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#219443 - 07/24/01 07:16 PM I've been waiting for . . . . patiently
Sulistya Offline
Junior Member

Registered: 01/09/01
Posts: 9
Loc: Jakarta, Indonesia
I've been waiting for "The Next VA" (VA9 ?) with the following specs :

* COMPLETE BUTTONS
* More Flash Memory
* More space for Disk Link
* More pad buttons
* 250 MB Zip Drive
* Custom / User Drum Set
* Vocal Harmoniser
* Min. 8 GB internal SCSI Hard Disk (optional)

Wooww ... Wouww . . .it's great !!
When will my dream come true ???

Sulistya - Jakarta, Indonesia

[This message has been edited by Sulistya (edited 07-24-2001).]

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#219444 - 07/24/01 08:37 PM Re: I've been waiting for . . . . patiently
lukitoh Offline
Member

Registered: 08/15/00
Posts: 550
Loc: Hayward, CA, USA
Nice to know another indonesian on this forum. I am also Indonesian living in US near San Francisco. I owned KORG i30 and looking to change soon.

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#219445 - 07/25/01 05:16 AM Re: I've been waiting for . . . . patiently
Mister M Offline
Junior Member

Registered: 09/11/00
Posts: 24
Loc: Italy
Hi guys!! The new Roland VA-76 is your answer! I got it some months ago, I'm so happy with it...!!!
Please feel free to ask me any question, I'm an italian musician. You can get more information at www.roland.co.jp

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#219446 - 07/25/01 06:59 AM Re: I've been waiting for . . . . patiently
vic83 Offline
Member

Registered: 12/31/69
Posts: 610
Loc: Florida
Sulistya,
your dream actually could happen.because the VA-LINE is A CK Product and I remember that the G-LINE was an MI product.so may be they are working on a new G one with complete Buttons....I hope!...strangely the www.Roland.co.jp doesn't have any Info on the VA-76 Keyboard which I think means they don't have it in Japan yet just like the US. may be George Kay have more information on Roland because I remember that he said that the Guy from Roland told him no way the VA-76 is coming in the US....Right?(Correct me George if I'm Wrong).

[This message has been edited by vic83 (edited 07-25-2001).]
_________________________
Vic:)

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#219447 - 07/25/01 08:07 AM Re: I've been waiting for . . . . patiently
George Kaye Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 11/24/99
Posts: 3305
Loc: Reseda, California USA
vic,
you are correct. Roland US told me several months ago that the VA76 would not come to the US market. Poor sales of the G1000 and EM2000 was sighted as the reason. Compared to the European market, there aren't as many high end pro arranger keyboards sold in the US. I did not attend the summer NAMM show, but I doubt if Roland has changed their minds.
George Kaye
_________________________
George Kaye
Kaye's Music Scene (Closed after 51 years)
West Hills, California
(Retired 2021)

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#219448 - 07/25/01 12:01 PM Re: I've been waiting for . . . . patiently
Alex K Offline
Member

Registered: 12/03/99
Posts: 732
Loc: Phoenix, AZ USA
Sulistya,

I have a set of like wishes for the high-end Roland keyboard, with perhaps a few differences:
*I felt comfortable navigating around the touch screen in the shop, but not on stage - I'd like more programmable buttons, with the instrument functions which can be mapped to the buttons. This way everyone can assign the functions they care about to the buttons.
*VA76/VA7 was a step back from G1000 in number of disk link memories.
*I will take the internal hard disk over the trouble-prone ZIP anytime, preferrably with an external USB connection (SCSI is passe)
*Vocal harmonizer is A MUST for the high-end instrument. Every competing manufacturer offers it, either as a standard or as an option: Ketron, GEM, Yamaha, Technics, Korg(in a much cheaper instrument at that).
*A shorter chassis, similar to SD1 - an instrument of this type is primarily used by a gigging musician, and size and weight are important factors for people who have to carry the instrument themselves from gig to gig.
*A breath controller input, to make it easier to control sax and clarinet sounds.
*Having acquired Yamaha MS50 speakers, I am less in need of internal amplification, but I hope Roland will eventually realize that having the built-in speakers does not make for a non-professional instrument. In fact, users like me especially need the internal speakers while performing - the little Yamaha speakers are extra things to set up and plug in, and the PA does not always provide the monitoring capability I need.
*External manipulation of keyboard parameters, such as in EMU samplers, where you can use your PC to set up/change in real time various configuration parameters of the keyboard, such as sound selection and effect settings for various parts, style selections, keyboard mode, etc. Having a user-friendly interface option would be a great help for me in being able to set up the instrument to the configuration I need, and I would not have to be constrained by the shortcomings of the touch screen, and too few buttons.

Of the 12 or so keyboards I have owned over the years, my last two are Rolands - the E70 and G1000. Unfortunately, it seems that with every new model Roland gives with one hand (sound quality), and takes away with the other (user friendliness, various features, bulkiness).

Roland spends money publishing the near-useless newsletter - RUG news, in which it tells us how to use their gear. Why don't they spend some money instead and ask us, the users, what we need? All it would take in today's Internet age is to set up a web site where we could enter suggestions (and provide some feedback in case our suggestion is an existing feature of the instrument), in other words, a moderated forum for the users.

Roland themselves recognize that some of their stuff is not selling well, at least here in the US. I suspect this situation is going to continue until they respond to the actual needs of the actual users.

Regards
_________________________
Regards,
Alex

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#219449 - 07/25/01 07:06 PM Re: I've been waiting for . . . . patiently
Sulistya Offline
Junior Member

Registered: 01/09/01
Posts: 9
Loc: Jakarta, Indonesia
Hi lukitoh, Mister M, vic83, George Kaye, & Alex K ...
Thanks, I appreciate all of your replies

Please remember :
I DON'T HATE the touch screen, but I prefer to use buttons on stage, it would be more comfortable to navigate. To create a style or song, using touch screen is no problem.

Sulistya AS,
Jakarta - INDONESIA.

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#219450 - 07/26/01 03:03 AM Re: I've been waiting for . . . . patiently
Anonymous
Unregistered


The VA76 is great on stage.Use the Perfor-
mance Memories and their very special possi-
bilities.I said it before ,try to understand
what you can do with these instruments.It
will take some hours but after those hours
you are a rich musician.Nothing is wrong with
a touchscreen,it is very easy to use.Just in
very special situations as too much sunshine
a few buttons could be nice.A parasol can
solve the problem when playing outdoor.The
USA is an undeveloped country in arranger-
keyboards.Men like George Kaye are working
hard to change this. They do a very good job.
Regards Mart Weeho

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#219451 - 07/26/01 04:17 AM Re: I've been waiting for . . . . patiently
Dreamer Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 02/23/01
Posts: 3849
Loc: Rome - Italy
I do agree that the VA7/VA76 are great instruments, with top sounds and styles; sounds are most important to me because you can always import and tweak styles from other keyboards. For live use you have to do a little more homework to have the right user programs ready, but the result is worth the while. I have just upgraded to OS 2.0 and I am happy I did. Of course, I too, like Alex K, wish that in the next arranger Roland will offer an internal hard disk and sampling capabilities, but we all know that Roland comes out with a new arranger every two years, so I guess it will be in the second half of 2002...
Until then, happy playing to everyone.


[This message has been edited by Dreamer (edited 07-26-2001).]
_________________________
Korg Kronos 61 and PA3X-Pro76, Roland G-70, BK7-m and Integra 7, Casio PX-5S, Fender Stratocaster with Fralin pickups, Fender Stratocaster with Kinman pickups, vintage Gibson SG standard.

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#219452 - 07/27/01 10:14 AM Re: I've been waiting for . . . . patiently
Wis Offline
Member

Registered: 04/23/01
Posts: 295
Right,take your time and make the best regis-
trations.Personally I like the Zipdisk,you
can change them in less than a minute.
Who knows what a next Roland brings,it should
be nice that the second style in the morphing
could also a userstyle. And for both styles a
separate mixer.

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