The Korg Oasy... STILL Great

[ChrisNabil]

I watched a few videos of the Korg Oasy earlier, and I was really surprised by how good it is since it is 16 years old. That got me thinking about how far technology has really moved forward in the last 16 years.

There is no denying that the piano sounds in the SGX-2 have improved and I found to my ears the Oasy piano sounds a little dated. But, otherwise, I was pretty shocked at how good it sounded actually I would go as far as to say that I liked the palette of sounds more than the Kronos and Nautilus. This makes sense as I am sure nostalgia plays a big part.

Like everything these days, you buy something new and within 6 months to a year there is a new model out and you quickly find your new purchase "outdated". It seems so important to get the newest and best of everything. On the other hand, there is a lot to be said about living with an instrument for a long time and really getting to know it inside and out. I think that is when you learn to get the most out of it too.

This is a lesson that I'm really preaching to myself!... It really is important to not get carried away with endless youtube clips of the newest and so-called greatest...

 

[CowboyNQ]

I agree with this Chris.

I love checking out new gear as much as anyone, but I’m not a big replacer/upgrader. There are many reasons for this, one of them is my view that if it sounded good yesterday, it doesn’t sound any worse today just because something new came out.

I currently own 5 digital keyboards, and the newest of them was purchased in 2013.

 

[ChrisNabil]

I agree with this Chris.

I love checking out new gear as much as anyone, but I’m not a big replacer/upgrader. There are many reasons for this, one of them is my view that if it sounded good yesterday, it doesn’t sound any worse today just because something new came out.

I currently own 5 digital keyboards, and the newest of them was purchased in 2013.

Right, good point. When I heard the electric pianos on the Korg Oasy I was shocked at how good they were. From now onwards I will be a little more skeptical of these marketing ploys to get you to buy the best new board out. Obviously, there are exceptions to the rule and sometimes new technology does come out that ups the ante. But, I am starting to see that most of the time the differences are so small that it negates upgrading.

A prime example of this is iPhones!

Chris

 

[delaware dave]

You'd be surprised about how many of the samples of older keyboards are rolled forward into the new models. Yamaha with the ES series all the way forward to whatever they have today (pre-Montage) alot of the samples were moved forward. Yamaha would update the acoustic piano samples but alot of the other sounds were takeoffs of the older samples. Korg, same thing, the Kronos was modular and they compacted alot of their old keyboards, the CX3 engine, Poly Six, MS-20, AL-1 synth. General Music came out with the Equinox model and it included the Real Piano and many samples from the S2. Kurzweil, when the PC3 came out it rolled many sounds forward from the PC2 and K series. The Forte seriously upgraded the piano but alot of the sample based sounds were from the PC3 and Kore 64 board that went into the PC3.

 

[ChrisNabil]

You mentioning Kurzweil, I watched a few clips of the latest models and I was very impressed. Don't understand why more people don't use them... also why their OS is kind of outdated, their flagship boards are expensive too. I think the Forte costs more than the Kronos!

 

[happyrat1]

This is why I feel no need to upgrade my PC3K even after 10 years. To me it sounds great.

I'm always shopping around for other sounds and lesser synths, but the Kurzweil remains the workhorse of my studio.

Gary

 

[ChrisNabil]

This is why I feel no need to upgrade my PC3K even after 10 years. To me it sounds great.

I'm always shopping around for other sounds and lesser synths, but the Kurzweil remains the workhorse of my studio.

Gary

Yeah, I totally get that Gary. I am sending my Nautilus back for the second time and getting an exchange (Sweetwater has been great!) I am VERY happy with the Nautilus 88 so I will be keeping that for years to come.

 

[delaware dave]

Love my PC3. As a controller alone, it is phenomenal; practically every controller can be mapped to any CC. Also love the sounds on the board; best investment I've made. It owes me nothing.

 

[ChrisNabil]

Love my PC3. As a controller alone, it is phenomenal; practically every controller can be mapped to any CC. Also love the sounds on the board; best investment I've made. It owes me nothing.

I would really love to get the chance to play a Kurzweil.

 

[happyrat1]

I would really love to get the chance to play a Kurzweil.

I originally bought mine sight unseen on a recommendation from Delaware Dave almost a decade ago and I've never regretted it.

But I also got mine at a fantastic price as well. The CDN$ was trading at $1.10US at the time AND it was a brand new store demo model that I picked up for $1,600 less than list price.

It took Dave to give me the push I needed to take the plunge.

Gary

 

[CowboyNQ]

I would really love to get the chance to play a Kurzweil.

I owned a Kurzweil SP4-7 for a while and loved pretty much everything about it. Ultimately I moved it on as I wanted a weighted 88 keyboard - but it was relatively lightweight for a stage piano, had a good "compromise" action and sounded great.

Where I live Kurzweils are not the easiest things to get hold of so I've drifted away from the brand. But I have zero criticisms of them.

 

[ChrisNabil]

I owned a Kurzweil SP4-7 for a while and loved pretty much everything about it. Ultimately I moved it on as I wanted a weighted 88 keyboard - but it was relatively lightweight for a stage piano, had a good "compromise" action and sounded great.

Where I live Kurzweils are not the easiest things to get hold of so I've drifted away from the brand. But I have zero criticisms of them.

I get what you're saying. I am from the UK originally and Kurzweil's are not that easy to get there either.