I've been reading with curiosity many threads where the G70 has been mentioned. Most of the posts seem positive (Diki and Fran not withstanding). From what I have been reading the sounds are great, the styles are good, the features are terrific.

I just don't understand why this board, other than the weight issue, is not more popular with arranger players????

What gives; Inquiring minds want to know.

Have you been able to play one in person? If know, your reason why may help you and others understand the issue and get an answer to your question.

1. Weight is the biggest issue (I think)
2. Availability
3. Older board now
4. A bit contemporary in styles for some
5. No speakers
6. Individual tastes

It should be noted that when the G70 first came out, it took quite a bit of tweeking to get it to sound decent. This was unfortunate, as first impressions are so important. This put a dark cloud around it's debut IMO. The subsequent OS releases made a world of difference, but, by then a great many potential buyers were gone.

Bernie

Just a little feedback. A few players will spend time working and understanding different brands OS. Other who are locked into a produce like Yamaha as an example just won't give or spend the time learning a new OS. It's just easier to keep to what one knows.

When we attend the twice a year seven night keyboard festival UK ( 800 + keyboard players ) A number sit in the Yamaha room day after day and never move around the festival to see the competitors products to even know what else is on offer.
There are no bad keyboards today and it's down to personal preference, but Yamaha do spend a lot of money on promotion and demonstration personnel into events to sell products.
At our keyboard festivals Korg do a very good job, but Roland don't appear interested by not supporting the Roland dealer in attendance.

For me, it's really because the local music shops don't carry any Roland arrangers. I personally never cared for Roland again after owning the EM2000.

another point of view: maybe G70 is just a little bit too professional for most of the keyboard players... just as 2x pro, or tyros.

most of the players are happier with onboard speakers, cheap price, simple interface, easy play, and so on.

note that i did not speak about this forum players, but generally speaking!

Out of the box the keyboard didn't sound great to me at all. Even after tweaking the sounds it still only sounded marginal.

When I attempted to pick it up that was the clincher. I'll never understand why in this era of space-age materials that are much stronger than steel, a manufacturer would continue to build an arranger keyboard out of pig iron. I've had boats that weigh less than the G-70.

The final straw was service and availability. The only independent dealer in my part of the world has long since stopped carrying Roland keyboards. Sales and service on the board, at least where I live, are non-existent.

Cheers,

Gary

Who cares?..

As long as Bernie, Diki, Tom, Dreamer,Richard,and I are glad we have G70's...

The G70 is durable..the "pig iron" body helps...

Service is seldom..if at all needed..key contacts and buttons do not fail as other leading products do..

"Sounds" are just as good as any other brand..same with the "contemporary styles"

"Operating system" and storage design is second to none...


That leaves the only confirmed issue..."the weight"....and if we compare to any other quality instrument...it is in line at 46 pounds...

The negative start of the G70,,,the unfinished (to most ears)initial release..sound wise.....and the decision not to market in the MI division......is the single culprit for a slow sales start..

Anyone..and I mean anyone that stayed with the G70...and actually learned how to use the instrument...found it to be great in every department....sounds (including organ and piano), styles, mic input and harmonizer,key feel and range, editing, USB transfer, and USB midi control.....

Personally I can't find a single fault that would make me say I am not happy with the G70.......not even the weight....

Now if my case didn't have wheels...I may complain a little about the weight..

Touch Screen...no tactile feedback...many people don't like to use them...including me.

The weight seems to be the biggest issue...the OS can be fathomed with patience (and hopefully, more updates)...but, since both Yamaha and Korg can make lighter instruments with neither loss of quality or durability, there is NO excuse for the excess poundage of the G70 (and E-80).

I didn't like the G-70's keybed, but then again, I don't like semi-weighted actions, nor do I like aftertouch...give me a light action, like the PSR, or weighted hammer.

It sold very poorly in my area, mainly due to lack of promotion and no regional clinicians.

Ian

Touch screen, drum breaks that reqired a work-around and sounds that were not the best in the business in my mind. Also, available pedal was only 7 notes. I'm comfortable with 13. Sun on screen was not OK. I play outside a lot.

I'm just happier with Solton/Ketron.


R.

[This message has been edited by captain Russ (edited 10-27-2008).]

I guess it all boils down to personal taste with every keyboard out there. But I remember a time where Roland dominated most of the music stores when it came to arrangers. Ever since they switch over to CK division, that was it, never again in my area with the exception on (1) G70 at a Samash store. I was told the customer ordered it didn't like it and never bought it. It's been sitting on there display for almost 2 years now.

Listen to Dikis songs & see why Roland is the choice of many Pro Musicians.
http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/Forum37/HTML/018442.html

Why isn't the G70 your choice, Donny...why aren't you using one?

Ian

The store owner from where I purchased my G70 made the exact same comment. Most of his keyboard customers were Technics people and the G70 was just too much to handle and it didn't have its own speakers.

And of course, and the ONLY reason I sold mine (was that ever stupid :rolleyes is the weight issue.

Ian stop being naive & do a search on my G70 experiences when I owned one a while back. If its any solace to you I have my Roland T Shirt on as we speak

http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/Forum37/HTML/013653.html
http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/Forum37/HTML/013691.html
http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/Forum37/HTML/013700.html
http://www.synthzone.com/ubbs/Forum37/HTML/015852.html

and theres plenty more

[This message has been edited by Dnj (edited 10-27-2008).]

Just as a comparison...

Roland E80 22.5 kg / 49.10 lbs
Roland E60 13.0 kg / 28.11 lbs
Roland G70 20.5 kg / 45.4 lbs
Korg Pa2xpro 18 kg / 39.68 lbs
Korg Pa800 13.3 kg / 29.3 lbs
Korg Pa500 9.9 kg / 21.8 lbs
Ketron Vega 16 Kg / 35.2 lbs
Yamaha Tyros 15 kg / 33.06 lbs
Yamaha MOTIF XS8: 28.6 kg / 63.05 lbs
Yamaha MOTIF XS7: 17.0 kg / 37.47 lbs
Yamaha MOTIF XS6: 14.8 kg / 33 lbs

I can't believe weight would be an issue if the rest of the board was so outstanding.

Al I had a G70 for about 5 months during 2007. Has many nice features and great sound. The Latin styles were terrific too. In the end I sold it because I had to make a choice I could not keep both T2 and G70, at the time I was also eyeing the PA800, which I did buy. Then sold the T2 and now have the Pa2xPro as you know. The decision to sell the G70 in part was because a 45 pound keyboard inside a 15 pound gator case with wheels(maybe it was that high but it did add weight) was like wrestling with an alligator. I suppose a lighter weight case could have help solve that.



[This message has been edited by Stephenm52 (edited 10-27-2008).]

Another comparison to the weight issue is that most players that gig carry PA speakers that are around 50lbs each also........and most use a Rock & Roller kart anyway?

Four years old?....That's a long time for any technological item. I have not heard anything online that made me feel otherwise about it. My ears don't hear what g70 owners hear. Just as their ears don;t hear whet I hear in the T3. Personal preference.

I did research it before I bought the Korg PA2x. I almost bought one for $1800 locally someone had up on Ebay, But it did not sell. I figured the market knows more than I about something I could only research on the net.

I don't see any reason for a metal case either. You drop either you are going to have issues. Plastic is lighter and less likely to drop because it can be handled easy. Some plastics are stronger then cheap metals as well.

The newer E series are not easy to be found on the net or locally,so I did not consider them. They were not even at Summer NAMM in Nashville where I had hoped to find one to mess with!!!(They did not have a G70 either).It was all about the Pro division keyboards. Fantoms.

On the other hand, I tried the Korg and the Yamaha which has a lot of users therefore there is a lot of support, styles etc and I am comfortable with the brand.

"Naive"?

Not really..."amused" would be a better description.

I'm glad you have your Roland shirt back on...but why?

If you got a G70, I hope it's a "muscle shirt"...meaning one with muscles built in.

Good luck, and may the farce be with you.

Ian

Well I turn to Fran on this question; I know that you have been a Roland user for many years. What changes have you seen in Roland over the last 10 years that would deter people from buying a roland, not just the G70.

Anyone is also free to answer.

I cant wait until Diki comes home

I think Roland's decision to make a less than stellar keybed on their keyboards under $1,500...is a compromise that many Roland users may be turned off...I know for sure..these light 61 keybeds don't make me content...bear in mind Roland does this because the competition use inferior beds too,,,and yes the cheaper Roland keybeds are still better than the competition...but not by much..

The other turn off..was placing the top models in "home piano stores"..where you know you are most likely to get ripped off...as in paying too much....

This year ..Roland has turned it around a little ..The feature packed Juno Stage as an example has a semi weighted keybed..Roland knows this model will get into the hands of gigging musicians...

Your right, it's too bad, I remember Roland was one of biggest arranger keyboards ever. I think since they moved the arrangers to the CK division killed thier sales. Everyone that I can remember had a Roland, e20 e86, e90, RA90.

If there were more Rolands to test out in my area, I would sit down and really give one a try. But I have to say, I wouldn't buy the g70, only because it's too big and I no longer, (unless it was really necessary) want to purchase an arranger over $3000.00.


[This message has been edited by mc (edited 10-27-2008).]

I'm confused, my local music store, Alto Music, carries the Roland G70. Does this mean they are a Home / Organ dealer? They don't have anything special in regards to high end Roland organs or pianos. They don't sell acoustics??

George Kaye said they gave the Roland arrangers back to the MI stores instead of CK (home piano)..about a year ago

Ahhh, that would make sense. I personally love Roland Pianos and the B3/Organ simulation. I'm going to have to spend some more time with the G70; at least just to get ready for the G90;

Sorry, studio work today tied me up... (and yes, I did it on my G70 with a bit of the old K2500 )

'So, what's not to like about the G70'...

Don't get me started! If you want to read in detail how I think, the New Features forum at Roland-arranger.com is a good place to start; http://www.roland-arranger.com/smf/index.php?board=2.0

A couple of things drive me CRAZY! Tops, right now, is that if you change from Pianostyle chord recognition type, to any other type (or from any type to any other type), all the ACC parts cut out! I tend to like triggering in Pianostyle for comping and singing, just play the piano like normal, then use an OTS or the screen to change to Split mode and Standard chord type for RH solos. You have to be VERY precise to do this at bar boundaries, otherwise the ACC cutoff is very noticeable.

And the decision, probably because of circuit board limitations, to have the reverb send pre-Leslie for the Hammond section is just plain dumb. There goes Whiter Shade of Pale! You CAN get a post-Leslie reverb send if you use a regular organ Tone, and put it through the MFX VK Leslie, but, just as I pointed out on the GW-8 review, most of the organ Tones already have some sort of slow Leslie or cho/vib sampled into them, which buggers up the sound if you bang it through the Lesli sim.

Weight... well, I'm only 52, and know how to use a dolly My line of work doesn't accept compromise in the sound, just to shave a few pounds (six or seven compared to most 76-ers). Heck, my flightcase probably weighs more than an S900! Could I go out and gig live with something lighter? Of course I could. I could gig with a Casio if need be. But need doesn't be

However, none of this adds up to a hill of beans, when you take the whole thing as a package. The overall sound, the 'live-ness' of it, and the piano to die for coupled with an action that makes the most of it, makes it still my first choice.

BUT.... and I think this point is critical, guys and girls. Just because I think, for me personally, that this is the best possible solution, you will notice I am STILL very vocal in my criticism of areas that could be improved. It is one of the things that drive me crazy, around here..! There are altogether way to many of you unable to accept criticism of your own arrangers from someone else, let alone able to show the honesty and willingness to talk about flaws, bugs and improvable features that I KNOW you have.

Trust me, were I to own a T3/PA2Xpro/Ketron/Wersi, you name it, I guarantee I could fill up a forum just as easily as I have the Roland one with things that COULD work better... I have never shirked away from discussing them here openly and candidly. I wish this were more common. All of us deserve to hear the good along with the bad about ALL arrangers (it one of the things this forum is here for), to better help us decide what suits us best before we go out and 'buy to try', now that few places even stock these TOTL arrangers any more. That nearly $500 restocking fee that Class Act had to eat is a wakeup call to us ALL.

Let's spend less time 'defending' our arranger, and more time 'discussing' it...