And is that right? Then what is the meaning of the concept "Digital Workstation"? It's something I'm wondering as a Genos 1 user and as far as I can see the same tactic continues in Genos 2 and I honestly can't give any explanation. I would very much like to buy Genos 2, but the creativity here is also sadly pathetic. I should note here that Yamaha has now changed the name and now calls it "Arranger Workstation" but again it does not change anything. Korg continues to be at the forefront of creativity (followed by Ketron to a degree) and is the only company that, whether it is an Arranger or a workstation (Kronos, Nautilus, etc.), provides all the software tools and any processing the creator needs (onboard) even in the smallest models. Someone will ask me here: Then why don't you have a Korg? I have, but I'm sorry that Yamaha with such a good sound (perhaps the best of all companies), is so (closed) in terms of creativity.
in my opinion they use the concept digital workstation to emphasize that you can record your performances, a workstation doesn't have to have synthesis onboard to deserve that title in my opinion. It's obvious that yamaha with their arranger range are focusing on the players that just want to play their tunes without too much hassle. And the people I know with a genos 1 or 2 have selected a yamaha just for that reason, they find a Korg way too complicated and don't need all those bells and whistles on board. They just want to fire it up and play that cover song. And that is where yamaha is the king of all keyboards, no-one comes close when you want to play covers, the yamaha has it all.
The korg aims more on the people that want to dive in to each detail of a style or sound, they are more programmers type and the number of styles available is a lot less than the yamaha ones. Also all the styles are more sparse then the yamaha ones, so you have do more yourself to get an equally result.
That doesn't mean that yamaha shouldn't step up their game in my opinion, using that same old YEM program is shocking, I really didn't expect that in 2023 for their new flagship. Also the three new features are not that impressive, the new samples are a big improvement and also the new styles are sounding really good. I don't really understand why they added an FM synth in it without editing possibilities. They could have easily done the same with a new FM sample pack for the sounds if they wanted it.
But I really believe it's a good thing that we have two arrangers that are focusing on different areas, this way the users can decide what appeals to them the most for their musical wishes. They are both top of the line keyboards, so you can't go wrong with either of them.
I don't have any experience with the Ketron event, I've played on it in the music store, but that was too short to really get an opinion.