Korg Triton LE

[Laura]

Hey folks,
I'm still comparison shopping for a keyboard. I was looking at the MM6 and the Roland Juno-D. There was one feature that turned me off about the Juno... a feature nobody else seems to have mentioned: the control knobs are on the RIGHT hand side! So unless you are a lefty, you will be playing with your right hand and reaching across to twiddle your knobs.

That seems wayy too clumsy for a newbie!

Anyway, I then noticed that Guitar Center was selling a used Korg Triton LE for $599... the same price as the new Yamaha MM6!

I have been googling to try and find what the Korg Triton LE goes for new. I can't find anything. One listing said 'this product is no longer available".

Does anyone know, is the Korg Triton LE not produced anymore? Is it a good synth? Is it a bad idea to buy a discontinued item?

That thing sounded great & had a lot of tweaky knobs and tricky arpeggios... maybe more than I need! My target budget is not much more than $500...

 

[elwoodblues1969]

Triton LE

Why is it that anytime an item is discontinued,people automatically assume the worst?
More people need to conceptualize the fundamentals of supply & demand.

Korg has a long history of creating a limited timeline in thier production of thier keyboards for no other reason than capitolizing on the principal profits of creating obsolence,to induce sales of new releases & giving the consumer little or no choice but to buy the latest & more expensive technology.

Up until the creation of the Korg Oasys,all the predecessors were designed with a certain amount of features & technology & were built to inevitably become obsolete to make way for the next new,big thing-which is why you were not likely to find older Korg sound programs in newer Korg models.
The Korg Triton LE was released in 2002(to the best of my knowledge)and it has sounds & features that are comparible to my Triton Extreme.

The sequencer is a wonderful recording tool & a utter joy to work with in creating music & complete songs and it is a synth workstation that can hold up well-even by today's standards in workstation technology & features.
The Triton LE & the Triton Studio were discontinued to make way for the more advanced version of the Triton series-which was the Triton Extreme,which was released in 2004.

Even the Extreme has been discontinued,& not because it was defective or unreliable in any way,but rather,the production was ceased to make way for the Korg M3 series & the Korg Oasys.

If you are referring to the 61 key version of the Korg Triton LE,I'm guessing that brand new,it retailed anywhere from a grand,to $1,200.00

If you want a workstation synth & you insist on staying under a thousand,then go for the used LE.

If you decide that you want a warranty & product support & you are willing to set aside enough money to reach the thousand dollar mark and your heart is set on a workstation,then go for the Korg TR-61,as those are readily available brand new.

If you decide that you just want a performance synth & more simplicity and if left-sided control knobs are that important to you,then go for the Clavia Nord Lead 2X-which is also a grand.

If you want an enormous amount of beautiful sounds with an enormous amount of tweaking capablities,then I gaurantee you that you will not find a better virtual analog synth in this price range.

If you want a keyboard that you can grow into & evolve with that will keep up your inspiration as you advance,then these 3 keyboards that I've mentioned are the absolute best value & the best investment you could possibly make that will save you alot of money in the long run.

 

[Skipp]

I agree with elwoodblues1969.

TR is actually the same as LE except it's black and has some new sounds on a larger ROM but it's still almost the same. I had a TR76 for a few weeks and that keyboard has good sounds except for pianos... and since i spend most of my time using piano sounds I sold it and got myself a motifES.

But i think since you're just starting TR/LE will do you fine.
It's not that sturdy and has plastic endings so be sure to buy a suitcase.
But the keyboard is very light and portable so you'll have no trouble carrying it around.

 

[Laura]

I agree with elwoodblues1969.

TR is actually the same as LE except it's black and has some new sounds on a larger ROM but it's still almost the same. I had a TR76 for a few weeks and that keyboard has good sounds except for pianos... and since i spend most of my time using piano sounds I sold it and got myself a motifES.

But i think since you're just starting TR/LE will do you fine.
It's not that sturdy and has plastic endings so be sure to buy a suitcase.
But the keyboard is very light and portable so you'll have no trouble carrying it around.

I think my concern with a used item is that there won't be as much "support" as far as being able to fix it, etc.

Frinstance there is this Ensoniq ESQ-1 and it worked a year ago when I found it in the attic, but now it decided to die and there's nothing to be done for it. Yeah, I know, it's 20 years old, what do you expect, that's the paleozoic Era.

You folks are probably pro musicians, I am going for less of a product than you are. I need to learn how to play keys. So I want something that sounds good, won't break in 2 years, and can do a few simple tricks and play along with me on a few trax. Ambient, instrumental jam type stuff.

As for the rest of it, I'm not even sure what y'all are talking about.

I am still considering that used Yamaha MM6 that the seller says is 'never used'. The warranty issue is my only concern. I have played the Yamaha in the store and it seems to have everything I want. The seller asks for $500 or best offer.

Now if he has already sold it, my next thought is the used Triton LE at Guitar Center for $599. It does way more things than I ever thought of. I don't even know what half the things are.

As for the Roland Juno-D, the sales guy said it is more geared toward the 'techno, hip-hop, urban dance music' styles. Plus, instead of knobs, it has buttons. I don't like buttons.

 

[Laura]

Roland RS-50

So then today the music store is selling a used Roland RS-50 for $299. My eyes popped out!! I figured on spending 5 bills. And since I may need roof work, 5 bills might be too much.

I went home to read up on this machine. I think the one thing it is lacking is a sequencer. meaning I can't play along with myself. Hey, I do have Cubase LE, maybe I can record my parts on that.

I'm wondering how important a sequencer really is unless you intend to get up there and do solo performances.