Roland FC300, available from at $299, vs.

My Solution to the 'lack of controller' problem: They probably will be on the MPK88 though. These do not appear on the MPK25 or even MPK49 as I recall. The longer keyboards are adding eight sliders (or hopefully nine, I forget) which can act as organ drawbars of a sort. Their new controller series is magnificent - a hefty semi-weighted action on the ones that are out so far. In fact, Akai has an 88-key controller coming out soon, if it didn't just get released. But E-Mu controllers have driver issues, and this report (Keyboard mag) was before Akai entered the controller market. My recollection is that E-Mu and Novation have been measured (yes, this is measurable, with our friend MIDI Monitor) as the smoothest and most accurate.

In controller land, if you need aftertouch, best to get it on a semi-weighted keybed. The best aftertouch is on Dave Smith synths. It may just be that the VMK has a poor aftertouch implementation, but as Yamaha generally does a poor job of aftertouch on their keyboards, I would count it as a blessing that the KX8 is missing aftertouch. In my experience, aftertouch on fully weighted controllers is not very usable in most circumstances, as it is difficult to get a smooth aftertouch curve on weighted controllers. Chances are high that Yamaha gave it a thorough MIDI implementation, in spite of minimal pedal inputs and no aftertouch. Given that disappointment, I would suggest downloading the KX8 manual from the website and reading it thoroughly. The VMK has the most realistic action of any controller, but is seriously MIDI-crippled (only one zone!). I'm hoping to get a Kurzweil PC3X sometime in the next few months. I'm moving away from controllers myself, but am still 'stuck' with my VMK188plus. Keep in mind that in order to reach the maximum possible overdrive you also need to increase the B3 engine section's volume to max, along with the Leslie's: you can counterbalance the way-too-high output by lowering the Main volume pot.It's a good price for what it is the original price was too high. Personally speaking, I wouldn't play a B3 clone distorting more than the 6 does at max volume despite being a fan of Jon Lord's sound, but those are just my two pennies. If you want or need extreme distortions, you can either opt for one of the guitar amp simulations (giving up on the Leslie) or use an external pedal. That said, Nord have been keeping improving the sound with very minor updates, especially on the Electro 6: the distortion on the latest Electro's the most faithful and pleasant one the 4 probably offered more drive but it did not reflect an actual Hammond+Leslie setup. Both the Electro 4 and the 6 are based on the C2D's engine, which is fairly good (although not the best one on the market anymore).

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