Comparison Roland BK9 vs G70.


To own one or the other, would be complete satisfaction.

To own both can cause indecision.

They each have strengths and features over the other.

After spending dedicated time with the BK9 (purposely put the G70 away.),
and then set up the G70 again for side by side comparison...sounds , styles and sequences..

The BK9 has a complete range of features that I like a lot.. the media player works well..
and the wave recorder and midi recorder, likewise..

The mic input is clear and powerful with phantom power too. Mic effects are good.

The keybed is very playable..

Insert effects are plentiful . 3 for SMF's and 2 for realtime parts.

Super Natural sounds are just that,,, SUPER.

Audio keys can be very useful, if you get pass the novelty and use them correctly..
First and formost , use drum loops..(audio drums).

Storage galore, flashdrive does the job..

If this was your only keyboard, you would be a happy camper..



The G70 lacks the audio player and media player, but excells in all other aspects..

Touch screen spoils you.. you may get use to the BK9 screen operations but no substitute
for G70 touch screen.

Also for edited parts of SMF or styles .. no contest , G70 rules..

G70 adds "cover" for SMF's and styles..

The mic input is a bit less clear than the BK9, but adds more control and harmony..

The Singer key feature is a great feature..

The transpose is easier to use on the G70..

The separate outs are very useful and missed on the BK9.. Likewise the separate output from the mic..




Sound comparison resulted in a mixed bag..The BK9 with Super Natural sounds is really great..
Problem is... we can't use Super Natyral with Styles or SMF's as a sound source.. only realtime parts..

The G70 allowed us to use the SRX boards in both Style and SMF's..

I have listened in detail and although close in sound, the G70 just sounds better to me..
I watched a E80 vs BK9 video on youtube and the player showed the E80 sounded better, so
I did the same comparisons and the same results... G70 was better sound...

If you only owned the BK9 , would never realize there was a better sound elsewhere..

BTW: I did this comparison with Korg, Ketron and Yamaha keyboards... and the results are all the same.. G70

has the best overall sounds.


The BK9 is 25 pounds lighter than the G70. And the quality difference in construction is reflected in the weight factor..

I also have more trust in the Italian factory quality over the Chinese manufactureres..


I would love to hear the styles and SMF's using Super Natural sounds.. Maybe the Integra7 is on my target list..
I would not want the Integra7 to default to a GM2 bank but I would want to assign the Super Natural sounds,,,
I think that is possible using the studio sound sets..

Maybe some Integra7 owners can enlighten me..



BTW: if I could only own the G70 or BK9...............It would be the G70.

That was a great comparison now that you got that out of the way when are you selling the bk9

But I can own as many boards as I want..

Nothing is for sale.... until Roland comes out with a better then I have keyboard..

If the g70 is the best keyboard for you no matter what why even look for other ones just play and enjoy meanwhile.... I'm drinking a banana, blueberry, strawberry, smoothie with almond milk... Oh yea!

The BK9 has a place in my world too... light, compact and I can even DJ with it… No need for any laptop or tablet..

BTW: as for what you are drinking.... YUK!!!!!

I know a few of you do it but I just can't picture a 70-80 yr. old DJ. Where ARE these events???...in a funeral home??? Any problem finding music slow enough for your 60 yr. old stripper. I guess that explains why Donny was promoting that gurney as an equipment cart; it can serve double duty in an emergency.

chas - aka Jon Benjamin, pianist

If you like supernatural sounds... the jupiter 80 adds another layer on top of the integra 7... thats because the features in the live sets...

I think the jupiter 80 is the most underestimated piece of gear ever produced by Roland...
Sadly it kinda failed economicaly.. making Roland step further away from this kid of products...

If I keep studying your work, maybe I could do stand-up, with the Captain at my side

Soooooo funny

Oh my ... where to begin? Chas, my friend, I feel that you don't get out much. Todays "party crowd" is, indeed, an older bunch than one might imagine, but they are full of energy. My typical audience is 50-80, with a few more beyond each end of that spectrum, but the general vibe is one of happy, upbeat fun. One nice thing about being in the biz for so long, is that my fans have grown with me. I played a "legacy wedding" last year; the daughter of a woman whose wedding I played 30 years ago. Very special time. There are 2 crowds out and about these days. The first is the millennials, and 30 somethings, who are abusing their bodies, and wallets to get the "high" that they so deserve from working all week. The next is the more mature, older crowd, who have some money, appreciate a nice dining/dancing venue, and might be in a retired, or semi-retired part of their journey, affording them more time to go out, without having to get up early the next day.
The restaurant I set up house in (4 nights a week) has a mix of both, but leans towards the latter. Often, on a weekend night, about 11ish, the regulars are starting to yawn, and pay their bills, and a fresh crowd of young bucks will storm in, loaded for bear .... wanting to sing, and have a good time. This is healthy for the business, because some of our crowd is dying off. It's fresh blood. The kiddies love what I do, and respect that even though I have more in common with their parents, than with them, I can still rock the house to a successful result.
Look at the many rockers in their 70s that are still touring ..... Paul McCartney, Ringo, Mick Jagger ... lots of old codgers, out there in the trenches, still.
A good DJ should be an entertainer. The skill set requires more than a knowledge of "what to play," but a knack to give the room a "pulse" throughout the night. It's imperative that a party have ebbs, and flows to be successful. A good entertainer can orchestrate this pace. A great sound system, and access to you tube is not enough to make one a good DJ.

I'll probably come back, read this, and make some edits, but I have to leave for a job, right now. I just wanted to weigh in on these thoughts.
BTW - I can show you some amazing pics of 60 yr olds who will turn heads all day long. Strippers, or not - 60 is definitely the new 40!
(2 words - Christy Brinkley)

see?

wait a minute Dave she's not a REDHEAD!!!

Its funny how most people have no clue about todays modern deejays.. many use quite a few keyboards and synths during their performances..

The time they just pushed play on a cd track is long ago.. many of them are aspiring musicians that try and reproduce wellknown music in their own way...


Here is two youtube video’s giving some insight on todays deejaying...

just the word Dj turns off many arranger kb style players that is a fact...a musicians greatest asset is keeping an OPEN MIND....
but the world continues to turn at any rate.

Sure Dave. Nobody epitomizes the average 64 yr old female like Christy Brinkley. Get Real! What the average person thinks of when you say DJ is a guy with HipHop attire, two turntables, a megawatt sound system, and a dozen sound effect gadgets. Anything else is just an old codger with a blank stare on his face playing CD's (or maybe an 8-track ). I'd bet my Crumar SEVEN that not three people (over 60) on this forum could name three of the top 10 songs (without the help of Google) being played in the type of venues that would feature a DJ as the main attraction. But hey, it's ok to dream . Who knows, maybe Keith Richards will show up at the next Polka festival you attend.

chas

Somebody was telling me they went to an affair and there was a DJ playing jazz music all night go figure the couple throwing the party were big jazzers..... said it was a refreshing change from the booming Bass hip hop music pumping all night and unbelievable volume levels but hardly anyone was dancing except for the slow songs...

That the problem when the DJ gets told what to play all night. A suggestion OK but all night never works. Been through that and I was the one blamed for a lame party.
I bet everyone was bored to death. "cut the damn cake so we can get outta here"

yes Bill it always happens BUT, ...the people throwing the party also have the power to drive the car so to speak and choose anything they want to hear...blamed or not by the attendees play what they want to hear no matter the outcome,.........this is where booking the event in the first place is where a DJ makes the decision to play it or not without just doing it for the money or risk being subjected to major ridicule by all involved big time,
.....WARNING Don't get caught up in a game you have no business being there for. And that goes for not only DJs but for any kind of perfromers...
...just get your check and walk away.

I can remember when this thread was about the BK9 vs the G70.

Yes, i can remember when Roland released its last high end arrangers... sadly that was some time ago.. wish we where discussing the latest greatest Roland keyboard here... with all the sounds of the Integra 7, the live sets of the jupiter 80 and the arranger parts of the ea7 and more..

The BK9 only has very few super natural sounds... if it would have had more, it could have been a killer when released...


The G70 was the most advanced keyboard of its time, yet still very much misunderstood by many, it git its real appreciation when other instruments didnt make make the jump Roland made..

However, sounds and dsp are getting a little outdated on the G70
And i did miss the multipads on it..
But the killer was no real memmory for sound expansions..

Even better example! (and she's much older!)

What happened to make you so bitter, my friend? You're comparing such different things. A hip-hop DJ works in a hip-hop environment .... full of kids. What's your reference point for "AVERAGE PERSON" anyway? My crowds are very mixed. A blank stare doesn't make someone old - it makes them boring, and there are LOTS of DJs, singers, piano players (many jazzers) who show little emotion on stage. This is just ageist thinking. Sometimes, you really surprise me.

Bachus, I want the Super Natural acoustic instruments.. I really have no need for the zillion synth sounds...(I outgrew that years ago).

I keep looking at the FA series.. it has a little more than 100 SN acoustic patches and you can download any SN and other sounds from Axial site..

I really don't need another keyboard, so my interest in the integra7..Unfortunately I don't want to go back in time and haul rackbags again..

Another plus with the integra7,,,, all the SRX boards are on board.(some of the best sounds to date)..

I used Roland Cloud and was able to download and use the SRX orchestral vst's.. with my DAW.. this has real possibilities (cost is 20 bucks a month..)

That is like seven years of Roland cloud offset the cost of FA07 or integra7.

Since I am not sure what I want to do... I am in a holding pattern (for today anyway ).

I'm not bitter Dave, but statements like that, carefully crafted to influence others on the forum to view me in a certain light, could easily make me feel that way. In fact, I'm probably a lot less bitter than YOU'd be had you had my life experiences living in this country. Sometimes my 'truths', said mostly in jest, might ruffle some over-sensitive feathers, but others on this forum have said MUCH, MUCH worse and not been labeled 'bitter' or 'angry' (Donny's preferred word). Why do you suppose that is? With the exception of the 'old codger/Keith Richards' reference (said in jest), I stand by everything I said in the post you referenced above. Maybe you should read it again. Oh, and FWIW, you DON'T surprise me.

chas

The Jupiter 80 is “only” super natural sounds ...
all available Super natural acoustic sounds
And all the super natural synth sounds..
No PCM sounds like in the integra 7
Escept for the drum sounds, they are PCM based in the Jupiter 80

The fa08 for example has only a subset of the SNA sounds
Mostly the keyboard sounds, but not the saxes, trumpets etc etc..
those are only in the jupiter 80 and the integara 7
The integra 7 has 1000’s of sounds most pcm based from the older roland synths..

Roland cloud is incredible its €20/month and each year you get to choose an instrument for keepers. The only downside of the Roland cloud is that its a huge resource hug... the instruments are orriginally DSP based (not as in effects, but in a way of programming) the conversion to intel based processing is hugely inefficiënt.

However, integration of the cloud with a hardware instrument is the next big thing i expect Roland to do... it will feel like you have a Roland hardware instrument, with the high end cloud sounds inside

Chas, I'm an open book. WYSIWYG, so I'm not surprised that you "get" me at face value.
I appreciate our differences, and enjoy the playful banter of a solid debate. I'm just trying to understand how you could slam the generation that you're apart of for being "less hip" ... or something like that. Maybe I missed something in your words.
At any rate, (or age) I pride myself on being a darn fine entertainer/musician/singer AND DJ. When I look at a crowd, I assess the needs of the room, and choose my program material accordingly. Age is not a factor, I follow the hits charts. I have kids, I watch body language. I know how to engage a crowd, and I do it 6 nights a week ... for all ages. Granted, my core audience is baby boomers and older, but the rooms I play have a diverse representation, and I can usually please most of them. There are tricks you learn after 50 years on stage that work most of the time, and I know a lot of them.

Dave, I'm probably the farthest thing you can get from being a 'bible-thumper', but there are a few passages that I really love; ie 'There is none so blind as he that WILL not see'. When you label someone, especially someone from another culture, as 'bitter' or 'angry', it conjures up a very negative image of that person and causes others in the majority culture to view them with suspicion and even (unwarranted) anger. That has never been more true than in the divided environment we are currently experiencing in this country. One of the reasons I like Fran is that although I may tease or kid him (as do a lot of us) about his undying admiration for and loyalty to, all things Roland , he recognizes it for what it is (locker room 'smack' talking) and I don't ever recall him getting angry or calling me (or anyone alse) 'bitter' or 'angry'. Same with Zuki, Steve, Tony, Russ, Eddie, and a few others. I think they recognize that it's just part of my personality, probably cultivated from 10yrs of military and 50 yrs of uphill struggle.

Look, Jews make fun of Jews, Italians make fun of Italians, Blacks make fun of Blacks; everyone makes fun of their own culture....SO WHY CAN'T 'OLD CODGERS' make fun of 'OLD CODGERS'? And let's face it, that's what most of us are here on SZ. Now that we've hashed this out, can we go back to why the BK9 AND the G70 BOTH SUCK and that the only ones that like them are ol' codgers whose hearing is so shot that they have absolutely no idea what these museum relics REALLY sound like .

chas - the Granny Smith of Apples

Dinosaurs.... or simply the best

I don't know of a single keyboard better at what it does ..than the G70... I challenged you guys dozens of times to a head to head comparison...and never a peep out of you guys..

I have done the comparisons , often with your equipment..

The BK9 is a better keyboard than my amigos have ever owned.. Don't take my word... bring on that Korg PA or PSR..
It will never happen

Another discontinued item the Edirol M-16dx.. could be the best all around mixer.. even today.. with 18 audio channels recording at once on separate channels.. and the cleanest digital mixer I have heard..

Sound systems yes I use the 33 year old Roland cubes.. matched with the Edirol M-10dx mixer... Bring on your best sound systems and I will send you home with your tail between your legs (is that possible)

Yes there are reasons I still use dinosaurs... simply the best..


Now if I can find someone that needs an analog TV.. I have a couple to get rid of..

My final relic is my 54 year old accordion and Sano stereo amp..

'sall good. We can disagree on this one. So, are you in love with the Seven still? Any shortcomings?
dave - the Red Delicious of apples

I have those also ... But the accordion is also a Sano ...
I know I used a different cable for stereo - more like an xlr - but in those days never even wondered how the 'stereo' worked ... perhaps you could enlighten me, Fran ...

The SEVEN, yes. Still madly in love with the tones (simply unmatched by anything I've heard, including a real Rhodes and a real DX7). The effects (tremolo, 'verb, chorus, phaser, flanger, delay, EQ, A-WHA, P-WHA) are all superb and 'tweakability' is quick, easy, and fairly intuitive. Still, probably better to set up your go-to patches and save them to pre-sets for 'live' playing.

WHAT I DON'T LIKE:

Keybed - somewhat stiff and a little 'clunky', very much like a real NEW Rhodes. You HAVE to approach it as a RHODES and NOT as an acoustic piano in terms of playing technique (since I know you're familiar with both, I know you know what I mean).

Colored knobs - you sort of get used to them but not my first choice for 'live' control. Also, the way pre-sets are selected is awkward and would be a nightmare for 'live' playing.

Master Voluime - Sloooooowwww. You probably have to turn the knob 5-6 revolutions before you hear a change in volume. NOT GOOD.

Weight - Yeah, that baby is HEAVY. Not a problem for me 'cause it just sits in my studio---but if I had to gig it....YIKES!

Appearance - This is just nit-picky (and also subjective). It looks just fine everwhere (except your living room ). But this was never intended as a piece of furniture, and as a gig 'board, it's kind of sexy. Again, in the studio, who cares.

Overall - I love the thing and would NEVER get rid of it. It is to the Rhodes what a TOTL clonewheel is to a Real B3. Lighter, sounds great, never out of tune, and (routine) maintenance free. What I really like though, is that, unlike a piano (unless you're a great pianist), you and a good singer could cover a lounge-type gig with no other instruments. All you need is good taste and a good knowledge of chords. If you're ever down this way, you should stop by and try it, I've got a feeling you'd really like it.

chas

Tony my Sano amp is a 15" and an 8".. In stereophonic mode (yes a 4 prong XLR) It splits the pickups to the 15" and 8" speakers and uses some pick up magic..

My accordion is a custom made (Bachalachio ??). amplified in Sano factory match to the Sano amp..

Didn't those Sano amps weigh a ton?

Fran...I remember Vangelis had an E-80 listed on buy and sell for $500. I almost drove over to Miami to pick it up. Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda.

I put wheels on mine, the first hour I had it

Wow that was a deal I bought my E80 with a trade and cash (a good deal but not your shot

I sold mine to Don Mason, and he sold it shortly after..

Mine came with wheels ... BUT- before I got married my parents home had 31 steps to the front door ??? ...
Youth and strength are wonderful things ...

I'm sure I'd love it, but I have the Korg SV-1, and that's gonna fill the bill for a while ... plus, it's RED!
That master volume knob sounds strange. Never heard of one that worked that way. I love the flat top - put a PA4X , for bass, organ and drums on top, and you've got the perfect live rig!

Actually I kept it for about a year. It got heavier and heavier! I replaced it with a BK7 if I remember correctly.

one of these days Roland will get all these great ideas together and if ever recreate a TOTL G70ish arranger kb somehow in a more modern version that alone will turn the whole company around.

I have a feeling that Roland has left the TOTL Arranger line, and it would not surprise me much if they leave MOTL as well....

You never know what Rolamd will do... if there is one company unpredictable its Roland
However, they also seem out of the high end workstation market...
Altough are they? As the fa and ea series offer a whole lot almost on par with the totl instrument of other companies...


What i expect Roland to make next? Thats a hardware instrument that uses the Roland cloud as its major soundsource.. but offers the musicians all possible controll over the most diverse utilities from the hardware...

In Frans defense,....if you talk about a Hammond B3, Fender Rhodes, Stradivarius, etc, which are older instruments no one ever questions it's age or sound quality, etc, ....but, if you mention a Roland G70 etc, it's referred to as Old technology, dinosaur, antique?
just wanted to throw that out...

thoughts?

I guess my question would be whether or not an AKB falls into the same category as a Hammond B3, Rhodes, Strad, Steinway, etc.
Personally, while I think AKBs are great instruments for their use, I would not put them in the same category as the others ...

Well... thats because violins haven’t gotten much better since stradivarius created them..same goes for the Hammond B3... as well as the Fender Rhodes or a steinway piano... their sound is set in stone..


However, the Roland G70 is trying to emulate all those instruments and did a decent job at that back then. But current day instruments have become a) a lot better at emulating those instruments b) are much easier to opperate(espescially the file system) and c) added quite a lot of new features...


You just can’t compare an arranger to those instruments.. because they are entirely different in nature