Synth Noob

Hey Guys,

My band www.myspace.com/repbypop has one synth already, an old Korg analog Lambada I think. Well anyways, that is for the guitarist/singer to use. As the bass player I also have some synth parts but am currently using a "toy" keyboard that when blasted through an amp had 2 pretty bitchin sounds. The downside is its only 2 octaves, and some unreliable output jacks.

My question for you guru's is where do I start looking, and what do I start looking for. I want to buy a synth with a bit more range and some room to grow sound wise. Who knows where this might take the band, but I am clueless when it comes to what is good/bad or even what brands make what. Our other synth was a hand me down, so we didnt even have to look for that. Let me know what you think, give a listen to the music on the myspace and maybe you can point me in the right direction.

Thanks.

what kind of sounds are you looking for, and what is your price range?

I think the Juno-G is one of the best all-round keyboards for the price. The Fantom X6 is also a great value with the current $300 rebate, but the Juno-G has much of the Fantom-X power at a value price, with better expandability and features than anything under $1,000, in my opinion. If you can afford the extra cost of the X6, then go for it to get the velocity pads, large color LCD, aftertouch keyboard, better ROM and more SRX card slots.

Right now I just need pretty standard effected piano sounds. Chorus, organs, nothing too out there. But at the same time wouldnt mind some new stuff to explore and maybe discover uses for. At this point im limited to two usable sounds. So anything more than that would be great to see what else I can come up with.

I think my pricerange is really only 500 tops. What are your opinions on the Juno-D as opposed to the G? I am just beggining, so im not looking for top top quality yet. Just something more versatile than a childs toy.

I am just starting out into synth-land (keyboard really) also, and think I have acquired a fairly good starting point. For under $1,000 shipped, I have a new M-Audio Prokeys 88 (full size - not the 88SX) AND an as-new Korg X50 and a double tier stand.

The M-Audio is for the 14 standard piano-organ-clav-etc. sounds it comes with, and the Korg for synth effects and sounds. I know the M-audio stuff is scoffed at by some, but I think that I have a pretty good starting point for what I paid.

It took a bit of shopping, watching, and waiting to get these deals, but I think it will be worth the price. I will drop by with updates in the future.

Good luck with your search.

How about a Yamaha MM6? Seems to have a lot of useful sounds, and the piano sounds good on the demos I've heard. Probably a lot better than the Juno-G piano.

another key point is that I dont need a HUGE keyboard. somewhere in the 40 key range would probably be good. I am not opposed to 61 or so, but id rather save the space.

The MM6 isn't even in the same league as the Juno-G, particularly for electric pianos. The Juno-G is a sampler, is expandable for ROM/RAM/Flash, has a sequencer, has workstation audio track capability, and a good base ROM set. The Juno-G also has 128 polyphony while the MM6 has 32.

The Juno-G has a lot more of the Fantom-X6 capability than the MM6 has of the Motif XS6. Actually, the MM6 is closer to the Casio WK-3800, and I prefer the Casio of the two.

In my opinion, it's worth saving up for the Juno-G over the Juno-D. The extra cost buys a lot of features that you could use for many years to come, particularly if you add an SRX card.