Roland GR-D

Started by jodama, March 13, 2017, 06:37:07 AM

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jodama

There's no board for the GR-D/GR-S and I got the 'old thread' warning when I went to post at the one place they seem to be discussed on this site, so I'm starting a new one. I wasn't sure what my purpose was for writing this, but it kind of sounds like a review, so I'm putting it here.

At the moment, I'm buying any (sub-$200 or so) 13 pin stuff I come across, and I happened to find a GR-D at a local store a week or two ago. I had a mild interest in the GR-S, so I was kind of disappointed to find its brother, but I went for it anyway. It set me back $80 which might be too much...I don't know.

I've never been a big distortion user and in fact, this is the first dedicated distortion pedal I've ever owned. I have to say though...I like it. The sounds are really synthetic, which is a good thing for me. It sounds like more of a synth-overdrive effect than a distortion pedal, which makes it more useful for my purposes.

All of the sounds it can create are available on the GP-10 for the most part. However, the 2nd distortion sound doubles straight distortion with a wave synth, which you can't strictly do on the GP-10 (to my knowledge). You can have one or the other, but not both at the same time.

At high gain settings it's a bit too loud, but I think that's due to my piezo pickup rather than the pedal itself, since I've seen the GR-D described as 'no noise' distortion.

Anyway, I don't know how much use I'm going to get out of it, and I definitely don't think it is worth $300 or whatever they were charging when it was first released, but it's a fun thing to mess around with. If it weren't for the noise, I might even try to incorporate it into my arsenal somehow.

Does else anyone care about these things at this point or are they too one-dimensional/redundant?

admin


Brak(E)man

#2
Quote from: jodama on March 13, 2017, 06:37:07 AM
All of the sounds it can create are available on the GP-10 for the most part. However, the 2nd distortion sound doubles straight distortion with a wave synth, which you can't strictly do on the GP-10 (to my knowledge). You can have one or the other, but not both at the same time.

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Does else anyone care about these things at this point or are they too one-dimensional/redundant?


You can have straight distortion with the normal PU and a wave synth from the hex on gp10

And I'd love to own both the gr-d , Gr-s and wp-20g
swimming with a hole in my body

I play Country music too, I'm just not sure which country it's from...

"The only thing worse than a guitar is a guitarist!"
- Lydia Lunch

admin

#3
The 2012 era GR-S- / GR-D were overpriced and not a popular seller  - fundamental flaw was lack of a "GK Thru"  - presented a hurdle for existing GK 13 pin users to add these pedal to their rig. And Roland stated that a $300 US-20 GK Selector was the method to add a GR-D to your GR-55 rig ( $300 GR-D + $300 US-20 = $600) 

Also there were few compelling reasons for a non 13 pin guitarist to buy a new GK-3 PU , install it on your guitar just for the GR-D
https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=7250.0

Right before release of the superior $300 GP-10 , both the GR-S, GR-D were blown out for $99 by Roland dealers   -

IMHO a GP-10 remains a better investment 


FWIW - The SpiceTone 6Appeal hex fuzz is a better tool than GR-D IMHO
https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=12104.msg88081#msg88081




Peter the GR-eat...

I bought the GR-D and S  some time ago when they were being sold-out cheep.

I like them both! I might even post a review some day. :)

chlorinemist

Spicetone 6Appeal is the way to go. 1000%

It does nearly everything both the GR-D and GR-S do, but fully editable. The GR-S poly slow gear doesn't even have an attack parameter! The 6Appeal, on the other hand, has a poly slow gear/autoswell effect with a full-blown ADSR envelope section, complete with a parameter for switching between logarithmic, exponential and linear response curves, and 18 mod destinations. It is as deep as any synthesizer, and features a 100% analog signal path that is 100% digitally controlled. A real musical instrument, fully equipped for musical use.

Peter the GR-eat...

#6
I don't have a Spicetone 6Appeal. Would love to but haven't been able to afford it.
Everything i read and heard about it make me impressed . It is on my list for sure!


Actually the the only ADSRish parameter the GR-S has, is attac (color) same as GP-10.
It has the hold function as well. The hold works with a 1/4 jack as well.

Editing is direct an esay with both GR-D and S. At lest when starting in manual mode.
The downside in once you saved a sound i one of the four slots, you can't get any visual overview of what you saved..

Im not comparing them them with the 6Appeal. It seems to on another lever.

Rhcole

Anybody interested in a GR-S lightly used, PM me.


Peter the GR-eat...

An updated review. Well or a review
of a mode of of the GR-D

In light I resent events, I dug out my GR-D
And besides POY-DIST being as amazing as i remembered, I started fiddling with VG-DIST 2
It is an amazing octa fuzz, well maybe not octa fuzz but fuzz + 1 octave below, or maybe it's the sub octave going in to the fuzz not sure about the signal path.
But it sounds great!
If someone who's not an initiated member in the V-guitar/guitarsynth  fellowship, eh, or maby even someone who is, sees a a distortion labeled something like VIRTUAL distortion
This is probably  Not the sound that would come to mind.
It sounded like an 60s fuzz
i only listened to demos of MXR blue box but reminded me somewhat  of that but as i wrote it 1 octave below instead of 2, and it polyphonic!

Still its annoying that theres not ahi input for EXP pedal(s) Would be great to control it like the DD-7 And its stupid that the GK-volyme can't be assigned
tho something else than Level (master volume)

But this pedal is starting to grew on me again!

Peter the GR-eat...

#9
Quote from: Peter the GR-eat... on January 04, 2020, 06:21:02 PM
An updated review. Well or a review
of a mode of of the GR-D

In light I resent events, I dug out my GR-D
And besides POY-DIST being as amazing as i remembered, I started fiddling with VG-DIST 2
It is an amazing octa fuzz, well maybe not octa fuzz but fuzz + 1 octave below, or maybe it's the sub octave going in to the fuzz not sure about the signal path.
But it sounds great!
If someone who's not an initiated member in the V-guitar/guitarsynth  fellowship, eh, or maby even someone who is, sees a a distortion labeled something like VIRTUAL distortion
This is probably  Not the sound that would come to mind.
It sounded like an 60s fuzz
i only listened to demos of MXR blue box but reminded me somewhat  of that but as i wrote it 1 octave below instead of 2, and it polyphonic!

Still its annoying that theres not ahi input for EXP pedal(s) Would be great to control it like the DD-7 And its stupid that the GK-volyme can't be assigned
tho something else than Level (master volume)

But this pedal is starting to grew on me again!

Extra edit update!

I found that by either using the right pedal and or adjusting the color knob and to some extent the tone knob
and octave above (at lest thats what i think is is, could be the same octvae but doubbled) can be achieved.
Roland could really put some more effort in writing this manual!
Why would they only mention a third of what could be done with this pedal in a poor and confusing way!?