Thank you! Yes, the RD-2000 is actually a professional stage instrument made for controlling other instruments via MIDI (a master keyboard). Sound-wise it doesn't give you instant success like other instruments out there, you have to know your stuff to get it to work. And of course, some people are a bit over their heads at this point ;)

Thank you, it's very nice to hear that it helped someone out there ;)

@@tiroh8490 have you tried the new German concert grand expansion? I haven't yet.... but am tempted.

Thanks ;)

tiroh you're welcome! Please make more. There are so many more parameters you can adjust in piano designer. So many possibilities to explore.

Thanks!

Thanks! Do you mean speakers with "soundbox"? Currently, I use headphones, the Sennheiser HD 598. They are really good.

I don't have any experience with this, so I don't know.

Regarding the sound of the instruments: Short answer: As far as I know, yes, the RD-2000 has at least the same capabilities for playing classical music as the LX-17. However, I don't know the details of the LX-17 and don't know whether there are certain killer features that the RD-2000 is lacking. Long answer: The LX-17 is a different class of instrument, it is hard to compare it to the RD-2000. The LX-17 is a home piano, its purpose is to replace an acoustic piano in the living room. In contrast, the RD-2000 is an instrument for professional musicians who do performances, either on stage or in the studio. Consequently, the RD-2000 offers more features in that direction than the LX-17. Very important are its many real-time controls for sound manipulation, including synthesizer-like features, and its MIDI capabilities. Its purpose is to be the MIDI master keyboard on stage. In addition, it has more than 1100 tones, while the LX-17 only has 307 tones. The sound *quality*, however, is more or less the same in both instruments. Both the RD-2000 and the LX-17 are high-end devices and, as far as I know, provide two sound engines, one that physically models a piano (the V-Piano technology) and one that is based on samples (the SuperNATURAL engine). It is important to know, though, that the sounds of the RD-2000 have the highest quality in the three departments acoustic piano, e-piano, and organ. The other sounds (orchestral stuff and so on) are of lesser quality. But you can extend the RD-2000 with sound libraries from Roland's AXIAL website. I don't know the sounds of the LX-17, so I can't comment on them. Regarding the portability: The big question is what "travel" means for YOU. "Portability" is a completely relative thing. From the viewpoint of a stage musician who travels with vans and has people who help him carrying stuff, the RD-2000 is highly portable, but from the viewpoint of, say, someone who performs in the street on his own and must carry his stuff himself, the RD-2000 is ... "less portable". And you know, there are musicians like Elton John or Billy Joel who perform on stage using a grand. So, for these guys, even a grand is "portable". Of course, we can safely say that an RD-2000 is "as portable as it can get". But it still weighs 21.7 kg, so you don't really want to carry it much, right? If you travel much, it may also be helpful for you to think about using a MIDI keyboard with professional 88-key action and connecting it to sound generation devices. This way, you can save weight.

Tiroh: Thank you for your prompt and comprehensive answer. One main concern I have about comparison between the Roland RD2000 and Roland LX-17 is the following: I "read" that the LX-17 bases its new SuperModeling sound technology on the acoustic Steinway D-274 (Hamburg, Germany as compared with the United States model) 9 foot concert grand piano, which happens to be my favorite piano on which many concert pianists have played for years in the concert halls. The V-Piano, I think also uses the same Steinway sound quality? Do you know if the Roland RD2000 achieves a true rendition of the V-Piano? Is it the same SuperModeling result? I ask because the V-Piano has internal speakers and the RD2000 uses external (separately bought) speakers which would seem to affect the quality of sound created on the RD2000. Is that true in your experience? Regarding the Roland LX-17, I realize you haven't played it (perhaps someone else in the comment section has?). That piano has an 8 excellent speaker setup and an incredible sound capacity for the QUALITY of sound. I personally already have two "HR824 Mackie" Monitor speakers and wonder if you (or anyone else who reads the comment section) thinks that they will insure a wonderful complement for the RD2000 sound quality? Again, my aim is to re-produce the Steinway D-274 concert grand experience, as close as possible. On your KZfaq recording, listening through my computer, it's difficult to ascertain the quality of the tweaked sound you have created for classical music. To my ears, it sounded like too much reverb. An acoustic Steinway would not render a noticeably "reverb" sound. The LX-17 also duplicates the Steinway without noticeable "reverb." But you would know first hand with your settings, more than what we hear listening through KZfaq. Another consideration, have you heard the Casio GP500 on KZfaq or live? It has three great concert grand pianos that I love: 1) Steinway Hamburg Grand; 2) Bechstein Berlin Grand; and 3) Bosendorfer Vienna Grand. Do you think the RD2000 can duplicate the Steinway and other two grand pianos on the Casio GP500? One reason I don't think I will buy the Casio GP500 is because it's missing the "extra" 300+ orchestral and synthesized sounds of the Roland LX-17 and extra some 1100 sounds of the RD2000. If possible, I prefer to have the Steinway classical piano sound as best as possible PLUS the luxury of creating tracks with the additional multi-diverse sounds. If I perform jazz or other music, besides classical, I will also have the option of the "pop"/contemporary sounds. Do you think the Roland RD2000 is the best stage digital piano available at this time? (I've also read reviews that highlight the Kawai MP11 and MP7 as contenters.) Sorry for my long reply and additional questions. Thank you for your "enlightened" perspective on them to the best of your understanding.

Thanks! For classical music, I felt the SuperNatural engine pianos are better suited. However, of course, I didn't try every possible combination of parameters, and it's just my opinion. I think the strong suit of the RD-2000 is its MIDI functionality and its real-time controls. As far as I know, the RD-800 is a bit more limited in this regard. When it comes to sound, they both are probably very fine instruments. I didn't play the Kawai MP-11, so I cannot say anything about it.

Hi, regarding the second half of your question: I have tested the MP-11 and the RD-800 side by side. Both have great actions, Kawai is lighter, but i liked the Roland better. The more "meaty" action of the Roland seemed to be closer to the weight of most of the grand pianos you get to play in reality. The Kawai action is still great and probably easier to play on. Soundwise i preferred the Roland again, seemed to have more depth and detail (after experimenting with the vast amount of settings), also i didnt quite enjoy the mid range of the kawai, upper mid frequencies sounded a bit nasal to my ears. I ended up buying the RD-800 and i would buy it again 10/10 times. Since the release if the RD-2000 the price of the RD-800 dropped from ~2000€ to 1600€ in my country, which is an absolute steal in my opinion. I'd only spend 900€ more for the RD-2000 if i really needed the midi capabilities - and the PHA 50 action, which i had the chance to try on a Roland FP 90 is probably the best i have ever played :).The MP-11 is also a great instrument, but it lacks flexibility and portability imo, so i went with the RD 800. Of course this is just my opinion, I am (unfortunately) not endorsed by Roland (or Kawai), and in the end it all comes down to taste. Hope i could give some useful insight! Best Regards

Fabian Drolsbach thank you very much!!

kzfaq.info/get/bejne/i7J-rbiWr7HSmJc.html - It's here.)

Where is the reply? 😀

It is aladin carpet

Hm ... this is so subjective, it is very difficult to say something substantial about that. For me, it is one of very best actions out there, which is an important reason why I bought this instrument.

Welcome!

I'd love to know your settings. Would you share them ?

Currently, I don't use monitors but only headphones (Sennheiser HD 598). I'm very satisfied with these.

Mellow Concert Grand and Mellow NX Concert are different piano sounds, they sound different. Modulation means to change some sound characteristic in realtime and continuously. Often, the default setting for this is pitch. The RD-2000 has a modulation wheel on the left side. (Changing pitch is only available for the non-V-Piano sounds.)

Thanks! Also saw your comment on how it sounds similar to a Steinway. Wow, and with just a few changes to reverb. I think the stage or concert piano comes close, but thanks for the tip! I guess it's also your skill or the way you play it that really makes the difference, and you sound quite professional

No, I didn't try to achieve further piano sounds. I did not record the sound with the camera, I recorded it to a computer using the RD-2000's USB.

Thanks a lot. I bought the RD 2000 in the meantime, I enjoy it a lot, but you are right that one has to adjust quite a few parameters to get it sound well for classical music. But it´s worth the effort

It is connected to a workstation via USB, that's all!

Thank you! First of all: I think that for an absolute beginner it is a very debatable idea to buy an instrument like the RD-2000 or the MP-11SE, except you are a millionaire and don't care about potentially wasting much money. Those are upscale instruments for professionals who know what they need, they offer features that beginners don't even dream about and cannot use. For example, the RD-2000 is made for controlling several other instruments simultaneously live on stage (it is supposed to take the role of a so-called master keyboard). I personally chose the RD-2000 mainly because of its extensive MIDI functions, I can use it to control a DAW (digital audio workstation) on a computer without extra hardware. In short, the RD-2000 or the MP-11SE are pretty much overkill for an absolute beginner. It may be best if you check first whether playing the piano is something that you really want to pursue in the future. You should only buy an RD-2000 if you are pretty sure that you will grow into it, because at first, you will definitely not be able to make real use of it. The action of the RD-2000 is the PHA-50. It is noticeably lighter than that of the FP-30, which is the PHA-4 Standard. This is NOT necessarily a bad thing because it is good training for a beginner. I think that a beginner should not exercise on an action that is too light because then he/she will possibly not really train the fingers right. Acoustic grand pianos can have a rather heavy action. This depends very much on the instruments, some are light, some are heavy. My recommendation: Go into a store and try out the actions, it's the only way for you to know what feels best. Both the PHA-50 and PHA-4 Standard are ok for a beginner, so in the end it's up to you. Please remember that there is much more choice than just the FP-30 or the RD-2000. There is also the FP-60 (PHA-4 Standard) and the FP-90 (PHA-50). However, the FP-90 is rather pricey. In my opinion, you do nothing wrong with the FP-30. However, if you think that you will definitely continue playing and/or spending a little more is not a problem for you, then I recommend the FP-60, because then you are a little bit more future-proof. It also has much better usability than the FP-30 and provides a wider range of musical options.

OK, thank you very much for the detailed explanation ! I have to digest all this first. But I think your are right. Since the RD-2000 is noticeably lighter than the FP-30 I need going into a store and try myself... That were important informations you gave. Have a nice day and thank you again. bp

Sorry, I don't know the FA-08 (or workstations in general, for that matter).

Its okay, no prob. I already found an expansion on the roland website containing a few RD-2000 piano sounds which are in a way simular to what you've shown in your vid :)

Thank you. The piano sound setup is made only with the settings of the RD-2000. The recording is made directly to the computer via USB, there are no speakers involved.

@@tiroh8490 Oh I see. Have you tried the Korg Grandstage? If so, how does it compare to the RD-2000? Thank you very much

No, I didn't. It is important to understand that those instruments are all very good, one isn't better than the other. It depends on (a) what you want to do exactly and (b) what your personal taste is. For instance, the RD-2000 is a master keyboard with extensive MIDI capabilities. It is supposed to control many other MIDI instruments on stage. If you don't need that, you don't need the RD-2000.

Thanks! Unfortunately, I cannot judge the Nord Piano 3. These instruments are so complex that you have to get to know them, only then can you can say something about them. It's the same with the RD-2000, I had to become acquainted with it. The review videos for the Nord Piano 3 on KZfaq have the same problem like the videos for the RD-2000: they just assess the "out-of-the-box" sound. However, I suspect that one is configured by the manufacturer to sell the instrument in stores, not to sound right for classical music.

The FP-90 does not have more options than the RD-2000. All the things you mentioned are available in the RD-2000. Also, they have the same key action. The difference between the RD-2000 and the FP-90 is that the RD-2000 is a professional instrument for the stage musician, whereas the FP-90 is more directed towards the home user. The RD-2000 provides MIDI master functionality and features known from synthesizers. That means, the RD-2000 opens up more possibilities than the FP-90. They both are well-suited for playing the piano, but have different feature sets when it comes to the settings in which you want to play.

Thanks a lot! I downloaded the RD-2000 owner's manual and the parameters were not mentioned, only sympathetic resonance. Glad to know it does in fact offer the same customization parameters as the FP-90. I hope you'll continue to publish videos with your experiences or performances with the RD-2000 and such, I'm sure I'm not the only one interested.

Thank you very much! Those pieces are inventions by JS Bach. The first one is invention 13, I think, and the second one is invention 4.

Wow, thank you tiroh! You spared me some think and search time. The inventions have never been my favorite works of J.S. Bach but you have proved to me that it is shameful that I forgot them. Some of them are indeed real treasures.

Bagatelle No. 25 / "Für Elise" (Beethoven) Piano Sonata No. 11 / Rondo alla turca (Mozart) Inventio 13, BWV 784 (Bach) Inventio 4, BWV 775 (Bach)

@@tiroh8490 Thank you very much!

Well, I experimented with all the settings of the piano designer, both of the V-piano engine and the SuperNatural engine, and this was part of my frustration. I didn't find that they can add to the authenticity of the sound. They *change* the sound, yes, but they cannot make it more real or authentic. So, I think it's a matter of taste, not realism. This topic is so complex that one could do a whole video about it. At this point, I only want to say that for an acoustic instrument, the parameters you mentioned (hammer noise, tuning etc) can be chosen rather freely by the piano manufacturer and the piano tuner, so basically all choices are "authentic" or "real". They just sound different, and that's the reason why we should always play an acoustic piano before buying it -- you never know how it sounds and whether it is right for you before you have played it.

tiroh I see what you're saying. In my personal experience I really enjoy playing it, and I play complex classical. And it feels totally fine to me. However I do play in a lot of crappy uprights and really old beat up school grands, so to me the rd feels like heaven and sounds like heaven. School pianos are always in terrible shape.

But you're right, Roland focuses more on the working musician, the band artist, the jazz guys, that are always playing in places. If they thought of us classical fellas they would probably come up with the sickest stage piano.

There is no music sheet rest, you must have seen something that isn't there :)

Hm, actually that wasn't a real song, it was just a bit of improvisation I came up with for the video. So, I'm sorry, but there isn't any name of it!

Oh shit, that was really nice.. :D I have to learn it from Video then. :D Thanks

Yes, I did. The reason why I started with the FP-30 is because I didn't know at first whether I would be successful with playing again, but I made progress really fast. So I upgraded because I wanted the best action that is currently available.

tiroh Yeah i get you. Ive decided to buy the fp 30 because i am not really sure if i will stick with piano playing for a long time. But i have tried the rd 2000 in a music store and it felt really wonderful. Who knows, maybe i will upgrade to the rd 2000 too one day. Good luck with playing!!! I really enjoy your videos, i would die to see you play some songs =]

The RD-2000 is not comparable to the FP-30 because the RD-2000 is a professional stage piano and MIDI master keyboard for stage musicians while the FP-30 is an entry-level piano for home use. I used the FP-30 when I wasn't sure whether I would resume making music (I had paused for years). I did, and then I decided to use the RD-2000 instead.

UPDATE: I am sorry, my reply is WRONG, I accidentally thought your question is related to a different video! The RD-2000 has NO internal speakers! It has internal speakers, but as always, internal speakers cannot compete with good external ones or audiophile headphones, they sound not as natural. Headphones are usually best for that purpose. I use Sennheiser HD 598.

@@tiroh8490 alright thanks, now in this video is that the sound coming from the piano itself, or the speaker boxes?

I am sorry, my reply is WRONG, I accidentally thought your question is related to a different video! The RD-2000 has NO internal speakers! Professional stage piano rarely have them. I recorded the sound directly from the piano via USB.

Funny thing is, listen to this Schubert recording and play along with the RD-2000 using the settings I suggested: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/gqyanqyjt9C-iok.html You will find that the Steinway and the RD-2000 sound astonishingly similar.

Thank you.

We have to differentiate between the two sound engines of the RD-2000: the SuperNatural engine has a polyphony of 128, but the V-Piano engine has unlimited polyphony. (This is because it simulates the sound waves, it doesn't replay samples.) In my view, marketing begins at that point where a seller wants you to believe that you will benefit from a polyphony of more than 128. For playing the piano, a polyphony of 128 is definitely sufficient, both for a beginner and an intermediate player. Pieces that really require the instrument to play 128 notes or even more than that simultaneously should be rare. Also, such a piece would be difficult to play: You would have to play 128 notes so quickly that the first one is still clearly audible at the point when you play the 129th note. This may be technically possible, but is uncommon.

In fact, I did explore those other settings, but found that for me they do not improve the piano sound. Yes, they CHANGE it, but they do not IMPROVE it, at least not for me. Of course, you might have a different taste.

Die Frage ist zunächst einmal, was genau "nicht gut klingen" bedeutet. Wie hört es sich denn an?

Es klingt mumpfig, unausgewogen und sehr mittenbetont. Via Kopfhörer ist alles super. Aber weder an den Studiomonitoren noch an der PA klingt es so wie in Ihrem Video bzw den Demo Videos in KZfaq. Zur Orientierung: Das Yamaha p85 der Kinder klingt besser am selben Setup... LG

Gut. (Ich sage mal internet-typisch "du", ich hoffe, das ist ok.) Also: Eine Grundregel von Live-Auftritten ist (unabhängig ob Rock, Pop oder Kirchenmusik), dass man den Klang an die jeweilige Raumakustik anpassen muss. Und nicht alle PAs arbeiten gleich oder gleich gut. (Manche Live-Musiker haben sogar als Notbehelf für den Fall, dass die PA vor Ort nicht gut funktioniert, eigene Mixer dabei.) Erschwerend kommt hinzu, dass es für die Raumakustik ein großer Unterschied ist, ob der Raum leer ist oder ob das Publikum da ist. Die Anwesenheit vieler Menschen verändert die Akustik nämlich unter Umständen ganz immens. Das ist eine Sache, die man nur mit Erfahrung in den Griff bekommt. -- Bevor wir klären können, wie du dein Setup korrigieren musst, gibt es zunächst drei weitere Fragen: (1) Wie viele Wege haben dein Verstärker und deine Lautsprecher? (2) Wie groß sind die Durchmesser deiner Lautsprecher? (3) Welche Leistung hat dein Verstärker in Watt?

Yes, that's true. For me, the V-Piano sounds sound very unnatural. That's why I speculated that Roland intended them to be used in the context of a band, rather than solo in a concert setting.

I personally find they are better suited for jazz than for classical music. I think they are designed by Roland to be used in a band setting where the piano has to "defend" itself against the sound of other instruments.

I think the deep grand is really nice for classical.

Sounds strange ... maybe you could make a private video of this that demonstrates the issue and tell me the link?

@@tiroh8490 Thanks. I will make it later, and post it unlisted, then I can send you a link. 🙏👍

Classical pianists don't use an RD-2000 but a grand. This video is not about being a classical pianist but how to make the sound of the RD-2000 less dry. A dry grand doesn't sound as attractive when compared to a grand played in a concert hall. I don't recommend to hook electrical pianos up to any audio system. The room acoustics of most people's living rooms (who are not audiophiles) with all the many reflecting surfaces at the wrong places don't lend themselves to attractive reverb. Also, multiple speakers would have to be placed at exactly the right places with the right distances and angles relative to the listeners which is something only audiophiles would be willing to care about (and pay for).

This is a stage piano

This is basically nonsense, please differentiate between what's really in the video what you personally associate with it.

Lol you talk shit like you know everything about music, like you are the master and everything you say is correct. I am not a classical pianist myself, but I am very sad knowing that people like you still exist in this world.

Really? www.classicalmpr.org/story/2016/12/14/mozart-cd-sales

What are you talking about? You really have no sense of nuance obviously. Classical pianist all strive for the perfect sound to connect with. Bright, closely mic'ed piano samples jarr on the ears and the senses. It's as simple as that

Again, this is basically nonsense, and please differentiate between what's really in the video what you personally associate with it. I personally have been composing music since I was 12 years old, I improvise all the time and each day, also with electronic music. This video just makes a suggestion how to set up the RD-2000 for classical piano music, that's all.

tiroh with all due respect what I am trying to say is when ur comparing the different concert pianos on the Rd and saying this just doesn't sound right compared to the warm nx piano ur wrong. U can play pieces of classical music that will sound just fine on the other concert grand pianos you compared. So please don't say it just doesn't sound right. Also my rant about classical pianists stemmed from your critique of Roland and how they don't think of classical pianists. I don't see that and this is why the mindset of you so called classical pianists really irritates me. Music is meant to be enjoyed. Don't discourage people as all u classical pianists seem to do. Now ur playing was wonderful but perhaps you classical pianists can take a lesson from

tiroh Kylelandry a KZfaq pianist

I am not a classical pianist. I do not consider myself a "pianist" at all, I am just someone playing the piano. And I don't think I am discouraging people in my video to experiment with the instrument and explore the possibilities. In MY opinion, sounds like the "Stage Grand" or the "NX Concert Grand" do not have enough spatiality for classical music, but are specially made for the needs of jazz, blues, and pop. This is MY opinion, and I do not intend to obligate other people to adopt it. I only make a suggestion. If other people feel the "Stage Grand" sounds awesome for classical music, that's great, and by all means they should use it. If they like, they can write their own suggestions into the comments of this video. I can also explain my opinion. Classical music often makes use of all the nuances and details of the instruments, which is not the case in pop music. For instance, a quick but very silent run in a Chopin piece has different requirements for the instrument than a quick run in a jazz piece where the piano has to defend itself against bass and drums and thus needs a more pushing, asserting sound. From this, special requirements for the sound follow regarding frequencies, reverberation, etc.

Don't let this fellow get you down. I found your video very helpful. Thanks!