I have a Korg Z1. There is nothing wrong with it. It works fine and is in great condition.

The only trouble is, it has a metal case and it weighs an absolute tonne. Also, personally speaking, I find it a nightmare to program.

So, I'm hoping to find something that I can take to rehersals without breaking my back every time I lift the thing. I also want to be able to tweak sounds on the spot without taking a half hour time out to refering to a manual each time I want a new sound.

So, basically I'm thinking of getting rid of the Z1 and switching to something that will be much lighter and much more intuative to use.

So far, I'm thinking of switching to a Juno or something along those lines.

Can anyone offer any advice with this one before I do something silly?

Thanks.

How much you expecting for your Z1?

I actually sold my Z-1 for the same reasons.
Korg boards are generally pretty heavy.
I'm OK with programming though.
Check out the Yamaha EX7 (not DX7). It's got good sound, it's easy to edit and it's got very nice keyboard action.
I also find Roland XP50 pretty light and easy.
BTW Are you lookin for something with the full size keyboard?
Does it have to be a synth, or you're OK with getting just a controller.

-ED-

A juno isn't very light, maybe the Alpha Juno, but it has no knobs. Go for a Nordlead 2X if you want light. The programming couldn't be more straight forward and it has a greater polyphony than any Juno.

-tek

Thanks for the replies.

As far as price goes, it would be a case of checking out what the going rate for a Z1 is these days and going with the rest of the herd. But off the top of my head I think the current price for a good Z1 is probably somewhere between £450-£550... but I'll need to look into that.

I'll do some research into all of the synths that have been recommended so far on this thread.

In answer to your question about controllers, 3351, I'm really not sure what way to turn and I'm open to all ideas.

But like I was saying, my main priorities would be to get something that didn't weigh a tonne and was very easy and quick to programme (with good sounds of course).

I would like it to have at least 61 keys, but if there was something out there that was AMAZING that had less keys then I could certainly live with that.

I never came across a synth that was amazing as a synth and as a controller at the same time.
It took me a long time to figure out what type of keyboard/s I like to use.
In the studio I use anything and everything. From a DX7 to an S90 to a wavestation and 01/W etc (I've got about 30 synths and modules in my studio). But when it comes down to live gigs, I use my Roland AX7. Being a guitar player (aside from being a producer) I like to move around on stage, instead of sitting behind ten keyboards. The only downside about an AX7 is that it's really designed for playing with one hand. So if you have to play parts that involve both hands, you'll need something else.
The lightest controller is a Roland A-30 (and later models). That's what I used to play years ago. The good thing about having a controller separate from your synths (modules) is that you can hook it up to whatever (you can obviously do it with your Z-1, but since Z-1 has it's own sound you're most likely to use it's on board stuff. It's a psychological thing. I call it " I payed for that synth, I might as well use it and get the best out of it"). Something like an A30 (or similar controllers) + a module of your choice might be just what you need.

PS
3351 is just a user name. Most people on this site call me Ed.

-ED-

Ok Ed, thanks for that.

Can I just ask... what would you recommend in terms of sound modules if I was to go down that route?

A friend has recently given me a loan of a Roland XV 2020. It sounds good, but you need a degree in astrophysics to program the thing (and I'm led to believe that without a lap top, it's not much use in a live situation).

By the way... I've had a look into the Yamaha and the Nord synths that were recommended. The Yamaha looks like a spaceship and to be honest, I probably wouldn't have any use for most of the things on it (like the onboard sampler and sequencer, for example). The Nord looks great, and I'm gonna do more research into it. I have fears, however, that those Nords are gonna be really hard to get a hold of second hand.

Well, if you're after virtual analog, definitely try to get a hold of Nord Lead.
Novation SuperNova is really good as well. I personally have the Nova (table top version of the SuperNova). It's a killer and I always take it to gigs. It's got a very fat sound and it's easy to program.
Also, check out Yamaha An1x. They are good, but hard to find nowadays.
Check out Waldorf stuff as well. My friend uses Waldorf "Orange" and he loves it.

-ED-

Ok... I'm gonna go for it!

Thanks