Topic: Advice or opinions needed please

[alans]

Hi folks

Although I have a Genos which I very much enjoy using,I had a desire to buy a much cheaper and lighter keyboard to move around between rooms when required.I watched some youtube videos and read user groups views of keyboards and came down in favour of a Casio CT-X5000 which seemed to offer everything I wanted at a very reasonable price.The voices are pretty good and many styles are very usable,the thing I am not happy with is the difficult,clunky and quirky operating system which seems so much harder to use than Yamaha OS,ie.so many button presses to achieve what you want,but I don't want go into all the dislikes.
I have only had the keyboard a few days so it is still possible for me to either change it for something else or ask for a refund.I am very undecided whether to give it more time or to change it for a Yamaha ,probably a PSR E463,I unfortunately cannot go to a SX700,which seems a very nice keyboard.
There is perhaps another option available to me,a very close friend has a PSR670 which she hardly uses ,she just cannot grasp music or the operation of the keyboard and I think she would sell it to me if I asked nicely 
The psr670 is about 3 years old and is as new,how much should I reasonably offer in £££'s please ?

Needless to say, with having a Genos I am now spoiled by the easy OS of Yamaha keyboards,I don't think I am going to adapt easily to another make of keyboard.

Your thoughts and opinions on this will be read and valued  as I trust you knowledgeable users to give me some valuable advice.

Thanks in advance

Alan

[Toril S]

Hello Alan. If you have a Genos I do not think you will be satisfied with the E63. The 670 would be a better choice. The best choice is to save up for the XS900. Then you can use stuff from Genos and vice versa. But the XS models are expensive, I know that!! An S970 or S975 would also be a good choice. Good luck with the decision!

[JohnS]

I use a PSR-S670 in our holiday home. It has the Yamaha operating system.
It's a substitute for my Tyros 5 when I'm away.

I bought a top of the range Casio two years ago, and the operating system was awful. I got rid sharpish.

Stick with Yamaha, I think.

John.

[alans]

Thanks Toril and John

Quick replies  Yes Toril,I like very much the new SX keyboards and the PSR S series ,the problem is I cannot justify spending too much on a secondary keyboard,it must be low priced ,maybe I am expecting too much >:(With having a Genos I tend to just compare the Casio with that superb keyboard,but I know I will have to accept something less for the money I want to spend.

Hi John,yes I think the 670 would be a good second keyboard,I have used it several times,and although I find the small screen a bit annoying at times I think I could adapt to it ,the PSR has some nice voices and good styles which I would be happy with,I think that is the way to go,get rid of the Casio and make a reasonable offer for the PSR 670

Thanks
Alan

[Toril S]

Sounds like a good plan!

[voodoo]

My suggestion would be to get a used PSR-S770. This model has had the best features per price ratio of all PSR. I was very happy with my S970, and the S770 feels very similar. I contrast, the S670 has a much inferior display and many missing features.

Uli

[mikf]

Alan
You need to decide what the 670 is worth to you but a good used one from a store would be about 500 British pounds. So she might only get about 400 if she sells it with all the hassle that entails. This is probably just a little more than you paid for your Casio. Why don’t you tell her what the Casio cost and see if she is interested. Frankly, if she doesn’t want the 670 anymore that might end up a good deal for both of you.
Mike

[alans]

Hi Uli and Mike

Thanks for the replies

Uli the s770 or 970 are very nice models and would suit me OK

Mike,the psr 670 can now be had for £490 new from Rimmers and Bonners so they should be worth considerably less for a 3 year old one,I was thinking around the £250-300 mark,it's certainly got me thinking.
I have just been looking at the new SX700,although I was not originally thinking about something at this cost,I have to admit I am very much tempted to push the boat out a bit ang get the SX700,as it is so comparable to the Genos in operating procedure and sounds very nice,plus it has a nice size screen which would be good for me because of my deteriorating sight,( until I can have the cateracts removed) it seems the obvious choice.But I need to think about it more

Thanks for your opinions

Alan 

[blackpool]

Hi Alan - If any use -

I just LOVE my Korg EK50
Cheap, portable, easy OS ( unlike Korg PA ) more like Yamaha
Less than 1Mtr long and light. great keybed for an entry job.
Ok no good a workstation / arranger but 'plug and play' Its unbeatable !!
+ 3 upper voices, Chord Loop record function.  unheard of for a cheap board.  Great B&Butter Korg factory styles/voices and 4 x 10 set lists to save to.
I use it with my Yamaha SX as I did with Genos for 40 great upper voice sets on the fly connected by a single lead, phones out to aux in on Yam.....easy
Around £250 for a mint used ....a no brainer for me for holiday use and around the house.
I have bought several of these boards for around the place....lol

Well that's my take on your Q if it helps

Keith   

[alans]

Hi Keith

Thanks for the reply,yes I've had a look at the Korg on youtube,it looks very good for the price,probably exactly what would do me.I don't know what made me go for the Casio,it just looked OK  for the price,I should have done more research before buying  The sounds and the styles on the CT X5000 are pretty good for the price ,but operating system is not good,I find it difficult to use after using a Genos.
I still have time to request a refund ,I think I may just ask for a swop as the Casio and the Korg are more or less the same price

Your reply has helped me,thanks Keith

Best wishes

Alan

[blackpool]

If you did decide Alan - dont be put off by the fact most of the controls are 'dual' function , its VERY easy to get around ...
I have produced several PDF's easy guide etc. so just PM me if you want copies no probs.

I only bought it for holidays, as i go away for long spells and needed something portable and decent and really fell for it BIG TIME using it more at home than Genos and hooked one up with it ( now SX900 ) .

I found korg PA difficult to say the least ..... but this is really a different animal... It is an 'entertainer' keyboard  NOT an arranger.

I keep banging on about these to everybody -  I love em!!!

keith   

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[mikf]

Seems to me that an important thing is not to have two completely different operating systems. Being able to seamlessly move styles, registrations form one machine to another, and know what does what would trump minor price or sound differences.
Mike

[blackpool]

Its just handy Mike to have use of the 'holiday board' alongside . simply for some very nice Korg voices ( 40 registrations ) to jump up on the fly. in fact with split and octave shift it gives you 80 no less.

No -this is really a 2nd 'stand alone' option for other places where i cant use the Yamaha - its just a lovely cheap toy....well i think so
 

[beykock]

There are so many second hand Yamaha keyboards ( in mint condition ) available in the market.
Why not a second hand S910 or an S770 ?

B


 

[blackpool]

With me it was size, weight and price. I also looked at s670/770 as Mike says, it is better to have same OS and yes I would have liked a Yamaha as my spare, given my experience before with Korg's PA models and Casio, which i really did not get along with.
But other than an E series....no thanks, when your used to PSRs ....    Try finding a Yamaha PSRs at under 7.5kg /995mm for around a £250 budget, that''s also not old....it's a very tall order, if any that size and weight are available or have been made?
I bought the EK as a punt .... and it worked out a very good one , well for me ....but we are all different .
Keith

[alans]

Thanks to all those who contributed to this post,I did try to buy the PSR670 from my friend but she would not sell it,something about going to learn to play it sometime ha ha.

I rang the supplier of the Casio CT -X5000 to inquire about a swop for the Korg EK50 and they said OK,it was delivered next day and I am pleased to say it meets my needs very well,it is a simple to use keyboard with some surprisingly useful styles and decent voices,not a SX900 ,that would have been nice, or a Genos but quite adequate for what I was looking for,and very easy to move around.

Many thanks to Keith (blackpool) and others  for the  help and advice

Best wishes

Alan