Some (perhaps unjustified?) accusations against the Fantom G

Hi everyone, like a lot of people I am trying to decide between the Motif XS and the Fantom G. It's hard to get an unbiased evaluation of these machines since the youtube videos featuring each board feature different performers and different songs and different sound compression levels. In addition, when browsing forums for opinions there is often one or more persons who insist on using CAPS LOCK to rage about how this and that board sucks, and such. I want to show some of these so that I do not take such criticisms for granted.

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Here is a post on the Korg forums:
http://www.korgforums.com/forum/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=...
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Until ROLAND WAKES UP AND SMELLS THE COFFEE, gets their HEAD OUT OF THEIR ASS and GIVES US THE UPDATE WE NEED, the Fantom-G is NOTHING MORE than a SCRATCH PAD! PERIOD! I WANT THAT PATTERN GRID FROM THE FANTOM-X AND FOR GOD SAKES, MAN, LET US USE THE MOUSE TO MOVE, ERASE AND EDIT ON THE PIANO ROLL!!! Jesus! The next legend MY ASS! LOL! UPDATE THAT SEQUENCER and we will be fine! THERE'S A REASON WHY I HAVE TWO FANTOM-X8'S! SEQUENCING, SRX EXPANSION, AND SAMPLING! PERIOD!
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And another follow-up post from the same thread:
http://www.korgforums.com/forum/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=...
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Regarding the Fantom, ONLY get it if you can NOT live without an all-in-one solution that does your vocals (Audio), has a Sequencer (MIDI) and has some decent sounds to get your ideas rolling. The Fantom-G is great for that. A LOT of great features. But it's got a LOT of shortcomings, too, that make this keyboard look REALLY bad and makes Roland look REALLY bad, too. I own one of the these and it's a very cool keyboard, but the "small" missing features that were NOT inherited from the Fantom-X are CRUCIAL to almost everyone that wants to make FULL use of its capacity to Record and Edit in Audio and MIDI. Features like an Undo function, a Pattern Grid like what the Triton has but a LOT MORE flexible and more than twice the length (up to 8 bars on the Fantom-X vs. 2 1/2 bars on the Triton). Also be aware that the Fantom-G is capable of using a mouse (instead of a touchscreen) to edit parameters, change settings, etc. BUT! It's NOT fully implemented! You can't drag the notes on the Piano Roll editor to shorten, lengthen, or even move them from one place to another (i.e. another measure)! You can't copy notes very easily from one place to another. AND! You can't CREATE notes, either! NOT with the mouse! THIS is what I mean by Roland f*ck*ng up the Fantom-G that INFURIATES ME! Sequencer Resolution (in the case of the OASYS's 192PPQN Sequencer) is one thing and that can EASILY be fixed with an update and thus, UNLIKE the Fantom-G ,DESPITE the "better" Sequencer it has, the OASYS Sequencer is actually COMPLETE and it WORKS! VERY WELL, might I add!

I have a friend that owns a music shop here in Reseda, CA called Kaye's Music Scene. He specializes in Arranger Keyboards, but also has Workstation Keyboards. But guess what? He STOPPED carrying Roland because they can't seem to get their CRAP together!

This is why I'm telling you to stay away from the Fantom-G. It's NOT the keyboard Roland is claiming it to be! Not even CLOSE! Roland has been a marketing GIMMICK in the past 2 years and it's REALLY pissing me off! The Fantom-X was AMAZING! It just needed a better Synth Engine and better converters! Had they KEPT the ENTIRE Fantom-X feature set and actually IMPROVED it's functionality with the bigger screen, the realtime controllers, and the GORGEOUS new user interface of the Fantom-G with all the improvements it currently has, with FULL mouse support, AND added a NEW Synth Engine with better converters, the Fantom-G would be a no brainer! Bar none! But they HAD to screw it up! They HAD hype it up and make it THE WORST "improved" workstation in their ENTIRE history! WOW!

But like I said, ONLY get the Fantom-G IF you can NOT live without an all in one solution for your vocals and ideas.

Sina

P.S. the Motif ES vs. the XS is night and day! The XS has TWICE the ROM memory, better effects, an AMAZING new Synth Engine, and a MUCH better Sequencer and Screen! It's about TIME they offer a big screen! The ES was a BITCH to use because of that small ancient screen! lol But the XS is SWEET! The sounds, the drums, the unbelievable inspiration that makes this thing an absolute JOY to play is amazing!
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Now I first want to say I am not a troll; hence I am posting these not to make you mad but to ask for an objective response.

First some notes:
- I want a keyboard that is very versatile across many different styles of music. Classical and Orchestral, Hip-hop, Jazz, Techno, on and on.
- I want a reliable and capable sequencer.
- I am looking for good acoustic/classical sounds from a keyboard. The keyboards and classical/acoustic/electric guitars are of special importance to me. I have heard that Motif is generally better for acoustic instruments, while The Fantom is better for Synthy sounds, but some roland users claim that some Fantom acoustic voices shine with some filtering, such as the Piano.

So my two questions are:
- What are the major differences between the Fantom G and the Motif XS? In what ways do each keyboard win over the other? What deficiencies does each board have?
- How do you answer the above criticisms? Are the deficiencies claimed for the Fantom also present in the Motif?
- Also, I will be testing the individual keyboards myself soon, but I realize there are many pros and cons I will not notice in that short test session.

Thanks very much in advance! Cool points to whoever responds!