I've been very lucky and never experienced "buyer's remorse" on any keyboard purchase.

[jazzpiano88]

8 minutes ago, Dave Bryce said:

 

Funny - my experience was the reverse.  I quite liked my 106, and thought the AJ 2 sounded anemic in comparison, even with the velocity.  

 

I eventually replaced the 106 with a JX-8P.

 

dB

 

I don't doubt.  I didn't have much of a chance to evaluate the AJ2 as a loaner brought to the gig.  The velocity was just so freeing.

I still have the 106 but it needs some electrical service.

[Adan]

On 11/24/2022 at 5:17 AM, ABECK said:

My buyer's remorse typically manifests itself in the realization that the new gear hasn't made me a better player.  

 

+1.  Wherever you go, there you are.  It's a character flaw, not the instrument's fault.

 

Less universal and more specific to me, usually when I buy a keyboard with a deep and complicated OS I end up making a weak attempt to learn it then end up mostly playing presets.  But, after many such mistakes, I've learned my lesson and just keep it simple.  

[CEB]

The chorus was cool on the 106. Made the synth sound large. Take away the chorus I never thought there was much synth there. That chorus circuit sold a lot of keyboards. 

[CEB]

I have lots of minor ‘buyer’s irritation’s’. Today I have to rig a workaround to mount my new wah to the bottom of the pedal case because of a battery door I and most player will never use.   Like I said before. I rarely have permanent remorse but I’m easily irritated.  

[Bosendorphen]

On 11/24/2022 at 10:49 PM, The Real MC said:

Never owned a sampler, a DX7, D50, M1, or any of the "fashion" synths that many got into.  Not a member of the upgrade treadmill "flavor-of-the-month" club.

Me neither. I went with the "budget" alternatives. I had a Mini-Korg instead of Minimoog. A Crumar Performer instead of ARP String Ensemble. A Korg Polysix instead of Prophet 5. A Korg DW8000 instead of a DX7. Kawai K1 instead of a D50. Kawai K4 instead of Korg M1 (with the Q-80 sequencer). I also had the Ensoniq KS-32 which was great. 

 

My only real regret was the Korg MS2000. I was a Korg fan before that but it was shoddily built and the synth started behaving weirdly about 2 years after I bought it. Changing patch parameters on its own, weird noises, etc. Took it to an authorized Korg repair place and the repair (new mainboard plus labor) would have been almost as much as I paid for it (on sale). I got rid of it soon after.

 

Been happy with Alesis QS synths, use my Roland Fantom X7 for soundtrack work still, and even still have and enjoy the much maligned CME UF7 controller after 15 years.

[stoken6]

On 11/24/2022 at 10:05 PM, Dave Bryce said:

My least fave that I ever owned - Alpha Juno 2. 🫤
 

 

dB

Ah, my first synth. Nice action, shame about the limited tonal palette.

 

Cheers, Mike.

[David Emm]

I had a Juno-1 that appeared just when I needed a support module the most. It had a few nice sounds of its own, but it really lifted my Mirages and DW8000 to a better place. It was like having a full synth as a "sub"-oscillator.  One of my best Roland experiences.

 

Swing & a miss: Kawai K5. Weighed a ton, keyboard felt like planks. It was additive in hardware form far too soon. That's a job for software, IMO, whether as a total synth or as an editor for hardware. It was before its time and WAY before mine. I was still a child of subtractive, so additive had three heads as far as I knew then.

[Bobbo Fett]

On 11/24/2022 at 9:37 AM, Delaware Dave said:

Happened once.  Alesis QS6.1.  Biggest POS I ever purchased (sorry Dave Bryce). Fortunately I was able to unload it. One mans trash is another one's treasure.

I had a similar experience with the 7.1. It had some nice sounds, but never translated for me as a gigging board. I used it as a controller for a while, as I really liked the feel of the keybed, and eventually sold it to a friend, who was thrilled with it. Different horses, I guess.....My only real buyer's remorse experience was with the Korg Poly 800.....talk about a real POS...