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Title: Hands-On Review:Alesis Ion Post by: elwoodblues1969 on November 15, 2007, 11:47:32 PM My Ion arrived at 1:02pm today,& I have not been this excited since I first got my Korg Triton Extreme!
My initial impressions are this; When I first pulled it of the box,I was stunned at how heavy this keyboard is! This synth really is built like a tank & you feel just how well it was made-just by the sheer weight of it. The pitch & modulation wheels are solid & smooth as silk to operate with-with a very nice grippable surface to them. All of the other controls like the knobs & buttons, are also solid & smooth. Every time you touch a control,the changes are displayed on the screen-something of which I had never experienced before. The bulit in effects processor is very basic,but the Ion still manages to sound incredible,because of the extraordinary quality in the software programs-just like the Nord Lead!! Some of the drum sounds & sound effects are a bit on the weak & bland side,but these types of programs are not the reason why I chose this synth. However though,they're are still a few surprising nice drum & effect sounds anyway. All in all,most of the programs are unbelievably excellent & inspiring-which provide me with all of the creative possiblities that are not possible on my Korg. The fact that a company like Alesis,with all of thier flawed products,managed to come up with such a beautiful keyboard-from top to bottom,inside & out-is such a mystery-of which I will never figure out,-especially considering how inexpensive it is! This synth is such an anomaly,that I don't think we will ever see a keyboard like this ever again on the market for $600(USD). This is the best $600 I have ever spent in my life & the Ion is truly the most unique keyboard,next to the Nord. If you want a keyboard that can accurately emulate all the great classic keyboards like the Oberheim,Roland Jupiter,Ensonique etc.,-then this keyboard is for you. 8) Can't wait to get cracking on some new tunes with this little beastie!! Elwood Title: Re: Hands-On Review:Alesis Ion Post by: elwoodblues1969 on November 16, 2007, 12:05:09 AM ;D
Title: Re: Hands-On Review:Alesis Ion Post by: elwoodblues1969 on November 16, 2007, 02:11:47 AM I just spent a couple of hours tweeking programs & storing them in the internal memory & I am having an amazing time experiencing deja vu!
A friend long ago,had the Roland Super JX-10 that cost him $2,000(if memory serves) & he did some fantastic sound edits on the board. I spent several years trying to replicate those sounds with my Korg keyboards,but to no avail. With a $600 board,I was able to replicate the sounds of the JX-10 in a matter of minutes,by just tinkering with a few knobs and presto-instant Roland sounds! God-I love this synth!!! Elwood Title: Re: Hands-On Review:Alesis Ion Post by: rharv on November 16, 2007, 02:26:18 AM I'm very happy for you. Sounds like you are having a blast.
I remember the JX-10...and miss it.. Title: Re: Hands-On Review:Alesis Ion Post by: Moon on November 16, 2007, 07:24:37 AM This is looking great! I think the Ion is a perfect complementary synth next to your Korg Extreme. Can't wait to hear some music comming from this setup.
Moon Title: Re: Hands-On Review:Alesis Ion Post by: kara on November 16, 2007, 08:12:01 AM Yep, realy looking forward to hear your first song with it 8)
k Title: Re: Hands-On Review:Alesis Ion Post by: Marc JX8P on November 16, 2007, 11:10:32 AM Never had the chance to try out the JX10, but I know that it's basically a double JX8P and if the Ion sounds as good I'm really impressed! Might even tempt me in the future - though I guess I'd then have to change my name to Marc Ion which sounds a bit silly... :)
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