Alesis Updates QS6 Synthesizer

"The QS6.1 is more than just a minor upgrade," according to Jim Mack, Alesis vice president of marketing. "It puts the QS6.1 in the same high-performance class as our larger synths, the QS7 and QS8. Now, with the QS6.1, there's an obvious solution for anyone looking for an incredibly great- sounding performance synthesizer in a compact, extremely affordable 61-key package."

The QS6.1 doubles the internal sample memory of the original QS6 to 16MB of internal sounds. This massive library of 640 programs and 500 multitimbral mixes includes Alesis' acclaimed Bosendorfer stereo grand piano programs from the QS7, QS8 and QSR. It also offers twice the expansion capabilities, with two PCMCIA- format card slots that allow for an additional 16 megabytes of new sounds to be added to its sonic palette, for a total of up to 32MB simultaneously. The slots are compatible with Alesis QCard expansions and Sound Bridge sample transfer programs for access to customized samples and sequences.

The QS6.1 also greatly expands the controller capabilities offered by the original QS6 with the inclusion of four control/edit sliders. A new larger LCD display will allow users to quickly and efficiently make programming adjustments. Also, the addition of two new dedicated buttons for "Sequence Start" and "Transpose" functions make the operation of the QS6.1 especially powerful for live performances.