Good Synth Keyboards?

Question

So I've been wanting to get a really good synth keyboard for a long time but i've been having trouble deciding what brand or type is the best. I know Yamaha and Korg are really good brands, but are there any other brands that are good? I'm looking for something that has a variety of voices or settings, that i could kinda play around with i guess? Also it would be great if it had a pedal, but that's not totally necessary. I've been looking around online a lot, but there's just so many options, i was hoping i could get an opinion from someone knowledgeable in the subject. Also i should add that I'm not a wealthy person, so anything under, say $400 would be great! Sorry if this is too vague, any help works! Thanks in advance! :)

Answer 1

Roland, Yamaha, and Korg are the big 3. If you're looking for "really good," you'll want to completely avoid the home market where most keyboards come with built-in speakers.



Looking at the professional keyboard market, and based on your budget, there are actually very few choices. Your best bet for new gear would probably be a Korg microStation. If you were looking for something used, you would have more options. From Roland, you could probably find an XP-80 or an older Fantom at that price. From Yamaha, look for an older Motif. A Korg M1 is a bit older, but is still a capable machine.



Good luck!

Answer 2

I you want to experiment with synthesizers then I would reccomend you download a program that has a variety of synth plug ins.



For example, if you buy protools, it has an audio plugin called Xpand which is just a huge library of sound effects, synth sounds, instruments, and other great tools to write electronic music,



Its not too expensive around $300, but you would need an audio interface as well as a midi keyboard, to use the sounds in the program. In total i would say it could run you up about $500.



Hope this helps



http://www.sweetwater.com/shop/pro-tools/

Answer 3

There's also Roland, Arturia, Dave Smith Instruments.



Arturia Minibrute looks v.interesting. Shop around



Roland GAIA SH-01



Korg monotribe