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New Roland Fantom


gino

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I am in plan mode. I don't have any special music production requirements where the Fantom is critical today or in December.

 

I also see a strong surge on getting the Fantom now. But I have never followed the herd. On anything.

 

Since we are talking $4000, I follow the cautious route since NAMM is 4 months away. Sure , nothing

significant might occur. Meanwhile, Fantom will see some improvements and any concerns should

become crystal clear.

 

I am not as motivated or dependent on history, Or ulterior motives of a Roland, Time is going to answer

mostly all questions. This is my opinion but when any keyboard or music hardware based co puts out a

$2000, $3000, $4000 new product, they have put themselves in the bright spot lights. Thus they have put

the co under pressure to perform and follow thru.

 

I also don't characterize Fantom { or Montage or Kronos from 8 yrs ago} as a 'try as you go and see what happens '

type product. Thats my rationale, I see waiting 4 months as no big deal.

 

 

Why fit in, when you were born to stand out ?

My Soundcloud with many originals:

[70's Songwriter]

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Ver. May sell my Kronos 3 76, Virus TI2 and System 8 to pick up a Fantom 7. My rule is sell 2 to buy 1 as I reduce my rig.

 

Only considering selling the Kronos 3 because I also have a 61 key version and an RD2000 for weighted action.

 

never heard of a official Korg Kronos 3

 

A Kronos 2, yes.

 

 

I've never understood why Korg chose to call the third version of the Kronos the 2. Since you also insist on users calling the third version the 2, maybe you can enlighten me on the logic behind such a seemingly illogical naming system.

This post edited for speling.

My Sweetwater Gear Exchange Page

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Ver. May sell my Kronos 3 76, Virus TI2 and System 8 to pick up a Fantom 7. My rule is sell 2 to buy 1 as I reduce my rig.

 

Only considering selling the Kronos 3 because I also have a 61 key version and an RD2000 for weighted action.

 

never heard of a official Korg Kronos 3

 

A Kronos 2, yes.

 

 

I've never understood why Korg chose to call the third version of the Kronos the 2. Since you also insist on users calling the third version the 2, maybe you can enlighten me on the logic behind such a seemingly illogical naming system.

 

I suppose you can call it whatever you like. I stick with what Korg says to avoid confusion.

 

I don't work for Korg so what you read is my opinion.

You can also go to wikipedia for dates of the Kronos models

 

There is the original Kronos from 2011. Which is what I have.

 

They introduced the " X " model, sometime in 2012 [my recollection on date].

 

Why the " X" ? I think Korg wanted to make a distinction due to an occurrence of defective

key beds in the original 2011 model. Korg also expanded the SSD size.

 

The Kronos 2 appeared January 2015. It featured new sounds, a significant OS upgrade.

As we know, the OS upgrade worked on every Kronos.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why fit in, when you were born to stand out ?

My Soundcloud with many originals:

[70's Songwriter]

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Hey people, I said I'd follow up with some findings on how noisy the Fantom's keyboard action is. I have the Fantom 7 here in my studio, which has the semi-weighted synth action, and compared it to a few other things: Yamaha MODX (unweighted) and CP73 (weighted), as well as a Dexibell Vivo S9 stage piano (weighted) and for giggles, one of my old Kurzweil K2000s. The Kurz was quieter than anything, though of the synth actions, the Fantom still gets my nod for smoothness and quiet on organ-style palm smears. Playing the keys intentionally hard to hear how they "bottom out," the Fantom was most certainly not louder than the MODX. The MODX action is lighter and bottoms out with more of a midrange-y "clack," whereas the Fantom is a lower-pitched, dull thud. I'm not sure why some folks are finding the Fantom's mechanical sounds distracting. Could be something to do with the particular frequency.

Stephen Fortner

Principal, Fortner Media

Former Editor in Chief, Keyboard Magazine

Digital Piano Consultant, Piano Buyer Magazine

 

Industry affiliations: Antares, Arturia, Giles Communications, MS Media, Polyverse

 

 

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I've had my Fantom 7 for 4 days. At least 40 hours on the machine already. The organ is all PCM and drawbars control the registrations. There is nothing to see here. There are 380 ish PCM waves but there are empty banks so expansion looks very possible. There's a ton of old presets with familiar names but they often don't sound as good as the Jupiter. Some basic editing brings them to life...replace a PCM partial with VA and filter adjustments. The control surface makes it super easy to get to into and around the synth. Many of the new presets make use of the step LFO and they like routing that to pitch which created a few intonation issues in 1 particular composition. I spent a couple days with loop player and TR REC seq stuff. It's fun, ideas go down quick but workflow could be improved and it needs editing functions. By day 4 I was back in Logic and that's where things opened up. MacOS driver installation was a bit tricky, it could be documented better. Before you do anything set the USB setting in Fantom to "vendor" and write/reboot Fantom. 32 inputs and 6 outputs appeared plus MIDI over USB. Nice. DAW control works mixer adjustments, transport control via the pads. I'm Logic key commands guy so it's still faster using QWERTY but if you don't already know this stuff, you won't need a dedicated control surface for DAW. Fantom is 16 part multitimbral. Voices are big enough so they can stand on their own or in pairs. Have to say Fantom is light on EFX, 1 insert per part and 2 master.

 

Fantom 7 synth action is very nice. Better than anything else I've owned. Few quirks...V Piano can only be in zone 1. All the INIT presets in the machine are not fully initialized so watch out (velocity limited to 80, probably other things). Just init the scene before you dive in. Current presets pretty bad.

 

Friends are asking me "are you going to sell the Jupiter? The Kronos?" The answer is neither. They all have their strengths and I've got years learning and understanding these instruments. All together, it sounds glorious. Really wonderful time to play electronic instruments I'm blessed. It's been a very exciting couple weeks!

 

Best synopsis I've read, thank you!

 

Organ "nothing to see here"....how bad is it? LOL Could you tweak up a decent B3/122 sound with what is there now? How would it compare to the B3 in Logic these days?

 

It may be a long list, but generally, what does the Kronos do better? More specifically how do sequencing cababilites compare Kronos/Fantom. I hear alot of cursing about the Kronos sequencing.......

RT-3/U-121/Leslie 21H and 760/Saltarelle Nuage/MOXF6/MIDIhub, 

SL-880/Nektar T4/Numa Cx2/Deepmind12/Virus TI 61/SL61 mk2

Stylophone R8/Behringer RD-8/Proteus 1/MP-7/Zynthian 4

MPC1k/JV1010/Unitor 8/Model D & 2600/WX-5&7/VL70m/DMP-18 Pedals

Natal drums/congas etc & misc bowed/plucked/blown instruments. 

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I've h

 

It may be a long list, but generally, what does the Kronos do better? More specifically how do sequencing cababilites compare Kronos/Fantom. I hear alot of cursing about the Kronos sequencing.......

 

I love the Kronos SEQ- created +60 songs on it. One gripe is the tiny font size Another is polyphony limit- this is related to the processor/OS , I believe. . Other than that, I am comfortable with the work flow and my recordings sound good.

 

I haven't gotten my brain around the Fantom's approach. I expect it to be different. Just the same, and per the demos, it appears the sequencing is a strength , and the results should be stellar. I know that is 'iffy ' since I don't have one, but the Fantom has my interest/attention, as a song writer.

Why fit in, when you were born to stand out ?

My Soundcloud with many originals:

[70's Songwriter]

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Best synopsis I've read, thank you!

 

Organ "nothing to see here"....how bad is it? LOL Could you tweak up a decent B3/122 sound with what is there now? How would it compare to the B3 in Logic these days?.

 

Thank you! If you dial up any Fantom organ patch & close your eyes, you're instantly transported back when you first played organ on a Fantom X only with nicer reverb.

 

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Best synopsis I've read, thank you!

 

Organ "nothing to see here"....how bad is it? LOL Could you tweak up a decent B3/122 sound with what is there now? How would it compare to the B3 in Logic these days?.

 

Thank you! If you dial up any Fantom organ patch & close your eyes, you're instantly transported back when you first played organ on a Fantom X only with nicer reverb.

 

OMG......well at least you can get to those Logic/Mainstage organs with a nice interface......

 

I kinda realized what I really want is a Genos........now that I realize how heavy on "sound design" read "not live" the workstations are now. Crikey, you can sing right into the thing with 4-part...etc. I was all excited tonite about the Pa4x untill I watched Adian fall in and out of love for it.

 

The hilarious thing is how the "arranger" boards are so looked down upon (over here), yet the good ones seem to have a alot of features NA on Kronos/Forte etc.

 

The Fantom is demonstrated essentially as an arranger board.....really the best demos have it being used like one.

 

That is the future: a Genos/Kronos board, 30lbs Fantom Synth action which has your back OMB or Studio sound designer, and takes the place of your Audio interface, drum machine, mixer and all that, but will let in your eurorack stuff and anything else.

 

The Yamaha Genos is so buttoned up, and youd need to spend some time in a re-education center to get the lingo.

 

A good used Kronos 2 61 is about 1K cheaper than a new Fantom 6.....but that Fantom back panel has CV and the guts look pretty strong.....up to date...except for some more arranger functions ;)

RT-3/U-121/Leslie 21H and 760/Saltarelle Nuage/MOXF6/MIDIhub, 

SL-880/Nektar T4/Numa Cx2/Deepmind12/Virus TI 61/SL61 mk2

Stylophone R8/Behringer RD-8/Proteus 1/MP-7/Zynthian 4

MPC1k/JV1010/Unitor 8/Model D & 2600/WX-5&7/VL70m/DMP-18 Pedals

Natal drums/congas etc & misc bowed/plucked/blown instruments. 

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Hey people, I said I'd follow up with some findings on how noisy the Fantom's keyboard action is. I have the Fantom 7 here in my studio, which has the semi-weighted synth action, and compared it to a few other things: Yamaha MODX (unweighted) and CP73 (weighted), as well as a Dexibell Vivo S9 stage piano (weighted) and for giggles, one of my old Kurzweil K2000s. The Kurz was quieter than anything, though of the synth actions, the Fantom still gets my nod for smoothness and quiet on organ-style palm smears. Playing the keys intentionally hard to hear how they "bottom out," the Fantom was most certainly not louder than the MODX. The MODX action is lighter and bottoms out with more of a midrange-y "clack," whereas the Fantom is a lower-pitched, dull thud. I'm not sure why some folks are finding the Fantom's mechanical sounds distracting. Could be something to do with the particular frequency.

Thanks for the follow up, Stephen.

Aside from loud mechanical noise leaking into the microphone, a loud keybed can get on my nerves after a while, and I think it's true that the lower frequencies tend to be more distracting than the higher frequencies.

Additionally, even if you use headphones, playing a noisy keybed in a house or apartment with thin walls can turn the neighbors into sworn enemies determined to make it impossible for you to make music.

I've been in situations like that, and it made me aware of the need for either a quiet keybed or to build some kind of booth or enclosure to keep the noise down.

When it comes to live playing it's a non-issue.

 

Fortunately, there are manufacturers who recognize the need for a quiet keybed action, such as Kawai, just try the VPC1 or the MP11se, for a hammer action they are remarkably quiet.

I haven't had the opportunity to try out a Fantom 6 or 7, so I have to go by what I can hear on videos,

 

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I haven't had the opportunity to try out a Fantom 6 or 7

 

I gave up on GC stocking one any time soon. :rolleyes:

 

 

come west....southwest.

 

two of my local GC's have at least the Fantom 6 in stock, and also on display to audition.

David

Gig Rig:Casio Privia PX-5S | Yamaha MODX+ 6 | MacBook Pro 14" M1| Mainstage

 

 

 

 

 

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Played the 8 today - went planning to pull the trigger. I thought the action and the piano very nice. Organs - puzzling how bad they are. I found many sounds seem like from my old JV1080/Fantom S.

 

Nice looking and solid keyboard. Great potential, needs a better soundset IMO. Didn't get it - not for me....Yet.

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I found many sounds seem like from my old JV1080/.

makes sense, since the sound banks include the XV-5080 sound set.

 

Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-)

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I found many sounds seem like from my old JV1080/.

makes sense, since the sound banks include the XV-5080 sound set.

 

 

tough crowd. Ya think the XV owners would like to play their legacy 70's/80's patches on the new Fantom ?

;)

 

Why fit in, when you were born to stand out ?

My Soundcloud with many originals:

[70's Songwriter]

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I found many sounds seem like from my old JV1080/.

makes sense, since the sound banks include the XV-5080 sound set.

 

 

tough crowd. Ya think the XV owners would like to play their legacy 70's/80's patches on the new Fantom ?

;)

 

 

For sure, that's a good thing. Although if that's all it's got, why upgrade?

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I found many sounds seem like from my old JV1080/.

makes sense, since the sound banks include the XV-5080 sound set.

 

 

tough crowd. Ya think the XV owners would like to play their legacy 70's/80's patches on the new Fantom ?

;)

 

 

For sure, that's a good thing. Although if that's all it's got, why upgrade?

 

all its got ?

 

Roland must have everyone brain washed. ;)

 

Why fit in, when you were born to stand out ?

My Soundcloud with many originals:

[70's Songwriter]

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Good point. I'm just talking soundwise. As a Montage/Kronos owner I was disappointed.

 

fair point. 8 yr Kronos owner + the FA07.

 

Montage+ Kronos= very powerful. Tough to top that.

Why fit in, when you were born to stand out ?

My Soundcloud with many originals:

[70's Songwriter]

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Good point. I'm just talking soundwise. As a Montage/Kronos owner I was disappointed.

 

IMO Trying one in store doesn't give you a true idea of its power. I've owned every workstation there is, and so far Fantom is my favourite. Different strokes I guess, all depends what you use it for. I play covers so for me the UI and being able to emulate a patch very quickly, control external gear all via the Fantom and its sheers quality of sound when going direct to the PA is better than I got from the Kronos or Montage... anything else Roland add to in in future. is going to be a bonus for me. Going back to a Kronos or Montage now after using the Fantom for a couple of months would feel clunky and slow...

 

 

 

 

 

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For sure, that's a good thing. Although if that's all it's got, why upgrade?

It's not all it's got. From a gearslutz post, besides the V-Piano bank...:

 

-Bank A new unpublished sounds

-Bank B contains the first 459 tone list from the AX-Edge Keytar

-Bank C is the 128 patches from the Integra-7 Synth Legends expansion.

-Bank D contains the 1109 SuperNatural Synth Tones from the Integra-7 / FA synths

-Bank E contains the 896 patches from in the XV-5080.

-Bank CMN contains the remaining 837 tone list from the AX-Edge Keytar (from 460 to 1296)

 

All the 1296 tone list from the AX-Edge Keytar are included in the new Fantom. All the PCM 1083 multisamples of XV-5080 (included in Roland Cloud JV1080 and in Integra -7) and all the 450 PCM SuperNATURAL Synth Tone of Integra -7 are included in the new Fantom

 

Besides the presets, of course there is also the possibility of creating your own patches with its updated engine.

 

Other than that, there is the promise of future sound set/technologies yet to be provided, we'll see...

 

Besides the sounds, there's also the entire ergonomic control surface and Logic/Mainstage integration.

 

So it's not for everyone, but there's a lot that people could like... even if they already own something with the old XV sounds. ;-)

Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-)

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  • 2 weeks later...

Update 1.10 coming in the next few hours includes:

 

-Added EXPANSION function for ZEN-Core.

-Added a pattern editing function using a piano roll.

-Added scene search function.

-Added ZONE assign function and playback level function for sample pads.

-Added The Noise Suppressor function to the analog filter.

-Added switching function at the pattern end. (Pattern Seq) -Added copy function in TR-REC.

-Added function to play / stop the target pattern.

-Added normalize function to Sample Edit.

-Added WAVE EDIT endpoint preview.

-Added parameters to ZEN-Core system.

-Supported high resolution velocity recording when recording patterns.

-Improved the list display when double-tapping, such as a roar name.

-Improved tone category button operation on the SCENE SELECT screen.

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Sorry if it"s been posted in this thread already, but the Sound-On-Sound review is up.

 

https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/roland-fantom

The fact there's a Highway To Hell and only a Stairway To Heaven says a lot about anticipated traffic numbers

 

People only say "It's a free country" when they're doing something shitty-Demetri Martin

 

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