Interesting post this.

My first arranger was the top part of an early Clavinova - Can't remember the model but it had SIXTEEN different rythmns each with one fill and EIGHT different voices (only one at a time though) lol.

It was really heavy but there was nothing else out there with anything approaching a professional sound and I had developed positional arthritis in my shoulder as I was then playing out with a Hammond X5 with a Wurly EP200 and a Korg Delta Synth stacked on top in a residency and holding my right arm out in front of me 6 nights a week a lot of the time simply wore my shoulder joint away!

My doctor advised me to change my equipment which so I got the clavinova. This instrument also had a new feature called MIDI!!! so when a couple of years later when the (incredible) Korg M1 first came out I got me one and hooked it up. Not a bad sound for those days although I missed the Hammond sound (Mind you the X5 wasn't tonewheel so I suppose I got gradually weened off)

Those were the days eh boys - Backstrain, Hernias, Pulled Muscles and some people now complain about keyboards weighing over 25lbs.

Good Topic Dnj

Regards - Keith