This arranger was sort of a hit not long ago. I had it and gave up too early (I think). Just curious on who has it still (I know Chas does) and how it's going? With the line outs, I think it would work well in my studio (and continued piano study).

I’d look around for an E60 if you’re continuing your piano studies. The extra notes make all the difference (everything up to and including Beethoven can fit a 76!).

Mind you, at this point, I’d say a used BK9 is your far better bet. It’s got pretty much everything the E50/60 had (except the touch screen), and so very much more…

If you can find one!

Zuki, yes I still have mine and play it almost daily. I keep it in my office to save myself from having to go down to my basement studio every time I just want to play for 10 minutes. That's actually why I bought it.

Rather than trying to tell you what you should and shouldn't buy, I'll just share some observations from my PERSONAL experience with this board.

1. If you're looking for a capable ARRANGER, look elsewhere.

2. Because of the weight and the controls layout, I would probably not 'gig' with this instrument.

3. Most musicians and reviewers consider it a better choice/bargain than the FP60X but not as good as the FP90/FP90X. I have not done a personal side-by-side comparison.

4. Keybed is not as responsive as I'd like and a little bit stiff, but after several years of playing the Crumar SEVEN and it's Rhodes-like keybed, I can live with it. Being primarily an organ player, I tend to prefer the lighter (semi-weighted) keybeds. Pianist will probably have no problem with this.

5. Of the sound palette, there are only four that I use consistently; Piano, Electric piano (does not sound like Rhodes), Jazz Organ (just one of the registrations), and drums (very limited editing - the drum samples themselves sound pretty good - as do most Roland drums).

6. The latest update now supports the Roland Piano App which is supposed to be excellent for teaching, training, study, and practice. I don't have any personal experience with it since I'm too old to learn ANYTHING new.

7. Connectivity is excellent. Very versatile and compatible with most modern formats (and physical connectors).

8. Three updates so far, which has added the piano app and implemented all known bug fixes.

9. It will accept most Roland Cloud content (Sound packs and Style packs) but will not play SMF's or standard Roland style files. Many sounds but no Standard Midi sound bank (deal breaker for some).

10. Only two drum patterns per style and they can't be manually controlled (they change (Var 1 - var 2) according to the way you play???? Actually, changes just seem random to me?

11. Chord Sequencer. Reviews say it's pretty good. I don't use it so I can't really say.

12. Record function. Pretty standard. I don't use it as I have it plugged into a Tascam DP32-SD (standalone recorder) AND a audio device/computer loaded with REAPER - "Belt and Suspenders".

WOULD I BUY IT AGAIN? Probably, because it's the highest quality/cheapest priced instrument that meets my specific needs. I won't exclude it because it doesn't have some feature that I'll never use anyway. But that's just me. Hope this helps.

chas

Thanks! Diki, the FP E-50 has 88 I think? Had it once...Still trying to sell the BK-9. Just not for me (need a backup?)
Thanks too Chas, appreciate the feedback. I'm sticking with the GDX for now. Good enough, plus the styles are plentiful and fun.

Hi Zuki, I think Chas is referring to the E-X50 or one of those new low-end Rolands that may or may not borrow elements of Yamaha's operating system. In any case, I'm not impressed and don't recommend buying one of these. The FP-E50 is a style piano and the direct successor to the earlier FP-50 and FP-80. It's the first keyboard with true Roland arranger DNA since the E-A7, but it's a stage piano with styles, not a fully-featured arranger.

I have an original E-50 released circa 2008, which I *think* is what you're asking about. This has the O.S. of the vaunted G-70 minus some important features such as drawbars, Vocal Harmony and an FC-7 input, but in a much lighter package. They didn't make many, you could never find them in stores, and they went out of production very quickly! I bought a demo model from George Kaye when they first came out. I've really enjoyed playing it and exploring the features; this board pretty much converted me to a Roland person. I don't play pianistically and I wanted something compact, so the 61-key E-50 was the right choice for me, although the keys are short and stiffly sprung.

I like the E-50's touch screen and the workflow for style creation and editing better than the BK-9's menus, so I've kept mine for this purpose (although the Rhythm Composer on the BK-9 is perfectly usable.) The E-50 was ultimately replaced by the BK-5 circa 2011-2012. The BK-5 is comparable to the E-50 in most respects. It's lighter and less bulky, but it lacks The E-50's touch screen, 16-track sequencer, and Cover tools.

Two limitations of the E-50 (if you can find one to buy!) First, the removable media is a PCMCIA card, which are themselves hard to find. When I bought my keyboard, I found a PCMCIA adapter that accepts Sony memory sticks and that's what I'm still using. External storage is essential IMO, so make sure you can source a solution before buying one. The second limitation is something that probably no one else cares about but me: With the help of MIDI Solutions' Relay and Footswitch Controller, I've managed to implement bass inversion as a MOMENTARY function. I.e., bass plays the lowest note whenever a footswitch is pressed and held, which makes it easier to turn on and off quickly during a song. This gimmick works great on the BKs, but the E-50 gets confused and sometimes "misses" open pulses from the Relay box. Either its processor is too slow, or the programmers built in a minimum-duration "window" that's too long for what I'm trying to do. Bottom line, songs with a few stray slash chords are easier to play on the BKs because they support my admittedly unorthodox approach, while the E-50 does not.

Obviously I think the E-50 and E-60 were good mid-line arrangers that compare favorably to contemporary rivals like the PSR-S700 or Korg PA500. If they had been more widely available in the late Oughts, Roland might still be in the arranger game today!

Ted, I AM NOT referring to the E-X50 (whatever that is?). I bought one of the first FP-E50's when they were first introduced. I even posted pictures of the setup in my office. Unless I've gone suddenly senile, I think I know what keyboard I own and am able to share my experience and impressions of it. Zuki, rest assured, I AM referencing the FP-E50 and nothing else. I'm not sure why anyone would think I'm incapable of correctly identifying a keyboard that I own and play every day OR what it was in my post that would make someone think that I wasn't talking about the FP-E50.

chas

Sorry Chas, no offense intended. I'm actually a fan of the FP-E50, if I were in the market for a style piano, that would be among my top choices.

My point is, I think Zuki is asking about the E-50 arranger circa 2008. Please accept my apology, and if that's NOT what he was asking about, then I'm sorry for wasting everyone's time.

No apology necessary, Ted. I just wanted to set the record straight that my comments, both positive and negative, were, in fact, directed at the FP-E50. As an inexpensive stage piano, it's about what you'd expect in that price range. As an arranger, there are much better options. In fact, I wouldn't even classify it as an arranger, but instead, as a stage/home piano with a few bare minimum arranger-type features. It's use of a paid subscription service (Roland Cloud) for style and sound enhancements is a big negative for me. However, it satisfies my very specific requirements which I outlined in a previous post.

chas

BTW Ted, I'm not much of a pianist but rather more organ/Rhodes-centric (not great on those either ), so most of my serious time is spent with my Crumar SEVEN and my "clonewheel". The FP-E50 is mostly for convenient 'noodling' when I don't feel like going down to my studio. It, along with the Roland App, is also an excellent learning/practice board for a pianist.

chas

Probably I made this whole mess, when I didn't specifically say FP-E50 (which I was referring to). Anyway, thx for the feedback too Ted.

I'm doing something different upcoming - "Arranger Shootout". Because I have a GDX-670, BK-9 and 4X, I thought it'd be fun to do the same song on each arranger. Gonna start with Ipanema and post on my YT page soon.