Wersi Abacus Pro on YouTube

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Ct6wtzy4M5M

Enjoy

Bill

Thanks Bill, there are a few other great videos on there as well.

Great stuff.

Ian

While not bad, I just have a feeling that this is stuff ANY decent arranger can do.

I keep hoping to hear something from Wersi that completely blows me away, and justifies it's 2 to 3X price overhead compared to a 'regular' arranger. So far, no luck.

Abacus, any links to something that REALLY shows off something totally unique. a complete step beyond? And please, no more links to bad B4 demos... If I REALLY need B4, I can run it from a $600 laptop, rather than get a $6000 Wersi...

I'd simply like to hear something twice as good as a T2 or E80, if I've got to pay twice as much. That sounded about 1X as good, for reference (IMO).

I don't care for that piano sound at all. Maybe it's a poor resolution, and his playing is kinda corney and choppy, but I was not at all impressed by something that HAS to cost a bundle !

There are several artistes on the UK organ club circuit who use the Abacus and you really have to hear one of them to appreciate the difference There is something about the orchestral sounds which stand out fron any other keyboard I've heard and I speak as a confirmed Tyros 2 fanatic. I just have to say that, to my ears, the Abacus is the only keyboard that really does sound like a full orchestra on stage.

Sadly, the call for that (at least where I play!) is extremely limited. In the US, there isn't nearly the market for theater organ and ballroom music as you get in Europe, something that often sets us at odds with most arranger manufacturers.

If the Wersi rocked harder, or jazzed smoother, or funked your brains out better than the Big 3, it might stand a better chance over here, but there just isn't much of a Reginald Dixon fan club over here..!

Sadly, the influence of American pop music on the world is pervasive, but it's influence on the voicing and style making for arrangers is still a bit behind the curve. Wersi, especially, still feels mired in the ballroom Burt Kaempfurt, Klaus Wunderlicht beer-hall scene, which may do wonders for their sales in Germany, but leaves most Americans a bit cold, IMO.

But the next time the majority of my repertoire consists of light classical works and schlager, you can be assured I'll take another look at the Wersi's!

Typical American arrogance

I am actually with Dikki on this one. There is noway you can tell just from the sound why this instrument costs so much. But i am sure in terms of the way it can use VST's etc that might add some credibility to the cost but not 3-4 times as much more expensive.

Trevorjohn is correct, have a listen to a UK player and you wouldn’t think it was the same instrument. (And this applies to all makes)
As an example listen to the Hammond organ in the hands of a continental player (The late Great Klaus Wunderlich for instance) and it sounds like a completely different instrument to when it is in the hands of UK/American players. (As Diki pointed out)
Regards

Bill

Not arrogance, really, just practicality... Firstly, let me remind you I AM from England, and know all about the great love for theater organ sound over there (I used to sell organs in Colchester thirty years ago). However, despite 25 yrs in the States, I am STILL convinced it is a minority appeal, save with a VERY dedicated niche audience.

The thing is, unless Wersi show us here in the States that they ARE capable of sounding contemporary, and sadly, no demo I've heard yet manages that (even when they DO manage to sound a bit more contemporary, it is often drowned in a bath of Euro-reverb), no technical feature is going to attract a vast pool of players that play music the Wersi seems unsuited for.

The pace of music change and innovation in the States is a different kind of beast to most music that Wersi owners seem to like. Everything from jazz to rock and roll, to R&B and soul, to hiphop and rap was INVENTED here. But when we hear them in the States, played on theater organ derived arrangers (Wersi's roots are firmly in that camp) there is just something WRONG!

Perhaps it is just that we are not a generation and an ocean apart from the source music, I don't really know. But so far, as I said, I've heard nothing yet from Wersi that doesn't give me a 'beer-hall' taste in my mouth, and I would REALLY like to be shown otherwise.

So... any Wersi links for something that you would think a $10k arranger SHOULD sound like?

I don't particularly what to get into an argument with you Dikki but I must take you up on this idea that you seem to have that we, in Europe are obsessed with theatre organ sounds. Whilst there is still a market to some extent as there is in the States, by the number of European organists who tour there,the considerable majority of organ and keyboard enthusiasts over here attend clubs and concerts at which only a very small part of the programmes features theatre organ sounds, if at all.

Don't attack my homeland Trevor.

I can honestly say that these were the first Wersi demos I had the chance to listen to and see close up and I really don't see what all the hubbub is about regarding Wersi. I keep hearing they are these wonderful arranger instruments with Windows OS and VST capability with wonderful sounds and with a gigantic price tag to go along with it. Two out of four ain't bad , but the sounds emanating from that monstrosity sound like a mid-priced Casio in my opinion. Maybe it had a lot to do with the way the demos were recorded, but even so, you still would think that a $10,000 instruments Acoustic Grand Piano would sound light years better than a tinker toy Casio's under even the most duress of recording anomalies. BTW, I'm talking about the demo on the right side of the youtube page under "Wersi Organ". The AC Piano sounded really inferior to my audiophile ears.

Huh.. I just noticed after downloading the file that it was actually recorded in Mono at 22050Hz. Like I said though it still should sound better even if it was recorded in mono and with a less than stellar sampling rate. For a $10,000 instrument that is.

And you would think if they were going to showcase an AC Grand Piano sound that they would want to load Ivory or some other VST piano instead of that Casio imitation. Oops! Hopefully that wasn't Ivory we were hearing by the way. If it was then we're all in a heap of trouble; or rather I should say that Wersi is in a heap of trouble for allowing Ivory to sound like a Casio through their $10,000 arranger instrument.

No disrespect to 'abacus' either. The profit margin on those babies should be gargantuan which is reason enough to keep selling them in my opinion. I would think most of Wersi's clients are upwards in age and of retirement stature who most could give a flying fig about audio fidelity and pristine sound reproduction like the majority of us here on the SZ etc., do. In other words, "close enough is close enough" to the majority of them I would think, especially at that age where hearing loss is a commonality in a vast segment of that populous.

Best,
Mike

I've yet to ever hear an online Wersi demo that would even show the true quality and sound of this instrument. Unlike those who only hear MP3 demos and have never heard the real instrument in person and make a decision based upon that, I own an Abacus Duo Pro so I can speak from first hand experience. I also own a large arsenal of the finest synths, samplers, and keyboards ever made and have owned the best arranger keyboards other manufacturers have to offer. The Wersi is without question the finest arranger I have ever heard or seen in both build quality and sound. The Tyros 2 sounds are not even comparable with the exception of a few Mega or SA voices. Imagine a keyboard that actually sounds like the real instrument. Not just a sound or two, but literally 1 GB of sounds that are top notch, that's what the Wersi has to offer. Rarely can you turn on an instrument and find almost every sound so exacting that it mimics the true instrument. Wersi has spent years developing their factory sounds and it really shows. The fact you can further expand your possibilities with VST's, software, and other programs is merely icing on the cake.

It is sad that Wersi doesn't have better online demos but their market share is so small I'm not sure they care a whole lot. Wersi's are like Ferraris, we can all want one but few can afford one. It really depends on what you need, what your music requires, and whether or not a Wersi is right for you. I tried the best Korg, Technics, Roland, Ketron, and Yamaha had to offer, they didn't fit my needs. I bought my Abacus on the word of other Wersi owners and only hearing a demo CD and I don't regret the purchase. The first time I heard the Wersi in person I was shocked. The difference in sound, programmability, and ease of use was so different from anything else I had owned, it was staggering. You just won't know this without playing the instrument.

Those who own a Wersi will most likely share my sentiments. Those who have never seen or heard one in person, will never understand just how phenomenal this instrument is.