Test of Roland's V-PIANO and new PHA-III keyboard.

[Son of HuHefner]

I would like to say a few words. If you know what you are doing, you will be able to buy the V-Piano for about $4200. You should always be able to get your toys for 30% off retail. If retail is $6000, then $4200 will be the bottom line. While this is still high, it's within reason! Lastly, I'm not only looking forward to the release of the V-Piano, but the future stage piano controllers coming from Roland with the PHA-III keybed. According to talks I've had with Roland, it's inevitable that the next wave of stage pianos will all have the PHA-III razzle dazzle - meaning you could get the great action and save a lot of money. Nothing anytime soon will beat the V-Piano, yet it will be nice to have the option, if we don't want to spend $4200, to buy a $1000 PHA-III controller and use our software pianos.

pure conjecture

post back when that happens

[Pianoman1976]

pure conjecture post back when that happens

 

 

The only way to really know is to speak directly to Roland Japan. I spoke with Roland US. Yet they were pretty absolute in their projection.

 

Logically it makes sense too. If you follow the time line of the PHA keybed, the most recent version always appears first in the flagship keyboard, then moves to the other models. The same took place with the PHA II.

 

What they said was that there is no reason to build further boards with the now outdated PHA II, when they now have the PHA III.

 

The PHA keybed has been evolving for sometime. PHA III is in no way V-Piano specific. The PHA is in all top of the line Roland keyboards. At the moment it's version II. It only makes sense to include their new technonogy in their future pianos. Why would they not?

 

None of this was "conjecture". Again, it came directly from the source.

[Pianoman1976]

pure conjecture post back when that happens

 

 

 

Maybe you were referring to my pricing angle.

 

The standard procedure for pro gear purchasing is 30% off retail. Everything I buy, I always buy at 30% below retail. This is what I was taught by my mentors in the biz once upon a time, and it's what I've been doing ever since, for the last 20 years. It's what all my musician friends do too. Sales folk at the music shop won't be ecstatic over it, yet they will submit in the end - always.

 

Assuming the V-Piano retail is what I presume it to be, then I'm correct. If the retail is higher, then my figures need to be adjusted.

 

The retailer Full Compass, which is known for their rock bottom pricing initially published their V-Piano sale price at $4200. Now they've reverted back to $6,000. They prematurely gave away the mark-up durning a time when everyone else is listing at full retail. I'm not sure why they reverted back to full retail, yet my bet is that they jumped on the bandwagon as to what other retailers are doing - trying to keep the cost up to the ignorant consumer that doesn't know better while this instrument is brand new. Now this is conjecture!

[evildragon]

I'm deeply mystified by this bizarre sociological anomaly - real musicians claiming this thing sounds good.

 

 

Everyone has their own opinion, and most importantly, the sound they are after. Some don't want to haul their grand piano to every bloody gig they're after. For those, Pianoteq offers a really good sound in affordable package with no long loading times. And, what's more important, it's the most playable virtual piano out there, because it BEHAVES the same as piano does. No other virtual piano does that. And it just keeps on getting better and better.

 

You will always have people with different opinions. Mine is this: it sounds very good, it's perfectly playable and responsive, I can tweak it to get the sounds I'm after, it's portable, it's resource-effective, it's quick-loading. It's brilliant, for me.

[Diametro]

I would like to say a few words. If you know what you are doing, you will be able to buy the V-Piano for about $4200. You should always be able to get your toys for 30% off retail. If retail is $6000, then $4200 will be the bottom line. While this is still high, it's within reason! Also, I've got to slam those who defend Pianoteq, even version 3! While it may be a fascinating piece of lean software - the fact of the matter is that it does not sound like a real piano. As a avid piano guy who knows pianos, I will go the mat with this one. I can't imagine ANY real piano players who think this software sounds real. I'm deeply mystified by this bizarre sociological anomaly - real musicians claiming this thing sounds good. I support the Pianoteq project and hope they will one day emerge with a better product, yet for now there are countless others that smoke the socks off it. Lastly, I'm not only looking forward to the release of the V-Piano, but the future stage piano controllers coming from Roland with the PHA-III keybed. According to talks I've had with Roland, it's inevitable that the next wave of stage pianos will all have the PHA-III razzle dazzle - meaning you could get the great action and save a lot of money. Nothing anytime soon will beat the V-Piano, yet it will be nice to have the option, if we don't want to spend $4200, to buy a $1000 PHA-III controller and use our software pianos.

 

You're a good writer ... Welcome ... Were you there during the big earthquake ... ???

[girevik]

If a someone who lived in the Washington DC area bought a real piano, how often would it have to be retuned? What's the going rate for a tuning service?

I grew up in a house where we were too cheap to have the upright retuned, so it was badly out of tune by the time I moved out.

[Pianoman1976]

Everyone has their own opinion, and most importantly, the sound they are after. Some don't want to haul their grand piano to every bloody gig they're after. For those, Pianoteq offers a really good sound in affordable package with no long loading times. And, what's more important, it's the most playable virtual piano out there, because it BEHAVES the same as piano does. No other virtual piano does that. And it just keeps on getting better and better. You will always have people with different opinions. Mine is this: it sounds very good, it's perfectly playable and responsive, I can tweak it to get the sounds I'm after, it's portable, it's resource-effective, it's quick-loading. It's brilliant, for me.

 

 

Well stated!

[Pianoman1976]

You're a good writer ... Welcome ... Were you there during the big earthquake ... ???

 

 

I'm glad to have found this place! It's nice to be here!

 

During the earthquake, I was a senior in high school - living about 20 miles from here in a nearby suburb called Agoura Hills. I remember it woke me and my girlfriend up really early in the morning. I remember running out of my bedroom on the second floor to a balcony - and the whole house was swaying. No damage whatsoever, yet in Northridge - where my Grandmother lived, there was a lot of stuff to have to clean up and fix.

 

I think we're about ready for another one - according to the experts, some sort of biblical armageddon quake that's going to knock us off into the pacific ocean - wipe out all the sinners.

 

I'll take earthquakes over twisters any day!

[Pianoman1976]

If a someone who lived in the Washington DC area bought a real piano, how often would it have to be retuned? What's the going rate for a tuning service? I grew up in a house where we were too cheap to have the upright retuned, so it was badly out of tune by the time I moved out.

There's a difference between being cheap and not being able to afford it! One is excusable and the other is not!

$80-$200 - Typically $100-$150

This is from concertpitchpiano.com:

Have your piano tuned as often as you feel necessary, but a minimum of twice a year is the rule of thumb.

Just remember: when you turn on the heat in the winter, and when you turn it off in spring, you're about 2 weeks away from needing a tuning. These are the times of year when the humidity change starts to shrink or swell the wooden structure of the piano, and it starts to drift out of tune. So wait until the room your piano is in gets used to the climate change, then tune your piano!


WHAT THE MANUFACTURERS HAVE TO SAY:

Steinway & Sons

"...no matter how expertly a piano is tuned, atmospheric variations and the nature of the piano's construction constantly conspire to bring it off pitch"

Yamaha Pianos

"...a piano should be tuned at least twice a year."

" Complete piano service should include periodic regulation and voicing in addition to tuning."

Baldwin Piano Company

" After the first year a piano should be tuned at least twice each year."

Keep in mind that every piano is subject to one or more factors that will make it go out of tune, including:
- Humidity changes
- Temperature changes
- Stretching of strings
- Slipping tuning pins
- Hard use

How often you should tune your piano depends on its condition, the environment in which it is located, and the musical demands of the owner.
A piano used mainly as a furniture piece probably won't "need" to be tuned more than once a year. A piano that is played regularly and is in good condition would be better off with 2 tunings per year, each time the seasonal humidity changes. A piano given a daily workout by a professional or serious student might need to be tuned more frequently, maybe 4 times a year or more. At this level of use, it's really up to the individual and at what point the tuning starts to bother them.

[kennychaffin]

Lot of advantage to Digital Pianos and synths like Pianoteq, TruePianos, Ivory, etc.

[Pianoman1976]

Lot of advantage to Digital Pianos and synths like Pianoteq, TruePianos, Ivory, etc.

I'm a die hard non-real piano user! In fact, I don't own a real piano.

I love having a good weighted piano controller and using a number of virtual instruments. It's the only way for me.

I feel right now the modeling approach is getting close but is not quite there yet with the excpetion of the V-Piano.

For now, my favs are NI and Synthogy.

I love that the current trend of technology is going towards better, more realistic weighted key mechanisms. This is key (no pun intended!) for those of us piano players that prefer the digital approach. The Studiologic NUMA (which may be a failed product?) contains Fatar's top of the line keybed with the option to choose wood keys. Even better is this new PHA-III from Roland. Can't wait to try it!

[girevik]

I knew a married couple - both grad students in the music dept. at my university - who managed to stuff TWO baby grands into their apartment. I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't entertain guests very often (if at all).

$200-$300 for tuning would be ok if I had the income for a house big enough to accommodate at least a baby grand, and still have space left over for entertaining guests, or at least recording equipment.

[girevik]

I suppose both the V-Piano and Pianoteq could accommodate the tuning demands for Persian piano music.

[YOUTUBE][/YOUTUBE]

[Pianoman1976]

 

 

I think you have to be Iranian to not consider this torturous.

[kennychaffin]

I think you have to be Iranian to not consider this torturous.

 

 

I couldn't quite out why he's playing 90% of the time cross-armed/wristed

[Pianoman1976]

I couldn't quite out why he's playing 90% of the time cross-armed/wristed

 

 

Like a 5 year old!

 

Make's you wonder if this guy really knows what he's doing.

 

What exactly is he a "doctor" of?

 

It reminds me of a child who's discovered the piano for the first time.

 

In his defense, he may be using the piano this way intentionally to create plucked like tones, very common in that type of music. Which may lend to the strange fingering and hand position.

 

Or he's just mentally ill. I can imagine the logical conclusion of this scene ending in his completion, then men dressed in white surrounding him - putting the straight jacket back on and taking him back to his padded cell.

[Pianoman1976]

I knew a married couple - both grad students in the music dept. at my university - who managed to stuff TWO baby grands into their apartment. I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't entertain guests very often (if at all).

 

 

Maybe it's the small penis dynamic? The smaller your penis, the larger the truck you own - or in this case the number of pianos you can fit into your apartment.

[girevik]

Like a 5 year old! Make's you wonder if this guy really knows what he's doing. What exactly is he a "doctor" of? It reminds me of a child who's discovered the piano for the first time. In his defense, he may be using the piano this way intentionally to create plucked like tones, very common in that type of music. Which may lend to the strange fingering and hand position.

 

 

Not a fan of any Middle Eastern music, eh?

 

BTW, I don't think the performer is actually the good doctor himself - it's someone else. Yes, Persian piano has its origins in Persian santur music.

 

BTW, do not call a Persian "Iranian". Anyone who calls himself/herself Persian wants to distance himself/herself from the current regime in Iran. It's a cultural thang.

[girevik]

 

Maybe it's the small penis dynamic? The smaller your penis, the larger the truck you own - or in this case the number of pianos you can fit into your apartment.

 

 

You'd have to ask them. I doubt you'll make friends with them though with that kind of question.

 

Are you a transplant from NYC or Boston? You sure don't seem to have a typical SoCal attitude.

[Pianoman1976]

BTW, do not call a Persian "Iranian". Anyone who calls himself/herself Persian wants to distance himself/herself from the current regime in Iran. It's a cultural thang.

 

 

So Nasreen, the girl who does my hair, who refers to herself as "Iranian" supports the regime in Iran?

[Pianoman1976]

You'd have to ask them. I doubt you'll make friends with them though with that kind of question. Are you a transplant from NYC or Boston? You sure don't seem to have a typical SoCal attitude.

 

 

No, born and raised here. You're being very stereotypical.

 

My penis comment was a joke.

[girevik]

 

So Nasreen, the girl who does my hair, who refers to herself as "Iranian" supports the regime in Iran?

 

 

Either that or she doesn't care either way.

 

I got schooled by Persians during a conversation about 300 The Movie, which they said they enjoyed. It was when I called them "Iranian"....

[Pianoman1976]

Not a fan of any Middle Eastern music, eh?

The foundation of my life is built on the principle of love for all. Including all music! Yet, Middle Eastern stuff doesn't stir my soul the way other types do.

My sense of humor may be misinterpreted here. So much is lost in online communication.

[girevik]

No, born and raised here. You're being very stereotypical. My penis comment was a joke.

 

Just curious, that's all.

 

You did say you never owned an acoustic piano. It's ok to be jealous of people who can and do keep one at home.

[Pianoman1976]

You did say you never owned an acoustic piano. It's ok to be jealous of people who can and do keep one at home.

 

 

 

Didn't say "never". and didn't say I couldn't. Could, and choose not too! I even have room for it! I love the digital age and I love using controllers. I'm in no way a purist! I would however like to have a Bosendorfer baby grand MIDI'd (is that a word!?) up to my rig. I love Bosendorfer pianos!