Need final approval from veterans before finalizing my new gear purchase

[hyeok]

Hi All,
I am about to buy a Roland Fantom x6.

I currently own a K2500X, but I am sick and tired of its weight. As a college student who has to carry my keyboard to gigs back and forth from my dorm room, I needed something lighter.

I am about to purchase a Roland Fantom X6. I can lift it by myself, and its much easier to use than the Kurzweil! I must say when I first played it at the music store I was very impressed with the sound. Apparently the Kurzweil sounds are not as good as I thought they were!

Anyhow, let me know if I am making the right choice. I did not really take a close look at the Yamaha or the Korg keyboards, but just decided to go for the Roland because it sounded really good when I played it and it seems easy to use. Especially out of the 61-keys, the Roland seemed to be the best (do you agree?)

Finally, is there a way to do the switch-pedal program change in the Roland?

Many thanks

[hephiroth]

just a casual reading of your post indicates that you need to do a bit more of your own research if you really want to be sure about your options. a triton 61 (extreme or studio), an alesis fusion 6HD (with 4 synth engines + hard drive sampling) or a motif 6 (classic or ES) might have some sounds or features you'd like more than the roland.

also, i believe i've read on here that the fantoms do not allow for pedals beyond a damper, but i am not sure about this.

anyway, the point is, this is your decision, and no veteran on this board can tell you what is right for you! i know the fantom is definitely a quality board with some great sounds that many people swear by, but who's to say you might not like something about a different board even more?

with any instrument, playing is the ultimate test, not reviews or advice. if you have the opportunity, doing some more hands-on research before investing in an instrument would be the best advice i could give you.

-jeff-

[Omega Monkey]

Go for either a Fantom X6 or a MOTIF ES6. The MOTIF has the advantage of PLG cards which add different synthesis types, plus their own insert effects and polyphony.

Both are pretty much the top of the heap though currently. Triton is a bit disappointing comparatively. Either is definitely going to be a lot more up to date and easier to use than the 2500, not to mention there are huge online resource communities for both.

[ReaPeR]

If you want something only for it's weight, the Juno G (that is pratically an fantom without aftertouch and sampler) weight only about 6kg (the fantom , the triton, the motif and the fusion weight about 12 kg)

[Asho]

wtf is it with everyone and the Juno G?

[normthesamurai]

Yeah you gotta look around and try everything you can as much as you can and you'll be a lot happier with your purchase. But yeah the fantom X's are damn good. but then again so are the motifs.... and tritons... and fusions.

[Asus/C#]

The phantom seems like a nice complement to the Kurzweil, sound wise. it would be a killer combo on a two-tier stand. But so would the Triton.

Don't get too excited about factory combis/performances etc. They get old pretty fast.

Pay particular attention to the user interface of the board. Does it seem natural to you? When you press button X, does it do what you expect, or something completely different? Are the features and programming tools you use frequently easily accessible? I think the interface of a synth, moreso than the sound set, can be the biggest limiting factor in what we as musicians coax out of these boards.

And as mentioned above, if weight is your primary concern, get the lightest synth you can. A $300 synth you take with you always sounds better than a $3000 synth that you left home collecting dust.

Beyond that, as mentioned above, you will have to decide. Play as many synths as you can, and don't be afraid to get yourself a pair of headphones, a sustain pedal, and a stool and plunk yourself down in front of a keyboard at a music store for a couple of hours. Repeat the process with all the synths that meet your criteria. After a while, you will find yourself gravitating back toward one synth. That's the one you should buy.


Good luck!

JK

[-=AnatomiC=-]

Fantoms are great - if you want roland, you should also try Juno-G, it's much cheaper than x6 and it's basicly the same keyboard.
Also, don't forget about Nord synths.

We can only show you the door, but you are the one who will have to walk trough it :tongue: try them all by yourself.

[Omega Monkey]

DO NOT GET A JUNO G. If you want a cheap Roland just get an older Fantom (ie the S6) which you should be able to get for CHEAPER than a Juno G AND it will be better. Why do people for some reason think that the only synths that exist are the ones you can find at GC or at Musicians Friend?

[GlassDream]

DO NOT GET A JUNO G. If you want a cheap Roland just get an older Fantom (ie the S6) which you should be able to get for CHEAPER than a Juno G AND it will be better. Why do people for some reason think that the only synths that exist are the ones you can find at GC or at Musicians Friend?
the S Series isn't bad, but that's IF you don't mind having only 64 polyphony. I had the S version for a bit and I sucked up the polyphony with the first few patches I created so I got annoyed pretty fast. I upgraded to the X8 and I have NEVER EVER looked back. Ya, having a keyboard with weighted keys has great benefits, but the weight can be quite a pain. If anything, they make keyboard cases with wheels. I didn't want one (cause they were like $40 more than everything else), but it was all they had so I took the plunge and I an thankful I did. Just having wheels on the bottom can REALLY help with lugging a keyboard around where ever you go.

Anyhoo, If you want somthing from the fantoim Series, stick with the X's, I think they start around $1200.

[-=AnatomiC=-]

Anyhoo, If you want somthing from the fantoim Series, stick with the X's, I think they start around $1200.

No they don't! That's why (maybe) recommend Juno-G - it's much cheaper.
Fantom x6 starts from 2000$, Juno-G 1000$

[GlassDream]

No they don't! That's why (maybe) recommend Juno-G - it's much cheaper.
Fantom x6 starts from 2000$, Juno-G 1000$
sorry man, but you just got Pwned! LOL!

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Roland-FantomXA-61Key-Workstation?sku=700706


it's a cost effective fantom X. It mixes a similar layout for a Phantom-S series keyboard, but gives you some of the added features from the X series.

[Omega Monkey]

Only the Xa goes for that much, and why would you get one of those when you can get an S for the same price?

And 64 poly is PLENTY. Unless you are doing a lot of sequencing (a LOT of sequencing). Im not sure, but I have to imagine the Fantoms all use dynamic allocation rather than static (which is pretty outdated at this point). Assuming a 16 track sequence, you would have to use 4 notes for each track at a time to use up all 64. Thats s shitload. If youiare running out, your sequences are probably too dense to begin with. Anyway, I have 128 (for AWM) on my EX5, and it would take a lot of effort to use even half of it. You figure maybe up to 3 voices at a time for your drum track, maybe 2 or 3 for bass, heck, lets say 10 altogether for bass and drums. That still leaves you 54 voices to play with. You could have 27 voices that were all doubled, sounding at once. Thats a lot. Not to mention that doesnt take into account resampling, which can be used to free up a lot of layers.

Plus, its really not that big a deal to being with, because if you run out consistently, you can always just go and get an XV rack (or something similar) and boom, you can basically double your polyphony for a few hundred bucks.

At the levels of polyphony that most romplers have been at the last few years (my EX5 is almost 10 years old at this point), its definitely not the most important consideration. You are pretty much getting 64 or 128 with almost anything. 64 is enough for just about anything. When you step up to 128 it is almost infinite because it would be very hard to use it all at once (I would have to make 16 4 element voices each playing 3 notes at the same time before it would hit the wall). Thats massive. Go ahead and try it and see how it sounds.

Anyway, OBVIOUSLY an X would be better overall than an S, just like an ES would be better than a "classic". But in terms of budget, the 2 are very different. But between the S and the G, the budget is a lot closer. But the S is still way better, because its a fullout board. It doesnt make compromises other than to what the standard was at the time (which was only like 5 years ago!). If you go with something like that, you are almost guaranteed to get something good. If you go with something that is cut down even for its time, theres no telling really what you might get.

[calmar]

64 is enough for just about anything. When you step up to 128 it is almost infinite because it would be very hard to use it all at once (I would have to make 16 4 element voices each playing 3 notes at the same time before it would hit the wall). Thats massive.

128 notes polyphony is not THAT much. It's a lot that's sure, but not infinite.
I have a Motif ES8, and if I create a big orchestral setup or any other performance with 4 voices with 4 waveforms in each voices, or if I play on a recorded song, and I play lots of notes and hold some with the sustain, it can become insufficient (or it's a defect in my board because sometimes there are notes that are cut).

I'm not at all saying that 128 is not good, it's even extremely good, but depending on what you play, sometime you can hit that wall... lol

Dave

[lighthouse]

Polyphony problems? play along with external sequences!. Seriously, if you want to orchestate that much I thing is better to have some playback, we´re playing keyboards, not a whole orchestra, the instrument has it´s limitations, is like blamming a piano for not have good filters or FM modeling! LOL


Juan Pablo

[-=AnatomiC=-]

Damn - you got me :tongue:

[GlassDream]

Plus, its really not that big a deal to being with, because if you run out consistently, you can always just go and get an XV rack (or something similar) and boom, you can basically double your polyphony for a few hundred bucks.


wow, I didn't even think of doing that.

In any case, I do strange patch setting where I will have in one patch, 2 of the voices dedicated to making a realistic piano tone (as realistic as it can be for 2 voices), and 2 for a soft synth (kind of like a VOX or Synth Pad to have a very smooth wave sound) and what I'd do is hold my foot on the sustain, hit a chord for the Synth Pad, then switch off the 2 voices and switch on the 2 piano voices, and start improvising over that. Depends on certain patches and how they play out, I can hear the polyphony running out, and cutting off some of my paino notes prematurely.

That's why I made a big deal about double the Polyphony between the S and the X models.

[GlassDream]

Damn - you got me :tongue:
HAHA, don't worry, I'll make a slip up from time to time, but I know you'll be there to pay me Back the Pwnage! LOL!