From NJmm973@aol.com Sat Jan 20 13:49:37 2007
Subject:Re: Digital Pianos (OT)

Hi Greg,

I have been using a Roland RD 300SX as my 88 key weighted piano now for
about 18 months and I love it. Its a great size, it has a lot of features and I
like the fact that its easy to modify on the fly while playing on stage. I
haven't used it as a midi controller or master keyboard yet, but I've heard
from folks on here who do and they say its a great midi controller.

One think I like is the ease with which I can create layered sounds or split
the keyboard very easily. If I want a pad with my piano, like when we play
"Hey Jude", the first time I wanted it, I pick my piano, hit the "DUAL" key
and then select my second sound to layer on it. Or you can even just press
two different sound keys simultaneously and you will have a layered sound.
Then you have two slider controls which control how much of each sound you want
to hear. You can even modify this as you're playing, to increase the piano
versus pads, or visa versa depending on what you want your sound to be like.

Similarly, you have bass and treble EQ sliders you can access easily on the
fly. The sound is great and the presets are decent.

Now for some cons, and they aren't horrible. Applying effects etc, such as
phazer, delay, and things like that, are a bit cumbersome. You only have a
two character LED to work with. You have to look up or memorize that effect
73 is the one you want, for instance. Then once you've tweaked it, you can
save it into of 32 preset slots. The other kludgy thing is that when you
access a saved preset, it takes more than one key press. It can take a few.
Another CON is that not all parameters that you set are saved to your presets.
The relative volume levels of the two sliders on a layer, the EQ, the
transposition, and a couple other factors are not saved with the preset. But these
are minor annoyances, not deal breaker issues.

All in all its a great piano keyboard.

Gene

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