The most advanced arranger

Whats the most advanced arranger?

Is it the Tyros 5 with its SA2 sounds and ensemble sounds, standard style engine and midi and audio pads?

Or is it the Audya, with all its advanced arranger features, or did the audya get surpassed by the SD7

Or is it the Pa3x from Korg, that offers most tweakabillity, and sound engine.

Or did the software solution Varranger2 surpass all the hardware arrangers in possibilities and options?


There is two things we cant deny, all these arrangers can sound great or even better. But also all these arrangers have their shortcommings. Maybe the biggest shortcomming is the fact that the arrangements itselve havent changed in over a decade, while many of the older players want them to be more dynamic, the developers seem to be unable to deliver...

Korg with it's "Archaic folder OS system" IMO is dead last on the list of "advanced" it really needs to be revamped too many steps to achieve things,...I will however say in Korgs defense that my Pa3x did off me very advanced editing features which I enjoyed.

"ADVANCED" is in the eye of the beholder as everyone has different skill levels to operate an Arranger KB.....
some never change because they are used to one brand & fiercely loyal,......some can operate any KB without problems and switch at will if needed. The level of difficulty can be easy or as hard and in depth as the player wants to dig in with only if he or she needs to go that far into the OS. Some never venture anymore deeper then just selecting a style, & sound and playing with great happiness,....others are tech dogs that need to constantly tweak the crap out of their sounds and styles, etc,....no one is right or wrong, It's what you enjoy & what it sounds like that YOUR happy with...

I recently mated a Korg MicroArranger with an iPad to form a very advanced arranger workstation with an inexhaustible selection of studio-quality sounds. I bought the KMA specifically for this purpose, not to rely solely on it's internal capabilities.

The most advanced arranger is not a single device - it's the person who can see the potential of the resources he has available.

Not to derail the thread, but since I have the same hardware as Jim's setup, I wondered what software is used in the iPad.

As to the original question, I think Donny has a good point. I might think my Audya is better than the Tyros 5 all around, but I don't have the organ and ensemble features, but have great sounding styles with live guitars and drums e.g, and the comparisons go on and on.

I am using Caustic 3, Korg Gadget, and Garage Band for some sequencing on the iPad but I am also experimenting with using the arranger functions of the KMA with the sounds of iPad programs like Galileo, Nave, iLectric and iGrand, Sound Canvas for IOS and DM1. It's all experimental so far but I hope to use this system for songwriting and creating backing tracks for my live act.

Thanks Jim

For all ipad users out there, make sure to check out the `audiobus` and the `MidiBridge` apps. They are lifechangers on the ipad...

They allow routing of audio and midi between apps, turning your ipad in a little DAW...

Not to derail this thread further but...

The essential link in the iPad/MicroArranger setup above is the Alesis IODock II which happens to fit perfectly with the MA's music stand. I tried a couple of clunky IOS audio/MIDI interfaces and the Alesis unit worked best. The fact that the music stand holds the dock nicely was luck. The Alesis IO Dock II provides low-latency noise-free interfacing, good controls, and it charges the iPad when in use.

for overall Live kick butt SOUND, the Audya
for editability, tweaking, micro-editing, all other arrangers