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I have a friend who uses a Roland A-90 controller, which also has a few onboard sounds.
I heard one of it's Rhodes patches, called 'Stage Rhodes' and it sounds absolutely beautiful. Very warm, rich, just like '73.

Me, I have the XP-30 and although I like the synth, the half dozen Rhodes sounds I have are horrible. Cold, digital sounding airy pianos with that ballad/R&B 'bell' to them, basically, nothing like the Rhodes sound I'm looking for.

I want that warm and creamy Rhodes sound, so if anyone knows where I can get it in a Roland format, short of finding a used A-90, please let me know.

Would the 'keyboards of the 60s and 70s have such a patch? Does the XV-3080 have one?

please help!
Thank you...

pk

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anonymous Tue, 02/19/2002 - 00:48

Would the 'keyboards of the 60s and 70s have such a patch?

Yes, apparently they are very good. Roland do a CDRom of practically the same sounds you might want to check out.

If you use Logic or a VST compatible sequencer, check out the Emagic EVP plug in's which are also apparently excellent.

I'm a PT TDM user and own a Roland XV5080, and haven't heard the above but these two sources seem to be the agreed best on the market. I'm waiting for a PT Rhodes plug.

You could also try the Nord Electro it's just gone rack mountable....

good luck and let me know if you find something that works for you :)

Renie

Krou Tue, 02/19/2002 - 16:50

thanks Renie,

how are the 5080 Rhodes sounds? Anything like what I'm looking for? I was recently looking at a XV-3080 or even the soon to be released 5050, but it seemed to have the same patches that my XP30 has, plus a few more (it definetely sounded better), but no such luck with a buttery Rhodes!

I'm also a ProTools user, although on the 001, are you suggesting a PT Rhodes plug is on the way, or are you just wishing there was one?

One more thing, this Roland sample disc version of the '60's/70/s' card, does it only load into Roland products? I actually don't have any hardware samplers, I just use the one in Reason until NI's Kontakt comes out (have you seen that thing, oh my!). So, I suppose the JV card will suit my needs.

thanks for the heads up on everything!

pk

p.s. yes, I heard the EVP88 for Logic and it sounds lovely, but I could never jump on the Logic train just for it's plugs, I hate the program.

Krou Wed, 02/20/2002 - 21:11

I've looked around for one, but can't find any for sale at the moment.
Damn about the 5080 Rhodes sounds. It's weird that the 3080, 5080 and most likely the new 5050 are all re-hashed 2080 modules. When I listened to the 3080 at the shop, I was surprised to hear the exact same patches that I already have on my xp-30 keyboard, only they soounded a bit fuller and there were many new ones as well.

From a sonic standpoint, do you think the 60/70's JV card installed in my xp-30 would sound inferior to the CD version?

My friend who has the A-90 has this theory that the Xp-30 sounds much colder than similar modules because they crammed so many sounds into it and compressed the hell out of them. I wouldn't know unless I could hear my synth vs. a 3080 or 5080 back to back. I do find the xp-30 a bit sterile at times, now that my ears have tuned in to what sounds more natural and warm with other units.
What's your opinion on this?

Also, do you think there will be more SRX cards released soon? Seems there are only 2 or 3 at the moment. I ask because if I can get a good deal on a used 3080 with 4 exapnsion slots as opposed to 2 on the soon to come 5050, I'd go with that one.
Word has it that any SRX/XV sound is to die for, so I'd be wise to wait and see what new cards they will develop. Perhaps there will be an SRX version of the 'KB of the 60/70's'? :)

cheers,

pk

anonymous Wed, 02/27/2002 - 14:48

Originally posted by Krou:

From a sonic standpoint, do you think the 60/70's JV card installed in my xp-30 would sound inferior to the CD version?

My friend who has the A-90 has this theory that the Xp-30 sounds much colder than similar modules because they crammed so many sounds into it and compressed the hell out of them. I wouldn't know unless I could hear my synth vs. a 3080 or 5080 back to back. I do find the xp-30 a bit sterile at times, now that my ears have tuned in to what sounds more natural and warm with other units.
What's your opinion on this?

Also, do you think there will be more SRX cards released soon? Seems there are only 2 or 3 at the moment. I ask because if I can get a good deal on a used 3080 with 4 exapnsion slots as opposed to 2 on the soon to come 5050, I'd go with that one.
Word has it that any SRX/XV sound is to die for, so I'd be wise to wait and see what new cards they will develop. Perhaps there will be an SRX version of the 'KB of the 60/70's'? :)

cheers,

pk

Hi pk

Well the quality of the keys CD really depends on your sample playback source. If you are using a soft sampler it will be pristine because you won't need to do any A/D's unless you mix out of your computer.
However if you are using a hardware sampler it will depend on the quality of that unit.

I know that the XV 5080 uses stereo PCM waveforms, better effects than the previous JV range and an improved A/D conversion. I would say these are the reasons for the sonic improvement you notice.

I do think that Roland will expand upon the boards currently available. They tend to produce them slowly but surely. So you might be waiting a while.

I'm not sure investing in a Roland Rompler at this stage is the wisest move, you probably would be better off investing in the power of your computer, a soft sampler and then keeping up to date with the latest and best (Rhodes) sample CD's as there is still a way to go in this dept and you don't want to be stuck with waiting for Roland to, maybe :)

Renie