$500 Keyboard Sounds Really Good

Demo of some of the hippest styles and sounds!
MORE WOODY PIANO SHACK
► woodypianoshack.com
KORG i3 MUSIC WORKSTATION ARRANGER KEYBOARD

[@runestone1337]

I loved every minute of it! I've always thought of Korg as the underdog compared to Yamaha and Roland, but they punch well above their weight and innovate in areas that force the big boys to sit up and take notice. We need more Korgs in this world. Thanks Woody.

[@this.is.shashwat]

Well recently they seem to be recycling quite a few keyboards. Be it the nautilus AT which is a cut down kronos with same sound engines, or the i3 that woody is playing is basically a EK50 with an added half baked sequencer. Far from innovating in my books.

[@Agoraphobia2day333]

When the Roland JD-Xi can still dance circles around this thing in sound and function and it's from 2015 then I'm not sure how much Korg is punching above their weight

[@WildernessMusic_GentleSerene]

I bought my first arranger just as a fancy metronome to train my timing. It worked. Improvement. Train yourself in time signatures like 5/4s and 7/8s and even 3/4s for all you EDM folks.

[@peterhguk]

Would you mind explaining EDM?

[@ToastandJam52]

@@peterhguk Electronic Dance MusicL. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_dance_music

[@WildernessMusic_GentleSerene]

EDM = Electronic Dance Music@@peterhguk

[@ProFleer-ep4wq]

That Korg i3 is pretty amazing for $500. Even if you don’t like cheesy arrangers. And the Yamaha Genos 2 costs almost ten times as much. I particularly like the Korg’s chord function myself.

[@musicmaniac1965keyboard]

Now this is a great keyboard for beginners, and also if you allready have a workstation, but you want to have a different keyboard to get sounds and styes your keyboard is missing. I may look at one at the music store here. Sounds great, so good value for money. Thanks for sharing!

[@ProFleer-ep4wq]

The exact reason why I got one. This and the Yamaha Reface CP are sweet boards for some musical couch action.

[@blackforestghost1]

Good sounds and nice styles arrangements. Really usable, I think.👍

[@barryward7633]

Thank you, Woody, great keyboard demo, and a nice smiley face as usual, cheers.

[@marcuspatzer2392]

Wow, that sounds really good 👍👏🎶🎵 Happy Weekend my Friend ! 🕊️🎹🐯

[@WildernessMusic_GentleSerene]

I own the Korg little MicroArranger arranger keyboard. It was only about $500 US and it came with the Triton Engine and it sounds wonderful. The most surprising is it had the best sounding acoustic piano of any arranger in this price. A usable solo piano. Could it be Korg simply does not make a poor sounding instrument? I have a Korg Minilogue and MinilogueXD too, outstanding value as a synth. I also own Korg Krome too, powerful workstation with deep synthesis editing.

[@michaelmeers8333]

My brother has a Piano from around 2000 ish that still sounds better than some of the midline current Casios to me. I have an I3 on the way so I am doing the ritual binging of content. I have a Kawaii ES 520 Piano that I love but needed something to get a bit funky and weird.. away from the computer. This is going to fit that bill nicely.

[@patrickrwhite8354]

Yes it does sound quite nice. Thank you woody for the post. BRAVO keep em coming. Patrick in CANADA! Hope to see you soon.! All the best in 2024, and Belated Merry Christmas.🎶🎅👍😀🎵❄️🍁😜😅🍁😆🎡🍁🎼😅🎡🎡🍁🍁🎼🎼🎁🎁⛄😂⛄🎹

[@patrickrwhite8354]

Loved Lambada. It was a simple version but nicely played and that piano was very real.

[@danieldougan269]

Not bad! My main complaint about this is the lack of built-in speakers. It's not that I can't buy speakers, but setting them up is a bit unwieldy in my limited space. My Yamaha DGX-650 has excellent built-in speakers and sounds great considering the sub-$1000 price point. Plus, it has 88 weighted keys! If you can get around the lack of built-in speakers, this could be a great secondary keyboard. It might even be interesting to pipe it through my DGX speakers in a two-tier setup.

[@rebeccaabraham8652]

I’m going to have to try and schedule time with all my instruments - so I can have some 1-2-1 time with my old 90’s PSR. After I’ve got back up to speed with my digital sax……. Love those sounds - they’re great - now need to work out how to get the Irin S56 talking to my PSR; the Akai just needs a standard midi cable….

[@philipford6183]

Genius move, Woody, to feature this one so soon after the Genos 2. The disparities couldn't be more obvious or stark, both in sounds and price point. This is a keyboard worth further investigation. I'm already a Korg fan and have been seriously contemplating a Wavestate SE. The i3 gives me pause.

[@WoodyPianoShack]

think it over carefully the ws and i3 serve 2 completely different purposes! and thanks!

[@philipford6183]

Will do. I already have the Wavestate VST, but I'm in the market for a hardware keyboard and have been thinking the WS SE (although a touch expensive imo) will fit the bill, since I already love the WS's blippity-boppity wandering arpeggios and the whole chill sound library it packs. But I'm also a sucker for arranger features...

[@jeffeason3599]

Buy both. Because every keyboard is good for something. But no keyboard is good for everything. (And as I’ve told my wife many times, this rule also applies to motorcycles)

[@fouldeathrat]

I have yet to encounter a Korg keybed or piano sound I actually like, but since I came across it, the i3 has struck me as one of the better options for the price.

[@renaldo8572]

Super merci

[@synthplayer1563]

Super creative playing. You are the master of arrangers. And as always the question: Is a Korg arranger possibly better than a Yamaha? Maybe in terms of price and performance. I have a Yamaha. Korg sounds always like Korg and perhaps a little, little bit worse. But Korg has better and more useful features.

[@WoodyPianoShack]

that seem like a pretty fair summary! thanks

[@zoomzoom3950]

My primary focus is organ, but I just ordered a Korg I3, my first arranger. Local coffee shops beware! 😁 The Korg Pa5X tho'....😍

[@Hardts]

The 90's called, they want their.. ah but even then this is a big sound for 500$, and an awesome jam Woody! Yeah back then, this would cost big, big money.

[@panosfloyd]

I didn't know about this keyboard. Nice one that sounds really great indeed! One disadvantage though is that it doesn't have built-in speakers.

[@WoodyPianoShack]

all true!

[@ndguardian]

I've got the EK-50, which is basically the i3 with a slightly different UI, maybe a little less polyphony and built-in speakers. It's worth checking out too.

[@semperveritas8410]

this keyboard is meant to be played with a professional sound system...keyboards with built-in speakers tend to be optimized to sound best with the built-in speaker. I use an i3 extensively for gigging. You should hear it through a pair of nice powered speakers...

[@user-bl1ch4pj9z]

СУПЕР, СПАСИБО БОЛЬШОЕ ❤

[@Acrimonious_Snake]

I would buy it if it was 500$ in my region, but it costs like 1200$ in local shops and is very rare to find, people grab these Korgs like hot cakes.

[@JeffPalmer83]

Woody, I’ve been noticing lately how when you play melodies, you often move your hand/finger expressively. You should really try out an Expressive E Osmose, I think you’d love it!

[@WoodyPianoShack]

yeah, i do that, bad habit! i have not much interest in that board, although the technology is impressive! for me, veloctiy is more than enough expression... :)

[@JeffPalmer83]

@@WoodyPianoShack I got curious enough to buy one last year, and actually the poly aftertouch and per-note bending (while very cool) aren’t even the highlight for me! There is a “gesture” on it called “pressure glide,” which (when engaged) lets you smoothly control the glide between two notes. It’s unlike anything else and is so great for soloing in one and comping with the other. Also, having control over initial pressure to create swells almost throws the idea of a traditional “envelope” out the window. I’d be curious for your hands-on take on this synth, especially given your initial impression.

[@lundsweden]

$50 VST sounds really good! 😉

[@WildernessMusic_GentleSerene]

My favorite feature of Korg, a very rare feature, is....Korg allows me to overwrite presets with my own. No useless presets on my Korgs!!!

[@kokopelli314]

That trumpet @ 10:20 is a killer!

[@danieldougan269]

I think if you're considering this, you might also take a look at the Yamaha PSR-E473. Plus, the Yamaha has speakers! There's also the PSR-EW425 with 76 keys and better speakers.

[@WoodyPianoShack]

good call, i would really like to check those out, working on it

[@danieldougan269]

Does the Korg EK-50L have all of these same sounds? It has speakers, unlike the i3.

[@semperveritas8410]

@@danieldougan269 I have both the i3 and the EK-50. There is a huge difference...the i3 is more of a professional piece of equipment, for example you can mute all of the accompaniment parts individually. The i3 also has a master equalizer, which, to me, is the key difference. Unbelievable bass and treble boost. I feel like keyboards with speakers are designed to sound best through the internal speakers. The i3 is a pro piece of gear that is meant to be played through a pro PA system. You should really hear it through a pair of powered speakers with a 10-incg woofer, you'd be amazed. I use mine for gigging.

[@kahp2332]

Maybe you could do a comparison between korg i3 and PA300. They have the same price. Thank you

[@WoodyPianoShack]

interesting suggestion, i really need to familiarize myself with Pa series.

[@tlazohtlalia]

$100 cheaper than the Casio CDPs-360 but about the same price as the Yamaha PSR-EW-425

[@danieldougan269]

We have an ice cream truck that goes through our neighborhood playing "Lambada" over and over. It's...odd.

[@Simon-ui6db]

Is this the old I3 of the 90s or the current gen i3?

[@WoodyPianoShack]

current gen, most confusing that korg chose to call it the same...

[@Acrimonious_Snake]

This is Korg EK-50 with different design and set of sounds.

[@RonWesterbeek]

Great exploration Woody 🎉 appreciate that you didn't show your resentment for instant creating lol.😅 Good and sound year to you Woody and grandfamily 🌱🎵🕊 and of course to your audience. 🤸‍♀️🤸‍♀️💃🙉👍

[@WarrenPostma]

The reverb is a bit cheap sounding, but otherwise, I like it. This thing is not only pretty good set of sounds for $500 it's also light and easily portable. Ideal for gigs where you got to hoof your gear in on your own back.

[@svenjonsson4275]

Its always the same, weather Its about BMW-owners VS Mercedes-owners - Mac-owners VS PC-owners KORG-owners VS Roland/Yamaha-owners or whatever It is lets just settle down and pay attention to what this video is about, you dont havr to buy a 20-30k keyboard to make great music. ❤ thanks. 14:00 14:00

[@garryhenshaw4747]

Would have been nice if you had said what keyboard it was on the video for those of us watching this on the TV.

[@RonWesterbeek]

Seems you didn't see part 1 of this? Just saying. Bless you 🍺🎵🕊

[@gb3496]

Get your hands on the Korg Pa5X! It makes the Genos2 look like a plastic toy!

[@WoodyPianoShack]

ok, i'm intrigued...

[@hvxcolors396]

@@WoodyPianoShack The Korg has more advanced features, is cheaper but if you have good ears you may prefer the Genos. The Genos sounds 24 bit, the Korg 16 bit. You hear it straight when you play accoustic guitar or strings. Before buying the Genos, ask Wersi for a loaner on your channel. Once they where top of kitsch but they produce top arrangers (they are owned by Music Store in Koln now) - would be fun to hear that on your channel!.

[@normalizedaudio2481]

I don't pay more than 500 for a KB. Except that 3000 one.

[@dwsel]

I would be lying if I said I wasn't eyeballing it once, but then I told my GAS to get lost!

[@cinepost]

Here is another donation to the “Help Woody buy a Genos 2” club. Cmon guys, show some thanks!

[@ZoeSummers1701A]

Only 3000 identical donations more to go.. /smh

[@cinepost]

@@ZoeSummers1701A I am thinking he needs a little help, the Genos2 is kinda pricey when he owns ten other keyboards. Did you buy a thanks?

[@WoodyPianoShack]

thank again, you are the only contributor to this very worthy cause!

[@cinepost]

@@WoodyPianoShack we’ll see, gotta be optimistic.

[@lapasteque868]

Ouais...faut pas exagérer qd même, ça sonne bien mais pas évident de sortir une track crédible avec...a moins de s appeler Marco Parisi et sortir les tripes de l instru

[@lapasteque868]

En résumé c est cute et fun comme mon korg liverpool...pr se faire plaisir tranquillou à la maison et avec la famille

[@dougie6897]

Sounds more contemporary and more inspiring than the Genos 2 ….. the extortionately overpriced Genos 2 that is .

[@danieldougan269]

You could most likely make a Genos 2 sound like this or better. But most people play them in a cabaret way.

[@kaisfp]

For modern sounds in an arranger on the budget, I would probably try the Roland Go:Key 3 (or 5 for getting the L R 1/4 outs).

[@jscan]

Woody, I really appreciate your channel, your talent at ticklin' the ivories and all that you do, but I think you might want to avoid the use of the word 'hip' for this.. cool enough tech for the price, but leave it at that.