This is my follow update of the Roland Prelude..

As you may recall in my "first impression" post,I
liked the Prelude a lot, especially for my band needs.

Being able to play over MP3's,wave or sequences,
and the option to use styles...all on one keyboard is
great...

I may repeat some comments from before, but that will only reinforce
how great of a keyboard the Prelude is..with a street price
under $1,000...

The version 2 updated OS,made all the difference in the world on this Prelude..

I have set up an Eagle tech thumb drive (remember that little flash drive?)..
with nearly 1,000 MP3's, and sequences....They are organized in "playlist"

The Prelude allows easy editing and re save in the playlist, this includes edits of
SMF's and relocation spots in the playlist..
They can be set to play automatically as placed in the order (as I do with break tunes)..
or select the next song, while one is playing,
quickly and ready to play at the push of the play button.

I have loaded 100 of my favorite Roland G70 and Korg styles..
They are edited to my desire..

I have also created several Performances..these are keyboard set ups,
that are designed to use as I would want...if it be full piano mode, or split,
or as I always prefer...performances set up so I can use piano in piano mode and
a color sound (organ etc), that will play with the EV-5 pedal..


I select the styles from a preview list ..
viewing the next style while playing in arranger mode.
The styles retain the tempo, but the tap tempo is always ready to adjust the tempo..

Likewise , you can bring up a list of the tones, in each category..

At first , the operation seems complicated compared to selections as we use on the G and E series,
but it becomes second nature..

I also can use the Prelude via USB to control my soft synths in the studio
or on a gig with a laptop..but the Prelude works so well, after setting it up..
that the laptop is not needed on a gig..

The Prelude has a great option, not found on the GW8...
lyric read on the 200 sequences in internal memory.
The custom/user styles also reside in internal memory..

The GM sound set is excellent, continuing the Roland tradition of unbeatable
SMF play..

The make up tools are also very use able..

Another important feature, the Prelude reads the edited styles/SMF's from the G70..

I port them over, including the transpose (common, in make up)..from the G70
to the internal ram of the Prelude..

The playlist selections are fast...much faster than the Juno Stage or the E80.

The key feel is lighter than I prefer, but still a better feel than the PSR s910 or PA800..

and to me feels more dynamically playable..

I would highly recommend you give the Prelude a try...but spend some time,
checking out the things I have mentioned...This keyboard is creative enough
to run with the "big boys"...

It is still a keeper.........

I find your continued fondness for the Prelude encouraging. I know you love Rolands, but you are brutally honest when you find something you don't like either. I've pretty much settled into the s910, but miss many Roland features. If I could find a Prelude near me I would definitely check it out, if only to have as a #2 board. At $900 or so, it might be a sleeper keeper.

And, I have a 4gb EagleTech that I keep plugged into the s910. It's a great buy -$20 - available on eBay.

[This message has been edited by cassp (edited 04-13-2010).]

About the keyfeel. I don't know if the GW 8 has the same keyfeel as the Prelude but one of the reason I got rid of the Roland GW8 was the bad keyfeel. My follow up was the PA50 and now I have the PA500 Musikant and both have much better keyfeel then the Roland GW 8. That is my opinion. The sound of the Roland is OK but the keybed sucks.

[This message has been edited by FransN (edited 04-13-2010).]

I was wondering the same thing , so I e-mailed Roland support a while back , and there reply was:

"The Prelude / Juno-G / GW-8 , all share the same keybed and chassis."

I have played the Juno G , and although aftertouch is missing , ( same for Prelude and GW 8 ) , I found that the keybed has very fast and smooth action.

Extremely light touch , but at the same time very expressive , so much so that aftertouch was not missed on many of the voices.

Being an old organ grinder , the organ sounds could use some work , but they are very useable in a pinch.

Roland did not mention anything about the Prelude sound engine , but I would assume that the Juno G and the GW 8
all share the basic guts,

You have an all Arranger / a straight Synth / and the GW8 Hybrid !!

Later

Gary 

Roland Prelude demos
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McLZPD77Mt0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDRVWrwDl5A&feature=related

Gary, I also owned the Juno G...it was the worst Roland key feel I ever played, right there with the E-66....it was the main reason I sold it..

Believe me although the Prelude isn't much better...it is better...The keys feel a lot more resistant and I can live with the feel..I could not with the G..

Yes the JunoG, Juno Stage(not a bad semi weighted key bed), Prelude, GW8, and Sonic Cell...all use the Fantom sound engine..

Hey Fran,

That is strange that Roland would say they are all the same.

However as far as I`m concerned your info means more than Roland , especially where I have not played the Prelude and you own one !!

Thanks for the heads up as far as the Prelude having a better keybed than the Juno G.

Later ,

Gary 

The Prelude/GW-5 are made in Italy, the Juno-G in China, and the Juno Stage in Japan.

Would that explain the differences in keyboard quality?

I thought the Prelude and GW-8 felt okay...not quite as good as the S910, but reasonably responsive....they reminded me of the earlier E-series (E-20 etc).

I didn't play the Juno G, but I did have the Juno Stage at home for a day...very nice instrument, and a decent quality action as well.

Ian

I quess keyfeel is personal too I didn't like it and they are (the keys) noisy too. Feel cheaper then my PA500.