Thanks!

The newer generation - XK1, XK3 etc are very good. To be honest through a rotary amp you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference.
There is a difference in playing though, I don't find them as responsive as a "real" beast...then again you can't tuck a B3 under your arm!

Here's a clip of me in a Purple tribute band, this is the XK1 through a Solton rotary amp

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wdc-2ypsHA4&feature=related

I was looking at this one myself, for the price it is quite worth it. I ended up buying Audjoo Helix vsti instead due to its huge 64 voice possibilities. The sh-201 does a decent jp80x0 imitation but it lacked a lot of what Helix does in the matrix department. Only drawback, its software but damn worth the midi keyboard I had to buy

I have Korg Le 76. Seems like the 61 is a very common choice, and for good reason. I've put mine through quite a lot and it has stood up to it. My friend has a Roland and I was impressed by it.

Are there any recommendations for a good keyboard controller? Ideally I would like it to have both MIDI and CV capability, but I could make a midi to CV converter if I need to. I intend to initially use it for soft synths, but would like the ability to use it to control modular units.

well, you guys should try this first: learn piano with a classical style, with chords, independant notes, get your technique right first. That's how I started, as a nice little classical player, until I was introduced to metal, and now I can play whatever I hear on the songs! Seriously, though. Start with a real piano, or a good synthesizer with ALL the keys, this will help you get used to the piano and it's touch, then you can use this to incorporate different techniques and different feels, so you can tell which kind of sound you want on your synth later. It'll help a lot, and it will also help if you want to compose and improvise stuff. Also, basic theory should be taken. And don't be afraid to experiment! The strangest things turn out to be the coolest sometimes

Hello fellow metalheads! I need to know, for future reference, what a good/inexpensive keyboard is for symphonic metal (Nightwish and Epica to be more specific). I'm not gonna be the one playing it as I'm not a pianist and don't know shit about them. but i'd still like some advice on this.

A popular choice is that cheaper Roland one, I can't think of the model name, maybe Juno-D? Korg X5 can be obtained for around the same...of course these interfaces still might be a lot to handle for a first-timer. For what it's worth, I also owned one of those Casio workstations for the longest time before I bought a Triton, WK-3800 I think. The Casio had a few better sounds than the Korg, the flute and choir were especially impressive. For what it's worth, might work for you and is cheaper.

thanks man:]

Hello, I'm a new keyboardist. I just started a couple of months ago. Does anyone have a good advice for beginners like me?? I already know the scales, but I want to know about technique and that stuff... a book would really help!

Thanks
-Frovin

No, books don't help at all. Just keep at it, you'll figure it all out for yourself in no time.

What the fuck, don't listen to the guy above. Best thing you can do is get a good teacher, books will help with theory and provide interesting practise, but you need someone to watch and teach you technique, posture and basically everything in the way you play.

Yeah um. It is possible to learn on your own but it is easy to learn bad technique that will cripple you down the road. Be careful!

Yo dudes. My old midi controller finally kicked it. It was an older Yamaha keyboard with midi outputs. Now, I'm no longer looking for a keyboard, but rather a midi controller so I don't need it to make any sounds without an audio program. You guys have any recommendations? I want something cheap, like less than 100. I make ambient and drone and hip-hop beats. So, here's the thing. Ultimately, I'm deciding between any of these:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0043C ... PDKIKX0DER

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0038Y ... PN4BTA3CZV

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00466 ... TJW7X82VNF

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002M8 ... PDKIKX0DER

Now, I don't know if I should choose between a 49 key or less. I like the idea of the 25 and 37 being smaller and I can throw them in my bookbag. But I don't know if I'll regret only having 25 keys or 37 keys? I use Ableton so I jhave literally a billion different sounds, so maybe I don't need that many keys and I can just octave shift and play under/over the recorded stuff? I don't know. I don't mind spending 80 on a q49, but 60 bucks for a 25 key seems like a steal. What do you guys think?

Well, if it's just for ambient and beats, you won't be doing big octave jumps and rarely will be using both hands I think, so you could trade some keys for portability and budget, you can always shift octaves anyways.

An Oxygen 25 is a great option, you'll have lots of pots, faders and buttons to link to your DAW and get rid of the mouse, giving you more dynamicism and room to toy around when playing.

Also, remember, some keyboards might seem pricey for their size, but you're paying the finishings and quality also, you don't want something that will end up breaking in a year.

Yeah man, I was thinking that for the most part I could just pitch shift and change octaves after the fact. I think I'll go with a 25. I went with the Akai Pro, after reading tons of reviews it seemed to be the smallest, but most durable. Plus, built in features seemed nice.

Hopefully you have slender fingers for those mini keys!

Also, a guy in my band has a microkorg and I refuse to use it on account of it's childrens sized keyboard. Although that's mainly just me being a jerk, I actually do find it really weird to play some things on smaller keys.

Does anyone know how to repair dead keys on a Yamaha GX76? Or do I have to buy a brand new Piano?

There is a good chance it could be fixed. Most manufacturers are able to provide spare parts like extra keys, but replacing the keys may not help. It really depends on what is wrong with it- it could be the switch underneath the key isn’t making a connection, or maybe something is screwed up with the wiring on the keyboard matrix.

You could open it up and have a look, but your best bet might just be to take it to a shop.