asr-10 keyboard

[Jwhaatt07]

I wanttttttttttt one so bad,I can get one for $400 from guitar center

[ssscientist]

Ensoniq gear is crap.

You have been warned.

Buy it at your own risk. Especially when you could put your $400 into a nice computer that would run a soft sampler ten times as powerful...

[Atterion]

Originally Posted by ssscientist

Ensoniq gear is crap.

You have been warned.

Yup, but they do sound good when they're working. The ASR-10 is kind of a nifty board though, but for $400 I'd pass personally.

[50cal]

ensoniqe is not crap by any means...I know a few people with them key version,and rack...the asr10 is a great keyboard...especially for that price....i was talkin to Bruce forat(CUSTOMIZES THE MPC) and we were talkin about all sorts of shit,then we talked on the asr10...he recommends getting the rack..cause something has a tendency to malfunction on it,and phe said parts are getting scarce....I the talked to someone on the net and they had a link to someone who repairs them,and they still carry parts..I talked to guys with the key version and they had there shit for years with no problems.....Instead of getting in this debate over hardware and software....wich I love hardware..
lets just point out some pluses to this keyboard at this range.before we do here is a link of user reviews.
http://www.sonicstate.com/synth_revi...id=509&print=1

Its one of the best pieces for sampling,
Its a solid midi controller-so even if you go computer route..great controller
If you make beats on computer,and your computer goes down you can still make beats....If I had this makin beats on a computer wouldnt even be an option.
I could go on but hit that link and listen to some users.

[Anthony]

Originally Posted by ssscientist

Ensoniq gear is crap. You have been warned. Buy it at your own risk.

Could the entity that has borrowed the ssscientist’s body please departure to astral domain?

Thank you so much.

Ensoniq crap?

Now come on.

It is surely quirky in some ways, and as Emu user, Ensoniq way of sample managing always appeared to me as a Spartan discipline. Might be cool for your neighbors to be able to read your presets on his sexy display from opposite balcony at night, but for functionality sake, it was not much productive then 1 line LCD when at sampling.

But you can’t deny its sound. Ensoniq always had a great sound. In fact, give me ASR10 any day compared to great but STERILE sound of Akai, well, S1100 is certainly a keeper, but others

I’ve recently bought almost for peanuts a mint SD1 and everyone who heard SD1 in my setup, shared same amazement how great sounding this keyboard is.

Sad thing about ridiculous Creative "acquisition" , too many people proudly went out over the night and this great name vanished in a few months after that.

Ensoniq was in a very important segment, higher mid class, and very competing one. Ensoniq migration
to vanish is really missed today.

Originally Posted by ssscientist

Especially when you could put your $400 into a nice computer that would run a soft sampler ten times as powerful...

That I agree, money better spent elsewhere.

[Artikulate]

All I know about the ASR-10 is that the RZA used it to make alot of his earlier beats which are dope.

[DavidK]

Originally Posted by 50cal

ensoniqe is not crap by any means...cause something has a tendency to malfunction on it,and phe said parts are getting scarce....

If it wasnt crap why does it have a tendency to malfunction??

I wouldnt mind having one. I am certainly not gonna pay 400 bucks for a keyboard from the stone age, 200 I could see. I never met a keyboard I didnt like or couldnt get some use out of, but $495 will get you a modern, PRO unit like a Yamaha S03 (?) or a Roland 2020.

[50cal]

Originally Posted by DavidK

If it wasnt crap why does it have a tendency to malfunction??

I wouldnt mind having one. I am certainly not gonna pay 400 bucks for a keyboard from the stone age, 200 I could see. I never met a keyboard I didnt like or couldnt get some use out of, but $495 will get you a modern, PRO unit like a Yamaha S03 (?) or a Roland 2020.

I beleive it has to do with something with the chips or something shifting when it gets hot,and then cools down when ya turn off...pretty easy fix...Ive known people who have had an asr10 for many years no problems....remeber.the asr10 is a workstation...your comparing them to the 2020,and the so3 do your research..the 2020 is just a sound module...the so3 is a mediocre keyboard....I have a motif rack...i would trade anyday for an asr10...the thing is..Im n0t trying to to say Im a know it all...but do your research....artikulate you are right the rza used one...kanye still uses,alchemist,nottz,etc etc..(not that that should be the factor)...with todays technology...why is it that alot of people use the ASR10.....sure on paper..it would seem to make sense to buy a newer product...now if you like having quantity over quality..then the newer stuff may be for you.......Now Im not saying all equipment used over the years is still a factor today...like roland tr808,oberheim dmx..etc..but the asR10 will be here for years to come.i think $400 is real cheap..they was going for about $1000 last year or so....damn its got one of the best samplers in history(well known for its sound) it has a descent sequencer,has good on board EFX...albums have been made with rthe ASR10 exclusive...
read these reviews..get some other users reviews....
http://www.sonicstate.com/synth_rev...?id=509&print=1
also..Im probably gonna pick one up when I have some extra money...and Im only gonna use it for the sampler....Ill use my mpc3000 to sequence...also it has a great set of brass patches some say better then the triton..and such....

[ssscientist]

Originally Posted by 50cal

ensoniqe is not crap by any means....cause something has a tendency to malfunction on it,and phe said parts are getting scarce....

Which is it, Fitty?

You're contradicting yourself within the same paragraph!

I'll admit to never having owned an ASR-10 rack, but the keyboards WERE crap. I went thru three of them, all of which broke down within one month. Not one month from when I bought each one, one month total. The first one lasted 10 days, the second two weeks and the third wouldn't power up, then when it did it smelled funny for two minutes and I heard a little 'sput' sound.

There ended my involvement with Ensoniq gear.

[DavidK]

...but do your research....

I dont need to do research, I know exactly what each product is and each product does, I have owned 20 keyboards at least. I am fully aware what the ASR 10 is, calling it a workstation is certainly a stretch by todays standards.

It did what it did. Whole albums have been made on Casios too, it doesnt mean anything. I made my whole CD with a Roland JV1010, softsynths and some samples but the JV1010 is 90%. It doesnt mean its a Kurzweill, it means I had a JV1010 and I used it.

[50cal]

Originally Posted by ssscientist

Which is it, Fitty?

You're contradicting yourself within the same paragraph!

I'll admit to never having owned an ASR-10 rack, but the keyboards WERE crap. I went thru three of them, all of which broke down within one month. Not one month from when I bought each one, one month total. The first one lasted 10 days, the second two weeks and the third wouldn't power up, then when it did it smelled funny for two minutes and I heard a little 'sput' sound.

There ended my involvement with Ensoniq gear.

i was just giving a whole look at the situation..saying..i heard the key version has some problems,and parts are scarce....and Ive heard some who have owned there keyboard for over 10 years no problem...i would get the rack myself....but If it is true about the certain problem thats occuring...and it makes sense..its an easy fix... Im wondering.if you wouldve gotten yours fixed..how long would the fix last the fix last...again..ive have friends with no problems.

[50cal]

Originally Posted by DavidK

I dont need to do research, I know exactly what each product is and each product does, I have owned 20 keyboards at least. I am fully aware what the ASR 10 is, calling it a workstation is certainly a stretch by todays standards.

It did what it did. Whole albums have been made on Casios too, it doesnt mean anything. I made my whole CD with a Roland JV1010, softsynths and some samples but the JV1010 is 90%. It doesnt mean its a Kurzweill, it means I had a JV1010 and I used it.

well i guess no one can teach you anything..with your jv1010..might as well as tell the ones who made hits that what they possesed is not a workstation...as matter of fact someone file a complaint,and litigate for false advertisemnt....now for someone to have owned over 20 keyboards,and not be able to appreciate the quality sound the asr10 brings...has not fully grasped what the asr10 is,and what its capabilities are....now I can really understand some to be concerned with the problems this keyboard has had...thats very understandable.Obviously your knowledge of the asr10 is not only limited,to your readings,and have had no hands on experience...Ive never personally heard anyone who has owned one(In working order) to complain of any limitations..as you stated it being a workstation..far fetchedIts funny cause I know people who swear by it.......

[DavidK]

well i guess no one can teach you anything

Well certainly you cant because you are acting like a 3 year old.

Whats the problem? Its an old piece of junk. It was fine when it came out but nothing groundbreaking. So some rap people made a record, BFD?

[50cal]

Originally Posted by DavidK

Well certainly you cant because you are acting like a 3 year old.

Whats the problem? Its an old piece of junk. It was fine when it came out but nothing groundbreaking. So some rap people made a record, BFD?

you pretty much summed it up right there....piece of junk? wow.

[DavidK]

What happened to the Donald Trump??

That was funny and earned you four green rep points from me! Did you erase it??

[altitude909]

Well there is vintage and there is old piece of junk, and the ensoniq is the later. The build quality is poor at best (IIRC there were problems with the PSU and logic board).

You can buy a decked out S5000 for under $500 dollar these days, or better yet, a softsampler like Kontakt.

I am all about vintage gear but really have a hard time with old samplers since they were very limited with the technology of the time. the ASR is an all digital instrument, nothing that cant be reproduced with Kontakt or any decent softsampler.

[50cal]

I guess everyone is entitled to there opinions,and maybe its great for Hip hop and outside of hip hop its sound isnt desired..Just like my mpc 3000..it adds character to the sample......yeah there are samplers with Bigger specs,but depending on what you are looking to do,it may not always be an option..Like the E.M.U. sp1200...alot of people still use this in rap...with only a few seconds of sample time compared to nearly limitless on a new akaiz8 sampler...The sp1200 has a sound that cant be duplicated on the newer high feature akaiz8....I just got rid of my E.M.U. E4xt sampler....What was that new close to $4000..Id trade that in a heart beat for a ASR10....So for some who like a sampler wich samples the sound with out adding any character(or coloring it) I agree the newer..or soft samplers is great....but for genres like rap..its still a great piece....again...there are alot of people who swear by them and there is alot of great features on this board.

[ssscientist]

Fitty, for someone who hijacked this thread, you sure are a blabbermouth.

We all get it.

You love the ASR-10. You have a romantic attachment to it because of the many name artists you admire who have used it to good end.

Now shut up and go on to some other thread.

But I don't think you'll do it. I think you're the type of person who always has to have the last word.

Here's your chance to prove me wrong. Or right...

[Anthony]

Originally Posted by 50cal

I just got rid of my E.M.U. E4xt sampler....What was that new close to $4000..Id trade that in a heart beat for a ASR10...

Well, said to hear that. Clearly, you gave no try playing with chord magic.

EIV is for many users unused and if you have tried t h i s , you would probably still use your EIV.

Originally Posted by ssscientist

I'll admit to never having owned an ASR-10 rack, but the keyboards WERE crap. I went thru three of them,

I was only working with ASR = ASR10 Rack, and these machines were decent.

Problems with keyboard were evident since TS10 then TS12 and ASR, later ASR88.

I remember talking to a Emu friend from parts dept., he told me they were not pleased about Ensoniq/Emu episode, for one of the reasons were Ensoniq parts, which at the time (ASR generation) were not what they wanted to see around them. I remember he told me that only first month after the lousy merger, he would receive numerous parts requests for Ensoniq on daily basis.

The last piece of Ensoniq gear I worked with was , I believe last Ensoniq module as such : MR-Rack.
Rather different approach for Ensoniq, because the way of accessing sounds with MR was completely modernized and not bad at all.

ASR10 user reviews 01

ASR10 user reviews 02

[Lt. Bob]

A little off topic but:
I think it's pretty funny when someone gets all uptight and even angry because someone said something negative about 'their' piece of gear.
There's a zillion different axes out there and what really matters is what you do with it. I don't know ASR10 from FEMA but to get mad because someone does or does not like the same gear as you is just silly.

I play git and sax and while I have a top flight sax ...... I tend to use cheaper gits. Now I've had many gits of the $20,000 collectible variety but now I mostly use some Epis and one Strat I built. I do have a pretty amazing amp collection but I don't have any big money gits anymore. Now some git snobs would sneer at my Epis but I moved to Florida 1 month ago .... not knowing a single person here ..... and I'm already playing about 4 nights a week with several different bands. What puts money in your pocket has nothing to do with what gear you have ....... it's all about what you do with it.

[Anthony]

Originally Posted by Lt. Bob

A little off topic but:I play git and sax and while I have a top flight sax ...... I tend to use cheaper gits. Now I've had many it's all about what you do with it.

Just to extend OT a little further, it seems Ensoniq topic is concluded after all.

As you are visiting keys forum and being a sax player, for sake of curiosity just like to hear what do you make of wind controllers like Akai EWI controller and those from Yamaha?

Have you used them? Perhaps with likes of VL1/VL7?

For some reason never used the wind controllers with late VL gadget, and there always seems to be a shortage of real wind players when keys people discuss Wind controllers

[Lt. Bob]

hmmmm ..... well ..... I used to have a wind synth ..... one of the first. Can't seem to remember the name right now ..... anyway, it worked really well. Responded well .... the sounds were kinda cheesy 'cause it was back in the days of analog synths .... but it responded very good to wind variences and eveb reed pressure.
Haven't used any of the newer ones like a Yamaha though.

[50cal]

SSSCIENTIST IM proving you right...haha...i dont want the last word and maybe its because I have something that Ive been bottling up..First LT BOB..I agree with what you said,and the way I came off was imature on my part..and to everyone else..sorry If I made anyone upset.
In order for these forums to work there needs to be an open line of communication..so dont badger someone for making conversation....
My primary concern is that when someone asks questions about a piece of equipment,there are alot of experts who respond with no knowledge on the product,or any hands on experience with the product.I would hope we would all encourage an open dialogue,express our opinions, but also have an open ear as well.Ive noticed on this board this happen alot....someone asks a bout certain keys and the first thing someone does is say...just buy fruity loops...(just using as an example) am I scared of the big digital takeover..Not at all Im all for software,and encourage those that want to go that route..but there are forums for discusing software.So why do i get all worked up? partially because there are honest people who are using this forum to get info on buying products.Someone may have saved up some hard earned money and dont want to buy something thats not best suited for what they are doing..Im not trying to take over these threads..im just asking for some people to be a little less biased...Me including...Im just as guilty at times...If i speak on something its usually cause I worked with it before,and have first hand knowledge of it.There are some telling people not to buy things because its old and they never worked with it...I think you all know what Im getting at.hope you have the the understanding to feel what im saying

[50cal]

Originally Posted by Anthony

Well, said to hear that. Clearly, you gave no try playing with chord magic.

EIV is for many users unused and if you have tried t h i s , you would probably still use your EIV.




I was only working with ASR = ASR10 Rack, and these machines were decent.

Problems with keyboard were evident since TS10 then TS12 and ASR, later ASR88.

I remember talking to a Emu friend from parts dept., he told me they were not pleased about Ensoniq/Emu episode, for one of the reasons were Ensoniq parts, which at the time (ASR generation) were not what they wanted to see around them. I remember he told me that only first month after the lousy merger, he would receive numerous parts requests for Ensoniq on daily basis.

The last piece of Ensoniq gear I worked with was , I believe last Ensoniq module as such : MR-Rack.
Rather different approach for Ensoniq, because the way of accessing sounds with MR was completely modernized and not bad at all.

ASR10 user reviews 01

ASR10 user reviews 02

I got rid of my e4xt not because of its quality,i worked out a deal with someone,and that was part of it...

[50cal]

Originally Posted by Anthony

Just to extend OT a little further, it seems Ensoniq topic is concluded after all.

As you are visiting keys forum and being a sax player, for sake of curiosity just like to hear what do you make of wind controllers like Akai EWI controller and those from Yamaha?

Have you used them? Perhaps with likes of VL1/VL7?

For some reason never used the wind controllers with late VL gadget, and there always seems to be a shortage of real wind players when keys people discuss Wind controllers

good question cause im hoping to get one to use with the vl expansion on the motif