Auditioned Genos -S970 Registrations won't work.

[DonM]

I had a chance, at last, to audition a Genos last week.  My friend Don Patterson in Lubuck, TX has one and I spent about 4 to 5 hours playing it.
I took my USB drive that I use on the S970 and tried to call up Registrations from it.  Never could get it to work.  I got a message saying something like "Wrong information", don't exactly remember.
The midi files and MP3s from the stick showed up and worked just fine, and the styles loaded and played also, but not Registrations.
Not a huge deal to me, but interesting.  Maybe something I did wrong?
I decided the Genos is not for me, especially at the price they want for it.
Don't get me wrong, it is a fine arranger.  Loved a lot of the lead sounds, the touch screen was nice, though it would have better if adjustable.  The vocal harmonizer is improved over previous models.  The drums are better.  I absolutely love the keyboard touch and feel.  Finally a joystick!  The sliders are great.  A lot of new styles, some of which I might even use.  The Playlist is almost as good as Korg Songbook, and I liked the way it made Registrations automatically. The weight is really good for a 76.
As I drove back home I remember I had already owned an arranger with all those features, for the past three years.  I sold my Korg PA4x-61 when I thought I was going to die pretty quickly.  Bought an S970 (which I had also previously owned), because it would be easier for my family to sell after I'm gone.
Anyway, I ordered a PA4X-76.  I can keep the S970, buy the Korg, and have quite a bit of money left over!  In addition, I'll have a better vocal harmonizer, a 5-button programmable foot controller, a Midi-to-Style Converter, a Chord Sequencer, the four sets of programmable sliders and three programmable buttons. And I still much prefer the Korg drums.  Almost forget the adjustable screen. 
There are some better features on the Genos, and some on the Korg.  Both are fantastic.  They weigh about the same.  Same number of USB slots, outputs, inputs, etc. 
Someone asked what I'd do if the Genos and Korg were the same price.  Not sure, but I really think I like the Korg better.  Either would be nice though, if someone DOES want to buy me one.   
I am willing to pay whatever it takes to have the best tools available, but when it is this close, it is an easy decision. 

[hans1966]

Hello, DonM, you knew words. I still have S970, and I think it's an excellent keyboard, I enjoy it a lot every time I have a party, serenade, mass or creating MIDI sequences, even to have fun when there's nothing else to do. On the other hand I am saving to make a second keyboard that can be Korg Pa4x but without leaving my S970. just to enjoy two different technologies at the same time, I hope to have it in two or three months, I can collect the money to ask for it to be sent to me. Meanwhile I will continue enjoying my S970. greetings Hans

[DonM]

Hi Hans,
Great!  You will enjoy both keyboards.

[zionip]

Hi Don,

Genos 'understands' the registrations from Tyros 5, but not registrations from the PSR-S970 - I think Yamaha does this on purpose to distinguish the Genos/Tyros line from the PSR-S line.  This is the first thing I learned when I received my Genos late last year.  I had to convert the PSR-S970 registrations using Murray Best's Yamaha Registration Manager program to Tyros 5 registrations, then Genos could import them.  Starting from version 5.1, YRM supports Genos resgistrations directly, and so we can convert the PSR-S970 registrations directly into Genos registrations.

Latest version of YRM is 5.1.1:
Download link for "YRMsetup511.msi" :
Link: http://bit.ly/YRM511S24

Download link for YRM 5.1.1 English Manual:
Link: http://bit.ly/YRM511English

Thanks,
Paul

[DonM]

Thanks Paul,
If I ever change my mind and get a Genos, I'll remember that.  Actually when I get a brand new arranger, I like to start from scratch with everything, so I am sure not to overlook any new styles or sounds.  Since I was just trying this one out, I thought it would be good to see how my regs sounded in it.

[Kaarlo von Freymann]

  Loved a lot of the lead sounds, the touch screen was nice, though it would have better if adjustable. The vocal harmonizer is improved over previous models.  The drums are better. Finally a joystick!........  The sliders are great...... The weight is really good for a 76......

Anyway, I ordered a PA4X-76.  I can keep the S970, buy the Korg, and have quite a bit of money left over!  In addition, I'll have a better vocal harmonizer, a 5-button programmable foot controller, a Midi-to-Style Converter, a Chord Sequencer, the four sets of programmable sliders and three programmable buttons. And I still much prefer the Korg drums.  Almost forget the adjustable screen.

Hi DonM,

thanks for a very interesting post.

Cheers

Kaarlo

[Puyailee]

Thanks for an interesting post Don M. I agree with you the s970 and the pa4x is a difficult combination to beat.  although I have owned 23 keyboards in the past I feel these two keyboards will always be with me even though I use them with a Yamaha motif rack and a Roland Integra 7. Happy New year to you 😎

[DonM]

Thanks for an interesting post Don M. I agree with you the s970 and the pa4x is a difficult combination to beat.  although I have owned 23 keyboards in the past I feel these two keyboards will always be with me even though I use them with a Yamaha motif rack and a Roland Integra 7. Happy New year to you 😎

Welcome to the forum!  You found a very old post, but that's o.k.  Since then I did buy a Genos and kept it for a few months.  It is a fine arranger with many great features, but I found I missed the Korg too much, and went back to it. 
Now, the heavier weighted keys on the Korg PA4X, and on some other arrangers, have started hurting my fingers, so I have opted to use Korg PA1000 on the job.  It has most of the features of the 4X, but certainly lacks a few of them.  This is a concession to getting old and dealing with the Covid 19.
The Genos keys were fine, as they are not as weighted as the 4X.  I was never a piano player, so don't need or appreciate the heavier touch.
It will be interesting to see what comes next in the arranger market.  Yamaha and Korg are both past due to introduce something, but we must attribute that to the pandemic. 
The good news is that there are no bad choices, and many good ones!