I found the sounds pretty close in overall quality, but the big difference is the old chestnut that Yamaha and Roland have their own characteristic "sound"

So, one will tend to favor one over the other, depending on what sounds best to them...the "Yamaha" sound or the "Roland" sound.

I like the "Yamaha" sound...that's why I play one.

Style wise, the Yamaha S700 clearly has an edge because of the mega voices, of which Roland has no equal...again, that's my personal opinion.

Roland's drums are more "live", Yamaha's are more compressed...I like "compressed" for my type of music and for where I play...others may prefer a the former, depending on their needs.



Ian