A lot depends on your NEEDS...

I must admit, my needs have always been a bit skewed to most here. I want a GREAT arranger, but I also want a GREAT WS too. And I would prefer them both to be the same piece of gear..! Less to have to lug around, less to have to learn differently, if your arranger and WS are from different manufacturers, less to obscure you while you play.

For basic arranger/WS use, I think I have found the best keyboard so far, but there ARE starting to be some things either now or on the horizon which might finally do a better job. Plus, I think I've wrung my G70 reasonably dry!

But I think I'm still hopeful something ground-breaking will come out, the final mind-meld of the arranger and the WS/Looper/Arpeggiator, so I am in no frantic rush. The PA3X76 is about the closest thing so far, but without Karma, it still falls pretty short compared to the Kronos. There is also much I like in the Ketron's OS - an albeit basic arpeggiator, but an arpeggiator nonetheless, key triggered phrases, audio streaming, Break/Fills for each Variation etc., but they need to up the bar on the audio track feature before it isn't simply a great idea, incompletely realized.

You know, in the long run, the thing that, at least on the arranger side makes for the greatest longevity for me has been the editing and style creation tools. I honestly think most of us end up looking for another arranger because we get bored with hearing the same styles over and over and over again! But if you have idiot-proof, mind-blowingly simple tools in the arranger to quickly change the SOUND of a style into something newer, different, fresher, and possibly have something like the SRX expansion slots so you can add in in utterly new sounds without chucking the whole arranger away, you can avoid this boredom factor in a big way.

My Roland's Cover Tools (which can quickly revoice an entire style to be, for instance, more electro-pop or more acoustic in nature with one button press) and the Makeup Tools which allow you to edit the Style's headers in an utterly easy and intuitive and QUICK way have made for contentment over the long haul more than anything.

Struggling or having to work hard to achieve this tends to make you not do it, and simply go look for the latest model (where someone else has already done this work!)! It's an often overlooked, under-appreciated aspect of an arranger, IMO.

Sadly, both the Korg and the Ketron both fall way short of the Roland in this area. So, I keep my old behemoth, and wait patiently....

And wait... and wait... and wait... and wait... and wait... and wait...

Kronos with a PA arranger engine...now THAT would be just about nirvana!!!

Amen... but they are still going to have to address that button layout!

Even then most people are still not satisfied.

And what does the BK 5 have that the PA500 don't have? Seems to me that the BK5 don't have alot of things the Korg PA500 have for example pads and a decent sequencer.

Sound... Admittedly, I haven't heard a BK-5, but I have a BK-7, and it can sound as good as a PA3x for much of the styles. Amazingly live sounding drums, fat bass, great pianos, far better guitars than my G70...

PA500 is still older technology, PA2 era or earlier, right? 80 voices as opposed to 128. Older sounds and no guitar modes, right? Pads, yes... Roland need to wake up and smell the coffee. But who is doing serious sequencing in an arranger these days? You use a DAW and transfer the file... But the BK-5 has the Roland's typically first class editing tools to fine tune the sequence or style, something still not as well developed on Korg's (and WAY important, IMO).

And people not being satisfied with what they have has taken us from the plains of Africa to our modern lifestyles, health and longevity. Since when was that ever a BAD thing?!

I was thinking about buying a BK 5 but after hearing it in the music store a few days ago I have changed my mind. Don't come even close to the PA3X.

Maby the PA500 is older but sound much better to me. And has a full blown synthesizer onboard.

And Roland BK 5 sound and technology is also old. A little updated GW8 sounds IMO.

Fran so true just played my pa500 on a gig.....it sounds awesome wow! Will prob stick with Korg.......too many good things!

Yes Donny you will regret it if you switch to the BK 5. Stick with the BEST

Exactly Fran........Korg all the way!!

Frans, I remember you stating several times on this forum how much you loved your Korg PA-500, and, I agree, it is a fine entry level keyboard for Korg, having quite a few marvelous features.

You now own a PA3X, which is the top end 61 key model. A few here seem to feel that it is a waste of money to go to the top range model, and Donny actually says,

"Imo to spend 3k on an arranger kb in this day and age is a waste of money."

And...

"TOTL is not a replacement for Talent. First learn how to play ...then buy TOTL."

There's no doubt that you already knew how to play well before you got the PA-500, and you seem like the type of guy who is very careful about spending unnecessary money, so for what other reasons did you upgrade to the PA3X, and do you feel those reasons justify the price difference?

Ian

PS...Did you keep your PA-500, or exchange/sell it?