Hey LifeForceExplorer:

Thanks for your extended comments. They really help. In particular, I'm glad to hear I'm not alone in recognizing the special touch of the P80 keyboard. Others whose comments I've read have been more equivocal, but side by side comparison even with the excellent weighting of the S80 tells the difference. I like the S80's feel; but as a long time acoustic user, I feel at home on the P80.

FWIW, I've posted similar messages on other boards, and listservs, including one devoted to the S80, and your conclusions on touch ring true with others. I get more ambiguous messages on sound. However, between those who feel I can get what I want with the native sounds of the S80, and those who value the plugin's additions, the consensus seems to be that sound is (or can be made) less of a dividing line from the P80.

If that's true, then the choice appears to lie between the performance capacity and kinesthetic pleasures of the P80, against the more cerebral, sound factory and compositional flexibility of the S80.

Your cautions about the (needless?) technical challenges of mastering the S80 are daunting . . . but only up to a point. I expect to have this machine for some time, and actually enjoy the challenge of deciphering the manual. A long time sim gamer, used to impenetrable technical explanations, I've accepted that at some profound level, life is a puzzle that unlocks itself with patient attentiveness.

I've compared the P80 and S80 PDF manuals and pretty much understand what I can do with the P80. The fact that I still don't really know all of what the S80 allows, even after slogging through the manual, actually appeals to me, in a bizarre, probably pretty disturbing way.

In any case, thanks again for your helpful thoughts.

Alex