I have been following the various threads about tyros 4 and audya 5. I have watched plenty of youtube videos on both keyboards.....I even tried a tyros 4.
Unfortunately, there are no audya 5 keyboards to try in maryland that are within a reasonable distance to travel.
Being able to try one would be very helpful in my decision making process---washington music center *used to carry* ketron products, but they had some sort of falling out?
so maybe some of you who know a thing or two about these keyboards could answer a few questions for me?
with regards to Ketron:
1)is the audya 4 basically an audya 5 without the keys?----would that hook up to a technics kn5000?
2) does the audya 4 have the same technical problems that seem to plague the audya 5?
3) is there a difference (besides # of keys and joystick controller) between audya 5 and 76 key version?
4) does the audya have an arpegiator?

with regard to tryos 4
1) does that keyboard have an arpegiator?
2) is the user manual fairly easy to understand?
3) any technical problems with tyros 4?

thanks!!

Hi,
you may want to check out the capabilities of the KN5000 as a controller keyboard thoroughly, before you consider buying a module. I sold my kn5000 approx 12 years ago, too long ago for me to remember the midi functions. There is an actual Technics forum on Synthzone. Maybe someone there could help as far as the Technics goes.

Sorry, can't help as far as Audya or Yamaha goes, I'm a Korg owner.
[quote=philip2000]
1)is the audya 4 basically an audya 5 without the keys?----would that hook up to a technics kn5000?

Add the Korg Pa3x to your list you will be pleasantly surprised.

John C.

Hi,
Regarding your question regarding the Tyros4

1. It does not have an arpeggiator

2. Not really,pretty difficult to follow.Pretty much the same as all other brands.

3. There seem to be an issue with the Audio Recorder,but doesn't seem to apply to all Tyros4s

IE.When recording the disk drive will stop operating and a disk full warning is displayed.
Which in most cases have not been cured by the fitting of a new disk.

The initial saving and memory issues have been address by an OS update.It now seems most issues reported turn out to be user operational Errors.

I certainly would not part with mine and have no issue since the update.Hope this will help.

Gilbert.

I had a Kn5000 and have a KN7000 now. I would not recommend for master controller of Audya4.

If anything, Audya4 has had more problems( at least before the updates) than the Audya5 and 76. I also have an Audya76 with no problems whatsoever.

The Audya5 has 61 keys and the Audya76 has 76, not sure about the controller difference.

In my opinion, the Audya76 is the best sounding keyboard in terms of live sound. Of coarse, this is subjective.

I have had Yamaha's (not Tyros), and they are excellent boards with all the styles you could want, and very dependable as a whole.

The Audya is a work in progress from a small company. The reason I chose Audya is the sound and features, but gambled on not getting a flawed board.

For me, the Yamaha is good but the overall sound is too vanilla but some of the solo instruments are great.

Bernie

Either keyboard will probably serve your needs, and in reality, the learning curve is quite steep. No owners manual that I've come across in the past two decades has been comprehensive, and none were well written. Fortunately, there are user forums where knowledgeable individuals are usually more than willing to help you solve many of the complexities.

For the most part, I lean toward Yamaha for several reasons. First and foremost Yamaha seems to have much better factory and technical support than any of the other leading manufacturers. There are factory authorized service centers worldwide that usually provide excellent support for their products. Naturally, there are exceptions to this, but generally speaking, Yamaha seems to be at the top of this list.

As for the sounds, this, of course, is subjective. Some like the polished sounds Yamaha provides, while others prefer a rougher sound claiming it closely resembles a live band. Of course, everyone that sees you playing knows it's not a live band creating the music. I, personally, love both Yamaha's styles and individual voices.

Much of the sound quality produced by any keyboard will depend heavily upon the PA system you select. Another key factor will be the tuning of the keyboard's global EQ system.

The ball is now in your court,

Gary

thank you for your advice on this.
I did try the korg pa3x and felt the yamaha was better sounding on the backgrounds (korg sounded kind of "thin"---but that could also be due the fact no one knew how to operate that keyboard.
tyros accompanyments sounded very good and was fairly intuitive. What I didn't like about the tyros was the number of layers you had to dig through to get to certain functions (and again, no one really knew how to use it)
It was hard enough to find a place that actually stocked the tyros 4 on the floor to try....it is damn near impossible to find an audya to try in real life.
With regards to the audya I have a few more concerns
1) is it hard to see the screen since it doesn't tilt?
2) has the latest operating system pretty much solved all the problems with the audya(I'd probably be going for the 61 key model)
3)does it sound as good "out of the box" as it does on youtube (abaco62...aka jack canon...makes it sound like a LIVE orchestra)
3)

Hi Philip,
quite often the case. Salespeople who don't know how to operate them.
When I went to buy my Korg PA3X, they had a single speaker attached which looked more like a guitar amp. The keyboard is STEREO for goodness sake.
Except for the fact that I already owned a Korg PA800 and knew how good Korgs are, I would have just walked out. Instead I just spent 5 minutes as I already knew most of it's functions, told them to pack it up, took it home & haven't regretted it for a minute.

Do yourself a favour , download the manuals, (there's 2, one for the normal operation, one for the style editor & sampling/sound editing. It's the closest thing out there to a workstation as well as being an arranger.

http://www.korgpa.com/en/products/arrangers/pa3x/pa3x-informations.html


You'll have an even bigger headache maybe? having to decide between 3. haahaa

Whatever you decide, don't rush it, it's a big investment.

[quote=philip2000]thank you for your advice on this.
I did try the korg pa3x and felt the yamaha was better sounding on the backgrounds (korg sounded kind of "thin"---but that could also be due the fact no one knew how to operate that keyboard.

The Audya screen is easy to see. It is tilted, maybe 30 degrees between the slanted top and further tilted display. The thing is that it is designed with many intuitive buttons instead of screen layers. I set up favorites under a button and they are right there.

I know that the last two OS upgrades (4.2a and 4.2b solved most problems I am aware of. I don't hear the ranting I did on the forums. Like I said, I never had any known problems at all. It seems like Audya4 had more.

As far as sound out of the box is conscerned, Youtube is compressed and does not come up to the live sound actually delivered. OTOH who knows what EQ and style modifications were made to the clips you listened to plus the artistry of the performer.

All I can say is when I opened my Audy76 and started playing, I was thrilled at the sound.

One other personal note is that I have played 61 note arrangers since about 1984 but when jumped up to 76 with my G70 Roland, I would never go back, and I am not a piano player.

Bernie

Well said, and I agree wholeheartedly with your above statements.

I also love the Yamaha sounds and styles...definitely smooth and nicely detailed.

Support is awesome, especially in regards to styles and sounds, both third party and factory versions.

The Audya, according to some owners I have spoken with personally, sounds excellent, with some very good styles, but sadly lacks both factory and third party support and hasn't had a good track record for reliability according to these users. One just has to read the Ketron forums to get an idea of it's how it's doing.

Also, although I have been a piano player most of my life, I am totally happy, and well served, by the beautifully made and very responsive 61-note FSX keyboard on the Tyros4 when using the instrument as it is designed to be used...as an arranger.

Ian