I remember this article from Keyboard Magazine being mentioned in another post. I am fairly certain it was Fran. I remember being excited to know that I would soon receive mine in the mail. However I do not remember if anyone expounded on its subject matter. I just wanted drop this thread in to allow for continued dialog on this subject. I already know that some of you don't think much of the SA Voices.
Anyway, this is really about the article that made the cover of Keyboard Magazine, "Arranger Keyboards: Tools or Toys"
I know that for most of us, we have experienced many different opinions regarding the arranger. From amazed astonishment to absolute disdain from others. However, I think that as the technology's start to merge(,ie. Synths & Arrangers)the thought of the arranger being a toy is changing, even among other professional musicians. I don't need anybody telling me how great my keyboard is to feel good about my purchase. I have had my Tyros 2 for about 1 year. I continue to be amazed at the stellar way the SA voices can be played and applied in musical arrangements. Oh by the way , here is my favorite part of the final conclusion of the writer. "At the high end, no other keyboard's comparable sounds can match the realism of the Tyros 2's Super Articulation voices,..."
The article goes on to talk about the "cool" features of the E-80. But since I'm a Tyros 2 owner I thought that I would stop there and let someone else like Fran take up for Roland.

Let the flaming begin...

Regards,

Dennis L. Almond
aka...TwoNuts


PS. Here is the article; Tools or Toys



[This message has been edited by TwoNuts (edited 04-07-2007).]

Well Dennis, since I don't own either top keyboard I can't comment ..

Fortner is pretty fair , so I would respect his opinions..including "taking the E80 on the gig over the Tyros2, because of the better rhythm section"..not an exact quote..I am basing it from memory..Your quote was also true..he prefers the SA sounds, although he praised the Roland sounds too...He preferred to use the Tyros2 in the studio rather than live..

Overall , it was a good article and has brought the attention just how great "arrangers keyboards" can aid professional musicians as well as hobbyists..

Dennis: I posted the note about the Keyboard Magazine article.
http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/Forum37/HTML/015200.html

Fran is right about Fortner's positive view of both keyboards. Roland=Nifty live sounding styles, Yamaha=Nifty SA Voices. Having owned a Roland keyboard and now having a T2. I agree.

Thanks Robert,

I'm glad this article actually made some kind of impact...even if it was small.
I wasn't sure if this kind of topic spun in a certain way might ignite some Fan-Boy discussion or disagreement on the opinion of the writer.

Oh well...

I guess maybe I miss the excitement of the occasional flaming arguments when Scott was around.

Regards,

Dennis L. Almond
aka...TwoNuts

What boards were tested for the rest of the world? (Keyboard Magazine is a US publication) was it just the Tyros 2 and Roland E80.

No they included the Genesys Pro 5, Ketron SD-5, Casio WK-8000 and they also talked about some of the cheaper arrangers from Roland and Yamaha.

And also the Korg Pa800 which got very positive comments from the editor - and the magazine front page was a close up view of the Pa800

Kind regards,
Tommy

Thanks for the info.

Bill

Sorry Tommy, I didn't mean to forget mentioning the PA-800. I thought the article was very fair and highlighted the strengths of each model.


[This message has been edited by Nigel (edited 04-05-2007).]

[This message has been edited by TwoNuts (edited 04-06-2007).]