Newsgroups: rec.music.makers.synth
Distribution: rec

Jeff Adams (adamsj@gtewd.mtv.gsc.gte.com) writes:

> I don't own one, but before you invest in an EMAX, know that you have
> to buy EMU's memory, and that (unless they've upgraded it) it only
> goes to 8 meg... You could have a K2000 with sampling option and 8
> megs of memory for about $2850 US....

Yeah - thanks for the warning, but I have done the sums.  And that
really is the problem.

Thanks in no small part to the Great UK Price Ripoff, the equation
balances in a different way here in the UK.  For instance, assume I
want an 8 meg machine with SCSI and greater than 4 outputs.

Now the EMAX II comes with SCSI and the extra outputs, and 8 meg of
memory will set you back about 500 pounds.  The base unit is 1700
(thanks Emu for raising the price by 300 pounds because of our
little exchange rate problem).  Total cost: 2200 pounds.

The ASR-10 needs a couple of 4 meg SIMMs to make it into an 8Meg
machine, which come to about 280 pounds.  It don't have no SCSI or
extra outputs, and these are reportedly going to be about 250 pounds
each to add.  Base unit price is 1800 pounds (which I believe is
nearer the US price than we could dare hope for - thanks Ensoniq).
Total cost: 2580.

Now the Kurzweil K2000 is really out of order.  In an ideal world, I'd
go for the K2000 with sampling option.  It's an impressive machine,
and I like to spend time tinkering with sounds, so it'd be perfect.
Let's look at the figures....

The K2000 comes with SCSI, and I think it has the extra outputs.  It
takes regular SIMMs, so we're talking 280 quid for memory.  Base unit
price is 2400 pounds.  Now, we also need to add the sampling option,
and this is where the trouble starts.  UK price for this little thing
is nearly 900 pounds.  Total cost: 3580 pounds.

Now, it might just be me, but I feel a little uneasy putting 900 quids
worth of kit into a machine to let it sample, when I could buy a
standalone sampler - with the extra polyphony it would give - for not
much more.

And, to add insult to injury, Kurweil UK (or whoever the distributor
is) will not honor guarantees or give support to machines fitted with
upgrades not supplied by them. (this excludes memory, of course).  So,
I can't even buy a K2000 and import a sampling option from the US.

The Akai stuff is going to be even more outrageous.  An S1000 will set
you back 2000 pounds in the UK anyway (why? oh why ?).  The new range
is going to *start* at 3000 pounds.

Now, if Ensoniq can manufacture in the US, ship product to the UK, and
still price reasonably, why can't Kurzweil ship from Korea to the US
and the UK at roughly the same price ?

If Kurzweil is listening to this, here's the message:

         * bring your UK prices in line with the US NOW *

As for me, I'm in the position where I can make a bit of money if I
have a sampler.  The way I figure, I can afford to wait until the
K2000 drops in price, and then feed it with the samples I've made in
the interim period on my standalone sampler.

Cheers,

Mike

mjp@hplb.hpl.hp.com                   "Only those who attempt the absurd will 
                                                     achieve the impossible."

PS.  For any US readers who aren't au fait with current dollar/pound
     exchange rate, it's about 1.5 dollars to the pound.  Now re-read
     the above and do the conversions.