Hope all is good & well Brother.

I have some bad news.. I am going to be selling my Roland RD700GX!!

After the longggg journey to finally get this? It will now be SOLD.

I guess it hasnt really lived up to what I thought it would be…

In my honest opinion?? This piano is not the ‘BEST’ sounding, and at times?? Can sound really flat, dull, dark & un-inspiring.

I have the ‘’supernatural” upgrade, this doesnt really sound that amazing anymore.. and I also have Ultimate Keys srx07.. Same with this.. It sounds like a regular home keyboard!!

I am quite dissapointed as I was so hyped about this!!

Looks like I will be going back to my beloveded and trusted Yamaha!!

You just CANT beat their piano sound!! The S6 piano is 1 of the best i’ve ever heard!!

I will most certaintly be getting an XF8 or if I can still get hold of 1? An XS8, Or I just may try the CP50/CP5/CP1… Hmmm…

It’s back to ivory 2.0!! I should NEVER have left this & the mac book pro!!! ;-)

I hope you dont mind me putting up a mini advert on here??

Roland RD700GX FOR SALE
In BRAND NEW CONDITION!!!!! ABSOLUTELY SPOTLESS!!
SuperNatural Piano Upgrade
Ultimate Keys srx07
DP8 Sustain Pedal
Original Manual, CDs, Audio Key
Power Supply

Contact me for more details/pictures/information

Some one might like it!

Thanks Adrian!!

Danny :-/

Great to be able to read all these comments about keyboards in general and Rolands in particular. I have come across your blog in the process of trying to find a replacement for my long suffering and now obsolete RD500 which is no longer supported by Roland Australia. It has been good overall but I’m hoping that the three main problems of constant mechanical breakages, rattly keys and overall weight will be solved. I have tried a few demo models recently and the RD700NX was nicest to play but it is still heavy and expensive plus I so far haven’t found anything to indicate the mechanical design of the action is different from the RD500. The RD300NX was good too but the concern I always struggle with is that of being able to switch from the digital to an accoustic piano but I suspect its all in the mind. I have come to the conclusion that I will choose a stage piano which weighs about 18kgs (40lbs) and feels good to play into the headphones and adapt to whatever feel comes with it. The Nord Piano88 seems to get good reviews .. any comments?

Brian

Glad to hear you’re the enthusiasm accompanying your purchase! Sounds like you made a great deal, and with no surprise, the GX will be a great instrument for years to come. I actually wasn’t aware of the NX having no expansion slots…. thanks for sharing that herein!

All the best,
Adrian

Thanks so much for your reply!!

I DID IT!!!!!!!! I BROUGHT THE RD700GX TODAY!!!!!!! It took me a total of 10 hours driving, man I am so tired right now, I’ve literally just got back home!!

It was a longggggggggggg way from me, I left at 6 am this morning, 400 miles from me, and 400 miles back to my house, 5 hours each way, even whilst driving at a not very recommended speed limit!!! :-p

BUT IT WAS SO WORTH IT!!!!!!!!

I have the super natural srx card installed, and the gentleman who I brought it from was ever so kind he also installed the ultimate piano keys & sold me the roland srx symphonic strings for £50 which is so CHEAP!!! The UK retail price is £255 (The strings sound so AMAZINNNNNNG by the way!!!! WOW!!! It sounds even better than philharmonic which I’ve been using)

I am so glad I decided to buy this and here’s for why:

1. I will be gigging very very soon with a band and as I am practicing away 8 hours a day on my other digital piano? I will not be pounding away the GX keys, but with that being said? I do honestly believe the GX ivory keys are able to take a good pounding every day & night & still not break or have much wear & tear, I mean after all? That’s what the keys are made for right?!! Practicing & Playing!!

2. I have the super natural piano as you have mentioned brings the GX in line the NX. And will all the customizable options? It can get really crazy if you want it to.

3. The NX has no expansion slots.. This is fine.. But man after playing around with ultimate keys, the strings & the super natural cards? It’s quite clear the GX is A LOT more expandable than its new big brother!! I think Roland have got it wrong with the NX, & I do expect they will bring out probably something to make it expandable or like you said, a newer model which will hurt the NX owners!!

4. This is my 1st Roland & I have to say it won’t be my last.. The ivory key bed is beautiful, it has the perfect touch. I remember playing on a Roland HPi7 I thought this was good, but this GX is just PERFECT!! And now I have also found my 2nd perfect controller for logic to go along with my studio logic vmk 188 plus (check this out if you haven’t already Adrian) I wouldn’t be surprised if fatar didn’t make this key bed for Roland as they make them for all the other companies??

5. I can now finally rest & stop the frantic searching!!

6. Adrian is the best!!!!!! ;-)

I would like to send you some pictures of this; I know you have 1 LOL but I am so excitedddddd it’s just so amazing as you already know!!

I wanted to ask you, what can I use to clean these ivory keys?? And also could you recommend me a good stand for this? As the 1 I got with it is a bit flimsy and not really secure. Something by Quik Lok perhaps?

Adrian thanks again so much for your brother!! I really appreciate it.

I am off to sleep now, so I can be awake at 6 am to start putting this GX through its paces!! Bring on the chord progressions!!!!!!!

Thanks A,

Danny :-)

I do have keywear on my GX but I must admit it’s not as pronounced as I sense being experienced by others. For one, I’m not pounding away at it every day of the week, and when I do, it’s not for prolonged periods… I can live it – given all the other advantages. I also upgraded mine with the supernatural srx card too so I guess it’s safe to say I’m content (actually very content) with the GX.

Here’s another way to look at it… if Roland hasn’t 100% fixed the keywear issue, you’re making a wiser investment in the GX by definition. I believe this will be addressed although from everything I’ve read, not 100% so in the NX. Does anyone have differing experiences on the NX?

Thanks for such a GREAT SITE!!!!!! It is appreciated!!

I wanted to ask you a quick question….

Should I get the roland RD-700GX?? or the RD-700NX??

Which will be better & the best for gigging & studio recording??

I can get hold of a rd700gx in BRAND NEW CONDITION with the supernatural upgrade srx card & also the ultimate keys card for around £1100 UK POUNDS!! (THIS IS A STEAL!!!!!! As the 700nx retails for £2085 alone!!)

Now here’s my dileamma… Has the 700nx got a better touch than the 700gx?? I mean the 700nx is basically a 700gx but with the new alpha 3 keybed and no exspansion slots right??

Would I be ‘missing out’ if I went for the gx over the nx?? And how much of a real difference is it??

Also do you have any keywear of the ivory on your gx??

Which would you advise me to go for??

Please reply when you can!

Thanks A!!

Danny :-)

P.S. I LOVE YOUR MUSIC COMPOSITIONS!!!!!!! KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK BROTHER!!!!

Roland RD700GX vs. Kawai MP8 | Adrian Sakashita’s Music…

My situation is that I think I may find an electric stagepiano very useful. I have been playing piano for around 9 years now, and I have always been practicing on an acoustic piano, and I always thought that nothing could replace an acoustic piano. But the thing is, that I might move into an apartment some time within the next year, so a piano with the opportunity to plug in earphones would be great. I also considered for a while to start recording some music on my computer for fun, so the ability to plug it into my computer would be great aswell.

I also wondered if it is possible to get some pre-recorded tracks for the stage piano that I can practice with? And if there is, how is it to play along with?

Now the reason I am in doubt what piano to pick, is that it matters alot to me, that the piano feels good when I’m playing it and that the sound is decent. The keyboards and stagepianos I’ve tried didn’t really convince me. They felt wierd and too much like plastic in the keys and the sound was nowhere close to the sound of an acoustic piano.

So, what do you think? Is the RD700GX a good solution for practicing or would you recommend something else?

I also do appreciate the ivory key feel!

CONTEXTUALIZATION:
I am 22 years old. Grade 8 classical pianist, play Chopin, Liszt e.t.c (with some pop also under my fingers). I have been playing since I was 7 and I have grown up from the same age using studio equipment, Logic, ProTools Cubas stuff e.t.c.

I am on the brink of purchasing a digital stage piano. At the moment the choices in no particular order are Roland Rd 700NX (if no one has used this please comment on the GX instead), Yamaha CP300, Yamaha CP5, Kawai MP8ii (i do not have the option of the mark 1).

I am solely interested in this piano having an action as comparable to an acoustic as possible (obviously subjectivity is an issue). I only care about sound in relation to the action.

I have to keep a good classical technique!!!

Could I get some opinions. can I also please hear a bit more info on the CP300 from the people who have at least an understanding of what a classical pianist requires (which sounds slightly ‘daft’ as you all to be extremely inspirational in your knowledge and passion.

RD700GX: I tried one in the store today. At first I was HORRIFIED at the “bottoming out feeling” it was like hitting my fingers on a table when I fully depressed the keys. I did adjust the setting for the tough but have not tried the HARD +6 yet.

I was very impressed with the ability to control the fast runs when i played Fantasie Impromptu (Chopin).

Please some more info about peoples views on the CP300 action!! I am also able to purchase RD 700NX

Dont hesitate to get technical, im clued up. Thanks so much Adrian and all, I really appreciate the effort!

Thanks for posting your question! You know I’ve had my GX now going on 3yrs and what I would say, even though I don’t play it every hour of the day, is that key wear issue seems to stabilize over time… meaning, you don’t wear the keys down to point of being unplayable at least in my direct experience. Honestly, I think we “musician types” can be overly sensitive at times with regards to our pursuit of perfection but the fact is it’s a mechanical device and over time, it will wear. For me, it’s been a very acceptable ratio BECAUSE the plus sides of the GX vastly outweigh the negatives.

Now is a perfect time to consider picking one up used because of the forthcoming update coming from Roland. I would just suggest you play the instrument if possible before you buy and get an idea of the usage level and playing intensity of the original owner… In the end, it will probably come down to a subjective judgment.

Hope this helps you?

I have a chance to purchase an RD-700GX secondhand, but supposedly in mint condition, for what seems like a reasonable price ($1775). But, like others, I’m concerned about the key wear problem that you and others have mentioned. I’ve contacted Roland (through one of their web sites) to find out where they stand on this. I haven’t heard anything from them. I’m wondering whether you have any additional information about this issue?

Regards,
Robert Rotstein

http://www.rolandconnect.com

New RD model (RD700NX) with PHA III action. Not a whole lot of publicised info ATM, but it’s definitely an intriguing prospect.

Yes, it would seem that you have to trade one pro or con for another in these situations. What I’m after is an at-home, perfectly playable piano-style action for use as a MIDI controller, not dissimilar to your application of the RD700GX (correct me if I’m wrong). Built-in sounds aren’t a concern – I’ve got a whole slew of them on my laptop. Something I can play pianistically, banging out the etudes and so forth of Chopin, Scriabin, Debussy, Poulenc et al. on without, you know, literally having to bang them out. It seems to me a fairly round peg – if a keyboard advertises itself as having weighted, grand-style action you’d think classical music would be a shoe-in. I play some jazz, too, but am not especially picky about the keys when it comes to that (the great thing about jazz and blues is you can pretty much bang it out on anything).

My main bugbear with so many weighted controllers (even some high-ends like the Kurzweil!) is that you CAN’T PLAY SOFTLY ON THEM. You can get the odd soft note out, but try actually playing quietly across the board and it feels like you’re hitting stiff, jam-lined buttons rather than playing a keyboard. So it definitely allays my fears to hear from you that the GX is an exception in this regard.

All things considered I will probably end up going with an RD700GX, as there’s still no sign of an original MP8 anywhere and the former board seems appropriate enough for my needs. The CP300 looks interesting – I can get one for £1200 ( about $1861), which seems like a steal, about £200 / $310 less than the GX – though I’ve read that’s not perfect either and a few of your subscribers seem to prefer the Roland. The CP5 is an option too, though one I haven’t investigated extensively. And what of all these super-cheap holy grail boards!?

Decisions, decisions… and of course I’ll continue to stalk the local stores for demo-able equipment.

Sorry for venting in your comments section, by the way!

- Keys bouncing up too quickly and being difficult to keep down
- A hard bottoming-out in the keybed

One guy on the musicplayer forums preferred the MP8II’s action over the Roland (didn’t like the GX’s bottom-out factor). Someone else even reckoned the RD700GX action to be fairly meh even by cheap MIDI controller standards – I’m talking specifically about the Studiologic VMK188plus and one of the Casio CDP models (can’t remember which). Both were ostensibly comparable and, in the former’s case, superior to the GX! That particular claim really threw me for a loop. Maybe I SHOULD just get a super-cheap board, and all this high-end stuff is just a load of marketing BS… I’ve got no idea. It’s so subjective as to be utterly unbelievable, and a good number of these boards are either not availalbe to try out in my area or discontinued altogether. I’m just left with a headache after all this..

Another thing that’s got me anxious (and this is something that you’d think would be pretty much numero uno criteria for judging a DP – this is just me checking the current standards) is this question that I’m about to pose – on the RD700GX and Kawai boards, is it possible to play a fast scale in pp across the board without having sudden notes go BANG or whatever due to an intemperate action? Because if you can’t, then good grief.

Also, I have recently begun doing solo piano gigs which requires a huge step up in tone from my Yamaha S9, which when buried in a band situation got by. I tried the GX700 and was impressed by its action. I also liked the sounds – although, it appeared plinky in the upper mids, a seemingly unavoidable by product of digital pianos. Are there any digitals that don’t get thin and nasally in the mids?

Apparently, from reading your forum, I’ve gathered that there are more realistic actions, which to me means too stiff. Also, there are better sounding boards, but that they come with stiffer actions and weigh too much. I gotta have something I can carry, and the GX is already 55 pounds. Do you use the sounds on board or are you midied to a library called Ivory?

One of your responders mentioned increasing the stiffness of the GX’s action to eliminate overdriving the mids. I’d like to hear your response on that, please. How much stiffer does the action get when compensating for the plinkyness?

Here are Steve Rose’s comments from Oct 2008:
“After 2 weeks of having trouble with the RD sounding too nasal in the upper mid and generally washy when hammered, I stumbled on why. I’m over blowing the notes. I’m switching the thing to the balls-out, wack-sample too easily which is why it sound nasal (too many harmonics). Bingo! Turning the touch level up to heavy + 6 brings the instrument into my control range. Wow does it sing.”

Also, it seems that the GX may be the best compromise for my needs: Easy but fairly realistic action, reasonable weight, and excellent sound. Whaddya think? Thanks for your consideration.

PS: This board has been around for awhile. Do you know if something new and better coming out by any chance?

TS

It just goes to show… when it comes to this topic, it’s a subjective personal opinion in the end. The economics of the music industry depends on such a debate!

Regarding the A-90… Yes I have and agree that from a controller standpoint, it was one of the best ever produced. Shame that some of the MIDI control became diluted in the RD700 series but I believe the action is a moderate improvement since that time… but yes, it’s a great board, and I wish it were still available too!

I have been searching for a used Kawai MP8 that is in great condition. Do you have any interest in selling it? If you do just name your price. I would love to take it off your hands.

Thanks!

We’ve had one of our contributors here give it (SuperNatural Piano Kit) pretty high marks. I plan to buy it shortly and give it a go as well! Will post back when after! From everything I’ve heard, yes, it’s worth the upgrade!

Cheers,
Adrian

Sure! Be happy to elaborate; but you might have also noticed that unlike the past, I have yet to sell my MP8 – and probably won’t do so. The decision to move to the Roland was a trade-off. I still believe the MP8 (not the MP8II) and the MP9500 have the most authentic piano action available. For most people, this is simply too heavy of an action, however. But if you’re accustomed to playing on acoustic grands, you’ll feel right at home – no question about it. The other argument against these older boards is the quality/range of on-board sounds; like you, I discount this completely because I use a variety of sample libraries – I view the sound argument as simply a trade-off. It also comes down to the type of music you’re playing/composing. I play jazz and mix in quite a few synths, etc so I needed a slightly lighter action and RD700GX provides that without a loss in playing dynamics.

Roland’s V-Piano PHAIII is the corollary to the MP8 but its size and price tag just don’t suit me. If I were to fast forward to today, I’d certainly keep the MP8 in the running, probably compare it then to the GX700 and THEN add the Yamaha CP5 or CP1 (both have the same action) into the mix. The CP1 is interesting and may very well fit right between the GX and the MP8 having true wooden keys. My only hesitation with the CP1 is that it’s not a graded action, and I believe this is important for creating that authentic feel you’re striving for.

That said, everything above is just my humble opinion… but hopefully that gives you a range of choices to “road test”. Let us know what you ultimately decide (and why)?

Many thanks,
Adrian

I also agree that sample libraries still rule the day although the margin is become increasingly narrow.

For me, I’m still much more interested in the action/dynamics/and controller capability because my unit remains inside the studio. If, like you, a gig piano was also of interest, I would suggest comparing the Roland GX to the (new) Yamana CP5. The CP series is clearly going to give Roland some serious competition. That very well may be where I land next!

Hope this helps!

and thanks a lot for your helpful insight! I just tested RD700GX and V-Piano with Synthology Ivory samples and was very impressed of the sensitivity. I preferred V-Piano – it seemed to have a wider dynamic range and a little heavier keys, though 700GX was not bad at all. My reference is Yamaha P-200, which I have used 10 years pretty happily. Now I feel it has a bit plastic touch compared to the new models, and it is harder to play with dynamics. I was wondering if you have any opinion about V-Piano or HP307 (the same PHA III keys) as a master controller for Ivory and other libraries.
The sounds of the digital pianos are not quite to the level of the better sample libraries, I think. Also the issue of keys wearing out worries me – maybe it is fixed with the new PHA III?

Actually the best option for me would be a gig piano with very good master controller capabilities (for sample libraries) and best possible piano-like touch. V-Piano though is too expensive, I can only afford about 2500 euros instrument.What would you suggest?

Great idea for a site and all comments very useful. I just thought I would add my bit to the key wear problem on the 700GX. My first one had the whole action replaced after a few months use and I was told that it was an updated surface that would not wear. I could not play the old one as I could feel the wear under my fingers and it detracted from any enjoyment I was getting from the sound or the action. After 2 months the new one is going the same way, which is very disappointing. Looks like the Yamaha CP5 for me, unless this also has issues with the ivory feel keys. My 130 year old grand at home (and I’m sorry but it does have real ivory) is a pleasure to play, but really for a usable stage piano, I think I would rather have the plastic than the uneven graining feel of a worn action.

Regards

Paul

the rd300gx has a different key action (pha ii ALPHA) which is lighter than the pha ii of the rd700gx.

If you want the best sound and portability, you should wait for the new yamaha cp50

Thanks for stopping by and posting! You know, I haven’t spent enough time on the 300gx to provide an objective reply. I do know that the feel is slightly different, obviously because it lacks the “ivory feel” (which from a wear/tear might be better:); but my recollection in playing it ever so briefly way back when I got the 700GX was that despite having the same PHA II action, it just felt “different”. I recall it lacked the responsiveness of the 700GX but not by a large margin. Really, it could have been simply owed to the different feel under my fingers. My suggestion would be to spend some time A-B testing each; you’re right in that it’s far more portable and it does have a good % of the 700GX sounds. Again going off memory but I also recall the older 700 series feeling very close to the 300GX – so perhaps that’s the better comparison?

Certainly would love for others to chime in on this coz I feel I’m not in a great position to advise Steve on this one….

Many thanks,
Adrian

-Adrian

Thank you so much for this amazing review!
Nimrod