Hi,
Please help me choosing between Xp-60 and Xp-80. I heard XP-60 has some decay noise problem. Is the problem also there in XP-80 ? Is it worth spending $300 more for XP-80 ?
Thanks a lot.

J

Hi there jadugar,

My understanding is that the XP60 and 80 are identical in every feature except for the lenght of the keyboard.

If true (and I think it is) then you will be paying the additional money only for a handful of extra notes. Whether it's worth that, or whether you can manage with a slightly shorter keyboard, only you can decide!

I must say I love my XP-60, and if there is decay noise I've never noticed it.

The otcave shift up/down keys easily compensate for a few less keys for my purposes. It all depends what kind of player you are I guess.

All the best,

Martin

I'm a former owner of the XP-60 and I can tell you that there is NO internal difference between the 2 boards. One has 61 keys and 1 has 76 keys.. That is the ONLY difference between them. I bought the XP-60 because I didn't have the need for 76 keys.. It all depends on what you want out of it. If you want more keys for playing then the XP-80 is your choice, and if you want a feather weight 61 key version that's shorter, lighter and easier to haul around then go for the XP-60... Hope this helped...

Squeak

Hi,
Thanks for your valuable input. I know that these 2 boards are identical except for the number keys in each. But I heard about this decay noise problem on XP-60, but no one has complained about this problem on XP-80. So was wondering if spending a $300 more for this board is worth.

jadugar,

I don't own any Roland instruments, so I am only responding based upon what I have read on various synth-related sites (including this one). The XP-30, XP-60, XP-80, JV-1010 and JV-2080 all have the problem of which you speak. The JV-1080 is the only available module in that series which reportedly does not have the issue.

Simply put, if you want an XP-series board (and while I don't own one, the keyboards sound good to me), you might as well get the XP-60 and save a few hundred bucks.

Jadugar, about your concerning about the decay noise, I have a question. Will you use the XP as for live stage or for studio recording ?
In my opinion, the decay noise is critical only at the recording when the sound is dried(no FX) and solo'ed. In live stage , the noise is most likely covered by the FX's and the other band member's sounds.

If you use the XP mainly for live, this is not a problem at all.

I think maybe I (and the tens of thousands of other happy XP users around the world) must have "cloth ears" as we say in England.

If there is decay distortion on my XP60 I've never noticed it. I record with it using my Roland VS1680 and think it sounds wonderful.

How hard to you have to listen in order to hear this distortion? And if you have to listen that hard, does it really matter?

All the best,

Martin

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[This message has been edited by MJB (edited 02-13-2001).]