gbkgbk Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 Hi. I am new to this forum. I am a keyboard player and have been playing in bands for the last 25 years or so. My gear is woefully outdated (roland jx8p and ensoniq esq-1). My keyboards work fine but the sounds are certainly not what they could be. My question is: if I were to buy a new keyboard today, which one would I purchase. I rely heavily on plain staple sounds such as accoustic piano, digital piano, horns, jazz organ, strings. Nothing fancy required. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daBowsa Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 I'll be the first to recommend the Alesis QS stuff - get the older .2 version instead of the new .2 boards. Same sounds, more features and better looks in the old boards. 6.1 = 61 synth-weighted keys 7.1 = 76 semi-weighted keys 8.1 = 88 weighted keys Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Horne Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 You could hold onto your keyboards and buy a second hand Kurzweil MicroPiano. That would give you a very good acoustic piano sound, electronic piano/Rhodes-sort sound and some B3 sounds. No guitarists were harmed during the making of this message. In general, harmonic complexity is inversely proportional to the ratio between chording and non-chording instruments. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cg1155 Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 The older Alesis Qs x.1 series certainly are good and relatively cheap, but if you're willing to spend a bit more I think the improvement in sound quality is very noticable. My pics would be an S80 if you can find one - it certainly is a workhorse - weighted 88 key action, very useful pianos, great EP's, very usable B3, etc. It is discontinued and replaced by the S90 which IMHO has a much better piano, more polyphony, and generally better patches. You would also do well with the Roland RD pianos or the Fantom. A Triton with the piano board would also work well. If you like they keyboard actions you have now you could grab a module - there's plenty that would work well like the Motif rack, triton rack, etc. Also, consider the new Roland VR-760: Great B3 and electric pianos, some synth, acoustic pianos, etc. What are you willing to paY? Casey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sbrock1san.rr.com Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 Yamaha Motif 7 or 8, or S90. The Motif ES-series comes out in a few months. On a small budget- the Kurweil PC2R module has those type of sounds. I've seen it selling for $699 in the Musicians Friend catalog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gbkgbk Posted July 29, 2003 Author Share Posted July 29, 2003 Casey, I was thinking about maybe 1000.00 limit for new kb. And by the way, I forgot to mention I also use a Proteus 1 module which does offer a very good piano sound. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linwood Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 I'm with SteveRB. Motif or S90. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Fiala Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 I'd vote for a module - either the Motif, Kurzweil PC2R, for example. Each would be under $1000. Just use your old keyboard as a midi controller. Tom F. "It is what it is." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RABid Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 Anyway, the short version of things not already mentioned. If you are comfortable using a module and your keyboards still work well then you can get some very good sounds for under $1000. Here are some suggestions. Yamaha Motif Rack. $999 online and in most stores. 128 voice polyphony, good sound. Will hold two expansion cards for FM synthesis, analog modeling, etc. Roland XV-5050. $799 online and in most stores. 64 voice polyphony. Will hold two expansion ROM's for varied sounds. Throw the Keys ROM in and get a good variety of pianos, ep's and organs along with Tron and other sounds. Very good orchestra ROM's. Emu P2500 - $699 online and in stores. 128 polyphony and built in sequencer. Holds three expansion ROM's. Other Emu options include the new Vintage Keys ($599) and the XL-7 on close out at some stores ($499). Emu has some nice expansion ROM's. The Sounds of the ZR has a good piano plus other basic sounds. The Vintage Keys ROM has ep's, organs, and synths. Robert This post edited for speling. My Sweetwater Gear Exchange Page Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Horne Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 re 'flood protection'... just go 'BACK' on your browser and you should not have to rewrite everything. No guitarists were harmed during the making of this message. In general, harmonic complexity is inversely proportional to the ratio between chording and non-chording instruments. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RABid Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 Originally posted by Dave Horne: re 'flood protection'... just go 'BACK' on your browser and you should not have to rewrite everything.That had been working for me but for some reason this time it returned to a blank message box. Robert This post edited for speling. My Sweetwater Gear Exchange Page Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Horne Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 gbkgbk, just in case you're not aware of the this, the Kurzweil Micropiano, it is a module and I've seen them on e-bay for $50 - $175. That's a lot cheaper than the other possibilities that were mentioned. I use one and really just bring it on jobs as a spare in case my regular equipment dies. No guitarists were harmed during the making of this message. In general, harmonic complexity is inversely proportional to the ratio between chording and non-chording instruments. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cg1155 Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 For that kind of money I would agree that a module will give you the most bang for your buck. For my money I would get the Motif rack, and runner up would be the new Emu vintage-keys. That might be the best bet if you have a piano you're happy with. If you really want a new keyboard you may be able to kind a used Yamaha S80 for that or a left over Alesis QS8.1 -- they're both great, I prefer the Yamaha. Dave, no disrespect, but the micropiano was great in 1993 but at 32 notes polyphony I would have trouble recommending it today. But if you have limited resources . . . Casey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gbkgbk Posted July 29, 2003 Author Share Posted July 29, 2003 Really appreciate all the suggestions. I guess I knew that there are lots of good kb/modules around, but at least I have some good places to start. Thanks again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kkrogedal Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 I guess you already know about www.harmony-central.com with user-reviews of all kinds of musical instruments and programs. I totally agree with the above mentioned gear, but although I haven't tested it too much myself, maybe the Emu PK-6 could be something. Good luck. Kjartan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan South Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 I've never listened that closely to meat and potatoes. Do they make a sound? Dude, you have to LISTEN with your OWN EARS and decide with one sounds best to YOU. The Black Knight always triumphs! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gbkgbk Posted July 29, 2003 Author Share Posted July 29, 2003 Dan, After owning my other boards for almost 20 years I didn't even know where to start my search for a new kb. I used to subscribe to Keyboard magazine, but I dropped the subscription because I was getting very little "keyboard" and a lot of electronics/computer information. So I have to admit I am really out of the loop. By meat and potatoes sounds I guess I was meaning the more common sounds that I would use in a lot of r and b stuff....not a lot of "eclectic" out there digital type sounds. But you're definitely right....I will have to listen to them for myself. And by the way.... Go Packers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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