When I first came upon the Arranger Forum a little over two years ago, I was just selling my Korg iX300 and looking to buy a PSR2000. I was leaving the Korg discussion group and looking for something a little more general in nature. As a long time band member, I noticed that there were a lot of guys (and a few gals) who were also using arrangers for profit and not just for fun, so I stayed and became active.

I quickly noticed that we had some very opinionated members, but also very helpful members. An even bigger item I noticed was that most of these guys were pretty mature (old ain't the word). At 52, I was relatively young. Certainly there were younger members, but most of us were over 40. The talk back then was pretty much a mix of info about the new PSRs, a few Ketrons and Rolands and even fewer other boards AND talk about ourselves, our families and our music. I noticed that a good half dozen or so members seemed very friendly toward each other; they either lived nearby or had met each other several times. It took a while for me to feel like one of the gang, but they seemed to accept me and I had a great time daily checking posts for the last two years.

Lately, things in the industry seem to have leveled out. New members certainly seem younger and therefore their interests are different. We rarely discuss styles, registrations or anything helpful like that. Posts seem edgy. New and old members seem to take issue with particular posts AND their posters. Some older members have stated their dissatisfaction with the new look and feel of the SZ and some have even left.

Do we really think no other members have come and gone? It happens all the time. Apparently this is a time of transition, for better or worse. If I were to come upon the Arranger Forum as a newbie today would I be interested in sticking around? I can't really say. All I know is that everything has its ebb and flow. Right now this forum seems to be ebbing. Maybe it's the lack of new information, maybe it's the interests of the newer members. Whatever it is, it is. We can all make the SZ whatever we want it to be as long as we stay active. When we move into the background, others will step forward to take our places - and make it their own.

[This message has been edited by cassp (edited 04-13-2005).]