Sounds quite incredible! I just had a look at the FA-06 product page at Sweetwater and it's a lot less expensive than I thought would be. The only niggle I have with this video is that I think it would have been better if you had the patch names written on the bottom. I enjoy videos like this, though.
THANK YOU DANIEL.....In fact, your promo of this instrument.....FA-06 is quite outstanding. Thank you again. But when would you consider doing another one exhibiting the ethnic sounds & the Producer Drum Sounds, the R&B sounds with emphasis to those hit making sounds. Thanks.
i like it! im not really sure why people diss it sure here and there i hear a sound that isnt ideal but I HEAR Tons of banging stuff and this plus ableton live could make you billions of dollars
I love the FA-08. Watching this was nice Daniel. You do great demos. One thing I can’t stand, layering piano with strings! It’s like a big lump of moldy cheese on stale bread, When I see gigging keyboard players using those patches I want to jump onstage in a clown suit. But I will admit the FA at least makes it sound almost barely tolerable. Otherwise I think the FA is a very classy joint! I had one 4 years ago and sold it but I just ordered another. I missed it. I think Roland missed a beat by not offering a more full featured sampling option as an upgrade
The fact that I can expert audio in 16 track stems!!! what board makes it that easy. Export drag and drop!!! Maschine, studio one.... this fits my work flow perfectly. snd you can sample mp3? No brainer for me but I can see how some would not like it. Its all about preference.
Nice sweep picking on the guitar part dude!!! Overall the FA sounds super clean, present, and gorgeous. only wish it had an analog section like the JD-XA/Xi. I almost bought the JD-XA but it didn't have the awesome sequencer to make putting together songs easy.
1) Can you use the built-in sounds as VST Plugg-ins on your DAW? 2) Can you "Export your Audio Mixdown" on Cubase? I mean, can you "Convert MIDI into Audio" of your DAW Using the FA-06 without needing an external Audio Interface?
As the owner of a Jupiter-50, I am very conflicted after watching this video. I love the 76-key synth action keyboard on the J-50. I fear that the FA06 has a mediocre keybed such as those found on the MOX6 and Krome 51. And I don't like mushy 88-key weighted action boards either. But the J-50 lacks 16-part capability, a large color screen, and the editing knobs such as those found on the FA06.
Michael, I'm in the exact same position as you. I've been using the Jupiter-50 since December 2012, love the action on the keyboard but would benefit from the FA-06 features like 16-part capability, onboard sequencer and sampler and improved portability. I'm considering buying the FA-06 and using it side-by-side the Jupiter-50 but still not sure. What did you end up deciding?
David Galindo Im in the same boat. I just had my Jupiter 50 since September, and now I see the demo and clearly some of the guitar sounds (especially) and some other stuff seems to be a huge upgrade. Plus it looks hella easier to use in a live scenario even though it is a "workstation". The store I got it from says I will just lose $100 on my JP-50, (considering I got it for $1400 new on a deal). I am on the edge as running split mode a 61 key is too small unless your just using lower for bass, and the 88 is getting to the pain in the ass to move between my place and where we practice with the band. Darn you Roland, we need a FA-07 (assuming a 76 key would be dubbed that)
Very nice sound , lot of cool sounds. Piano Jazz sounds real nice, Yea all the sounds that you can download too from the site to get more from the Integra files.
You are right my friend they make great sounds but cheap action Hey why not use the synth action that ensoniq and Roland had? also the M1 was a great action and no noise.
This Keyboard looks great and I am seeking a Workstation purchase. I saw the video but I have Questions 1) If I used stored samples on my SD card on a song session, will the samples I used disappeared if I remove it from the key board or are the samples recorded and saved on the track without need for the sd card data? 2) Whats the max amount of samples that I can load on this unit? How much data can it hold? 3) Can I create synths on this unit by using my own sample library? Can I save my created synths and pull them up when I want? 4) Could I pitch an wav file from my SD card across the kets individually? For instance: If I had a one shot harp, could it pitch across the keys? And If so, Could I save that Sample as well as my settings then rename it and pull it up later without the need of the original sample on my sd card? Any help Would be great before I make my Pre Order purchase. If you know of another keyboard that can do what Ive asked above, what keyboard would that be?
There is a bug in FA series and not resolved. In STUDIO SET mode, I have 16 track (Part). An Expression pedal is used to adjust the volume of the selected part and working good. When I was playing in Part 1, I dim the volume with the EXP. Pedal and without releasing the key notes, I change the Part from Part 1 to Part 2, and suddenly the volume of Part 1 turned to its original value. This is a big problem in live and no solution found in any forum. All user having problem is looking for a firmware update. Thanks Roland
Hi. I have one question for all ppl who have FA-06. I'm considering buying this keyboard. Only thing I need to know is how good are bass sounds, because im mainly play left hand bass and lead in my band. Currently I own Korg Triton, is this worth that update? Thanks!
This thing is amazing! How much do they run? Also, does it have any old Rhodes, Moog, or Devo like sounds? Yes. I love synth from the 80's. Other than that, I believe this can play any genre of music you can imagine.
Hello! Thanks for your question and interest in Sweetwater for your Roland FA. Roland has provided a few templates while in DAW mode for Logic, Sonar and Cubase. However, it's really a MIDI controller and you can pretty much map what you need, where you need it. There's more info on that here... rolandus.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/115002212963-FA-06-FA-07-FA-08-Using-DAW-Control-Mode Please feel free to contact me anytime to discuss further or to place your order. Greg Savino, Senior Sweetwater Sales Engineer, greg_savino@sweetwater.com
Funny there's always someone coming on to these videos who uses SOFTsynths trying to convince us that we can do just as good as hardware using SOFTsynths. Listen ... I use to be broke without a job for many years I would always go for software but for years I had this frustrating issue that my sounds were not good enough or that my beats always had something missing so one day after getting a part time job I took a dive and purchased the Yamaha motif rack ... The sounds on that thing blew me out of my chair into the back of my studio .till this day I haven't gone back to software apart from sequencing .. that's it... And I had been using softsynth for over ten years ...
Agreed, I looked into VSti but too complicated, plugin from here and something else from someplace else all stitched together. I want it all in one place with a keyboard attached. One day it will get there but not today. Motif sounds are pure bliss. Plugins are warm piss.
JedEye MaStar Although I find myself relying a lot on soft synths these days I would never deem workstations as unnecessary or 'thing of the past' as some people these days do. Especially younger generation. Softwares are not a substitute of a proper instrument. I think a big factor of an instrument is to give the feeling of owning something tangible that can be held. That is what keeps the inspiration alive. Soft synths lack that even though many of them these days sound great.
a VST can do everything a digital (or "analog modeling") hardware synth can. it's all 1's and 0's. the only reason you'd want a digital hardware synth over a VST is for the physical knobs the only area where hardware synths can beat softsynths is true analog
RichardMasterson but all keyboard players imtalking about famous bands and artist, i think they always use a hardware synth keyboards. On stage concert or shows. Because its reliable. Soft synths are great in a studio. Period
+Jade Pascual VAs like Virus, Q, Nord Lead, are actually softsynths packaged as hardware, only difference is they have dedicated DSPs unlike PC. By the way you can't program Nord Modular, Nord Modular G without computer. Yes, dedicated hardware tend to be more relialable, but you can see that today even Kraftwerk uses laptops with controllers instead bunch of equipment on stage.
I think this FA-08 seems like a great keyboard with one significant limitation: It seems to have no quickly-selectable "Favorites" settings. As you can see in this video, every time a sound is changed, the camera cuts away. What a shame that a simple firmware fix is not made to use the 16 Pads to do this!!!!!!!!
Who needs a "favorites" if you can simply overwrite the internal stock sounds with what you use the most in order. That is what I have always done. All my most used patches are in Bank A, when I still played live I would place them in order as needed, all it took was a tap of a pedal to change to the next patch.
You got it right, that's why the kronos is the best!! no favorite,no sound remain that was present in the Fantom G,same sound ROM after ll these years shame on you roland.
Actually, I have since discovered that FA does have a favorites system! It is right under the display. In addition, you CAN use the 16-Pads to select sounds as well. Great 'board.
Nice Rhodes sound. On the whole I'm not sure the sounds are equal or better than Motif, but they are at least in the ball park. Definitely want to hear more. Thanks for the preview.
Based on what I've heard(I owned a MOX,but never a Roland)...but from everything I've ever heard from YT videos from both companies,it is my opinion,that synths are Roland's specialty,whereas Yamaha's are not....but in terms of acoustic sounds,I think it's fair to say that Roland's Supernatural tones are at the very least,equal...to that of Yamaha's. As far as piano sounds go,people will argue tooth & nail,over which acoustic pianos are more authentic,so it's a matter of taste,but I like both Yamaha's & Roland's pianos...as I am not that fanatical about pianos.
I am considering adding an 88 key keyboard to my setup. Looking at this and the Kronos but attracted to this more due to the price. I was disappointed that Kronos no longer has piano-roll editor that is currently in my Korg M3. I hope Roland doesn't leave out the piano roll. I have Logic Pro X but i find the M3's piano roll and advanced sequencing features to be a big help when I don't want to drag my computer along. Roland - I am assuming you don't have it right now but please add it if you can....along with tr 808 style loop sequencing if you can :) I like the pattern recording in my Motif XS but it lacks grid and piano roll that would have made it complete...Thanks!
Wwwwwwwoooooooowwwww! That synth sound you played between 1:30-1:50 is sooooooooo trancy '80s energetic! Please tell me how you made that sound! I'm gunna get one o' these babies in 2017! My name is Nicky Mitchell! I'd like to hear from you!
Hello - This series FA sounds super cool, but I want to KEEP my actual keyboard. Is there any plan to go for an RACK version of the FA-06 (FA-05 ?) , maybe only with the pads ? Could be the ultimate and fantastic instrument for me ! ?
Okay, I have been bashing this synthesizer left and right, but I guess these day you just can't have something that looks as sleek as the D-50 and keyboard feel as fantastic as the D-50 (don't get me started about aftertouch...) so I guess we have what we have. Times change. The sounds of the FA-series are very good when used properly.
WARNING! Save Song does not save all edits or changes made during production or mastering. For every song or edited version of that song your need to save a new studio set and 16 new patches for every song save because the Fa does not save this information as part of the song. Also this means you can NEVER edit any patches or studio sets that are part of any saved song. If you do edit any patches or studio sets you previous saved songs will never be the same when you load them so all you work is lost.
And can't you just modify the studio set of a saved song and then record both the modified song and the new studio set and delete the previous ones after that? That could fix the problem. Can you do that with the FA-06?
But you can edit them and then save both the modified studio set and the modified song both as a new one, can't you? I ask cause I have the dame doubt.
During a gig I just get one D.I. BOX to the house sound system so it's mono. What difference does stereo actually do if I get a 2nd D.I. box?? I mean does it make a lot of difference or will they just come out of the gig almost the same?? Thanks k
Great DEMO Dan ,, you get so much for so little $ with the Roland FA .... I have a Jupiter 80 , I would never part with !! I would say from what I have heard and see in the specs . Roland has a winner with the FA-06 & FA-08...
Had high hopes for the Roland FA but so far it doesn't sound any different from other Rolands I have owned. Fantom X, Fantom G, Juno Gi. Not saying it isn't fantastic value for money. Roland have indeed packed a lot in for the price but, right now it's not really doing it for me. Perhaps given a bit of hands on time with it I may change my opinion.
I currently have a Fantom g and have owned a Fantom x as well. To not hear that the supernatural acoustic sounds are not massively superior to the aforementioned, i find incredible. The Fantom g and Fantom x acoustic sounds are quite frankly crap by comparison.
I own a Roland RS-50, which is the grandfather of the Juno series, same synth engine, (Fantom I believe), and the FA is *way* ahead. Plus, I think a lot is lost listening on RU-vid. I know that was true about the Korg Krome, it sounded so-so to me until I had mine right in front of me and could hear it live.
Agreed. RU-vid is great for getting a rough idea of specs and features but it's always absolutely best to hear an instrument yourself if you can. What your listening through can make a massive difference to how something sounds.
I would like to see you create a sound such as brass from the init patch and add 4 different LFO's to it like I can do with my Microkorg. I know the Jupiter 80 has 2 fewer LFO's than my Microkorg but I don't know about this one.
The FA-06 is basically half an Integra 7, w/keys. The Integra 7 is basically a 15 year old XV5080, (same sounds, though the Integra actually has less expansion slots) w/some additional FX processing power. Roland (& Yamaha) keeps rebranding & repackaging the same stuff over an over, for nearly 15 years now. (& both have abandoned the analog/analog modeling market) The Motif, Fantom, FA, etc,....none of them even come close to the Korg Kronos. (though the Kurzweil PC3K, w/it's V.A.S.T. synthesis engine, is truly an awesome "soundstation") I understand what Roland is trying to do (perhaps it's the only way they can survive) w/the FA & ARIA series. It's a new world & Roland/Yamaha are going w/auto arrangers & mid-priced stuff. But Korg is the leader now. They make low end/analog (Volca) mid-priced (MicroKorg) Analog modeling (KingKorg (also mid-priced) High-end (Kronos, Kromo) & auto-arrangers. (PAX) In this new age of VSTi, I don't think there is room enough anymore, for 3-4 companies all making expensive, high end, hardware synths & workstations. (expensive hardware synths are dying/dead (unfortunately) Anyway, the MicroKorg is actually an amazing sounding synth. IMO it sounds even better than the Novation Ultra/MiniNova.
I think you are right. But there is room for a Roland that has analog osc and filter with maybe some digital effects. Perhaps a hybrid. But no more of these rebranded junk.
Wave Strike Agreed! A Roland synth w/analog osc & filter would be nice. BTW, you seem to love your MicroKorg. I think it sounds great & I'd like to pick one up eventually. What other (if any) synths do you own/use? Do you use any VSTi/software synths? I am strictly a hardware synth kinda guy (own nearly 3 dozen, assorted hardware synths, sound modules, & drum machines/modules) I am not a big fan of software synths. In addition to latency issues, (even on an i7 processor w/12GB RAM) I think they often sound thin, lifeless & lacking. You know, I am surprised there isn't some gadget,...like a USB analog ocs/filter contraption, to add some warmth to software synths. (we're never going to see an analog osc/filter in a PC/laptop)
There is a USB contraption like you mentioned called Analog Keys. And the filter allows for external input, I have too many synths to go into it, suffice it to say watch my videos and you will see some of the collection.
Wave Strike I'll have to check out the "Analog Keys" device. I'm looking at some of your videos & I see: Korg Polysix, 61 & Microkorg, Roland Fantom X8 (only in a video description) JX3P + PG200 & TB-303, Alesis Micron. Actually I've seen some of your videos before & left comments. It was the video of the Polysix + Panasonic RQ-209 cassette recorder. (I asked why you had no Commodore 64 or Atari 800, then discovered you have an Atari 520 ST, hehehe) I was thinking of getting an Alesis Micron, but I'm not sure if it uses the same analog modeling engine as the Fusion HD. (like how the Korg R3 & Radias, or MS2000 & Microkorg have similar engines) I love my Fusion. I'm really into analog modeling synths & the Fusion has a very unique & sweet sound IMO. For analog modeling I also have Yamaha EX5 & Motif 6/Classic w/PLG150-AN, Korg Z-1 & Triton Pro X w/EXB-MOSS & Kronos X 88. The Kronos has some great analog modeling engines. For Virtual Analog I have a Roland SH-01 Gaia & Kurzweil PC3K. The Gaia is really a cool & fun little synth, while Kurzweil's V.A.S.T. is truly awesome & amazing. I have no pure analog synths, but I have a few vintage analog/digital hybrids like the Casio CZ-1 & HT-6000, (the HT is somewhat rare & also underrated IMO (probably because it's built in speakers & "auto accompaniment" features, gave it a toyish, consumer/home model look) Korg Poly 800 & DW8000, (love the DW!) Roland Alpha Juno 1. With the possible exception of my Korg DDD-5, Trinity TR-Rack & Roland XV5080, I have a handful of other assorted sound modules, synths, drum machines, etc, not worth mentioning.
Can each different parts/layer in an FA-08 Studio Set be programmed to respond to a key velocity envelop? (e.g. if I want a bass or a bell sound to only play when I hit the key hard) or be controlled by an expression pedal? (e.g. when I want to bring in a strings layer gradually) or be controlled by an expression pedal in both directions? (e.g. when I want to morph from one instrument gradually to another instrument) Could you explain how to do that in a video?
Probably there is distortion used to create sound and it gives that harsh sound or noise. I guess it can be cut off with lowpass filter. I find here more interesting sounds than in Yamahas.
