As today's the date of McFly's destination in Back to the Future II, I spontanously prepared a few seconds of the movie soundtrack (Alan Silvestri) on the Roland Integra. It was a matter of about an hour, so it's rather a raw version...

https://soundcloud.com/rorosetree/where-...oland-integra-7

Sounds good. I like the orchestral sounds of the Integra-7. Did you use SRX sounds, the SuperNatural ones, or a combination?

Almost exclusively SRX sounds: SRX 10 trombones and C-trumpet section, SRX 04 strings, SRX 06 percussions. Just added a SuperNatural French horn to the trombone track.

I'm constantly fascinated by the SRX 10 C-trumpet section. It is 100% like a real orchestral trumpet section, except the difficulty to control crescendo/decrescendo during a tone. I haven't heard any classical trumpet section of any current instrument that would come close to that.
What I dislike, and it's audible here, too, is the bad quality of the reverb, it always makes the overall sound a bit acute. Of coure I could have taken some higher frequencies out, no fine-tuning done about it yet...

Uploaded a slightly altered version now, conveniently the link is the same (Soundcloud allows this unlike Youtube). Rhythmic inaccuracies reduced, second orchestral glissando (from SRX 06), reverb less acute.

wow amazing creation !

Good to know. Thanks!

I just listened to your second version. If I didn't know it was made with a keyboard (sound module, to be exact), I never would have guessed.

I love orchestral music made with keyboards! The SRX boards certainly sound good, despite their age. I frequently hear your music on YouTube and Soundcloud, even if I've heard it before! Always looking forward to hearing your latest efforts.

Please keep them coming!

Thanks.

Thanks a lot, I really appreciate your interest in these tunes. If it's on the verge of sounding like a real orchestra, it's all I want to achieve.
The SRX, especially 04 and 10, are from about 2001-2003. So this is not extremely old, and the release year alone doesn't tell much about the quality and realism, if an above-average sample data amount was spent for a specialized group of sounds like strings. I tried so many flash libraries for the MoXF and still haven't found a trumpet section of the same realism. However, it could even sound better if I combine these Integra sounds with the best ones of my MoXF libraries. This time I just want the Integra to shine. BTW, the supernatural sounds don't help much for these symphonic tunes, as they are mainly solo instruments and don't integrate well to form instrument sections.

Wonderful, great job!

To bad ARX espescially ARX03 didnt make it into the integra... because they had some really awesome BRass ensemble's on the level of the Tyros 5 ensembles..


IF you want the best Symphonic sounds, you will probably need a fast PC with Kontakt libraries like LA scoring strings. They have a huge sound, but are expensive and require massive CPU power and memmory..


Tough for us mere mortals, your results are near to perfect..

Nice job. I wish Roland would develop another TOTL arranger. I always liked the Roland sound and quality. They also would of been top of the VH technology if they kept developing it.

Marcus

Rosetree, how about choir sounds? Are the ones in the SRX boards (mainly SRX-06) more realistic than the SuperNatural ones?


Thanks in advance.

A totl arranger with the Integra7 inside?... and the sampler we have seen in the E-A7..

Cant wayt for NAMM 2016

Just coming back from a wedding, where I (had to) use the Yamaha DGX 630 of the church for Cohen's Hallelujah. After that experience I'm all the more happy about my own instruments

I would have to A/B them directly, I'll do so later, but spontaneously I would say the SRX 06 ones (some of these are from the 1990s vocal expansion, one also from the (Titanic soundtrack-inspired) SR-JV Orchestral II from 1999) are very good, and the SN-A are nearly identical. There is also a boys' choir in the SRX 03 which is very similar to the SN-A one.
You probably know this demo I made of the SRX 06 including choirs (from 6:48 onwards):
https://youtu.be/qDtLBJeNF6I

I doubt that the ARX type of brass would be very useful here for such a symphonic tune. Actually I think most of it IS implemented in the SN-A sounds of the Integra. The ARX 03 was structured in a way that a patch was made up of up to 6 individual "players", each consisting of a solo superNatural tone. I don't think you could create a classical trumpet, trombone or French horn section with it that would sound like the SRX 10 ones. IMO it is more useful for pop and bigband (like most Tyros sounds as well).

P.S: Just found the ARX 03 flash demo again. These sounds are for pop and jazz, nothing symphonic about them. The sections are not big enough for that purpose. And they sound exactly like the Integra SN-A brass tones. Not the best Roland has created, IMO SRX 10 is much better (however for a different purpose and without those solo features like falls and glissandi).
http://www.rolandus.com/flash/demos/arx03/

Thank you for your review and information. I appreciate you taking time to do this.

Concerning your demo, yes, I've heard it a number of times on your YouTube channel and Soundcloud too, I believe.

The Korg Pa4X seems to have nice strings, orchestral and choir sounds. There's a nice Lyrical Choir starting at 5:29 on this video I posted previously: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2wFW3dpRNU One of these days, I'm going to go crazy and just buy a bunch of keyboards......and then run away from home, because my wife would kill me!

Yes, the PA-4X "Liverpool choir" is even more direct and real, you certainly hear the massive sample data here. The Hmm choir in turn IMO sounds just like the "old" Roland one.
It's a pity Roland stopped advancing their expansion sounds in the same speed as in the late 90s. IMO the SN-A sounds are only partially an advancement. In the 90s they had, or at least cooperated with, Eric Persing... The old expansion series contained compressed versions of the sample CD ROMs Eric Persing had compiled.

Thanks again for the recent comments. Meanwhile, I changed the version once more (faster, some more bars - complicated harmonies there, took some time to figure them out) and I uploaded a short video of Sonar and the Integra at work.
https://youtu.be/05ybQ4S_WIQ

I heard the video again, and could not find the "Liverpool Choir" you mention. Did you hear it somewhere else?

It IS a pity Roland stopped advancing their expansion sounds. Who knows what incredible sounds we would have today if they had continued. I wish they would record all new orchestral samples to replace the SRX boards.

It's not only Roland that stopped. Take Kurzweil, for instance. Years ago, they were far ahead with their strings and Orchestral sounds. Then, they basically kept recycling the same sounds, with very few exceptions. Today, they have some new sounds, but mostly pianos. If they had continued developing their orchestral sounds, they'd have something really incredible.

Unfortunately, most keyboard manufacturers have done the same. Personally, it's very frustrating. I think everyone, though, would like to see something truly new and ground-breaking.

As far as Eric Persing goes, he was probably the best at sound creation, and was responsible for that "Roland sound" so many people love. Too bad the SR-JV series and later the SRX series had to be compressed versions of his CD ROMS. Roalnd should hire him again.

My second keyboard was a Roland U-20. I had bought it simply because it had some of the most realistic orchestral sounds at that time (1989) as far as I could find in local stores. It only had 128 sounds in total, though.

That sounds super! It's incredible to think all the sounds come from that little box!

I find it the best version of the three.

The reverb sounds better, too.

You are very talented to be able to figure out all the parts by ear.

Now, I really want the Integra-7....... and the Kurzweil PC3k or PC3A, and the sound libraries for my Motif XF, like Garritan and the Strings library from Digital Sound Factory!!!

Thanks for uploading it.

Thanks again! You will be well equipped then A pity there is no more small module by Kurzweil, I would definitely own it...