony meaning that Sony like to portray added value in terms of sexy styling and leading technology etc to appear up market and therefore able to charge that little bit more (or in this case that big bit more!)

In terms of performance there is no real difference between the types and therefore the cheapest is as good as the most expensive. The only advantages in cameras or voice recorders comes down to physical size which allows for maximum miniaturisation.

Compact flash has the advantage of the controller built into the card which makes the design of its parent equipment easier. It is also the cheapest flash. I paid $99 for 256 MB for the camera - recently, the same was $80. Flash memory is more expensive than the RAM which goes in the pc.

Naturally all of these are solid state flash memory so the old systems of small batteries to keep the cards alive are thankfully gone.

....but, if it's so that there will be possible to drag/download files stright from the PC into the KN, there have to be some internal memory too.
If that memory have enough capasity to store a fairly amount of files, then we could do just fine without the cards, or what?
GJ

depends whether the flash replaces the hard disk in the menu system. I would guess this is the most logical arrangement?

you could drag to the flash card memory, but then load to composer etc normally. This loading would be then be instantaneous I guess, and saving to the flash card would only take one second, I suppose?

There is no point in connecting up the USB just to fill 3 composers?

Depends whether the panel memories / sequencer etc are still in Ram or in Flash. I would guess they are still in Ram because otherwise editing would take longer with saving to Flash every time?

Besides Ram would not appear as a drive in My Computer...

Maybe the Custom section now addresses the flash memory or part of it?

There are many ways to arrange things, we shall have to see what appears...

I think you will find that the Memory cards are a 'substitute' for a Hard Disc and as such, will provide the Mass storage function. Presumably, without the memory card,the KN7000 wil just be like any of the other KN series, without a Hard Disc. I doubt if the KN7000 will provide anything like 128Mb or even 32Mb for internal file storage. When connected to a PC, via the USB system, the KN7000 will be treated as a 'Removable Disc Drive' just like a Digital Camera. However, a little bit of software will be required to make the two talk together (Driver) As far as I understand, this will be provided with the KN7000.

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Willum

great minds think alike? (only minutes apart)