Something for all you Roland fanciers!

[Dingo40]

Something for you Roland fanciers!



Another:



One more:

 

[maugein96]

First clip gave up at 00:36. Must be another one of those electronic glitches that they are prone to!

The guy can certainly play, although I still cant get my head around those digital sounds coming out of an accordion, yet some of the patches are near enough spot on.

The Balkan patch is one of my favourites, as here:-

 

[Dingo40]

Agreed, John !

I know many here favour the electronic Rolands (etc), but I can't help feeling they mostly sound like the Hammond organs of the seventies 
Of course, these sit better on one's lap , and you can play them through earphones 

 

[maugein96]

Agreed, John !

I know many here favour the electronic Rolands (etc), but I can't help feeling they mostly sound like the Hammond  organs of the seventies 
Of course, these sit better on one's lap , and you can play them through earphones 

The reason I joined the forum was to try and get info on the Cavagnolo Odyssee, a digital French CBA, as one was for sale near me when I lived in Scotland. 

I scored a blank as nobody had heard of them, but I was fascinated by the Roland discussions. Too many recurring themes with no obvious cure, and some of the sounds never quite worked for me. However, the French guy, Samuel Garcia, did a cracking demo of the CBA version, and it was so good that I felt I had to have one regardless. Quite a few UK music stores, who never previously stocked accordions, now have them, so it was looking like game on for a while. 

Then, there were various discussions about the future of the company, the accordion models etc, so I decided digital wasn't for me.  

The case for and against digital pales into insignificance when you read about the lengths some pros need to go to get all their sound equipment set up to get the best sounds out of an acoustic. If I was a pro player in that dilemma I would sell all the fancy gear and just buy a Roland. As far as I know a simple amp is all you need, and if you get tired of the musette register, just turn it onto "cimbalom" (which I believe is on the Balkan patch), and watch their faces. 


I do acknowledge the strengths and weaknesses of both types. As you'll probably be aware, my strength is talking about accordions, and my weakness is actually playing them!

 

[Tom]

Very cool clips, I like his experiments. I view them same as electric versus acoustic guitars, each has its place. I'm fine with my acoustics but it would be very nice to have the silent feature and the portability. If I ever have the spare cash or find a good used one I wouldn't mind a Fr1.

 

[maugein96]

Very cool clips, I like his experiments.   I view them same as electric versus acoustic guitars, each has its place.  I'm fine with my acoustics but it would be very nice to have the silent feature and the portability.   If I ever have the spare cash or find a good used one I wouldn't mind a Fr1.

Much my own sentiment, Tom. Although I don't particularly "like" some of the sounds, and would always choose an acoustic over digital, many people just buy one for the novelty value, and the fact you can blast away into your headphones to your heart's content.  

I asked my former CBA music teacher what he thought of them, and in his case the issue was with the keyboards and bellows not having the same feel to them as the better acoustics. I suppose in time you can adjust to anything, but he never gave me a recommend. He was also an accordion dealer.

I've never even seen a Roland, or indeed any other digital accordion, let alone played one.

 

[n9yty]

Very cool clips, I like his experiments. I view them same as electric versus acoustic guitars, each has its place. I'm fine with my acoustics but it would be very nice to have the silent feature and the portability. If I ever have the spare cash or find a good used one I wouldn't mind a Fr1.

I understand the point of comparison, but I don't quite think it is Apples to Apples, maybe Apples to Oranges. I was over at a friend's house showing him the FR-4xb and BK-7m, we had a great time. I was playing a lot of ethnic music including Irish, Swiss and Russian. When we got into the Russian music, and I dropped in some balalaika type sounds, we were talking about acoustic versus digital accordions and all the things you can do with the Roland. However, the question arose as to whether or not there were electric balalaikas. And yes, there are, but as I guessed, they rather sound just like electric guitars because in both of them the acoustics of the instrument don't matter as much as the type of strings and pickup system you use. The electric guitar sounds very unlike an acoustic guitar. However, the whole point of a digital accordion, when using accordion voices, *IS* to sound like an accordion. The real issue is one of the ultimate quality of that sound and the particular speaker/amplification system you are using.

But I think that a Roland when played with accordion voices sounds much closer (quite close, in my opinion) to an acoustic accordion than an electric guitar could ever sound to an acoustic guitar (without using some off-board pedals that synth generate the acoustic sound).

 

[Dingo40]

Tom,
Not an FR1, but what about this one? 

https://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/ascot-park/keyboards-pianos/piano-accordion/1241305805

 

[debra]

Tom,
Not an FR1, but what about this one? 

https://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/ascot-park/keyboards-pianos/piano-accordion/1241305805

Thats an FR7, the very first model Roland made. Not a desirable model now, as it does not have convincing accordion sound, does not react to bellows pressure like later models, and is generally outdated.

 

[Tom]

Thanks Dingo and Paul. Not quite in the market right now but fun to look.

Good points n9ny. True enougjh, the elcric guitar is not trying to sound like the acoustic....

 

[Dingo40]

Thanks Paul,
So, the model numbering goes backwards? :huh:
That also happens in the photo camera business!

 

[debra]

Thanks Paul,
So, the model numbering goes backwards? :huh:
That also happens in the photo camera business!

it does not go backwards but there are different series.
The 1 series is the smallest.
Then there are numbers in between, varying from 2 to 4 for apparently no good reason, now with x like 3x and later 4x.
Then there is the top of the line which started with the 7, then 7x, most recently 8x.
The Roland numbering scheme seems to make even less sense than that of many camera makers.

 

[Dingo40]

Wow! :-/
Thanks, Paul 

 

[dunlustin]

Worth adding:
The instruments before the X are more limited
eg FR1 has no speakers
Support is already reducing - can't recall if it's the FR7 or FR7X whose screens are failing and no longer made.
I believe the FR3X has much the same sounds as the FR1X
Also the button FR1X has 3 octaves shiftable up/down an octave - more then most of us need - and can transpose a semitone at a time.
Although the FR8X is considered top of the range, its weight is sometimes seen as a problem - about 27lb though more features
The FR4x is the most recent model and has more functions than many an accordionist might use but fewer than the 8X
Hope this is useful.

 

[Dingo40]

Richard,
Thanks for the overview.
I can see that it is a complete area of expertise in itself!