Roland V-COMBO VR-730 vs. Electro 5D

[Lee Batchelor]

Hi everyone,

There seems to be some grumbling about the new Roland V-COMBO VR-730. Has anyone compared it to the 5D? I'm from Canada, and we always seem to be last when it comes to new products arriving on our shores! I love my 5D but there seems to be some usability features on the VR-730 that are better than the 5D. Don't know about the sounds though. I somehow doubt they'd be as good. Just curious for now. Thanks .

[anotherscott]

The NE5D is compared to the VR-09 at

http://forums.musicplayer.com/ubbthread ... oland_VR_0

Most of that comparison still holds if you substitute VR-730 for VR-09, though obviously the VR-730 has more keys. The biggest difference in the comparison would be that the VR-730 is supposed to have a much better action than the VR-09 (and if it turns out to be the same or very similar to what was o the VR-700, it will probably be a better action than what's on the NE5D as well). Also, they have improved the organ/leslie sound itself in the VR-730 compared to the VR09, it is unknown how it will compare to the Nord in that respect. Other than that, the pros and cons of the two are pretty well discussed in that thread.

EDIT: You could also look at the Roland FA-07. It doesn't have the newest VR730 organ sound, nor presumably as good of an action, and doesn't give you the same kind of real-time drawbar control (unless maybe you own the discontinued Ocean Beach drawbar module), but in all other respects, it's probably better. So the choice might depend on just how organ-centric your usage is.

[Lee Batchelor]

Many thanks, anotherscott! The B3 sounds are least important to me behind true to life pianos and EPs. I shall check it out.

I love the 5D, however, I find switching between Programs with that empty sound in between to be an issue. The Transpose function is still way too buried. The B3 organs have that default touch of dirt on them all the time compared to the Electro 4.

[Frantz]

The B3 organs have that default touch of dirt on them all the time compared to the Electro 4.

True.
I still find this upsetting.
The NE5D board would be better with an option for that in the menu

[Lee Batchelor]

Btw Lee, have a look at the Vox Continental ?

[Lee Batchelor]

Great article about the Vox here:

https://reverb.com/ca/news/a-history-of ... ombo-organ

Thanks, Frantz .

[anotherscott]

Many thanks, anotherscott! The B3 sounds are least important to me behind true to life pianos and EPs. I shall check it out.

I love the 5D, however, I find switching between Programs with that empty sound in between to be an issue. The Transpose function is still way too buried. The B3 organs have that default touch of dirt on them all the time compared to the Electro 4.

Other boards that you could consider that have at least 73 keys, strong pianos and EPs, above average organ, and generally smooth transitions when switching sounds would be:

* Kurzweil Artis7 if you want to stay with a semi-weighted action. I ended up preferring this to the Roland FA-07. The Roland has some advantages... sequencer, rhythms, arpeggiator, d-beam, trigger pads, sub out, lower travel weight. But action, controls, patch navigation, smooth sound transition functionality, LH bass flexibility, all favored the Kurz. (Both generally have smooth sound transitions, but there are always certain circumstances where it doesn't work or not so smoothly... overall, it's better on the Kurz.)

* Kawai MP7 if you want a weighted action which is better for pianos and EPs... and as weighted actions go, the MP7's is pretty good for organ, too (even including a high trigger point). It's not obvious at first glance, but there is a clonewheel engine built into the MP7 as well, and it mostly has good seamless sound switching, except when switching to or from organ. But it's only available as an 88, and it's 46 lbs.

* Korg GrandStage for another weighted action option, and probably the most perfect seamless sound switching. More limited drawbar adjustments than any of the others (I haven't played one, but I don't think there's any way to adjust all 9 drawbars on a given patch, even though its based on the Kronos CX3 organ engine). The 73 is 37.5 lbs.

I *think* transpose is readily available on all of them, but you'd have to double-check.

[Lee Batchelor]

Many thanks, AnotherScott! You exemplify why we all join these forums - for help otherwise difficult to find. I shall explore your recommendations.

Another route I'm looking at is the new Yamaha Genos. It would potentially replace both my Tyros 5 and Nord 5D. The action is strictly synth, but if the pianos, EPS, and B3s are as they claim, the Genos could be my solution as well. All Yamaha must do is either produce a decent demo video (something they have failed miserably at so far) or get the damn thing into Canadian stores in a more timely fashion. The whole friggin' world gets the newest keyboards about 3 or 4 months ahead of Canada. The U.S and Europe will see the Genos in their stores in the next few weeks. Asia has had them for a while. We won't see them until January. The boundary between the U.S. and Canada is an ultra-thin pencil line drawn by a bunch of idiot politicians. Go figure...??? End of rant...thanks again .

[anotherscott]

Another route I'm looking at is the new Yamaha Genos..

Well, if budget isn't so much of an issue, the NS3 will give you the seamless transition, though it may not address your other Nord issues.

Also, I mentioned the Artis7 as the Kurzweil of choice based on thinking that, as an E5D owner and having expressed interest in the VR-730, you might have a preference for SW keys, despite piano/EP being your main sounds. But if weighted action is fine, there are other Kurz models to choose from. In particular, the Forte and Forte 7 have Kurzweil's best piano and EP sounds. Forte SE and forthcoming SP6 second best (SP6 being only about 27 lbs, and very well priced). The Artis series comes after that Like Nord, not all these weighted actions are the same, though, so the boards differ in feel. The priciest/heaviest models use a slightly different version of the Fatar TP40 that Nord similarly uses in their priciest/heaviest models; both companies use Fatar TP100 on lighter/cheaper models (though Kurzweil's aren't as light as Nords), and the SP6 uses something else entirely.

[Lee Batchelor]

Wow, you sure know your stuff. I now have a lot of homework to do ! Thanks...