Korg PS60 or Yamaha MM6? (serious noob needs help)

[zidane]

Hey guys!

I want to by a cheap synth keyboard preferbly under $1000. My knowledge on synthesizer keyboards was noobishly low, so I did a little research. I finally narrowed my search down to these two keyboards:

Korg PS60 (http://www.korg.com/Product.aspx?pd=574)

Yamaga MM6 (http://usa.yamaha.com/products/musical-instruments/keyboards/synthesizers/mm/mm6/?mode=model)

The PS60 will most likely be priced at $700 to $750 by city music during their year end sale. And the MM6 is priced at $699 by luthermusic.

Both Keyboards have the standard basic sounds and functions and connections. Both are 61 keys and they are both almost equally light and similarly priced.

The Korg has the ability to layer 6 sounds together. It has velocity sensitive keys and according to reviews, the feeling of playing on it becomes very natural after a short while. It also comes with a PS60 vst plugin. One of its setbacks is that it does not come with an arpeggiator, something which the MM6 has.

The MM6 comes with an arpeggiator. It also has drum loops accompaniment, song accompaniment and a recording function (I don't think the PS60 has those stuff)

Actually what I'm looking for is a keyboard which is a midi controller, and at the same time, has a collection of good acoustic sound samples (e.g. guitars, pianos, brass, strings etc..). Though the arpeggiator is kinda not a need for me, I'm pretty sure I'll find a good use for it soon enough.
Could anyone please give me some insights and advice on this? Cause I'm sure I'm missing out on a lot of decision making factors here haha.

And I'm sure I missed out on some good synths out there too (maybe by Roland, kurzweil etc..). Please feel free to recommend!

Really appreciate any help I can get!
Cheers!
Zidane

 

[kongwee]

PS60 is new to me. MM6 has good set on sample that base on acoustic instrument.

 

[Jokoril]

Both PS60 and MM6 can be used for MIDI. From my experience using MM6,the acoustic sounds are decent but organ sounds are unsatisfactory.On the PS60,acoustic sounds are also decent but brass is lacking,though this can be improved by tweaking the sounds.

Overall,MM6 gets the upper hand for acoustic sounds.The PS60 gets the upper hand in user-friendliness and quality. Its build is very solid and the keybed feels great compared to the MM6's clackety keys.

MM6 has a nice bonus though, a DAW software bundled with the keyboard for use in keyboard-computer music interaction.If you are not looking towards too much sound editing and prefer using preset sounds that are given on your machine,then you wont need this though.

Overall,my recommendations are: MM6-For good acoustic sounds,bundled synth software,
auto accompaniment for inspiration in writing songs.

PS60-For user friendliness,tank-like build,decent acoustic sounds and good organs.

In the end,its up to you.Go visit Yamaha and city music and ask the good fellows there to give the lowdown on the machines and also try them out yourself to see which one you like.

 

[Cheez]

Hi zidane, I presume you have read the sticky (http://www.soft.com.sg/forum/gear-keyboard/97150-what-keyboards-keyboard-should-i-buy-noobs.html). If not, do take a read.

Main questions to ask, as usual, are:

1. What do you want to use your keyboard for? (live playing on stage, playing at home, sequencing, music production etc)
2. What genre do you play?

For acoustic sounds, nothing comes close to Roland. Since the '90s, Roland's acoustic sounds were already amazing and more realistic than the other competitors (thanks to the amazing programming skills and recording of raw waveforms by Eric Persing - who has since left Roland and now produces his own VST instruments with Spectrasonics). Those sounds just kept improving and other brands had a hard time coming close to Roland. Even though the rest have now improved dramatically (particularly Yamaha), Roland improved even more. Do check out their Juno series. Some of them are relatively low cost (still more than $1000) but you get good acoustic sounds. Add in an SRX expansion (if the keyboard takes it in) and you get even more realistic acoustic sounds.

But...the first question is still the most important one - "What do you want to use the keyboard for?"

 

[zidane]

Hey guys!

Wow thanks so much Jokoril for the insightful information! Really appreciate it! Haha. Based on what you said, seems to me that MM6 is the way to go! You sound quite experienced in this area too! You've tried them both?

Actually I want to use the keyboard for multi-track recording on my computer, but I want it to light too just in case i need to bring it out for like fun jamming with friends. I usually record straight from the keyboard sound output into my computer (I'm gona get an audio interface soon!). But what I want to do is actually to explore using MIDI and VST-instruments. Thats why not only do I want my keyboard to have good in-built sounds (especially acoustic sounds), but also to have a keyboard which is a midi controller.

Hi Cheez!

Yup I've read that thread a while back haha. I've heard of spectrasonics and really good reviews of their omnisphere product! Seems like Roland synths are the better choice for better sound but its kinda way above my budget. The Juno D by Sweelee costs like $1.6k!!

Whats SRX expansion? Mmmm...so what are your opinions on the PS60 vs MM6?

Cheers and Thanks!
Zidane

 

[Cheez]

If you plan to have VSTis and on board sounds does not matter, then it you've narrowed your search. MM6 is fine. Touch not too great. Acoustic sounds not too great for my preference - if you compare it to Roland. But low cost enough. I've not played the PS60. Some prefers Korg over Yamaha - my preference is Yamaha over Korg both in terms of sound and touch.

SRX expansions are sound expansion cards that you add to some keyboard units to expand the sound.

You do need to know that although 61 key is light-weight, using it to trigger VST can be limited, depending on your VST.

 

[zidane]

Hey! Thanks for the info!

Actually I'm just exploring VSTi, I think I'll still mainly use onboard sounds so I think I still want a keyboard with good sounds.
Haha, so now both you and jokoril both advocate yamaha. Seems like I should get the MM6!!

Mmm.. what do you mean by "using it to trigger VST can be limited, depending on your VST"?

Thanks and Cheers!
Zidane

 

[Cheez]

I'm not advocating Yamaha. My preference (for acoustic sounds) is Roland > Yamaha > Korg.

If you are into acoustic sounds, many VST (esp multi-sample based) require 76 to 88 keys. Many use key-switches to trigger different articulations. For example - hit a C1 and the strings will be playing legato, hit a C#1 and it will be playing marcato, hit a D1 it's staccato, D#1 and it's spiccato, E1 and it's pizzicato etc. This is called key-switching. And it's usually mapped to the lower octaves of an 88 key keyboard. A 61 key keyboard will miss these notes. You can re-program the mapping, but that usually shorten the range of playing. Again, it depends on what you want to do eventually.

 

[Jokoril]

I'm not advocating Yamaha.

Like Cheez,i'm not advocating Yamaha either. In fact,i'm a korg guy.But based on your criteria and requirements,I'm recommending the Yamaha MM6. All the established synthesizer manufacturers (Korg,Yamaha,Roland,Kurzweil,Nord and many more) have their advantages and setbacks.Its all about what you prefer or like in a keyboard which determines which brand you prefer for different situations.

 

[Cheez]

Yes, Jokoril is right. It's all about personal preference.

 

[zidane]

Hi Cheez

Many use key-switches to trigger different articulations.

But is it possible to trigger the different articulations from the computer itself? (I know it'll be more troublesome though)

Besides that, are there any other limitations that a 61key keyboard has?

Thanks and cheers!