Is it wise to buy a used Roland A-90?

[JohnnyMtn]

Hello all. I am very new to these forums. I've played all my life (various instruments) but have not had a keyboard in the house for a long, long time. I have been wanting to get a digital piano so that I can get back into playing piano. Every time I go to friends houses that have pianos I sit there until they get tired of me. So I definitely need something at home. I also used to be into synths decades ago and have always wanted to get back into that. So to kill a few birds with one stone I thought it would be good to get some type of 88-key midi controller. I don't want to drop a chunk of money so I've been looking at used instruments.

I recently saw a used Roland A-90 for $300 and I am thinking that is a pretty good deal. My questions are: Is that a good price? Is is wise to by a keyboard that is a bunch of years old? Can something like an A-90 still be compatible with any synth I want to connect to it? Any other thoughts?

Thank you!

 

[delaware dave]

I'm not sure of your upper range on price, but for a few hundred dollars more you might look at the Casio line; in the past decade Casio has come up with a professional line of keyboards that are fairly impressive and won't empty out your wallet. Have a look at the Privia line of keyboards, you can then pickup a "new" keyboard with later technology and of course it would be "new". Even a used Privia keyboard would still have more modern technology. The A90 was released in 1996 and is a discontinued product which means in the event of a problem parts could be unattainable or difficult to source. Also, newer keyboards are generally lighter than their older counterparts.

https://www.casio.com/products/electronic-musical-instruments/privia

P.S. If you are looking for a digital stage piano/synth, I have a General Music Equinox 88 (fully loaded) for sale. Has a Fatar TP20 weighted keyboard, 88 keys and a nice acoustic piano (uses the 'Real Piano' piano sample). It's a beast from a weight point of view (72 pounds). I'm the original owner and it works perfectly. I bought it new in 2001. I don't use it anymore for gigging (I only use it in my studio) because I don't want to schlep a 72 pound keyboard around anymore. But for home purpose and studio it is a great keyboard. I'll offer it for sale in your price range.

Here is the review on it:

Generalmusic Equinox

Italian firm Generalmusic have made their reputation in the home keyboard market, but their new Equinox is an extremely well-specified professional workstation. Paul Nagle is suitably impressed.

web.archive.org

 

[Biggles]

No it is not worth it.

To much cash for to old a unit.

Consider that a Studiologic SL88 with Fatar TP 100 LR with Aftertouch can be bought new for $500 USD.

 

[JohnnyMtn]

Thank you for the feedback. I really appreciate that. The A-90 seemed like a good controller for the money but I also don't want to have a $300 half-working controller sitting around. Buying new would definitely be a more reassuring way to go but I thought a good controller would run at least $1000. I'm not opposed to spending that much but I thought since I'm tiptoeing back into this I would rather spend a lot less, hence the $300. $500-$600 is probably the happy medium. I will check more into my options (which is honestly really fun.) Thanks again!

 

[Biggles]

$600 and its a different ball game.

Digital Pianos and synth workstations come into the equation.