Old Romplers keyboards that will still last for many years ?

[Ensenada Guide]

there are several ol romplers that i would really like to have but they are old and dont know how much more they would last

 

Like a D550 module,roland jv1080,roland mks20(that famous piano module) a kursweil k2000r series, korg 01 pro X,

Or a Korg T1. alesis Andromeda, VL1 rack module

 

Or just not worth having them becuase future problems?

 

BTW i see to many M1s playing still

 

 

[Markyboard]

Alesis Andromeda is a real analog synth and the VL1 is a physical modeling synth, not romplers. Regardless, any of these have the potential to last forever; or die the day after you buy it. The more important question I would think is can they be repaired, are parts available?

 

I can tell you that mother boards are no longer available for the Andromeda. In almost 15 years I've never had a problem with mine and I know others with similar experience. However it may be a poor choice if you're worried about it breaking.

 

For anything else you are considering you will need to check with the manufacturer or service center . Or take your chances.

 

 

[RABid]

I live in a small town, 100 miles away from any population center of 100K. The closest keyboard repair tech is 2 1/2 hours from me. For that reason I avoid old keyboards and lean toward rack mount or table top versions that can be easily shipped to a repair facility.

 

I still have a Roland XV-5080, Korg Wavestation XR, Yamaha A5000 sampler, Emu Morpheus, and a few other oldies. To be honest, I don't keep them because I use them. Computers have made most of them obsolete. I keep them because of fond memories, and the fact that NO ONE WANTS TO BUY THEM FROM ME at a decent price.

[Rod S]

Unless you already own them (as Rabid said) and keep for sentimental purpose, purchasing them is overrated, IMHO, except maybe for a few. The high of owning an old classic for me didn't last long and you have on more keyboard to learn to program (unless you are just running through presets) and worry about.

 

Lived in the US in the late 90s/early 00s where there were plenty of offerings on ebay from synths from the 80s / early 90s. A lot of excitement / anticipation to purchase some of the old synths which I had desired in the past. Purchased a few, sold most of them when I left or within a year of being back. That being said, I do regret selling my K2000R.

 

Old synths are hard to come by and expensive here in Brazil, and repairing them is even more expensive and a hassle. My setup is at a minimum nowadays.

[brenner13]

I love my old synths, but most have glitches and minor issues. They all still get occasional use and have fond memories ascossiated with each one so will likely hang on to them until they break down too much to play. They'll be sold for parts at that time.

 

Rack units obviously are a safer bet for buying used, but still never know for sure. Buy 'em cheap with a return policy if you can.

[marczellm]

I use a Roland JV-90 at church and it works fine. Also my dad who used to work for Roland East Europe recently fixed an acquaintance's JUNO-106. He still managed to find replacement parts in stock (oscillator IC and factory reset tape). I trust Roland service.

[dougb415]

My Alesis QuadraSynth Plus Piano (purchased new in March '96) is about to turn 21, still works like new. I mostly use it as a controller these days, but in no way does it sound bad.

[ElmerJFudd]

My Roland XP-80 was in perfect fully functioning condition when I sold it this past August of 2016. I bought it around 1998 and it's did as many as 40-50 gigs a year since then. The XP-30 also recently came up as a nice ROMpler.

 

The keyless JVs/XVs last a really long time as well. eBay is full of 1080s that have had no less than 5 owners. I have a 2080 in great condition.

[roygBiv]

I have a Yamaha S80 I still use at home all the time - also, an S30 which is the 61 key form.

 

Both work great, and are probably 20 years old.

 

However, one thing to keep an eye on for the Yamaha S series is the Data Edit knob (the grey one) - it can get a little wonky apparently, and internet sleuthing suggests this is not an uncommon problem with those guys.

[MorayM]

In my experience there are some that are worth having and some that are junk - either from a sound quality or a build quality point of view!

 

Personally I quite like having them around, even if it's just to keep my screens on but they do get some use. I'm down to just an XV-5080 and a Wavestation A/D at the moment but I'm always looking for more interesting ones. There's something about dedicated hardware that resonates with me - none of the rompler racks I've used have ever crashed, generally never screwed me over with startup or patch loading times and for the most part expansion cards "just work". They'll need the CMOS battery changing once in a blue moon but as most of them come from a time when SYSEX dumps were standard, that's hardly a problem. The only potential issue is that some of the older ones are from a time when LCDs weren't as reliable as today so they sometimes dim over time, but as they're mostly pretty standard components tracking down replacements isn't too hard.

 

I'll never get rid of my 5080, I know my way around it far too well (far faster than most patch browsers in software) and there are too many lovely things on the SR-JV80 and SRX cards for me to ditch it. The Wavestation doesn't get a lot of use at the moment, mostly because the CMOS battery has died and I've yet to work up the courage to haul it out of the rack to fix it. Seriously, this thing is the deepest and heaviest 2U unit I've ever seen outside of a server room!

 

On my shopping list? D-550, JD-990 (with SR-JV80-04, of course), Ultra Proteus, FS1R and possibly a TX81Z.

 

Oh, and a new rack case!

[Doerfler]

I still have a General Music S3 Turbo (76 note keyboard) that I got 20 + years ago. Gigged with it until 2001. Heavy as hell, built like a tank.

Surprisingly, it still works, except not sure about the poly aftertouch. I know it is functional with channel aftertouch. I play it semi regularly as it has an excellent keyboard action.

[Outkaster]

M-1 or T-3, T-2. Built like tanks. They hold their residual well and have a few sounds I see yet to see surpassed.

[The Real MC]

I've been using Kurzweil 1000 series romplers since 1990. I don't have the keyboard K1000/1200, but I use the rackmount stuff. Other than occasion replacement of the backup battery every twenty years (ANY device with patch memory uses a battery), they have been trouble free. That's 36 years.

 

When you have the battery replaced, ask for a battery holder not the soldered battery as it will be much easier to replace in the future. Be sure to secure the battery in the holder (tie wrap is best).

[allan_evett]

Like MorayM, I have an XV-5080. It's been racked, gigged all over the place; for the last 10 or so years has seen mostly home use. Still sounds great, and works capably. Only one major issue: the data knob is for show only. The pot beneath hasn't worked in years, so I just use the increment/decrement buttons. Roland stopped making the replacement part several years ago.

 

The Yamaha S-Series keyboards are built like tanks. Heck, most things Yamaha are. The oldest piece I have will turn 30 this year, a Yamaha TX-1P piano module. Still works fine. I know of a few local S90s still in use, plus at least one S80. I have an S90XS; love the action !

 

The Korg Triton Extreme is one I think will last awhile, and still be very useful. Great sounds, a lot of variety too. I combined one with a Roland VK-8m. Ultimately replaced all of that with an Kronos 61. Hard to believe that keyboard is now on the the downward side of its first decade. The Kronos is a ROMpler+ that will be around for a very long time. Can see that one being relevant in the used market for many, many years.

 

 

[Legatoboy]

I have 2 3080's I bought for my 80's project...both about $300 - one for home and one for the rehearsal space and I doubled up on the JV plug boards too...haven't actually grafted them into the live rig yet but I am working on it ....I also have two JV-880..one is my original from the early 90's....

 

A lot of bang for the buck on the 3080's for $300...

The MIDI addressing to the patches is taking me some time . . .

 

 

[harmonizer]

I bought a Roland XV-5050 used in 2006. Its sound generation chipset gave out around 2012 (I took it to a very good repair place northeast of Phili, who diagnosed it as not worth fixing), so I bought a replacement XV-5050 on ebay then. Around 2014 the power supply gave out on the replacement, so I swapped in the power supply from the first one, which I still had.

[Bill W]

I've been using Kurzweil 1000 series romplers since 1990. I don't have the keyboard K1000/1200, but I use the rackmount stuff. Other than occasion replacement of the backup battery every twenty years (ANY device with patch memory uses a battery), they have been trouble free. That's 36 years.

 

Do you drive a DeLorean by any chance??

[tucktronix]

I still have my old Korg X2. The battery is out and it's currently in use as a controller for Logic or my iPad.

[The Real MC]

I've been using Kurzweil 1000 series romplers since 1990. I don't have the keyboard K1000/1200, but I use the rackmount stuff. Other than occasion replacement of the backup battery every twenty years (ANY device with patch memory uses a battery), they have been trouble free. That's 36 years.

 

Do you drive a DeLorean by any chance??

 

No, but I suck at math

 

That should read *26* years...

[ElmerJFudd]

My K1000 with the 1200 board daughter board I added later is in storage right now, but it still works. Although I suspect that battery may have leaked by now.

[Dave Bryce]

K1000 series were built like tanks. Hammond Suzuki keybeds with steel plates in the keys, if memory serves.

 

Mine fell off an ultimate support A frame stand (the short two tier one, not the taller three tier version) at CBGB's one night in the late 80's. I didn't tighten the tension wheels enough, and the thing fell backwards off the stand, off the stage and dropped to the floor face down.

 

Nothing broke. I picked it up, plugged it in and played the gig.

 

Ain't much I know of today made like that.

 

dB

[Synthoid]

The Korg Triton Extreme is one I think will last awhile, and still be very useful. Great sounds, a lot of variety too.

 

My trusty Triton Classic is still hanging in there every Sunday morning with the praise band at church.

[CEB]

I still like my cheap twin pair of detuned TX81Zs. I don't use them live anymore. On the Kronos I just setup up two zones with the same synth program and detune them against each other. But I still think for pure FM bass balls the TX81Zs eats the Kronos alive ...... probably because my amplification I used with that rig was ridiculous.

[Justin Havu]

My K2000VP is still going strong. Love that board!

[David Emm]

It helps to have a synth made on Wednesday rather than Monday or Friday. My Korg 01Wfd was finally retired due to a dead display and several ailing buttons. Repair simply wasn't cost-effective. It had a full life and then some. My various Korgs have always held up well, my Roland Junos were tanks and my Ensoniq rack samplers were still rolling when traded off. I had a Yamaha SY85 whose sound rocked, but it decided to be a money pit. These things happen.

I would personally say "No (or very few) vintage 'boards" unless your situation offers you the means to keep them in-studio, reasonably repairable at least semi-locally and not critical to your work. If you must have a Moog, so be it; been there, loved that! Otherwise, I'd tell a newbie to get a little hardware for various good reasons, but to also make softsynths part of their rig. Man must record, so going hybrid opens pretty much all of the doors.

I went 95% DAW years ago, so consider my opinion with that in mind. I sure enjoyed wrestling with a hardware stack, but its pretty nice to have a software option. I'd fall over wheezing if I tried to do an Emerson bit now.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Sundown]

The desirability of the boards will vary considerably depending on what it is.

 

I *love* 90's ROMplers. Those 12 bit and 16 bit samples blend into a track in ways that modern synths don't, and many of them still have very relevant sounds. But there are other ways to get those sounds (with other benefits) than buying the old boards.

 

Case in point: The Korg Legacy plugin collection. If you want the sound of an M1 with *much* more polyphony and a resonant filter, KLC will get you there. Same with their Wavestation emulation. Some of those old ROMplers are 16 voices with a single oscillator, and few things sound worse than voice stealing. With the plugin, voice stealing isn't an issue.

 

The best from that era would be the D-50, the M1 (or T-series), or the JD-990. An XV (3080 or 5080) is a decent all around unit, but it doesn't have the same nostalgia with me. The Kurzweil's were good, but you can get a used PC3 with far more capability for a decent price. There's no sense in going backwards.

 

When Roland decides to do a virtual VST/AU D-50, I'll be in (Staccato) Heaven. That to me is the holy grail, but a lot of that is sentimentality and nostalgia.

[konaboy]

DX7 and D50 in the house. Just need to find the M1 to complete the mighty 80's trio.

 

Oh, and a DX7S, until I decide which I should keep, the DX7 or DX7S.

 

All in fine working order, and more pleasurable to play than modern keyboards due to fantastic robust build quality and great actions.

[tarkus]

The Korg Triton Extreme is one I think will last awhile, and still be very useful. Great sounds, a lot of variety too. I combined one with a Roland VK-8m. Ultimately replaced all of that with an Kronos 61. Hard to believe that keyboard is now on the the downward side of its first decade. The Kronos is a ROMpler+ that will be around for a very long time. Can see that one being relevant in the used market for many, many years.

 

 

my triton ext 76 has been thru the war. had it since 2002. skb hard case contributed to longevity. only now it is glitching with combi jumps. probably should take the cover off and dust it out.

not a bad GX1 impersonation

[video:youtube]

[Moonglow]

The Korg Triton Extreme is one I think will last awhile, and still be very useful. Great sounds, a lot of variety too.

 

My trusty Triton Classic is still hanging in there every Sunday morning with the praise band at church.

I'll see your Triton Extreme and Triton Classic and up that (in terms of age) with my Trinity-Plus. The display seems to be fading a little, but otherwise everything works fine. Love that cool Solo/Synth section. Our sax man still uses it for basic organ/strings when we play out.

[Al Coda]

ROMplers,- I still have my:

 

Roland U-220

Roland D-110

Roland D-550 w/Musitronics memory/multimode-expansion/speed kit

Yamaha TG-500

Korg M1Rex

Korg Wavestation SR

 

Except battery exchange there was rarely an issue.

All works well, but there´s no guarantee this will be forever.

Only a U-220 PSU repair and "Mask ROM Processor" replacement for the D-550 were necessary within decades.

 

Same w/ my other analog MOOG & Oberheim as well as Yamaha FM synths and other (DP and master-) keyboards from the past.

 

With old gear, there will be occasional issues here and there like replacing batteries, a fuse holder, some tact switches, display backlights etc..

 

I´m 1st owner and used the devices a lot.

All payed for themselves many times anyway, so for me it made sense keeping ´em alive and use ´em occasionally instead putting ´em on ebay auctions.

All offer some special sounds, especially the patches I programmed myself and used in recordings and/or live successfully.

I better have ´em available instead trying to recreate in new technology which is often too time consuming as also not satisying for me.

Sometimes, I also prefer the charme of imperfection in a musical context over the most realistic samples.

 

According to Korg´s very good Legacy Edition software replacements for M1 and Wavestation,- it still feels and sounds different working w/ the hardware,- at least for me.

It´s great to have resonant filters in the software versions, but I never needed or missed ´em in the original hardware since I always had other gear available for such purposes.

 

Since software will pass thru ASIO drivers and soundcard hardware components always, it will sound like those.

 

The internal waveforms, internal FX, DA conversion and final analog output stage in the original hardware will keep sounding individual and even not being "ideal" in the sense of today´s studio standard, highest sonic quality or such.

 

A.C.