FR-4x Miscellany

[Alan Sharkis]

I’m an FR-4x owner. I used to be jealous of the FR-8x’s display. Then I downloaded the free editor for the FR-4x. Oh, the things you can do … ! By the way, the editor for the FR-4x came out before the editor for the FR-8x. Roland wasn’t even thinking about making an editor for the FR-8x, but then a bunch of FR-8x owners got jealous …

I bought a used BK-7m to use with my FR-4x. Then I discovered that it doesn’t have Klezmer styles, and I’m a fan of Klezmer, and Yiddish Theater, and Yiddish folk songs. But a while back, I had purchased Sherry Mayrent’s Klezmorim In A Kestl, a collection of klezmer styles for Band In A Box software, and I created some backing tracks for my FR-4x. They work well, and the sounds are pretty good. The downside is that those tracks are very tune-specific. Unlike the BK-7m, the tracks won’t follow chord changes from the accordion unless I record tracks that only have drums, and even then, I can’t vary a lot of elements while using them.

People criticize the FR-4x because it has a 37- key treble keyboard as opposed to the 41-key treble keyboard that goes with 120-bass accordions. The lack of those four keys is something I can find ways around when playing tunes. If I need the physical keys for practicing scales and other exercises there’s always my acoustic.

Some people also wonder why the FR-4x doesn’t have a lithium battery and on-board charger like the FR-8x, but uses ten rechargeable AA cells that are recharged externally.
My guess is that a lithium battery and on-board charger would defeat the low-weight character of the instrument. At this stage, with limited mobility and anticipating a hip replacement in August, I’m not about to take my FR-4x out of the house, so I’m running it on the AC adaptor and not even using batteries.

 

[JerryPH]

… ! By the way, the editor for the FR-4x came out before the editor for the FR-8x.

Actually there was a group of people that had already cracked the code for the 8X UGPs and uploading methods a year and a half before the editor for the 4X came out and they had their own public domain editor. The "official" editor from Roland came out 14 months after the "official" one for the 4X came out. I was seeing screen captures of people reprogramming their 8X a loooong time before the 8X editor came out. Back then I had zero interest in programming, I was too busy learning what the 8X had to offer before diving off on the deep end. Today, that has changed a little.

People criticize the FR-4x because it has a 37- key treble keyboard as opposed to the 41-key treble keyboard that goes with 120-bass accordions. The lack of those four keys is something I can find ways around when playing tunes. If I need the physical keys for practicing scales and other exercises there’s always my acoustic.

It's not so much criticism as a need that fails for those people. These who need those 41 keys *really* need them, and when someone suggests the 4X to them, they voice reasons why its not for them... I need those 41, heck sometimes I need 45! I'd be constantly complaining if I had no choice but to move to a 4X... lol

Some people also wonder why the FR-4x doesn’t have a lithium battery and on-board charger like the FR-8x, but uses ten rechargeable AA cells that are recharged externally.

Because it's not the flagship. Roland in their (cough*misguided*cough) wisdom did not think the 4X needs to play for as long as the 8X. Personally either one works for me... a battery is a battery, a charger is a charger. It does offer a 2-3 pound weight savings, though and for some, that is very important.

So are you looking forward to the hip replacement? Do think it will help you be more comfortable playing the accordion? I sincerely hope it does all that and more. I've had a few friends have the procedure, all were very satisfied with the results, after a fair amount of recovery and physio time.

 

[Alan Sharkis]

Actually there was a group of people that had already cracked the code for the 8X UGPs and uploading methods a year and a half before the editor for the 4X came out and they had their own public domain editor. The "official" editor from Roland came out 14 months after the "official" one for the 4X came out. I was seeing screen captures of people reprogramming their 8X a loooong time before the 8X editor came out. Back then I had zero interest in programming, I was too busy learning what the 8X had to offer before diving off on the deep end. Today, that has changed a little.


It's not so much criticism as a need that fails for those people. These who need those 41 keys *really* need them, and when someone suggests the 4X to them, they voice reasons why its not for them... I need those 41, heck sometimes I need 45! I'd be constantly complaining if I had no choice but to move to a 4X... lol


Because it's not the flagship. Roland in their (cough*misguided*cough) wisdom did not think the 4X needs to play for as long as the 8X. Personally either one works for me... a battery is a battery, a charger is a charger. It does offer a 2-3 pound weight savings, though and for some, that is very important.

So are you looking forward to the hip replacement? Do think it will help you be more comfortable playing the accordion? I sincerely hope it does all that and more. I've had a few friends have the procedure, all were very satisfied with the results, after a fair amount of recovery and physio time.

Yes, I'm looking forward to the hip replacement. It may not help me be more comfortable playing because I already play mostly seated, but I'm a lefty. I always carried accordions and other heavy objects with my left arm, so it doesn't surprise me that both my left knee (replaced a little more than two years ago) and my left hip (replacement coming up) degenerated faster than the same joints on my right side. At any rate, everyone seems to think that the rehab for hip replacement is easier and shorter than that for a knee. I sincerely hope so, not that my knee rehab was bad, but I'd like to get back to a so-called normal life ASAP. i'm not much of a player, but I enjoy playing and experimenting with sound.

 

[John M]

Alan, I am sure you will be very happy with your new hip. I had both of mine replaced four years ago. I should have done it sooner. If I hadn't had them replaced, I would be totally disabled today--they gave me a new lease on life. I can play my 8X sitting or standing. Mostly sitting, when I play at the Medina county home for an hour or so.

John M.

 

[n9yty]

I bought a used BK-7m to use with my FR-4x. Then I discovered that it doesn’t have Klezmer styles, and I’m a fan of Klezmer, and Yiddish Theater, and Yiddish folk songs. But a while back, I had purchased Sherry Mayrent’s Klezmorim In A Kestl, a collection of klezmer styles for Band In A Box software, and I created some backing tracks for my FR-4x. They work well, and the sounds are pretty good. The downside is that those tracks are very tune-specific. Unlike the BK-7m, the tracks won’t follow chord changes from the accordion unless I record tracks that only have drums, and even then, I can’t vary a lot of elements while using them.

People criticize the FR-4x because it has a 37- key treble keyboard as opposed to the 41-key treble keyboard that goes with 120-bass accordions. The lack of those four keys is something I can find ways around when playing tunes. If I need the physical keys for practicing scales and other exercises there’s always my acoustic.

I love the FR-4x. I have the FR-4xb. I was a bit misled by the advertising "same sound engine as the FR-8x", and while maybe technically true, it doesn't have any of the MFX stuff which I view as part of the "sound engine". But I'm not disappointed with the sound of the FR-4x and for what I do I can tweak things sufficiently with the editor to get great results.

One nice thing about the CBA style is that the treble range is not an issue like it is on the piano style. The FR-4xb CBA has as many treble buttons as the FR-8x CBA (92 to be exact).

I haven't done it, but you can make your own styles for the BK-7m, but I am not sure there is any current free software to do so. I do know that there were lots of collections of styles floating around, I wonder if any of them had klezmer styles? At least it can use styles from the USB drive if you could find some. I like the BK-7m. Not enough hours in the day, though, to play with it enough.

 

[n9yty]

I see that you can still find via a Google search "GW-7 Style Converter" for download, or look at this page:

GW-7 MEDIA & RESOURCE PAGE

www.rolandus.com

It still seems to run on Windows 10 at least, I haven't tried to build a style yet. Theoretically you could take your MIDI files built with the measures for the various parts and generate one. I think those style files can load into the BK-7m, as some in the style pack I had said GW-7.

 

[n9yty]

Also, I have the "Style Converter 4" that I found a while ago, I think it was bundled with the BK-5. It looks like a (very slightly) updated version of the GW-7 app. I don't know if it is distributable or not. One of these days I will have to try to make a style with it.