Waking up Roland using Social Media?

Started by Baldadi, January 08, 2013, 05:33:56 AM

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Elantric

#50
Hey - RolandUS  has featured the VG-99 here:
http://rolandarblog.com/2012/11/14/the-vg-99-inspires/
http://www.rolandus.com/blog/2012/11/21/steve-stevens-v-guitar-experience-interview/
And if you enter something on the "Leave Feedback" form at the bottom  - a live Roland employee will respond delete your post!


shawnb

Yet...   In their very first sentence...  Roland calls the VG-99 a synthesizer...   
Address the process rather than the outcome.  Then, the outcome becomes more likely.   - Fripp

musicman65

this forum should be required reading for any Roland US employee or Japanese guitar synth product developer or marketer.

....but they prefer having their heads buried in the sand.

bd

Litesnsirens

i'm currently using a GR-55 and very happily so, but there are some features of the VG-99 that are enticing.  The problem is there are a ton of them that aren't.   I am hoping that the next incarnation of the VG-99 (whatever they name it) will be, as some users previously in this thread requested, a floor based pedal board.  I would be happy to work with just what the Gr-55 has now, I know many would like more than that...but let's start somewhere.  The ribbon control and the v-beam are interesting... but I use my hands to play my guitar.  I've seen the demos of what you can do with those features and again cool, but they might come into play once or twice in an evening and nothing that couldn't be done with an expression pedal and/or control pedal sonically speaking.  I guess if your schtick is waving your hand in the air to make changes in your guitar sound then this is a must have.

I really think that if there is any wonder as to why this didn't do as well as it might have, put the keyboard controllers on your keyboards and leave them there and give us guitar players something we can put on the floor and work with our feet.  I get it that perhaps a lot of current users have sorted this out but I'll bet more have bought FC-300s, and I'll also bet that a bunch of current users wouldn't have been disappointed if these hand controls were gone and there were some footswitches and an expression pedal in their place.  And maybe just maybe they would have sold a ton more of these units.

Aside from this, I would like to see them incorporate more synth sounds into the unit, but not necessarily PCM tones like you find on the Gr-55 but more modelled tones in the shape of piano, electric piano, strings, sax, horns.  You know basic bread and butter stuff but modelled so that it responds faster than the PCM tones.

At the end of the day though I hope Roland learns as they go and continues to develop these products both the VG and the GR.  They really are very cool, and I am discovering more and more that these products are right in line with what I want to do.  I'm not at the point where I'm thinking this is perfect, and there is no way to improve it, but from a band perspective for me, it solves more problems than it creates. The GR seems to be bridging some gaps, so perhaps as they move forward the gap will become even less, and the GR will just be the entry level version of the VG.

Looking forward to seeing what is on the horizon and hoping someone at Roland has their ear to the ground.

Baldeagle

#54
Mmm, interesting- I bought the GR-55 months ago- my local Music Store supplied me with it, they had got two, one went to me, the other they kept as a demo, after initial, curious interest, from a handful of the Stores customers, ( it's a very busy, well-supported Muso-friendly Store) it now sits gathering dust in a corner, though still very visible to potential customers, the guys who run the Store, all of them experienced,  competent musicians, admit to an almost total ignorance, regarding the GR-55, indeed, they defer to my knowledge, gleaned from my initial stumbling fiddlings,-until, I discovered this wonderful Forum, which, with it's wide base of extremely knowledgeable /contributors, (you guys know who you are, and you are priceless! ) it almost makes wonder, if there is a conspiracy of apathy within Roland itself,
I seem to be the only guitarist around my way,  who was using the GR-55-then a few days ago, I bought a second-hand VG-99.....this device leaves me speechless, I'm sure I don't have to trumpet it's many merits to you guys,
But nobody around here knows of their existence,  obviously,  Rolands PR dept is non existent, (certainly in the UK)
I mean, how long has the VG-99 been out on the open market?  It come to a sad old state, when an old fart like me 63
Years old, has to show young whippersnappers of guitarists, how to use an advanced piece of technology, like this!? By the way, my GR-55 is not redundant, because its floor friendly, (unlike the VG-99) its still used frequently.
You don't know what you've got, till it's gone"- Joni Mitchell

Baldeagle

One other thing I've noticed about the GR-55-is how many of them are for sale on eBay lately, both private and dealer sellers, or is this a normal occurrence?
You don't know what you've got, till it's gone"- Joni Mitchell

Elantric

#56
Re ebay GR-55'S

Its a predictable outcome due to the fact the unit has strengths and weaknesses, but Roland Marketing overhyped all aspects of the GR-55 and see all the posts here by folks wondering what is the secret to unlock all the functions advertised on the shipping  box.

Test for yourself. When I was bored I used to head to Radio Shack for my dose of humor eavesdropping on Store Manager's incorrect technobabble trying to explain broadband internet or computer video technology to a housewife.

Today similar humor occurs listening to Guitar Center Salesmen trying to explain Roland VG/GR gear.

Free thinking is a dead art.
Self starters who view learning arcane physics,  math, engineering skills as a means to obtain better guitar sound are a rare breed.

Those who posses those talents and skills already found kindred spirits right here at VGuitarforums.
Our forum represents a direct example of:
  "If you build it, they will come".

But look around you. Most young guitarists I experience are lemmings who only lust for the gear they see used during SuperBowl half time or a heavy metal concert, or from a Youtube maketing shill.
As long as there are 17 year old boys, there will always be the mindset of " How many Marshall 4x12 Cab Stacks do you  use" as a yardstick to measure ones success.





Meanwhile Show business remains the same and plays by the same rules it always has for centuries




mbenigni

QuoteMeanwhile Show business remains the same and plays by the same rules it always has for centuries

"Check the calendar... the change isn't due for three weeks." 

HAHAHAHA!

Of course back then this would have been exaggeration for effect; today it's literal.

Virtual Madness

Quote from: Elantric on June 28, 2013, 07:14:17 AMMeanwhile Show business remains the same and plays by the same rules it always has for centuries

Beautiful Steve.

I haven't seen that bit in years, and it still makes me as stupidly happy as it always did. We'll not see anything like that again. What times..what a band.

Thanks for that, Royce
The greatest power in the universe is imagination!

Kevin M

Frank Zappa made some good points about the recording industry and how truly constrained free thinking has become in it:


musicman65

BaldEagle,

The GR55 may be "floor friendly" but it has tons of constraints. Your next item of Roland gear, now that you've joined our little club, is an FC300 midi floor pedal for your VG99. The integration between these two is awesome. You will discover that the VG99 is a killer live performance tool with very few constraints.

bd

Elantric

QuoteHey - RolandUS  has featured the VG-99 here:
http://rolandarblog.com/2012/11/14/the-vg-99-inspires/
http://www.rolandus.com/blog/2012/11/21/steve-stevens-v-guitar-experience-interview/
And if you enter something on the "Leave Feedback" form at the bottom  - a live Roland employee will respond


Well - if you DO ACTUALLY enter something on the "Leave Feedback" form at the bottom  - a live Roland employee will respond by Deleting your post! - They deleted mine. Closed minded control freaks worse than Gibson. I bet if they ever actually hosted an actual real "RolandUS User Forum", they would just ban me (and folks like me) after the first month.

aliensporebomb

I tried to indicate at the bottom of that VG-99 Inspires article about my involvement in using the VG-99 for a soundtrack for a film I scored and they basically never posted what I mentioned or deleted it outright.

"Thou shall not try to make our red headed stepchild product popular."
My music projects online at http://www.aliensporebomb.com/

GK Devices:  Roland VG-99, Boss GP-10, Boss SY-1000.

whippinpost91850

Bald Eagle, From one "OLD FART" to another (I'll be 62 in Sept) It amazes me how these 2 Pieces go unnoticed by younger players, who allways seem to hunger for something different ???

bbob

Meanwhile...

Line 6 recently started a user feedback product idea website:

http://line6.ideascale.com/


whippinpost91850

Quote from: Elantric on June 28, 2013, 04:16:48 PM

Well - if you DO ACTUALLY enter something on the "Leave Feedback" form at the bottom  - a live Roland employee will respond by Deleting your post! - They deleted mine. Closed minded control freaks worse than Gibson. I bet if they ever actually hosted an actual real "RolandUS User Forum", they would just ban me (and folks like me) after the first month.
How true and It's always been that way. I remember 20 years ago when I had a fairly major music store ,in Deatroit area, The shirt and tie rep( he was an excellent Jazz style player) would come in and tell me I needed to order this & that, but never had any answers. And at many a NAMM shoe I can remember being pretty much told "You just don't know" when I tried to get answers to problems and compalints. ::)

whippinpost91850

Man, I wish you could edit here. My spelling sucks or maybe it's just my typing :-[

Kevin M

Quote from: whippinpost91850 on June 28, 2013, 06:17:35 PMMan, I wish you could edit here. My spelling sucks or maybe it's just my typing :-[

You should be able to edit your posts.

Edit: see?  :-)

musicman65

Can't edit in the WAP (mobile) view.

Edit: Nevermind...  :)

tekrytor

Best to wear your "V" mask when "poisoning the well". Big Brother is definitely watching... and listening... and reading.
And he knows exactly who we all are. Here we are now, entertainers.
SY-300/BeatBuddy/VoiceLive 3/GR-55(v1.50)/33/1/50/700/VGA-7/V-Bass, Yam-G10, GPK-4, DIY X-Bee HighlyLiquidCPU "Cozy-Lil-Footie", FCB-1010, other MIDI stuff, Godin Freeway SA and various other GK equipped controllers, Sonar X1, Audacity, KXstudio, Misc devices

aliensporebomb

I've never once been contacted by them for anything.  I own a boatload of Roland gear, some of it relatively recent, some of it decades old and bought when I was a young pup.  They're not perfect (like ay company) but they do make good stuff that usually doesn't breakdown or have issues. 
My music projects online at http://www.aliensporebomb.com/

GK Devices:  Roland VG-99, Boss GP-10, Boss SY-1000.

tekrytor

I could have easily bought a car for all the Roland gear over bought over the years. Not even a birthday card from them either. :(
SY-300/BeatBuddy/VoiceLive 3/GR-55(v1.50)/33/1/50/700/VGA-7/V-Bass, Yam-G10, GPK-4, DIY X-Bee HighlyLiquidCPU "Cozy-Lil-Footie", FCB-1010, other MIDI stuff, Godin Freeway SA and various other GK equipped controllers, Sonar X1, Audacity, KXstudio, Misc devices

whippinpost91850

Quote from: tekrytor on July 02, 2013, 11:55:24 PM
I could have easily bought a car for all the Roland gear over bought over the years. Not even a birthday card from them either. :(
Tekrytor, Brilliantly Spoken ;D

Radley

*Three words* for Roland that would change everything for the better - HIRE BILL RUPPERT! It's not too late! He knows your product much better than any of your engineers/programmers, and could make VG99 sales skyrocket by simply doing clinics and programming tutorials! I have *never* heard anyone get so many great & unique sounds from this box...

musicman65

Roland makes great gear....but they are totally socially inept. They have no clue how to connect with musicians and aren't even interested in discovering how.

Bill Ruppert is a fan and advocate for the VG99 but, from what I remember, they passed on any opportunity to use him....so he now demos Electro-Harmonix pedals.

I wish someone from Roland would take the initiative to get on this forum and read and then (tender hearts stop reading here) GROW A SET OF BIG AMERICAN BALLS AND PUSH FOR CHANGE AT ROLAND JAPAN. Screw honor and pecking order. I know the drill...the culture doesn't allow ideas from non-approved sources. Well, what a shame. Roland could be so much more if they only allowed themselves to break free.

bd