Curious as to why anyone with a $10K+ Wersi would add a cheap Ketron module... You would think for that price (and all of Bill's praise of it and it's so-called 'openness') that it ought not to need help from a very inexpensive module.

That's the thing about 'openness'... It's only as 'open' as third party developers make it. And given how a Ketron module is probably used by FAR more Wersi users than say, East/West's Colossus, or any of the huge GIGA orchestral libraries, one has to ask whether the ability to be 'open' is anywhere NEAR as important as just a good MIDI external gear implementation is. Despite how much the OAS adds to the cost and complexity of the Wersi's.

The fact is, for anyone other than the top studio professional, there are several modules out there with close to GIGA quality sounds that require NO VSTi playback capabilities, and can be used by anyone with a low or mid-line arranger to enhance their sonic palate to exceptional live standards. And at considerable less cost and complexity, and with immediacy (the time loading different VSTi's for different songs is still a live buzzkill).

And sorry, Bill, but until I hear a bunch of demos from Wersi that annihilate the T2, PA2 and E80 for realism, I just have to continue believing that even the makers themselves, yet alone us mere mortals, don't know how to turn 'openness' into 'superiority'. It's not enough to stick a GIGA grand or B4mkII onto a so-so backing. For 'openness' to really arrive, EVERY sound coming from the arranger has to be TOTL GIGA quality. Every sound, every style written for them, top to bottom.

The fact that Wersi users are fond of a cheap Ketron module proves this is not yet the case, IMO. Don't get me wrong... I am DYING for the day when 'open' keyboards actually deliver on their promise. I use VSTi's extensively for studio work, and would LOVE that they all could go with me live. But I would want EVERY sound in an arranger to be that good, and the setup and operation to be as easy as a ROMpler arranger is now. Which is sadly not the case, yet.

In the meantime, modules (that require no VSTi setup and computer hardware) are coming out with MASSIVE ROM sets (Sonic Cell, anyone?) and sounds that, for live and even quite a bit of pro work, are quite superb. And need nothing more than a MIDI cable and a decent external MIDI implementation. Sadly, for right now, these make both musical AND economical sense.