Quote:
Originally posted by Spalding1:
DNJ there isnt more excitement about the MS simply because of the lack of marketing. People cannot try an MS unless they buy one, they can only hear an MS through the online demos's which have not really given justice to the sound of the instrument because of the poor quality recordings. People are not sure what sounds they will get with the board on purchase or the quality of those sounds (most GM sounds are inferior to any proprietory instruments sounds ) As an arranger it is unclear as to the quality of styles the ms comes shipped with. Liontrcs is not a huge company and most people i suspect are fearful of the product support that they might get after purchase if a problem crops up with the instrument. Who do they send it to for repairs ? How long would it take to get the instrument back ? What cost ? And lastly the mediastation sounds like a really complex machine that will require the user to purchase additional sounds and styles to make it sound great and the user fears that there may a steep learning curve on purchase and additional expenditure on souds and styles. There are no clear marketing messages as to which target market this instrument is best for and it seems to be promoted on its technological advancement which is great but those technological features need to be related in clear benefit statements to the intended market.

I suspect that once some of the users report back with more glowing reports about the instrument in actual use and sales pick up, Dom will be able to afford more professional marketing done to promote the instrument. We will then be able to get brochures and good demos to inspire confidence in the instrument and the promised open ended support and continuous improvement from liontracs.

There is an article being writen in the next few weeks by one of the keyboard magazines comparing the MS and other keyboards in its class. If the article comes out favourable then i believe you wil see some real excitement about the product



I've said this many times before and I can't stress this enough, the Mediastation does not require the user to buy additional sounds, styles, or software to make it "sound great." There are quite a number of GIGA samples, GM/GS, NI B4, Synthesizer sounds, and Styles included with the Mediastation. Being able to load additional VST's, samples, styles, etc., is just an added bonus. Once you do so the Mediastation has little competition except the Wersi, Neko, or Oasys for sound quality. No arranger made by Yamaha, Korg, Ketron, GEM, or Roland to date has the sound capabilities of either the Mediastation, Oasys, Neko, or the Wersi.

Service or repair is most likely not going to be an issue because the unit is built so well. In the event of a failure Lionstracs could source the problem to a particular board inside the unit, ship a new board out, and the user could easily install it in less than 30-60 minutes. If the user doesn't feel comfortable doing so any good tech can swap the boards out and I'm sure Lionstracs would cover the labor costs of the swap as long as the Mediastation was still under warranty. Lionstracs service with software support and user support has been nothing but stellar so far. I see no reason why that would change anytime soon.

I will agree that these units are complex but that doesn't mean they are hard to operate. Most people who buy an arranger or workstation rarely learn all of their features. If you are using the Mediastation like any other arranger, it will be a piece of cake. If you want to get really in depth and sample, create styles from scratch, load and sync MP3 and audio files, or record extensive sequences, then you will have a longer learning curve. That curve isn't any greater than any other comparable workstation though.

The Mediastation and Wersi are akin to high end automobiles by Lamborghini, Ferrari, Aston Martin, and Bentley. You can't just go down the street and find one of these high ticket items let alone test drive one. Does that make them less viable when considering purchasing a world class product? Not in my opinion. Those who want the best will buy one no matter what. Whether or not it fits your needs may be a gamble but I'd bet the chance of you buying a Mediastation and absolutely hating it would be minimal.