Your thoughts about the Studiologic SL73?

[LeesKeys]

On the off chance that any members have played a Studiologic SL73, I would appreciate your comments about the keybed. I've read everything from "love how it plays" to "returned the keyboard because the action was so stiff". I'm thinking about downsizing my Casio Pxs1000 to a smaller keyboard (ok, I know the SL73 weighs a little more). I own a Roland A88 which has a stiffer action that my Casio. It has gradually become slightly easier over time. So frustrating as a keyboard player not to be able to find a large selection of keyboards in storefronts, even larger stores in my area.

[aellison62]

I owned an SL88 studio and returned it because the TP100LR action was too sluggish and stiff. I assume the SL73 is the same? Not sure. I know the Studiologic Grand 88 controller has TP40L which is MUCH better action. I just don't like the panel controls on the studiologic controllers

 

[Amaryllis]

i also have the SL88 Studio, and i also had the same issue with the action: the heaviness can be improved a little by changing the curves, but it still feels slow and difficult to play, and much worse than (say) the Yamaha P-125.  i believe the 73 and 88 Studio are just different sizes of the same action.  if that's true, i definitely wouldn't recommend it; but there are people who really like it, so it might work for you...

 

i also wasn't particularly taken with the joystick controllers on the SL line.  the short travel range and the way the two axes are connected made it awkward to adjust things on the fly.

 

i'm surprised we haven't heard anything about a refresh of these with the new TP/110 and TP/400 actions from the Numa x Piano range.  the TP/110 in particular is supposed to be a lot better than the TP/100, based on a couple of reviews.

[CyberGene]

Owned a SL73. Wonderful functionality and price! It even has aftertouch. But the keys felt overly heavy and sluggish. It was so bad I preferred my synth-keyed MODX for pianos and Rhodes and was glad I sold it. I think the TP100/LR must be the worst hammer action I’ve ever tried and I’ve tried most of them. 

[drawback]

I owned an SL73 and liked everything about it except the action, as stated above along with hope for an improved keybed in the upcoming and yet to be tested TP110. 

[Art-0252]

Unfortunately I have to echo the experiences above. Had an SL88 with the same keybed as the 73 and sold it pretty quickly despite loving the price, build quality, and features. The action is just slow, clacky (I could always hear it over my studio monitors unless I was wearing headphones), and I really disliked playing it for piano or ep parts. Shame though, cause I absolutely loved the magnetic rail system that held my laptop. I wish keyboards like my CP88 had that as an attachment!

[Canoehead]

I quite like the action of my SL 73, but I certainly appear to be in the minority! 
 

Cheers,

Gord

 

[philtre71]

I've had the SL73 for about three years and absolutely love it.

 

I'm quite a 'heavy' piano player and the action is great for me. But I can see how it might not suit others.

 

Combined with mainstage (running on a laptop placed on the very handy magnetic studiologic stand) it's been brilliant.

[marino]

I recently bought an SL73. I partially agree with some of the criticisms presented here.

So why did I buy it? Simple: It has decent action *with aftertouch* in less than 12 kg, and I bought it new for less than 350 Euros.

I needed a weighted keyboard which could be easily moved between rooms, with aftertouch and zones, so I had little choice. And of course, the fact that I live in Italy has made the price a lot sweeter. Plus, the store took one of my ancient synths (SH-201) in a partial trade, so very little money actually left my wallet.

 

About the action: Yes, it's a bit slow - although I wouldn't call it sluggish. The heaviness doesn't bother me, as like philtre71, I'm a heavy-duty pianist, and I appreciate some resistance from the keys. I think I prefer this action to the Korg RH3 found on most Kronos and SV instruments.

I would like a little more of a exponential velocity response, but the only preset choice for that is rather crude for me. I haven't tried drawing custom responses yet, but I am hopeful. That's a great feature to include, especially at this price.

 

The joysticks... urgh. Assuming that in theory they could be a good idea, I don't see why they didn't include a pair of wheels as well. And their throw is too short, and since they offer absolutely no resistance (except of course for the spring-loaded ones), using them with any degree of precision is a masochistic purpose.
In short, I think that *any* other choice of controller would have been better! Wheels, sliders, rotary, you name it.

 

The programming features are fairly complete, although I don't see why you cannot set a single zone to transmit from both USB *and* one of the MIDI ports at the same time; you have to program two layered zones for that. Apart from this, I find the dotation of features quite decent.

 

As you may have guessed, I don't exactly *love* this instrument; like their VMK176 many years ago, I have bought it strictly for utility reasons. It weights less than the VMK, making it truly transportable, and it weights defitely a whole lot less than their Studio 2001, of which I still have two. In fact, it weights less than half of a 2001!

 

If the SL will do its job as workhorse in the next future, I could declare myself satisfied. (of course, always ready to swap it for something new with better action and controllers... as long as it's light and cheap...)