Juno Stage (128 MB ROM) New & better Sounds ?

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muziksculp
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Juno Stage (128 MB ROM) New & better Sounds ?

Post by muziksculp »

Hi,

I noticed that the newly announced "Juno Stage" keyboard has 128 MB ROM sound chip, compared to the "Juno G", which has 64 MB ROM sound chip.

Since the "Juno Stage" is not available yet, I wonder if it will have much more variety of sounds, and even the possibility of higher-quality sounds when compared to the "Juno G" ?

Actually, I like the "Juno G" sounds, but my guess is that the "Juno Stage" will sound better, and offer more variety of sounds !

I'm thinking about adding a "Juno Stage" to my project studio, mostly for studio work/sequencing/sound design, rather than a live performance keyboard, I also like the fact that it has 76 (longer) keys, and looks pretty sharp !

Do you think the "Juno Stage" will be a good addition to complement my current project studio, which has the following (Yamaha Motif XS7, Access Virus Ti) Keyboards. I'm not interested in the FANATOM line.

One more question .... would the SRX expansion boards when used with the "Juno Stage" sound better than the way they used to sound when used with the older ROLAND XV/JV series of keyboards/modules ? mainly due to the improved D/A and Effects in the newer Keyboards ?


Your feedback/suggestions would be quite helpful, and appreciated.

Thanks.
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Artemiy
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Re: Juno Stage (128 MB ROM) New & better Sounds ?

Post by Artemiy »

According to the official information, yes, there are more sounds in there, including a new grand piano taken from the Fantom-X series. And as I understand there are all Juno-G patches inside as well.
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muziksculp
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Re: Juno Stage (128 MB ROM) New & better Sounds ?

Post by muziksculp »

Thanks for the feedback.

My guess is the Juno-Stage is going to become a very popular ROLAND Keyboard.

OH... as far as the SRX expansions sounding much better when used with the Juno-Stage compared to the way they used sound in the older XV/JV series... any clues if this is true? (I'm hoping they do !)
javaj_
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Re: Juno Stage (128 MB ROM) New & better Sounds ?

Post by javaj_ »

the Stage will most likley have the Sonic Cell sounds (the GW-8 does)- with additional new sounds (like the vocoder patch).
As for sounding better- it will be using the new chipset the is found in the G and Sonic Cell most likely and should sound better than the X.
Now we just need a manual on this baby
2TIM316
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Re: Juno Stage (128 MB ROM) New & better Sounds ?

Post by 2TIM316 »

Agree. I'm hearing a certain "silkiness" in the Fantom-G as I watch the Jem videos. I hear that same "silkiness" in the Juno Stage. That quality to my ears is making these synths sound closer to "real" analog. At least closer to Roland's own JP-8, which, although not known as the "fattest" analog, was known for its "silky" pads and strings.

So I think the Juno Stage, while it may have the same samples as the Fantom-X and/or Juno-G, nevertheless those sounds are being generated by the newer (silkier) Roland sound engine.
luke
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Re: Juno Stage (128 MB ROM) New & better Sounds ?

Post by luke »

Will it be possible to load sounds from Fantom X/juno G libraries into the Juno Stage? I got quite used to those sounds and I created a variety of setups too. I am asking because someone referred to a different sound set (sonic cell).

Thanks for any feedback.
2TIM316
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Re: Juno Stage (128 MB ROM) New & better Sounds ?

Post by 2TIM316 »

I played the Juno Stage in person. I recognized all of the patch names as belonging to the Fantom-X series. My guess is that the sound engine is Fantom-X/Sonic Cell. If you don't need the keyboard, I'd go with the Fantom-XR used. Would I sell mine? Maybe. It would be quite a bit less than the price you'd pay for the Juno Stage.

Having now played the Juno Stage and then moving right over to the Fantom-G, I think the Fantom-G has the improved sound engine which is exclusive to that line of keyboards. That way if you want that sound, you have to go with the Fantom-G. I don't think Roland would use that sound engine in any lesser priced keyboard.

Artemiy would be able to shed more light on this.
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Artemiy
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Re: Juno Stage (128 MB ROM) New & better Sounds ?

Post by Artemiy »

luke:

No, the Juno Stage boasts a different set of waveforms compared to the Juno-G and SonicCell, so it won't load their patches.

Tim:

Yes, from what I know, the Fantom-G sound engine is only used in the Fantom-G. The new GW-8 and Stage are based on the SonicCell engine which derives from Fantom-X. The Fantom-X chip has paid them off quite well (since it was re-used many times), so they can easily build affordable keyboards with it.
2TIM316
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Re: Juno Stage (128 MB ROM) New & better Sounds ?

Post by 2TIM316 »

Nothing wrong with the Fantom-X engine, but I wouldn't buy another keyboard based on that technology. I already own the rack XR. I might try to find a replacement master keyboard for my aging D-70. But it's hard to find one with four independent zones where you can set the pedals on and off for each zone, and have sliders control the volume of each zone. You would think the CME line of controller keyboards would be able to set up multiple MIDI zones, but as I understand it, they can't.

To my ears, you can hear the improvement in sound between the "G" and the "X" engines. The "G" sounds smoother.

I'm hoping to maybe see a "G" rack at NAMM this coming January. Yipes, it's only 4 months away!
DaveC
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Re: Juno Stage (128 MB ROM) New & better Sounds ?

Post by DaveC »

i would think the Korg M3 module would do more in your set up ..?! you already have 2 mid size boards ... the Access probably has the better action ...

i have the XS8 , M3-61 , ( just sold Access Ti ) and got Roland Juno Stage .... my first choice for playing out with .. but not my 1st choice for the studio ...

the M3 has had a few very extensive and free upgrades the last few months ... it is a very useful tool in the studio ...
and i think they just went down in price ...

have you installed or tried the S700 piano sample set in your XS ...??? those are the samples from the S90ES ... i got them free a few months ago ...
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