(First post here: hello, fellow keyboard boxers! Love to meet ya all! Greetings from Norway!)
Just got my VR-09. Brand new, the first revision with latest firmware. Got a GREAT deal on it (NOK 7995,- down to 5500,- which translates roughly to 700 USD down from about a grand). Since the new version is out, I guess one can get a good deal on the original board these days.
I am not a seasoned keyboardist by any stretch of the imagination, but I've played keys (and guitar and a plethora of other instruments) since childhood. I played (pipe)organ for a looong time, until I got my electric piano six years ago.
I have NEVER done any public performances until february and march this year, as I joined a small group at my local church. The first gig was a small concert / sing-a-long evening during a local cultural event with about 25 people joining (not bad considering they had to pay about $25 to get in and we competed with a concert at the local waterhole).
Then I really got tossed in the deep end, doing a couple of songs on a Gospel consert with Angela Primm and Elsa Harris with over 350 people in the building (which was awesome - we expected max 200). During the last song (when the saints) the band got called up on stage to join in, and I got a finger pointed at med at some point with Ms. Primm yelling "KEYS KEYS KEYS" - solo time!
Afterwards, Mrs. Harris complimented me and said "I heard the organ" with a BIG grin!
During the gospel concert, the Nord was my piano controller and the VR-09 the sound source. I played accoustic piano, FM EP and of course organ. Not a single hiccup. Just MIDI the boards together and play.
Having read the whole thread, this is my verdict:
+Great sounds for a band mix
+mindnummingly simple to use in a live setting, even for an unexperienced fella like me
+incredible fun to use and to tweak sounds
+live performance controls is a breeze to use
+Lightning fast response on organ setting, can fire off a salvo of B3 goodnes like a machine gun!
-Effects on only one part of a layer
-Switching sounds with vastly different effects settings is NOT recommended. The base sound may carry over, but the effects change immediately. Does not sound good.
-AP piano is almost good, but the short looping spoils it. Roland dropped the ball on that one! The AP should've been a lot better with "ROLAND" printed on the back!
Other aspects has been thoroughly covered, so I will not bore you with repetitions. These are just a few points of mine that I feel is the most important.
The keyboard and the keybed / action:
Light, plasticy feeling - but GREAT for gigs. For rehersals, I only bring my VR-09. I don't lug the Nord around unless I have to or need better action for piano parts.
Feels solid enough, though. I may not go Jerry Lee Lewis on the thing, but apart from that I don't think the quality is an issue at all.
Key action is light. Very light. Synth keys for sure. Slightly smaller keys than I am used to, but easy to adapt (playing a lot of different pipe organs over the years got me used to different keyboards).
For me, the VR-09 is totally useless for any piano performance what so ever. I am used to the keyboard of my Casio AP-450 which is fantastic. I cannot get any consistent expressive result out of it. That being said, I also struggle with the Nord Stage Rev.B, althoug it is far better.
For me, the VR-09 is a great top tier board and a rehearsal toss-in-the-backseat workhorse. I will allways have a better 88 graded hammer action with superior AP sounds as my bottom tier (the Nord will at some point be swapped with something else, maybe the Casio PX-5s. I love the action and AIR piano sound).
For my use, the sounds residing in the VR-09 (and especially all the "hidden" sounds now accessible thanks to CTRLR and Franky46) will serve me well.
To summarize:
Good organ, good sounds for a band mix, incredible easy to use for live performances, good action sans piano performance (where expressiveness is required), great value and a light instrument for rehearsals. I highly recommend it as you get a LOT of value for your money.
(on a side note: I love that the in/outputs has the labels printed on top of the thing. Makes it incredibly easy to reach back to work on the plugs if needed. I allways search for the on/off button on my Nord Stage - never so on the Roland.
