Some folks are giving personal opinions that are just plain wrong....

Overall the G70 has the best quality sound, all the samples are more detailed than the E50, and E60..and for that matter the G70 has an advantage over the E80 too...

Side by side comparison will always show the true facts...not a memory from one year to the next


I have done these comparisons ..not just with the Roland boards , but also the Korgs and Yamahas..

No Ian, the G70 is still the best sound bank in the Roland line up...Anyone with hands on experience and the means to do the side by side with same sound systems will know what I am talking about....

They all sound good, but the definition and detail of the sample makes the difference.....The G70 is absent of sample loop glitches that abound on Yamaha and Korg samples...I believe Roland still has the best sampling facility to date...

The other important sound design ..a uniform volume level and playability of the entire wave table..again Roland's strenght...

Sorry Fran, I don't agree...technology has advanced considerably since the G-70, which was good in it's day, but sadly, is outperformed by a MOTL range BK-5.

Not just the sounds, but the styles do sound way better to my ears.

Just think, an MOTL S910 sounds better than an original TOTL Tyros.

It's no different with the Roland stuff.

If you are happy with your old G-70, I am glad for you...you can save your money.

However, the newer Roland stuff just sounds better all around...perhaps if John Smies was working with Roland gear, you might even be able to enhance your G-70 and bring it up to today's standards.

Ian

Fran I believe that you found a keyboard that was made with you in mind and that’s great. I felt that way with the Kn7000 – there was no keyboard made that could compare in the Big Band are.

The Yamaha and Korg may run a bit behind in the Big Band but in other areas there is very little to compare. Here is where I agree with Ian.

Many of the Technics owners that have crossed over to Yamaha and Korg but have not sold there Kn7000 and that’s just fine. I played the G70 once maybe I should have bought one, but the weight - OUCH!

After reading your post which normally carries a touch comparison with the G70 and other keyboards; and the way you praise it, (and there is nothing wrong with that), If I bought one I would be afraid it would never reach the expectation that you have given. It did look like a real Pro-Keyboard.

John C.

When other folks take the same effort to compare in detail as I have done...then I will consider their words with merit...but for now it is all hogwash

Another battle of the b(r)ands

No need to compare in details...all one has to do is listen.

Ian

What makes this especially ludicrous, is that Fran is battling within his own brand...remember, he is comparing old Roland to new Roland.

Incredibly funny.

Makes me happy to have a Tyros4 and be content with it.

Ian

Now I own both G70 and Tyros 4 and I feel both are great I agree with fran G 70 sound is great I feel G70 sounds are much fuller and not as thin in many areas Strings, Pads, Organs, Piano and EP as well shine on G70 drums fall behing and show it era , Yamaha does not do well except EP yamaha very good SAX and solo inst styles are both good but I kinda lean to Yamaha styles as for midi file players both great so the best thing for all of us here is to have both and we will all be happy i will be at Namm tomm so I plan to go thru the bk5 and I will give a report later I like both units and feel I am at my best when I have both on stage .

This type of debate goes on and on...we all know that how an instrument sounds will differ from person to person,

Some like the Roland sound, some like Yamaha, and some, like me, enjoy both.

It will be personal opinion...so, how can one be wrong?

It is my opinion the newer BK-7M/BK-5 sound better to my ears than the older G-70.

Fran disagrees...it's a free world...neither of us is going to lose any sleep over it.

Ian

I agree with Fran also... ..!



Showing G70 VH also...

We didn't (or at least I didn't) set out in this thread to pit Yamaha against Roland, so I'll stick to the topic.

I still think the BK-5 smokes the G-70, which really isn't a bad thing. I'm not saying the G-70 sounds bad...it still sounds pretty good, but it is all the bigger the achievement for the BK-5.

In my opinion, of course.



Ian

There are just a few keyboards over the years that today still sound great as the day they came out the G70 is one of those others in my opinion are ?

oberheim obxa my first keyboard I wish I still had it
Roland juno 106
seq ser profit 5
Yamaha DX7
Arp oddesey
Moog mono for left hand bass loved that one as well

I think when it all said and done we will look back at the G70 as one of those it is a keyboard way beyond it day when it came out .

I still have my Jupiter 8, but, compared to today's synths, it is limited.

It does a few things exceptionally well...analog strings and brass and some sounds that defy description, but it doesn't have a piano sound one could live with.

The G-70 had the best sounds in the Roland arranger line, but, why should it be surprising that a company would improve on it's own products?

It was no more ahead of it's time for Roland, than was the G-1000 before....some still think that was the best arranger Roland had produced.

So it is still all a matter of personal opinion.

Ian

PS...We all know full well that Fran is a die hard Roland fan, and I make no bones about being quite fond of Yamaha, but in this case, I am being unbiased, and giving my own personal view on what sounds best to me within one brand of instruments.

We obviously take a different view of the G70 in the UK when I tried to weigh mine in the guy at the shop said he would be lucky if he could sell it, they are like a fart in a spacesuit here. To each his own I suppose or whatever your poison is just take it, I don’t think you can rank it along with the T4 it’s light-years out of kilter stop dreaming guys and get down to the audiologist this weekend, don’t forget your hearing goes over time and YOU don’t notice it, it’s not just volume that changes its frequency also, here endeth the third lesson! Suppose the two guys in the video are happy enough at the time maybe.

A good friend of mine has owned a G70 for many years now and personally I never warmed to it. And that is from a person who did nothing but program for days on end on the G800 etc. in the nineties !
However I think that Most top arranger keyboards do not fully come alive unless the player also starts programming and tweaking. I mean guys like Peter Baartmans can make any keyboard sing, even the cheapest Casio, but for us mortals we are limited by both our musical technique and by technical stuff ( tweaking etc). So all in all I think the G70 can sound terrific.
I concur though with what Ian remarked. This started as a tread about the new Roland and if they want to stay with it they have to improve on the boards that they released ten years ago, no matter what price-tag goes with it.

regards,
John Smies