Although I'm not into modules I still can see why this BK7m is very popular as it sounds really good and with your choice of KB controller can be a very versatile piece of gear to do many tasks. No wonder Don M loves it!

Its a great little box I feel is overlooked because its not considered TOTL. I think for most players its all you need but that will get me killed on this forum HA!
For example:
Saw a great , and I mean a very, very entertaining tight group on our trip to South Carolina last week. All older (at least 60) three piece. Bass, Guitar, Female on Keys (used sparingly ) and a very simple drum machine. I couldn't see what it was but all they did was kick in a basic beat in and do a bunch of dance tunes over it. All sang lead and did some nice harmonies. Only once did I detect a bit of a sequence for a Lady Antebelum tune. Three hour gig, no breaks, and the dance floor was never empty.
Made me stop and appreciate what a lot of talent and a little bit of technology can do.
Also talked to a bar/restaurant owner who hired a two piece and when they came in and just sang over Mp3's he let them finish the night and told them he'd never have them back. Gotta love it !!!!

You can definitely hear how some of the styles or OTS's are drowned in reverb, but once you dial a lot of that out, it's a pretty decent unit. I'm enjoying mine.

Diki, is it better sounding than the G70 or my ears don't work?
I hear a lot of "sizzle" (is that the word?) not present in the G70, which sounds maybe "muddier" lacking high freqs compared to this.

I tried the BK7-m when it first came out and.......I didn't like it. But these styles sound great....I'm very impressed. Roland always did have practical, working styles. I must have missed something in my first go-around.

Now the big-band styles are really laid out well, so my questions are:

How are the rest of the styles, particularly the Latin?
and......
in real life, how does the actual sound quality compare to the PA3x and the Tyros?

If you scroll down you'll see the latin demos and also the others. Keep in mind though that we are only listening to the intros. I've heard many great sounding intros or endings on different instruments and when you get to the variations it can be a big letdown. I suggest going to youtube and listening to some songs played/recorded direct to see what you think then


Of course there is no substitute for trying one in person.

http://www.youtube.com/user/RDantasKEYS/videos

Mark
I've spent countless hours tweaking the stock BK7M styles and am very happy with the results. Out of the box its a very good unit but I think you need to work with it and adjust it to your taste.
If the stock BK7M doesn't have all the styles you need I'm sure you know there are many collections of additional styles available. I've imported a few from my G1000 that I liked and others from CDs and after some time editing and changing instruments they work well. Biggest con is the Data Wheel. Really slows down the tweaking. Just last night I spent 1.5 hrs. redoing an old R&B style but I was very happy with the final result. I'm getting an IPAD soon.

I think the quality and variety of styles is the strength of the BK7m. It also has good lead sounds, at least the ones I use.
Drums and bass, in my opinion, are better than Tyros and PA3X.
Biggest drawback is access to controls. Many things are hidden in menus.
Also, it does not display text files for lyrics, and lyrics imbedded in midi files are only displayed on external screen.
I have 50 commands I can call up from my controller keyboard though, including direct access to endings, intros, variations, break/mute, sounds, performances, etc. You can do things via controller that you can't do directly on the module, such as one button push for, for example, intro 2, or ending 3. Two pushes are necessary on the module.
If you want to put in the homework, it makes a really good arranger.
DonM

Don, I pretty much agree with your comments..

I chose the BK5 over the BK7m, because of the lyric read on the internal screen...and also better access to controls...

I had to give up the "cover" feature, but do not miss it..it was too hard to use this feature live...whereas the G70 was a breeze live..

As Bill mentioned ..when you do some homework...it can kick butt..
Personally I think the drums beat Yamaha and Korg....This is the strenght of the BK....and also the media play from USB device...

maybe a NEW Bk7m redesigned with a larger Display screen at Music Messe Show in Frankfurt April along with the NEW BK9 ?

Anybody know if one can sync the bk7m to the registration memory buttons on a Tyros/PSR? If so, how much of what could be saved?

Dropping the touch screens is a HUGE step backwards for Roland. Particularly as the component price on them, compared to when they first came out (2005?) is much lower. Modern arrangers are so capable, so complex, that having front-panel buttons for everything is completely impractical (and expensive). So everything gets shunted to menus and sub-menus, and editing becomes much more of a chore.

The touch screen is the perfect answer to the problem, because one button can call up a screen with DOZENS of virtual buttons, and another button call up yet another screen. Nothing is more than a couple of button pushes away. This new system is nowhere NEAR as user friendly or fast, and those are the two things that make people USE editing features!

Trident... some of the 'sizzle' is newer drum kits, with better hi-hats, some of it is different EQ on the Parts, and more 'Mastering' Tools, but if you take all that off, overall, there's not a huge difference to the G70 other than the noticeably shorter loops on some of the major sounds... Obviously, the BK-7m doesn't have the full 192MB of ROM that the G70 said it did. But this is standard procedure for downmarket arrangers compared to the TOTL.

Overall, there is much to like about the BK-7m, compared to the G70. Drums are improved, and electric and acoustic guitars have been bettered substantially. The styles are well balanced (other than the reverb overload on some of them) and EQ'd, and I think this latter aspect is the primary reason most hear a difference to the G70. The 3-band parametric EQ per Part and per drum was an upgrade to the G70 after it had been out a year or more. And, to be perfectly honest, the styles were all made prior to that capability, and after it was added, Roland, although they issued newer styles, they seem to have taken this long to fully understand and utilize them. But many of the EQ 'tweaks', when applied to older G70 styles and kits, can help it sound pretty close to the BK series.

I wouldn't trade my G70 away in a million years in comparison to the BK-7m, and from what I've seen so far of the BK-9, I don't think this one will make me do it either. I always like to tweak and personalize my styles, and the speed and ease of being able to do this is probably (other than great drums!) my primary need in an arranger.

Hi Don,
I gather you're using an actual controller keyboard to access these functions, have you ever tried it with the korg?

Had been considering the s950, but a module would be a better setup for my pa3x.

So, if anyone else could also please chip in,

How well does it play some of the older Roland styles? Had a heap for my VA7 (if I can still find them).
I also vaguely remember reading something on Technote,a few years back, that they made some of the Technics styles available for sale for Roland Keyboards. That would be a bonus for me, just wondering if anybody ever tried them on a Roland.

I gather there's no NOTE editing for styles, but sounds etc can be changed?

Also the sequencer records as audio not midi ( which put me off originally ).
So can the bk7m play audio files from an external source ie if I recorded an mp3 file in Band in a Box for instance, could it be played back in the BK7m?

There's apparently some sort of a pedal available, is it a neccesity for easy acces for intro's , variations etc

Thanks Guys.

Hi Rikki, I haven't tried it with the Korg.
It does play the older Roland styles just fine. I kept the E50 partly because on the original OS the BK7m wouldn't write OTS settings, so I could do them on the E50 and use them in the BK.
Now the upgrade allows us to write OTS settings of our own.
Yes, it does have audio in, and again works just fine. You can also play recorded songs from the USB drive.
I use the FC7 pedal, and as I wrote above, it is quite useful.
It's not essential for me, because the controller has sustain pedal input and the module has an assignable pedal input.
It's very easy to change style sounds. The makeup and cover tools are great. You can instantly change the genre of a complete style, or part of a style, as you choose.
There are Technics conversions available. I don't recall if I use any of them.
DonM

Hi Don,
thank you.

The makeup & cover tools sounds quite interesting.

Downloaded the manual so I'll have a read thru, definately interested.

The actual Technics styles I referred to, I don't beleive are conversions ( I could be wrong).Technote, who created the 3rd party style series for the Technics keyboard, actually ended up doing their series for Roland keyboards, so I would imagine they should sound better than an EMC conversion, or at least I would hope so. haahaa.
Better do some checking first & make sure they're still available befor I get too excited.

Thanks Don.

I wouldn't get a BK-7m without also getting an FC-7 too...

There's just too much that needs these switches that isn't on the front panel. Perhaps if your controller keyboard is VERY capable, but I think there is some important stuff that ONLY the FC-7 can get to.

Thanks Diki
I be using it with my PA3X , the last thing I need is another set of keys so a dedicated controller keyboard is out.
I'll do some checking into an FC-7, thanks guys , for the advice.

Wouldn't life be grand if one arranger keyboard could control the functions of another arranger.