Hey, I'd take that Roland C-30 harpsichord in a second. And I'd actually buy one if the positive organ voice had stops of some sort.

Well, I went to the music store the other day and spent some serious time in there. Those guys must hate me as many times as I go in there just to play and not buy anything. It's what I like to call research though. I played the V-Piano for a while and immediately played the RD-700GX (w/out the SN upgrade). As weird as it sounds, I think I liked the PHAII action of the GX about as much as the V-Piano's PHA III, and I think I like the sound of my GXF better than the V-Piano as well. This disturbed me for two reasons. First, I just pre-ordered a $2400 RD-700NX, and I'm beginning to ask myself is the NX really going to be a $2400 justifiable upgrade to my GXF? Second, for a current owner of the GXF, the NX is likely not going to be necessary, as I think Roland will role out the RD-700 series replacement probably around Winter NAMM 2012, which I think would be a more substantial upgrade to my RD-700GXF. I left the store kind of bummed in that I'm really having second thoughts about the NX, but at the same time, I was excited that I may not be spending $2400 for a marginal upgrade, and after playing the CP1/CP5, S90XS, Korg (forget the model), Yamaha P155, Roland V-Piano, Nord Piano, I'm convinced the RD-700GXF can hold its own against any DP for what I need it for, especially with the addition of the RPU-3 pedal I ordered. It sounds fantastic, plays fantastic, and it's already been paid for! Guess I have probably already made up my mind on what to do with the NX.

.

Dave, did you go ahead and buy the Nord Piano? I went to the Nord website and listened to their demos and their sounds are incredible.

As for cutting though with the RD-700GX in a live mix, I've found the Grand Piano 3 with lid all the way open and messing with my EQ wo be really potent cutting through. I just gigged this past Friday playing/singing with a guitar player playing stuff from Miles Davis to James Taylor and my piano was cutting through nicely. Could be the room, system, etc. So many variables unfortunately.

Maybe the new "sound focus" doodad on the NX could help with this issue?


If they do and it has SN pianos and PHAIII we probably would too - non-ivory feel would be a plus. The inability of the FP-7F to do a proper WAV recording is somewhat bumming me out. Who needs a stupid looper?

PianoZac, given that you already own an RD-700GXF, I would say that the NX upgrade is rather expensive. However, assuming you are able to sell the GXF for around $2000, the effective $400 NX upgrade actually looks like a pretty good deal. If I was in your position and wanted to remain on the cutting-edge, I'd probably do exactly the same thing - don't worry, you made the right choice.

I'm interested to hear your opinions of the Nord Piano though. You mentioned that the online demos are incredible, but what were your impressions playing the board first hand?

Cheers,
James
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Thanks Kawai James for encouraging words. I've got a really good buddy who reps for Roland, and he told me, the best I can probably get from my RD-700GXF is about $1500-$1700. With the NX rolling out, the resale value will naturally take a hit.

As for the Nord Piano, I found the sounds to be marvelous, but the action to be less than desired. That, like everything is a very personal thing though. I'm so used to the action of the Rolands, which I feel to be very authentic, the Nord felt more like my old Yamaha P-80, which coming from the PHA II Ivory keys and action was like taking a step back in feel. It was a bit of an odd thing, to have such authentic sounding pianos, with a unauthentic feeling action. Again, this is my opinion. I'm not quite in a position to have a real piano, so action is something that is very important to me. The RD-700GXF, IMHO, will be able to hold it's own for a while yet.

I would say, no, not justifiable. At this point I would recommend enjoying the RD700GXF and wait for the next significant upgrade.

.

I wish metronome were implemented in this new Rd700!

It's clearly a lack in previous version, in fact a metronome patch can be downloaded from Roland download web page.

I didn't think the action of the Nord Piano was all that bad, but I have to admit that I only tried it without any sound (just tapping the keybed). Could be that there is a mismatch between the action and the sound you produce with it, don't know...

Nord Piano action - taken in isolation, I think it is absolutely fine. I was not expecting anything very nice since it is made by Fatar (although modified according to Nord's specification)...I have had serious problems with Fatar actions in Kurzweil pianos some years ago. But it really is ok...the relationship between the keys and the resulting tone/timbre changes is very good actually. Very dynamic in fact. I would say that if the Nord tick lots of boxes in other respects the action should not really dissuade anyone from going for it.

But (there's always a but), the Nord action is some way short of the Roland PHA II or III. When playing the Roland I can feel mechanics in there...the assembly is working away at reproducing certain elements of the feel and sensations of a grand piano action...I'm certainly not saying it succeeds on every level but there is an obvious and at least partially successful attempt at making it piano like. The Yamaha GH3 is also superior to the Nord for some of the same reasons in my opinion. No doubt the Kawai actions are also significantly better than the Nord.

Steve

Still wondering when Roland is going to release the manual for the NX.

Is the RD action a graded action or just weighted? The FP seems to use a progressive action but that isn't indicated in the RD description.

Hideki, it's graded.

I believe the only stage pianos with ungraded actions are the CP-1, CP-5, and possibly the older Yamaha S90 range.

Cheers,
James
x

I think the SV1 is just weighted too. Not totally sure on that.

The SV-1 is equipped with Korg's finest graded-hammer action (RH3) keyboard on both the 73-key and 88-key versions.

That's from the Korg website. I've been still thinking about an SV1-73. Not that it matters but I wish they would have put the felt (usually red) between the chassis and the keys. But they don't. Not a big deal, plus I could probably open it up and intall it myself (custom jobs). I just think it adds a little more elegance and quality look to the board. Plus it does serve as a cushion for the keys when they set back into rest postion. I'm still really contemplating getting one because of the sounds and the portability.

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Oh cool. I did play it recently and it felt light all across the board to me. The design and EP sounds are great.

FYI, "keyfix2000" over at Roland Clan reports the following:

The German Keyboards magazine has published a preview of the new RD-700NX.
The facts are:
V-Piano-like keybed action
3 different SuperNatural Grand Pianos: CONCERT, STUDIO, BRILLIANT
same SN-Epianos as RD-700GX :-(
same virtual tone wheel organs
300 preset and 100 user Live Sets (=setups), no tone section anymore ?
900 ROM-samples instead of 532 Tones
simple USB audio recording
Sound Focus function depends on sound playing: compressor, enhancer, booster
no more Audio Key function
no more Arpeggio
no more SRX-expansion boards

I believe http://www1.keyboards.de/ is the site, as they list the NX under "Previews". Anyone here subscribe to this and can dish further? I wonder if they actually touched one.

Comments from GX/GXF owners?

(I see the Kawai MP6 is in there too.)

Maybe Audio Key function became pointless, since it can now read and write in wav format directly.

I'm interested in reading that review! There is virtually nothing about the MP6 on the internet in any other language other than German. I'm starting to think that Japanese prefer the German language to English..

Actually, that's true! I've been living in Japan for 9 years, and I know that many japanese people tend to be more in favor of Europe (and specificially Germany) than the US, at least regarding culture and music history e.g. piano.

Maybe you could buy that magazine and translate a review for us?? <hint> <hint>

Well, let's see...

You kept that quiet mucci!

日本語を読めますか？

James
x

@James: A little bit, but it's quite a while so I'm not that good!

The more I think about it, the more I may in fact cancel my order, and hold on to my GXF for a while. Fact is, I'm no longer convinced that the NX is going to be $2400 better than my GXF, and what you posted here dewster further confirms this. I'd rather save the $2400 and wait another year, or wait until I can actually play one, then decide. I'd hate to have spent $2400 on a DP that is marginally better than the GXF I currently have, then be leap frogged in a year with Roland's next best toy. Patience is a virtue-I should practice that more often!!

Anyone with a GXF want to comment specifically on these things reportedly new to the NX:

- 3 different SuperNatural Grand Pianos: CONCERT, STUDIO, BRILLIANT
- no tone section anymore ?
- 900 ROM-samples instead of 532 Tones

Does the first mean we will get fundamentally different SN AP pianos (Yamaha, Steinway, etc.)?

What are the implications of the second and third? Is this a good thing or does it seem like they are removing something useful (like the arpeggiator)?

Well, there are three SN grands on HP-307 that could possibly be described as Concert, Studio, Brilliant. Certainly one of them is brighter. But to my ears they are essentially the same piano. However, I think GX(F) has a tonally different piano (SN Grand 1) which (I'm over simplifying this) sounds to me rather like an SN'd Expressive Grand. Not my cup of tea at all though. On the GX(F) I find 2 and 4 very similar indeed although I prefer 4. 3 is brighter (more brilliant you could say!) but tonally very related to 2 and 4. I think that SN 2, 3 and 4 are derivatives of the original Superior Grand to some degree. Likewise these three are the same as or very very similar to the three SN grands on the HP-307. So perversely it could be that there is more choice on GX(F) than NX. We're not going to know until people on here get their hands on 'em of course...maybe next month?

Cheers,

Steve