Which keyboard should I get?

[Denton]

Money is not an issue.
Hey guys, I've currently got a 61-key korgPA900 arranger keyboard and I'd like to buy another keyboard to pair with it.
I'd be using both to mainly gig around with.

Should i buy a synth or a stage piano to pair with it?
Should I get 73 or 88 keys?

 

[Biggles]

Welcome.

Depends upon what you want ie I you play a lot of piano in your gigging, if you do then a stage piano may be the way to for you. Consider:-
Korg Grandstage
Roland RD2000
Yamaha CP88
Kawai MP11SE
Roland RD88
Kawai MP7SE
A wildcard would be the funky looking Korg SV2 which would be particularly good for retro sounds.

Downside of a DP is weight, so do make sure you allow for this in your transportation and handling considerations.

As for a money no object synth:-
Korg Kronos
Yamaha Montage
Roland Fantom

Going down in cost there is the brand new Korg Nautilus which should be in showrooms by the end of March next year. This it would seem is a sort of updated yet cut down Kronos.

If you are in a Country where Kursweil are well supported then their PC4 is supposedly well worth a look at.

Below the Kurzweil price you have older models by Korg and Roland which badly need an update, the Yamaha MODX is probably the newer model but as you are a Korg user the Yamaha menu system sucks big time if you are used to Korgs. A possible Korg is the Kross 2 88, which was released in 2017, I had the 61 key version which was very light, and very controllable being full of features the one drawback being the sound transition from one Program or Combi (Korg speak for single instrument voice or combinations) is instantaneous as soon as you press the button.

As for number of keys go for 88 in a DP but in a synth it will depend upon what you want 88 keys will be hammer action and 76 will probably be in between as per the Roland FA where the 61 key version sucks and the 76 key is the sweet spot model.

To throw a spanner in the works you could always sell on your 900 buy a PA4X 76 and a lower cost digital piano for a reasonable outlay.

Good luck

 

[anotherscott]

Hey guys, I've currently got a 61-key korgPA900 arranger keyboard and I'd like to buy another keyboard to pair with it.

First question is... why? That is, in what way is the PA900 by itself insufficient?

Are there certain sounds you wish were stronger, or available with more variety? Certain functions you wish it had? Certain things you wish were easier to set up or easier to alter/control while you play? Or is it fine except you run out of having enough keys for everything you might like to be able to play (or quickly switch between)? Or do you wish the keys felt more like a piano's when you played piano sounds? If you explain why you're interested in a second keyboard, which kinds of things are more or less important, it will be easier to narrow down what keyboards to look at. (Of course, it's always nice to have a second board at a gig simply so it's not a disaster if your first board fails... gets dropped, has something spilled into it, whatever.)

Synth vs stage piano still needs those kinds of questions answered. People don't alway even agree on what kind of board they're talking about when they use the term "synth." A Moog and, say, a Roland Juno DS are both commonly called synths, despite having very little in common in their capablities, types of sounds, or methods of operation. SImilarly, even the term "stage piano" can cover a lot of ground in boards that have wildly different capabilities and sounds, beyond simply functioning as a piano.

As for how many keys, there are two reasons one can want more keys: (1) for using splits... you have more total real estate, and don't have to worry as much about running out of enough keys for a given part, and (2) to cover the full range of certain instruments... e.g. your PA900 does not give you the ability to play something that uses anything close to the full range of an 88 key piano... it also does not cover the full range of a Rhodes, a Wurliter EP, or a clavinet. Whether 7x or 88 is enough depends on your use of splits and which ranges you may want to cover.

 

[tassiespirit]

1. First question, are you a piano player and demand to play 88 graded hammer action keyboard ( more classical/ or piano solo) - if so then look for a digital keyboard with that in mind.
2. Second Question, or are you a keyboards that loves to play all sorts of keyboard styles "correctly" , like different organs, harpsichord, clav, a bit of piano, B3 organ, wurli, electric pianos, correctly play guitar sounds, mandolin, banjo etc etc . Then this is a different keybed like a weighted keyboard.

Style of playing and instruments you are imitating form a large part of being a good keyboard player, form a big part of what you decide to buy to play.
A great keyboard player can make any keyboard sound awesome, but the perfect keyboard can make a average keyboard player great!