Well Donny, when it comes to sound it's more a matter of personal opinion and taste than any truth, so I'm just going to share my honest 'opinions' here.

Yep, I was talking to him today on Skype.He's reviewed it pretty thoroughly.Ian
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Hi Ian . Really enjoyed our tete to tete chat on Skype voice chat today. And yes, Ian and both came away with very similar Tyros3 evaluation conclusions. I really like the newly added T3 features (sliders & new SA2 voices) but my primary interest in even possibly upgrading was for an improved piano sample. Regretfully, I came away underwhelmed, even after spending 30 minutes unsuccessfully tweeking the EQ (reverb) & compressor settings to get it to sound better. That said, I feel I've got my Tyros2 Piano voice tweaked to sounding far better On T2 than I could get on Tyros3.

ONE THING I noticed right off when comparing T2/T3 side by side is the T3 has a distinctly DIFFERENT 'overall sound' than T2, with the T3 warmer (deeper) vs T2 brighter (sparkly). I prefer the T2's overall sound, but that may have more to do with simply being more accustomed to its sound engine more.

As much as I enjoyed playing the Tyros3 and its new sounds & features, as a live player, I found the new SA2 voices and it's button activation (instrument noises, taps etc) a bit gimicky, especially because my left hand is already kept busy 100% of the time playing chords & progressions and bass line fills between chords. Interestingly enough, both DrBob & TomTomSF who watched me play T3 felt I was implementing the SA2 type sounds thru my (velocity senstive) playing technique alone, and acheivable with Tyros2 SA voices.

That said, I think the T3 would be a must upgrade for T1 or PSR3000 owners, or 4 people into studio recording where mixing with sliders & subtle horn/guitar SA2 articulations would be especially useful. As primarily a live entertainer player though, I feel I'm able to achieve satisfyingly realitic instrument emulation with the Tyros2 and triggering SA voices via my fingers alone.

In conclusion, I think everyone needs to actually play a Tyros3 for themself and evaulate their personal needs & priorities before making any KB upgrade descion. In the meantime, enjoy the KB you own and bring out your musical best with it.

Regards,

Scott

Scott