Wow - amazing to see 300+ posts on this keyboard. I am awaiting mine - it is arriving tomorrow! A little background - I am a video producer who also produces music for video, and also a weekend warrior keyboardist. I have been playing since the 80's.
The reason I bought the VR-09 is, first and foremost, because of it's portability. Our band is going to Europe for a few weeks to play, and I desperately needed a very lightweight keyboard with battery power, just covering basic gigging sounds - organ, piano, and a few synth and brass sounds. Also, I wanted a keyboard that if it got damaged I wouldn't feel like I lost a fortune. I also play beach gigs, and wanted something very light and simple yet comprehensive that I could cart to the beach - and yet not have to worry about power, or lugging some anchor with me. And while quality of sounds is important, for me the portability and power is really the defining factor - the fact that this keyboard has some great sounds and drawbars is just icing, really!
I've checked out the YouTube videos online, and at least to me, the organ sounds are excellent for the price. Sure, you could spend 2-3K on a Nord, or Hammond, but again, that's not what I'm trying to achieve with this board - I want something super light, portable, battery powered, and easy for guest jammers to use as well as myself. This nails all of those needs in one really inexpensive package.
For those trying to achieve the perfect Hammond B3 or Transistor organ sound, I humbly state that you're probably barking up the wrong tree complaining about a keyboard that costs less than 1K. Having said that, the Roland does those sounds in a very practical way, one that would certainly suffice for most weekend warrior gigs. If you are that concerned about authenticity, you are going to have to go with a real Leslie and an organ priced waaaay above this. The simple beauty of this board lies in it's cost, weight, simplicity of use, and good quality sounds for 99% of the tunes you're going to squeak out of it in a rock or pop band scenario.
I think that Roland has proven themselves with their choice to make this keyboard. It does what it sets out to do, and would be at home with anyone needing a lightweight portable board. Discriminating pros could easily add this to their rig for a great second or third keyboard to add extra layers or textures, or to have the drawbar organ capability when needed. At the price, it's almost disposable, so why not?
