BluMunk Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 A friend’s brother passed, and they’re getting rid of some of his things, including some instruments. They contacted me about a MIDIBoard and K2500R he had. Pics look like things were kept in good condition, and I’m arranging a time to go check things out in person. I don’t really need/have space for such a non-portable board, but if the action is as holy-grail-ish as some say, maybe it’ll be the perfect board for some actual piano practice. If I can get it into the house and up the stairs! 7 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Floyd Tatum Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 Wow. Second Christmas! I mean, sorry to hear about your friends brother. But, regardless of whether you like the action or not - when something like this falls into your lap, the universe is trying to tell you something! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finale Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 Yep, that's a keeper. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Emm Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 That's a sobering opportunity in every way, including the ponderous weight. I haven't touched one in decades, but it would be like having a cabinet that leads to Narnia. You have some work ahead of you, but its a welcome chore. I'm also of the opinion that a K2500 is a major secret weapon in a world of trackers and mini keys. For many people, packing it with whatever sounds it doesn't already contain just increases its muscle. I hope both pieces are in near-NOS shape. 👍 Quote "Well, the 60s were fun, but now I'm payin' for it." ~ Stan Lee, "Ant-Man and the Wasp" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BluMunk Posted February 20 Author Share Posted February 20 Looking for a little guidance on this. They are looking to price the board, and I am having a hard time identifying what a midiboard might go for these days. There are a few on Reverb for sale now, for what look to me to me pretty ambitious prices. Similar for the rack. It looks like there are a lot of K2500R for sale for $700 and up… is that really what the market is for those? I’m mostly interested in the midiboard, but to be honest probably not at the $800+ dollars folks seem to be asking for them on Reverb. Any insight on what these folks could reasonably expect to make if they sold them on the open market? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finale Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 Depends on the MIDIboard version. It is easy to figure out simply looking at the front control panel, namely the logo and the parameter list. The later the version, the better. On the v1, the MIDIBOARD logo letters are not filled in white, as opposed to the later models, and its parameter list has only two columns. On the v2, you see the logo with fully white letters and a parameter list on three columns (last column is incomplete). Finally, on the v3 the logo is like on the v2 but the parameter list has four full columns. For the price to ask, it depends on the condition. IMHO the v3 in particular is still worth big money because of the design of elastomeric hammers striking a capacitance area, which offers incredible longevity. There is nothing comparable nowadays. Fatar actions fall apart after a couple of years. My v3 is 30+ years old and doing just fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHarrell Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 Sites like Reverb also give you the ability to look at sold listings (don't remember the trick to sort by date, though), that could tell you what people have actually been willing to pay for one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ABECK Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 Noice! I love mine. The action is def unique. Some say too light, some say too spongy, some say perfect. What I do like is the dedicated velocity and pressure sliders that really help dial the action in where you want it on the fly. I personally like the action quite a bit - for piano, I find it conducive to playing way more dynamically. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irena Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 There's also the matter of whether it's the Japanese or US version which is clearly noted on the rear panel tag ("Made in ..."). The Japanese version is considered by some as more desirable for its Suzuki action (I am squarely in that camp), though I can't say whether that results in any sort of meaningful market premium for your purposes. I'm not exactly sure how the US vs. Japan question lines up with KK's V1/V2/V3 categorization, but I've seen some discussion forums over the years that hit on that, along with the "short board vs. long board" question, with the long logic board being more desirable for the firmware upgrades. Again, not sure how any of that impacts the actual clearing price; my hunch is not much-- in my experience most MB owners aren't aware of these nuances. For whatever it's worth, over the past 2-3 years I've seen Midiboards advertised at between $700-$1200 depending on condition. Best of luck. Quote B/Midiboard/VirusKC/Matrix12/EX5/Maschine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BluMunk Posted March 3 Author Share Posted March 3 Update: I made it down to their house today to check it out. It’s a Japanese v3 in perfect cosmetic condition. The sliders felt a little crusty, but that shouldn’t be a surprise. Slightly more problematic is there’s a 3rd in the top octave where the keys catch on each other and stay depressed. Maybe something for an actual piano technician to look at? It played wonderfully. I connected it to their K2500R and had a nice, pianistic time with it, as well as with a few synth patches. The action was lighter than I expected, maybe too light (I thought). But, after fiddling a little with the attack and pressure faders, I found playing effortless and expressive. Maybe a little hard to get a full dynamic range. I’d have to connect it to my computer to see, but I suspect that even the most delicate touch is triggering a higher-than-expected velocity number. Also, I found the action quite loud. Again, maybe there are felts or some other component of the action wears down or gets hard over time and is easily replaced? At any rate, after being frank about the potential value, I offered them a fair-but-lowball offer of $300 knowing there are some keys to be repaired, and letting them know that I’d take it for $300 at any time in the future if they wanted to shop it around. They took the offer. I didn’t bring it home today, as I need to make room and arrange for a friend to help me get it out of the car. I’ll head back sometime next week, replace the battery in their K2500R so they can sell that clean, and bring home my new controller! Any insight into repair/tech on one of these would be appreciated. Should I call my piano tech, or my synth guy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Real MC Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 There is nothing in the MB action that would be foreign to a piano technician. Good place to start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Zeger Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 13 hours ago, BluMunk said: I’ll head back sometime next week, replace the battery in their K2500R so they can sell that clean, and bring home my new controller! I’m curious what price is accurate for selling a K2500R. I have a K2500RS I’ve long thought about selling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ABECK Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 On 3/2/2024 at 11:38 PM, BluMunk said: Also, I found the action quite loud. Again, maybe there are felts or some other component of the action wears down or gets hard over time and is easily replaced? Mine is also a bit on the loud side. Nothing distracting, but I notice it. I wonder if there's bushings that can be replaced. I have no concerns about opening it and doing my own maintenance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BluMunk Posted March 4 Author Share Posted March 4 22 hours ago, Mark Zeger said: I’m curious what price is accurate for selling a K2500R. I have a K2500RS I’ve long thought about selling. I think it's hard to say. My assumption is anywhere between $200-500. The lines between boat anchor, useful tool, retro fashion, and vintage investment can be hard to suss out, and they can change at a moment's notice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHarrell Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 On 3/3/2024 at 10:10 AM, Mark Zeger said: I’m curious what price is accurate for selling a K2500R. I have a K2500RS I’ve long thought about selling. Not sure on the timings of these, but I'm seeing a bunch of sold listings of $500+ USD. https://reverb.com/marketplace?query=k2500r&show_only_sold=true Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AUSSIEKEYS Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 1 hour ago, CHarrell said: Not sure on the timings of these, but I'm seeing a bunch of sold listings of $500+ USD. https://reverb.com/marketplace?query=k2500r&show_only_sold=true Yes the ones I see through that link all show they went around 1500 Aussie dollars (thats around 1000 US dollars) I keep an eye as I have got one although Im hoping to hold onto my rackmount synths Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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