best Keyboard / controller for under 1000?

Hello all, i am in a bind here. My keyboard recently died and now i am looking for a new one. I cant afford 3 grand for a new one, but I don't want toy either. I do a lot of midi stuff at home but i like a sound producing keyboard for when i play live from time to time. It seems to me that 3 grand is alot of money and the "lite" versions are just to light for 1500 dollars. So am i just screwed? Is there no decent keyboard i can use live but also use as a midi controller at home for under a thousand dollars and to be honest 500 would be better. I know with those prices i am looking at used but it seems even the used stuf is priced out of the sky. So anybody have any suggestions? A local music store had an ensociq qs2 for sale but i read it does not do gm and i want to be able to use it for gm. ( they guy wanted 100 for the qs2 bye th way) So if anybody has any suggestions or has anything for sale let me know please!
Thanks in advance.

I don't know if this is the best but its a good price, M-Audio ProKeys 88 Stage Piano/MIDI Controller. About 599.

bobby, thinking about GM.

you could always get a controller , and just hook that up to a GM / XG unit.. but thats 2 units, the keyboard + midi unit

things like yamaha mu series.. roland sound canvas I guess must be well cheap now. I remember buying an mu-10 years ago, the GM/XG sounds on that were fair enough. it just depends on the sound really. and how many sounds and how complex you want them to be.

Kurzweil ME1
Edirol SD20

are 2 other sound modules.

Yamaha has the best general-purpose samples and best-playing keyboards for under 2 grand:
MM6 $600
MM8 $1000
MO6 $1200

I'm a longtime fan of Roland synths, but the good ones are in a higher price bracket. I currently use a Yamaha MO8 ($1600) as my primary instrument and love it even after 5 years, the longest I've ever stayed in love with any synth.

ORIGINAL: bitflipper

Yamaha has the best general-purpose samples and best-playing keyboards for under 2 grand:
MM6 $600
MM8 $1000
MO6 $1200

I'm a longtime fan of Roland synths, but the good ones are in a higher price bracket. I currently use a Yamaha MO8 ($1600) as my primary instrument and love it even after 5 years, the longest I've ever stayed in love with any synth.

You know i looked at the Yamaha MO 8 and from everything i have read from places like sounds on sounds review and from harmony central and there reviews, if you going to spend that much money its worth it just to my the motif ES or XS. But the thing is i dont need a workstation as i use sonar. Maybe i am just realzing that the pricing is alot more then then what i thought things would be. I guess there is no such things as a decent synthasizer for average money. Not all of us are pros so why shoudl we all have to pay pro money to get gear? And why i am thinking about it, i thought that then new products came out that would push down the prices of the older stuff, but those prices dont seem to be moving at all. I wonder if that is becuase not many people are buying the new generation of baords like the M# or XS8 or G8, and are just staying with the older stuff cause money is so tight?

The Fatar VMK-176 is absolutely fantastic. No internal sounds, but its keyboard action is one of the very best out there.

want to be able to use it for gm. ( they guy wanted 100 for the qs2 bye th way) So if anybody has any suggestions or has anything for sale let me know please!

Buy the Ensoniq and use TTS-1 as your GM sound source and you will have change from your $1k

Moderators is this a gear subject lol

I don't think you'll find an S90 for under $1000. Send me a link if you do.

Michael

Yamaha P70 has nice touch. But if you are looking for something that has many sounds it's not for you. It does have your bread and butter sounds. Please go try the M-Audio keyboards before purchasing.

ORIGINAL: daveny5

I wouldn't touch the Ensoniq... Too old. Company is no longer in business.

Dave, they got bought out by creative labs. The only reason I know about ensoniq is they were called "Peripheral Visions" originally.. and before that , they designed the mighty Sid Chip for the commodore 64

Bobby, I love my Yahama S08, the feel of the keyboard is excellent. I have had NO ISSUES with the
keyboard and Sonar 7. The piano tones aren`t quite as good as the Motif rack ES, but darn close. It is an excellent synth,
but I would only a rate the piano as "pretty good". I liked the drums, synths pads, user interface. Dance music/techno is its
highlight. ( killer guitars vocies! ) I do like the layered pianos voices, they cut thru a mix quite well. it was my choice over the P90
series, just because of price. I paid 1G for mine, they are slightly cheeper now.
Yes I would replace mine with the same S08 for the money. I`ve played piano/synth for 30+ years.
I tried the Maudio key88, but the tones in the S08 are far more versatile, I use it in parallel with my Motif rack ES.
I feel either tone gen is studio quality, little nuances between some patches fit the mix better than the others.
Donny B

2 Pentium D 3.2G PCs
new Q6600/DP35DP quad core comming this week! wheeeeeeee!
thanks to everyone for the mother PCB suggestions here on the forums, esp Jim Roseberry
I can`t wait to build my new DAW

I dont think there is a better upgrade as far as the action or the piano sound, but the XS is very good and I would like to have a onboard sequencer for when I am on the road without the computer. I could not sell my keyboard untill I have enough cash to replace it. The only keyboards I would even consider replacing the S90 with cost more then 2 G.