Hi Jeff

I think most people would demo an arranger for 15 min, and hear the sounds and styles through the onboard amplication and speakers. They would make the purchasing decision based on those factors. So for Casio's bottom line, they are putting the emphasis in the wrong place.

My position is a little off the beaten track. I assume that I cannot buy exactly what I want, so I am willing to add something to the arranger. I would be willing to live without good lead sounds, amplification, and speakers. I can add a Roland 5080 or Triton Rack, and can add powered speakers, maybe Roland PM-3.

What I cannot live without are the thousands styles available free on the Internet. I also cannot live without vocal harmony that coordinates with the styles. I can live without lots of continuous controllers on the arranger because I can add them. However, adding continuous controllers (e.g., a bank of sliders or a second keyboard) is a lot less convenient than adding a sound module because you have to reach them and the arranger concurrently. So if you leave out the odd duck (me), the Casio should do what everyone else does--leave off the controllers and work on the sounds.