Thoughts? Here are mine. I don't think they're misunderstood at all. I think most serious musicians understand perfectly what an arranger keyboard is, if not specifically, at least in concept. That contcept is, of course, auto-accompaniment and I think that is precisely what turns them off. Solid concepts accompanied by quality products will almost always succeed in the marketplace. There is little dispute about the high quality and technical excellence of today's most popular arranger keyboards. We must then conclude that it must be the CONCEPT that is responsible for it's dismal showing in the keyboard market. It's a cop-out to say that people/musicians "don't know about them"; they've been around at least 30 or more years which should be more than enough time to get 'discovered'. Musical instruments are meant to show off your musical skills, not disguise them....and therein lies the problem. In the minds of most (YES, MOST) professional musicians, an arranger keyboard is NOT a legitimate musical instrument (you can interpret 'legitimate' however you like). This attitude has not changed in 30-40 years and is unlikely to change in the future.

Well you asked for 'thoughts' .

chas