Roland always express wave ROM as uncompressed size, whether they muck it up (deliberately or not) by using Mb or MB to express the data. How much that expressed ROM is compressed remains an undocumented figure, but generally, the cheaper the product, the more it is likely to be, IMO. But, if they say 256MB, that's probably about right. Sonic Cell has 128MB (according to all their lit) and the GW-8 has an additional bank of 'World' sounds, the area that each different model puts it's sounds in. Some of the best sounds in the GW-8, I felt, came from this expanded area, including better horns, strings, and a large latin percussion selection. So, 256MB feels about right.

BUT.... one thing I think sets the GW-8 apart from previous models (of any kind!) is that it uses Roland's brand-new Sonic Cell as the underlying sound set and chip architecture. And, just as the Sound Canvas pushed small, inexpensive multi-timbral modules into new areas of 'bang for the buck', I feel that anything based on this new chip and ROM is quite a bargain...

There ARE gaps in it's soundset. I felt the saxes and brass to be not as good as I would have liked (but at the price point, still usable), but let us not forget TWO SRX slots Whatever your particular area of sonic interest, there's an SRX board that can fill the hole quite elegantly.

This thing makes the GW-7 seem like a toy, in comparison. Try it... You might like it