Let me first say that I own multiple Roland keyboards: Fantom X, V-Synth GT, Jupiter 80 and just bought an Integra-7. I love Roland's sound and build. That's true...
BUT
I'm SO disappointed that Roland just QUIT and is no more offering a high end workstation to replace the Fantom line...
THEN
I've recently started to look at the new Korg Kronos and begun reading the Korg Forum...
You know what Roland: Those KORG owners are HAPPY!
They got updates for their current workstation (v3.0) not only for for the newest one.They have Korg representative listening to them and actually replying within discussions. Yes, Korg is supporting stuff they bought years ago!
ROLAND ARE YOU LISTENING ???
Cause we are NOT happy here, at a minimum we've asked you for a librarian/sound editor for the Jupiter 80. You said "NO".
We've also asked for driver that will allow our gear to be used with then latest OS. You said our gear was "obsolete".
Roland, I love the sound of the gear you're making.
BUT
I will most probably quit, and be a happy Korg owner...
LA
Just a note to ROLAND
Re: Just a note to ROLAND
Lol.it's a joke!You know what Roland: Those KORG owners are HAPPY!
Happy with faulty os,motherboard problems...RH3 problems?
Do you know how difficult it is today to sell a used first kronos(not x) because you never know if the RH3 will be ok or not?
etc etc etc.
The kronos is powerful...but consumer volatile...
A jupiter 80 is like it is..but a rock!
Re: Just a note to ROLAND
Whilst the Kronos has a fantastic heritage, it is a cheapened version (with tech enhancements). You get what you pay for... But I will say that it is a powerful workstation. At last Korg has worked out not to piss off your high-end legacy customers. OS v3 is backward compatible. Something Korg didn't have the decency to do with customers of their most expensive keyboard they produced (and still the best), the OASYS.
As for Roland;
1) I agree it was a huge oversight not to produce a librarian for the JP-80. That said, by planning you can work around some of the issues. Also, when I sit and play and/or edit sounds I forget about all that because the instrument is a true creative partner. It can do literally anything - some better than the Kronos (and a damn sight quicker as well)
2) I know for a fact Roland reps visit this forum. They do read the comments. I wish this forum was more active so that Roland would get a more useful barometer on opinion. Just having two or three people agree/disagree with Roland is not really helpful to them either way
3) It strikes me that Roland thought that the workstation was a dead format. However their FA series (I have one) by all accounts is flying off the shelves and demand has surprised Roland. This might make them think again about workstations, and for one hope they do. If they were to release a new high-end workstation I'd more than likely buy it
I appreciate the common perception of Fantom G owners is that Roland let the product line down. I own a Fantom G and I don't feel that way. Roland is supporting the FA series incredibly well with monthly releases of their SRX cards. New sounds come out regularly for the Integra and the new Jupiters.
Edited to add - bear in mind that if you upgrade to a newer Kronos, none of the libraries you may have bought are transferable - you need to buy them again! Roland doesn't do that to its customers...
As for Roland;
1) I agree it was a huge oversight not to produce a librarian for the JP-80. That said, by planning you can work around some of the issues. Also, when I sit and play and/or edit sounds I forget about all that because the instrument is a true creative partner. It can do literally anything - some better than the Kronos (and a damn sight quicker as well)
2) I know for a fact Roland reps visit this forum. They do read the comments. I wish this forum was more active so that Roland would get a more useful barometer on opinion. Just having two or three people agree/disagree with Roland is not really helpful to them either way
3) It strikes me that Roland thought that the workstation was a dead format. However their FA series (I have one) by all accounts is flying off the shelves and demand has surprised Roland. This might make them think again about workstations, and for one hope they do. If they were to release a new high-end workstation I'd more than likely buy it
I appreciate the common perception of Fantom G owners is that Roland let the product line down. I own a Fantom G and I don't feel that way. Roland is supporting the FA series incredibly well with monthly releases of their SRX cards. New sounds come out regularly for the Integra and the new Jupiters.
Edited to add - bear in mind that if you upgrade to a newer Kronos, none of the libraries you may have bought are transferable - you need to buy them again! Roland doesn't do that to its customers...
Re: Just a note to ROLAND
lekanout wrote:Lol.it's a joke!You know what Roland: Those KORG owners are HAPPY!
Happy with faulty os,motherboard problems...RH3 problems?
Do you know how difficult it is today to sell a used first kronos(not x) because you never know if the RH3 will be ok or not?
etc etc etc.
The kronos is powerful...but consumer volatile...
A jupiter 80 is like it is..but a rock!
No it's not... AFAIK they fixed the keybed problem well before they came out with the Kronos X, They also updated the OS twice since then... Which btw is compatible with the kronos, the kronos X and of course the newer Kronos 2.
Yes they had problems, they fixed them. Yes there was shortcomings, they updated their software and made sure it was compatible with their older keyboards. That's what I'm talking about: Supporting the hardware they sold years ago, Not marking them as "vintage" and offering absolutely NO support for about nothing that is not current (still sold in the stores).
I'm sorry but I'm pissed, and I know I'm not the onIy one, flaming the KORG will NOT help in any ways to convince Roland to work a bit harder to fulfill the request of their current owners.
Do you realize that the Jupiter 80 is about the only keyboard in its class that doesn't offer any librarian or editor??? That is the real problem, not KORG, not Kurzwell, not Yamaha.
Now tell me. Do you really don't mind not having a librarian for the Jupiter, or drivers for the v-synth (GT) that work with latest OSs? I do!
Re: Just a note to ROLAND
Cello,
I know the korg is far from being as sturdy as the Jupiter. Don't get me wrong, I do have a Jupiter-80 and a V-Synth GT (and a fantom X). I did also tried the Korg Kronos X at the guitar center. I would LOVE if Roland would just do those 3 things:
- Support older gear with software/drivers update.
- Support recent gear with all the needed software (drivers/librarian/editor) that is available for most similar gear sold by their competition.
- Come up with a "high-end" Workstation.
I'm sorry to say but beyond this forum I know that many resellers also tried to convince Roland of the need of a librarian/editor. They failed. Roland may read this, but it looks to me that they chose to develop mid range products and not to compete with other high end products anymore. The new FA as well as the Aira series is a good indication of that.
And again: I do have (and will keep) my Jupiter-80 as well as my v-Synth GT. Worst case is that I will use one of those as a (very expensive) controller for the Korg (and the Integra), if I truly dislike the RH3 keybed.
What I just don't get is that since Roland is so good about coming up with good sounds and solid construction, how hard could it be to just put the final touch with a few pieces of software and make everyone happy???
LA
I know the korg is far from being as sturdy as the Jupiter. Don't get me wrong, I do have a Jupiter-80 and a V-Synth GT (and a fantom X). I did also tried the Korg Kronos X at the guitar center. I would LOVE if Roland would just do those 3 things:
- Support older gear with software/drivers update.
- Support recent gear with all the needed software (drivers/librarian/editor) that is available for most similar gear sold by their competition.
- Come up with a "high-end" Workstation.
I'm sorry to say but beyond this forum I know that many resellers also tried to convince Roland of the need of a librarian/editor. They failed. Roland may read this, but it looks to me that they chose to develop mid range products and not to compete with other high end products anymore. The new FA as well as the Aira series is a good indication of that.
And again: I do have (and will keep) my Jupiter-80 as well as my v-Synth GT. Worst case is that I will use one of those as a (very expensive) controller for the Korg (and the Integra), if I truly dislike the RH3 keybed.
What I just don't get is that since Roland is so good about coming up with good sounds and solid construction, how hard could it be to just put the final touch with a few pieces of software and make everyone happy???
LA
Re: Just a note to ROLAND
Korg pissed me off with my SV-1 88 and the RH3 problem. They totally abandoned the users and that keyboard. I got out before I lost too much and love my JP80. I'd love an editor/librarian for it. They failed us there, granted, but the keyboard is truly the best I've ever owned PLUS my 2012 macbook air is a more powerful sequencer/recorder than any onboard system I've ever used.
This is just my opinion on my experience. not to say that korg is bad, or roland is bad. If there's one thing I've learned playing and owning instruments all these years is that there is not just ONE good one. They all have something wrong or missing. And the economy and fickle consumer is just as much to blame. Heck, the biggest music store we have in the largest city in our state is a very ill equipped guitar center with a "nook" for a keyboard room. How can they sell them to us if they don't show them to us! I bought my JP50 in Dallas after playing one in person. Then I knew I wanted the JP80 after that.
This is just my opinion on my experience. not to say that korg is bad, or roland is bad. If there's one thing I've learned playing and owning instruments all these years is that there is not just ONE good one. They all have something wrong or missing. And the economy and fickle consumer is just as much to blame. Heck, the biggest music store we have in the largest city in our state is a very ill equipped guitar center with a "nook" for a keyboard room. How can they sell them to us if they don't show them to us! I bought my JP50 in Dallas after playing one in person. Then I knew I wanted the JP80 after that.
Re: Just a note to ROLAND
Never buy a keyboard for what it will do with updates..Yes they had problems, they fixed them. Yes there was shortcomings, they updated their software and made sure it was compatible with their older keyboards. That's what I'm talking about: Supporting the hardware they sold years ago, Not marking them as "vintage" and offering absolutely NO support for about nothing that is not current (still sold in the stores).
Buy a keyboard for what it is when you buy it.
The first kronos was bought with problems to resolve.
The jupiter 80 never had any problems.
People now wants to buy keyboard for updates.
If you buy a minimoog don't you expect updates?
Is the minimoog a bad synth like it is?
A jupiter 80 is a good synth,has an update with new filters and so much new sounds...
All works well!
Nothing to expect more and just playing music!