microkorg v m-audio oxygen 61

phizzledizzle

hi, first time caller, long time listener.

the band im in are trying to expand our sound a bit and were looking for a decent keyboard in or about the €400 region.(the Argos casio we have obviously isnt up to scratch.)

mostly we just want synth noises but ideally we'd like realistic piano sounds aswell. we're complete novices when it comes to keyboard/workstation knowledge by the by.

we were thinking of getting either a microkorg or the m-audio oxygen 8/61. i know the microkorg is good for synths but is there anyway of gettin a decent piano sound on it?

alternatively is it possible to get decent piano and synth tones with the m-audio oxgens? i know that you've to operate them through a laptop but thats about the height of my knowledge on the subject.

any help or suggestions would be appreciated

Thomas_S_Hunterson

I don't think there's really any way to make the MicroKorg sound like a piano. It's really only a synth. Also I've heard bad things about it's keys. They are very small and feel quite spongy and flimsy.

You might be interested in the Alesis Micron, i've heard good reviews about it. It's more expensive though.

You're better off without a laptop setup for gigging situations IMO, as they seem to crash and go belly up at the worst of times

Anima

The m-audio oxygen 61 doesn't have any sounds on it, its just a midi keyboard to control either softsynths or samples. The Microkorg is a synth alright, not sure if it has any piano sounds but I'd imagine they wouldn't be fantastic. Ideally you'd have to get two seperate keyboards if you wanted decent piano sounds and the ability to synthesize your own. You could just get a midi keyboard with a laptop and use software. Might work out cheaper.

Dord

another option would be to pick up a nice midi controller and an Alesis Nano-Piano and Nano-Synth modules. The modules are pretty cheap $100-$150~ used. Check out Chrisguitars.com as he usually has one or two of the modules.

you could also get two midi controllers and both the modules so you could have synth and keys on two separate boards. That'd be nice.

phizzledizzle

So can these modules be plugged straight into a midi controller and then staright into a PA or how does it work?

Am I correct in saying that the m-audio is merely a controller and all sounds and processing or done through a laptop? if so i would be willing to buy two if i were able to get piano sounds on one and synth on the other. is it possible to do this and run them off the same laptop? also would the piano sounds be realistic and not like one of the cheap beginner keyboards?

sorry if any of these questions seem stupid, thanks for your advice so far

Dord

The M-audio is a midi controller, hence it can control Midi modules.

It is not necessary to plug the Alesis modules into a laptop. You can control these with a Midi keyboard controller. Buy the Nanopiano for piano sounds and the Nanosynth for synth sounds.

Some Midi keyboard controllers allow the board to be split into two halves so that you can use one end of the board for one module and the other for the second module. Its worth considering if you're limited to space. But will cost a bit more.

Failing this you could just buy two Midi keyboard controllers and the two separate modules. Use one controller for each. Would be a lot easier to use.

The Nanopiano will sound better than a toy keyboard, obviously it is not going to sound exactly like a real piano but would be useable in Live situations.