Star,

I agree with you - it is ridiculous that the manufacturers are trying to save a few dollars on providing an adequate number of buttons for easy navigation, and in the process, creating instruments which are completely unusable - Roland VA-76 is the case in point. I surely hope that Korg is not going to go the same route.

Donny,

I am not sure that you or I will be playing the software-based arranger anytime soon. I remember a few years ago at the Musicmesse one of the German keyboard manufacturers (was it Waldorf?) had come out with a prototype platform which contained a PC inside. It did not fly. Then, last winter OpenLabs teased us with Eko. OpenLabs appears to be dead in the water as well. There are some real problems in trying to make a PC into a keyboard, and for now the dedicated keyboard makers have the upper hand.

All the technologies to make a perfect keyboard exist already. However, there is no desire among the manufacturers to put it together in one instrument. This forum for years has catalogued the users' opinions as to what features and functions we need and what we don't need in the instrument (and I think we have as a group been very consistent). It is an unforgivable marketing mistake for a manufacturer to so blatantly ignore the needs of the users.

Regards