What is the Best Keyboard for Hip Hop Production?

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Drew Iza

New member
Ok to help answer, my friend has a ES6 and a Triton. So i've played with both of those a little bit. I have no prior experience with keyboards past that. And honestly when I was using the Motif it was not that user friendly for someone like me that doesnt really know much. But the sounds on it were pretty tight. I like the triton aswell, it was a little more user friendly, but a little out of the price range.(but if its the best i will save for it) Now lately i've been looking at the fantom x series. Now i hear its very user friendly, and I know it has the drum pads. I've been leaning towards the Famtom X6 because of how easy it is to work. But lately i've heard that the sounds were thin. So I dont know. As the topic i'll be using it for mainly hip hop production and R&B. I also plan to do some sampling so maybe the drum pads on the fantom would be useful. but I dont wanna get it if the sounds are thin or not ful. So i'm like going bonkers. I'm thinking about going to test the fantom myself. But right now I'm looking for you guys opinions. Hopefully that was helpful enough for answering my question.

I appreciate the help.

thanks
 
Drew Iza said:
are you serious, nobody can help me with this?
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Well, the question has been answered lots of times, and the answer is there is no best keyboard for any genre, I think you should go to the guitar center and demo each one to find out which one is best for you! But I'll give you my take on this...My friend, who is teamed up with me, owns a Triton Pro, and it seems pretty tight! It's pretty easy to use as well, and has some great sounds for hip hop and RnB production! I personally love the bass sounds this thing has packing! And the synth and bell sounds are ill! I also liked the semi-weighted keys; It made me feel more in control of what was happening, and it was fun pumping out drums on them! This workstation was definitely built for popular music!

I've also tried the Fantomx6, and the sounds are far from thin! I think these are some of the most realistic sounds available in any workstation! The orchestral sounds are way beyond pro-quality! And it definitely has a friendly interface! The brass sounds realy blew me away! I was really into the brass sounds that the Triton had, but the Fantom just killed me when I heard what Roland packed into this! I think you might want to get this...Me and my production crew are thinking about selling our triton to get this, and I'm saving up for either an MPC or an MV! I think the pads on the Fantom were just there to attract eyes...I hate them! They feel soft and rubbery, but It get's the job done, and it's always good to have more!

I have no experience with the Motif, so I can't say anything, but I heard the sounds were realistic as hell! And the drums were the fattest ever!
 
Try the search feature in this site. Your question has been answered countless of times.
 
The problem isn't which is most capable for whichever genre...the problem is that most people don't learn and use 100% of the capabilities and functions of these keyboards...If people knew what they had IN the workstations they had, they wouldn't be screaming about wanting another one. Owning all three, a triton, a motif, and a fantom is the height of stupidity.

So my advice is quit debating which one to get, and just get one and make some music with it. You have to learn on all of them...the sooner you get one, the sooner you learn it, and the sooner you make beats with it. To use a cliche...poop or get off the pot.

If it were me, I'd go with a fantom ...then as you go, expand it with SRX cards...and then, before you go thinking that you need a triton/motif to go with it, get a synthesizer instead and go from there... I'd start also with some freebie softs synths at www.kvr-vst.com and start learning how to program synthesizers there since softsynths aren't 'menu-buried' with their functions...it's mostly all on the screen...Synth1 is a good freebie. Look it up. When you learn what those functions do to a sound...apply it to the presets on whichever workstation you get.

Anyway, one fully expanded workstation with a great sampler, and a good synthesizer or two will take you a very long way in production.
 
cool this is some useful info.

but i dont plan on getting all three.

So i am trying to get the one that will be best for what i'm trying to do. I think that this question is very valid.... and in my for instance it is unique to ask the question again.

thanks for the help, i'm gonna go play with the fantom and see wassup.
 
Drew Iza said:


but i dont plan on getting all three.

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We know this, we just gave you information to help lead you to a decision...It's up to you to pick the one you want...
 
#1- whats your style?
You want slide-whistles for that 90's westcoast style? make sure your board comes w/ an assignable pitch bend
You wanna sound like young bloodz/lil jon and the rest of the southern hip-poppers? Plenty of leads, my friend.
Underground/old skool? Look for a drum pad equipped board like the X6, so you can get that delicious MPC dirt.

~~OR~~

you can be yourself, and EXPLORE. Whatever you get just make sure you follow what others have already said:
DO NOT fvckin' buy all three -
UNLESS
you have researched and determined the different attributes of each. For example buy a Motif/Triton/Fantom for the smoothest sexiest sounds ALREADY MADE. Then you can buy a simple synth such as a novation, alesis, etc. to create your own tones which is always fun and original too.
 
go test out that Fantom then let us know how you're feelin.

Let me add that the Fantom has a USB connection to computers. Meaning most of the sounds that you can download online can be sent over to your Fantom and vice versa.

I had the Neptunes, Timbaland, and Dr. Dre kits on my comp with many different .wav samples that I kept just incase I could ever use them. And with my Fantom having USB capabilities, I could!
 
If it was me, I'd go for the motif. The sounds on there are amazing compared too the triton. Personalty I dont like the triton, but that's just my taste. As for the roland, I think the sounds are by most worst than the triton and the motif combined. But again thats my opinion. Goto the stores and try them out. All the best bro
 
Panorama Studios said:

Underground/old skool? Look for a drum pad equipped board like the X6, so you can get that delicious MPC dirt.
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How do drum pads give you "mpc dirt"? lol
 
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I can speak on the Motif, since I use it alot. The sounds are presets, sometimes just tweaking the cutoff frequency works wonders without having to spend time in voice edit mode.

The Motif learning curve is somewhat steep. But it's all about workflow and once you get the hang of the button pressing it's almost automatic. I can do it with my eyes closed now. Alot of people say it sucks because of the interface. Do not expect to walk up to this thing and immediately start making the next hit. It takes time.

It took the course of a month for me to get somewhat proficient at it. And I'm still learning. I try to read the manual every night, and I keep it handy when I'm using the product. I'm wearing out the pages. I don't know alot of people who can show me hands on how to do everything so it's mainly self taught.
 
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