I cant wait for the
New Roland "V" Arranger...

Notice this one, Ian...? Maybe not the one trick pony you have been harping about....

Yes, I saw that Diki...but these tones don't seem to be playable from the one trick pony's keyboard.

Diki, it's quite clear you are impressed with this instrument...I was at first, but the weight, bulky size, and lack of controller functions put me off, but apparently this doesn't bother you.

Are you considering buying this piano?

Just a thought, but wouldn't this be the beginning of a line of instruments, and probably designed to showcase what's going to be some of Roland's next instruments?

Why not wait and see, and perhaps this technology will wind up in an arranger?

Ian






[This message has been edited by ianmcnll (edited 02-06-2009).]

It'll depend on my playing it, when it finally gets in stores near me (probably quite a while), my financial health, recording schedule and whether maybe I can convince the studio to chip in. Yes, of course, I don't really do a cocktail piano act at the moment, my G70 does the job as well as can be done by a sampled piano, IMO , and I don't haul an 88 around now, so unless my gig type changes radically, I probably won't start...

But, as I said, I am considering selling my REAL piano to go towards this. As accurate as the escapement and repetition action looks (have to play it for confirmation, of course!), as accurate and customizable as the piano sound itself seems, it seems like the first thing with little compromise between it and a REAL piano. But if Little Feat called tomorrow (just a dream!) and wanted a pianist, this is the first thing I'd want to play! Let them worry about cartage!

A nice house gig, though? Sure, I'd LOVE it! (bet you Russ is drooling already! )

BTW, the V-Piano has MIDI outs. Loop through a laptop (you're going to use one anyway for the editing) and back to the other sounds (sounds like the same specs from the RD700G, which have some awesome Rhodes and other sounds) and there's no reason it can't be as good as any stage piano. In fact, run it into one of the software arrangers, it could rock!

It's not going to replace my G70, but under the right circumstances, I'd love to gig with it. But I still see it as primarily a studio and home piano (which it looks designed for). Is it expensive... yes. Is it heavy? Yes. Does it do something that nothing else can do? Yes. "Nuff said!

In the meantime, enjoy your S900 piano sound. You are SO qualified to criticize this instrument!

Thanks Diki...I do enjoy my S900's piano sound very much.

BTW...it's rather disconcerting to see that one has to find workarounds on a $6000 piano...why, even an entry level FP4 will at least let you layer sounds.

Of course you realize the V-Piano plus four decent sized monitors...it outputs to four speakers (two for stereo, and two for the ambiance of the room) makes it easily the size of an actual real piano.

Truly a niche market product, and most definitely for the home and/or studio...I can't see you lugging this around at nearly twice the weight of your G70...and you can barely get that on a stand without help.

As Froggy aptly said earlier on in this thread, "If you've dropped enough cash, you can probably hear anything you want."


Good luck, and keep your stick on the ice.

Ian

[This message has been edited by ianmcnll (edited 02-07-2009).]

LOL... No-one EVER helps me put the G70 on the stand. Despite being over 50, overweight and out of shape, I don't have even the slightest problem picking up my G70 and putting it on the stand unaided. In fact, even if I have help moving the G70 in it's case (handles on both ends), I refuse to let anyone assist with removal and mounting on the stand. THEY are more likely to drop it, slip or mishandle it than I am. Does that make me a strong person, or does it simply point out the ridiculousness of claims from many of my age and below that 45 lbs. is just TOO heavy for day to day use? I guarantee, almost every day of the week, you lift SOMETHING in your life heavier than that. If moving a sack of fertilizer, or moving some furniture, or picking up a keyboard amp or PA rack is doable, why not your main instrument..? Having to chose lesser instruments, with lesser keybeds to save 15 or 20 lbs. once or twice a day is a compromise I, at least, am not willing to make.

It has never been dropped, fallen or been damaged in any way. And I guarantee that in ten year's time, it will be worth more than your S900 (as a percentage, even!) if you liked that enough to keep it that long. Which you don't!

And, let's face it, if you DID like your S900 piano, you wouldn't be hauling around a P85 and using THAT'S piano sound. You would have an 88 controller and still use the S900's...

That's good to hear Diki...but don't you think the V-Piano would be a tad unmanageable? It is bulkier than your 76 key G70 as well as being nearly twice the weight.

Just something to consider....wouldn't it be nice to be able to take the instrument on ANY gig, not just have it sit in your home or studio, especially if you love playing it?

Concerning the P85 piano...it is pretty light(25 lbs); lighter than most 88 weighted action controllers...I use it mostly as a controller...it has MIDI and I use it to play the S900's piano sound which works very well with it...plus I can use the Audio to USB recorder in the latter.

I'm not hurting for money, but there is no way I'd pay six grand for an instrument that would just be used in a studio or my home.

Ian

Depends on how much studio work you were doing, Ian

I wouldn't be surprised at some kind of integrated stand, legs, whatever with this unit. Just like the much heavier Rhodes. You put the legs on it while on it's back, and lever it upright. We did it back then with no problem...

So far, of course, I haven't played it... Reality sometimes doesn't match the hype (like when I first played an S900!). But two things I consider essential to good piano playing (as opposed to doing it on an arranger) are the escapement and repetition, essential for rapid passages and rhythmic playing, and the inter-string detuning, which varies the character of the sound more than anything else. Old Motown has an utterly different degree of tuning stability to say a John Legend track.

Nothing else on the market even allows ANY control of this at all, let alone this degree of variability. And variability is the key in studio work. You don't want to sound identical on different tracks. A real piano will breathe and change during the day, and over several days. You can't get it to sound identical no matter HOW hard you try! But a sampled piano...? Ditto, ditto, ditto...

Compare Rabbit Bundrick to Elton John (early Elton!), to Dr John, you won't hear the same piano sound. The V-Piano finally allows this degree of variability, all in the same piano! Heck, just what the studio spends in piano tuners alone (at least once a week for the Steinway if used heavily) would pay for the V-Piano over a year or two!

I don't think this is a day to day tool, but most top players (and at least SOME lesser ones like me!) consider a master of ONE thing better than a jack of all trades (but master of NOTHING ).

After all, a real pianist only plays ONE thing. The piano. I see a boatload of these going to those who want the sound of a real piano (including it's idiosyncrasies and tuning variability) with none of the disadvantages... After all, it is still ten times less than a good real piano, even if it is nearly five times more than an S900

Some see a reduction in weight as a sign of progress. I prefer to see an improvement in SOUND and playability and realism as the sign...

[This message has been edited by Diki (edited 02-07-2009).]

That's true...it was far better than the hype made it out to be...that why I use an S900 instead of a T2/T3.

As for the V-Piano...time will tell...sure is a lot of money, of course the R&D has to be paid.

I think it would be far wiser to wait and see what this technology winds up in...no doubt subsequent instruments will be far less bulky, much lighter, and far more versatile i.e. additional sounds and/or expansion slots.

I hope it works out for you...the weighted action alone would be a immense(literally)improvement over having to use the G70 as a piano on a gig.

Ian

NOTHING could match the hype you imbue on the S900, Ian!

Heck, even it's piano sound is better than the FantomX, RD700, G70 eh?