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#192298 - 09/14/00 05:19 AM Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
Clif Anderson Offline
Member

Registered: 02/17/00
Posts: 532
Right now, I would rank Roland's arranger offerings below the other major manufacturers. OTOH, Roland is in an excellent position to make a favorite by adding vocal harmony and XV/JV slots. Is there anyone else that might drool over a Roland arranger with SC8850 sounds, 2 XV expansion slots, 2 JV expansion slots, Roland styles, Variphrase, and vocal harmony?

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#192299 - 09/14/00 09:58 AM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
Alex K Offline
Member

Registered: 12/03/99
Posts: 732
Loc: Phoenix, AZ USA
Cliff, you are dreaming. But as long as you are, I will add to that my two cents' worth of suggestions:

1. make keyboard 76 keys (and keep the speakers) - I bet they can do it without increasing the size of the VA-7, though they may need to move the joystick

2. add panel buttons for:
a) variations (to same, to opposite)
b) beat reset
c) lock style, lock tones, lock effects, lock transpose, lock keyboard mode
d) make super-tones selectable with Bank/Individual BUTTONS, rather than having to go to touch screen
e) add part selection buttons (to alter tones), rather than be constrained to the touchscreen

3. add Upper3 voice

In short, give me a G1000 with vocal harmonizer, speakers, touchscreen, better buttons, and expansion slots (though these are optional to me) - and I will be happy.

Have fun dreaming,
Alex
_________________________
Regards,
Alex

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#192300 - 09/14/00 01:08 PM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
vic83 Offline
Member

Registered: 12/31/69
Posts: 610
Loc: Florida
alex,that's my dream and I think it's every one's dream and what I would like to have also is a good composer like the mc-50mk2 with more memory on board :-}
_________________________
Vic:)

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#192301 - 09/14/00 01:37 PM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
Clif Anderson Offline
Member

Registered: 02/17/00
Posts: 532
Thanks Alex and Vic for expanding the fantasy. I want the expansion slots for the world and asian sounds ROM. Maybe the 64MB piano. Of course, if these sounds were built in. . . .

I like 76 keys. Five octaves is often too few even for pop music, especially when 1.5 octaves are dedicated to autoaccompaniment. I agree there is usually far too much space wasted on the sides of many keyboards. I like the Yamaha S80 with its controllers in behind the keyboard instead of to the side. Although, I would keep a pitch bend wheel just left of the keyboard.

I agree that important controls should be more available than they are on the VA-7. More buttons are better (if well arranged).

I could forgo the speakers, but why not ask for a line of arrangers with different models. I am always afraid the speakers will burn or wear out before their time.

I did not want to ask for too much on my first post, but I do have some other items on my wish list. An external effects loop (in which my Wavestation AD would be the effects unit). Foot controller inputs that can be either switches or pedals according to what you insert (like on my Roland A-50). In any event, why shouldn't I be able to have two foot pedals?

Am I dreaming? I do not know that at least my original requests are unrealistic. I do not see the VA-7 as competitive in the Pro (as opposed to the "Contemporary") market, despite the quality sounds. It is the only high-end arranger without vocal harmony at least being optional. There is a large group of us for which vocal harmony has become a make or break feature. Yamaha is putting its crown jewels (the plug-in slots) into the PRS9000Pro; Korg is putting its crown jewels (Triton sound engine) into its PA-80. I think Variphrase is cool, but not enough. I would not be surprised to see Roland leverage its sound ROM cards in the arranger market. Or--maybe I am just dreaming.


[This message has been edited by Clif Anderson (edited 09-14-2000).]

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#192302 - 09/14/00 01:44 PM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
Ilija Petkovski Offline
Member

Registered: 06/04/00
Posts: 193
Loc: Apeldoorn
Alex K:
"make keyboard 76 keys (and keep the speakers) - I bet they can do it without increasing the size of the VA-7, though they may need to move the joystick" hahaha
You are TOTALLY wrong. The room is COMPLETELY filled with chips and things. There IS a reason why they make it 76 keys that easy!

VA-7? Dream? Every LITTLE kid could have said that there should be buttons on the keyboard instead of in the menu! That is not a future dream, that is ROLAND DESIGN STUPIDITY !!!!

Ilija

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#192303 - 09/14/00 03:00 PM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
Shakil Offline
Member

Registered: 10/25/99
Posts: 191
Put
XV5080, MC-80, G-1000's arranger section, smart touch screen, great controls, knobs for real time control, sliders for each tracks volume (ofsoure, assignable), 4 MIDI ports and a great master keyboard funtion set with customized voice listings for modules, 5 part vocal harmony, Sampling with Flash Memory (64 MB atleast), onboard digital mixer with 16 tracks of EQ and dynamics, atleast 3 MFX busses, 2 master effects, a master 15 band EQ, Mixdown to CD burner...... all in one easily portable keyboard with a good amplification system....

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#192304 - 09/14/00 03:08 PM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
Shakil Offline
Member

Registered: 10/25/99
Posts: 191
uncle dave..
"but I'll repeat myself with this statement", in what style and at what tempo?

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#192305 - 09/14/00 04:15 PM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
Clif Anderson Offline
Member

Registered: 02/17/00
Posts: 532
I am not a big fan of compromises and shortcomings. All Roland has to do is combine stuff they aleady have in really obvious ways to provide a far more useful keyboard with little additional cost. If I were upgrading to a new arranger now based on available, announced and rumoured products, I would go with Yamaha (PSR9000Pro) or Solton (X1/X4). If Roland would follow a few of the suggestions in this thread, I would go with Roland.

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#192306 - 09/14/00 04:21 PM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
Alex K Offline
Member

Registered: 12/03/99
Posts: 732
Loc: Phoenix, AZ USA
[QUOTE]Originally posted by Uncle Dave:
...I can easily listen to one or two variations in a pattern and still make exciting music...
And, indeed, I do - or actually I make my music with the one or two sounds which I can easily switch between for my solo (RH) parts. However, when I bought my G1000, I was actually charged for 1146(?) sounds which are built into the instrument, so it hardly seems fair that I should be forced to be only using a few of them.

Ilija:
"You are TOTALLY wrong. The room is COMPLETELY filled with chips and things." - is it potato chips or corn chips? or is it cow chips? Seriously, though, in these days of super-miniaturization, at the time when the power of a recent supercomputer can be packed into a hotebook computer, it should not be a problem at all to shrink the contents of the keyboard a bit to free up some room for the extra keys.

Best regards,
_________________________
Regards,
Alex

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#192307 - 09/14/00 04:30 PM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
Alex K Offline
Member

Registered: 12/03/99
Posts: 732
Loc: Phoenix, AZ USA
Quote:
Originally posted by Clif Anderson:
I am not a big fan of compromises and shortcomings. All Roland has to do is combine stuff they aleady have in really obvious ways to provide a far more useful keyboard with little additional cost. If I were upgrading to a new arranger now based on available, announced and rumoured products, I would go with Yamaha (PSR9000Pro) or Solton (X1/X4). If Roland would follow a few of the suggestions in this thread, I would go with Roland.


Let's face it, folks, there is no good technical reason for Roland or any other high-end manufacturer not to make an instrument of our combined dreams. In fact, since Roland already owns all of the technologies which we were listing above, combining them should be as easy as a pie.

The handicapping of the functionality of the arranger keyboards is usually driven by marketing, rather than engineering. As Korg rep has recently pointed out, they would be shooting themselves in the foot if the PA80 had included all the features of the Triton - who'd want a Triton, then? So IMHO it is highly unlikely that a major manufacturer like Roland will produce a full-featured instrument; in fact, I am waiting to see which functions are missing in the PSR9000Pro, as I am sure there are some.

In fact, the high end of the arranger keyboard market is going to be driven by small companies, like Solton (and GEM?), who only make arranger keyboards; albeit they may not have the resources to stay abreast of the music technologies.

So, we will have no choice, but to make a constant compromise.

Regards,
Alex



[This message has been edited by Alex K (edited 09-14-2000).]
_________________________
Regards,
Alex

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#192308 - 09/14/00 04:45 PM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
DannyUK Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 12/09/99
Posts: 1130
Absolutely right Alex..

Big companies on purpously do this so that your set up comprises of more than one component to produce the perfect sound or function, eg, SPEND AS MUCH MONEY AS YOU CAN ! Until little fish companies like Solton come along and get it almost right in one go, what have they got to lose?

As for GEM, have they not got LEM as well for synths etc..? im not too familiar with GEM but on one of the catalogues I read they had so many things they make other than keyboards.

One day, there will be a keyboard created that all it will have is a HD, DVD ROM drive and gigbites of RAM to play with and nothing else, no onboard sounds or styles... but this is the best bit.. with the keyboard will come a few DVD discs that contain PERFECT samples in which you will have the ability to load them into the keyboard as you wish and store likewise.. what you dont like you dont include...you will never need to buy another keyboard again because this company will only need to release new DVDs and possibly RAM upgrades because with better samples the data sizes increase!

(maybe there is such a thing but I dont know of it !!)

DannyUK

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#192309 - 09/14/00 10:37 PM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
Clif Anderson Offline
Member

Registered: 02/17/00
Posts: 532
Hi Alex

I do not doubt that the PSR9000Pro will miss some features. In particular, I agree that should have designed a better case instead of using old EX5 parts. But--the PSR9000Pro is (will be) arguably Yamaha's best synth. It has the most ROM of any Yamaha keyboard and is as expandable as any Yamaha keyboard. (And it has the sockets for two "swan-neck" lamps )

I think that many of the members of this group are more sophisticated than the target market of most arranger keyboards, even the high-end arranger keyboards. I feel like Yamaha and Solton are targeting us. We have yet to appear on Roland's and Korg's radars. But this cannot last.

The activity level of this group, the growth of arranger e-groups, and the growth of style sites, all demonstrate the growing significance of the high-end arranger market. If the PSR9000Pro sells well, you might see a VA-9 with ROM slots and possibly a PA-90 with a MOSS expansion in 2002.


[This message has been edited by Clif Anderson (edited 09-14-2000).]

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#192310 - 09/15/00 06:37 AM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
Ilija Petkovski Offline
Member

Registered: 06/04/00
Posts: 193
Loc: Apeldoorn
Uncle Dave:
All cars have airbags!! If Ford suddenly makes a car without airbag, when the tech. is there and WAS used before this car, you cannot use your vision and say: well when i started driving, I even had to open the windows with my hands!
Sorry Dave but your opinion doesnt fall well. If something is there USE it. Dont be happy stating that it was worse in the past. What good will that do?

Alex K:
"In fact, the high end of the arranger keyboard market is going to be driven by small companies, like Solton (and GEM?), who only make arranger keyboards; albeit they may not have the resources to stay abreast of the music technologies."
Sorry but SOLTON doesnt make Arranger Keyboards. They make musical products. As a little interest area (less than 1% !!!!) they make Arrangers. Imagine that! If they would ONLY focus on keyboards, the would def. make a dreammachine. Solton doesnt care for Arrangers, whether they sell or not. Because it is a very very small division compared to their professional product line (studio mixers, PA etc etc. but NOTHING else with key's !).

Ilija

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#192311 - 09/15/00 07:20 AM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
Clif Anderson Offline
Member

Registered: 02/17/00
Posts: 532
People who sell keyboards have a vested interest in having people satisfied with what is currently available. I appreciate what Uncle Dave and others have done to help me get more out of my PSR8000. However, as we get to know our equipment, we get to know what else we want. If many of us want the same things, then we should communicate that to the manufacturers. If they respond, everyone benefits.

If the PSR9000Pro has not been invented yet, then it will not be announced this year. Time will tell.

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#192312 - 09/15/00 09:25 AM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
Fran Carango Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 05/26/99
Posts: 9673
Loc: Levittown, Pa, USA
Iliija, Where do you get your info? Solton 's main production is arranging keyboards and has been since the early 80's. In fact they were ahead of everyone with the professional specs of the TS4. Where did you get the fact they do less then 1% volume in keyboard products? Several years back Solton combined with Ketron, They are the people that developed the Bit One and Bit 99, as well as making the arranger products for Rodger keyboards..I think you can see they have a major interest in the arranger market....Fran
_________________________
www.francarango.com



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#192313 - 09/16/00 05:12 AM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
Ilija Petkovski Offline
Member

Registered: 06/04/00
Posts: 193
Loc: Apeldoorn
Where I got my info? From Solton/Ketron itself of course! Could it be that they do more Arranger US only?

Ilija

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#192314 - 09/16/00 06:00 AM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
vic83 Offline
Member

Registered: 12/31/69
Posts: 610
Loc: Florida
guys actuly I have never ever heard about solton before except here in usa.and I don't even know how does that keyboard sound, so at least guys, one of you open a site and put some mp3s, to make every body listen to that keyboard,or at least some one send me an mp3 for that keyboard because you guys talk about rthat keyboard alot and many of us doesn't even know how it sounds!
_________________________
Vic:)

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#192315 - 09/16/00 08:42 AM Re: Fantasy Roland VA-7 Plus
john smies Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 05/05/00
Posts: 1384
Loc: koudekerke, Holland.
ilja,

don't you ever get bored with your own
inacurate information (Kurzweil, Solton,
etc.) Give us a break, will you ?!!

john.

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